Yesterday, President Trump held a signing ceremony in upstate New York for the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act. This is the appropriations bill that approves the Defense Department's funding for the next year.
This is the first 2019 appropriations bill that Trump has signed. GOP leaders are saying that they will be rushing the next batch of spending bills to Trump's desk as soon as possible. They have to get all of these bills passed by September 30.
One of those bills is the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2019.
If the border wall is going to go up in Trump's first term, it must be funded in this piece of legislation. There is no other option.
Conservatives are pushing to include 5 billion for new border wall construction. Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell are refusing to let that language reach the floor. They are stripping out this wall funding entirely in order to cater to the Democrats' demands!
This is all going to happen at lightening speed. Now that the Defense spending bill has been passed, Congress must pass at least half a dozen other spending bills in less than a month and a half in order to keep the government running. The deadline is September 30.
The Senate version of the Homeland Security Appropriations Bill includes ZERO funding for the border wall. Their bill allows for a small amount of existing border fence to be upgraded, but explicitly prohibits new wall construction.
Mitch McConnell is refusing to add any wall funding to the bill. It will be passed as-written or not at all. Terrified of a fight, Paul Ryan is surrendering and agreed to remove the funding from the House version to keep McConnell and the liberal Senators happy.
We have all of the leverage. There are 10 Democrat Senators up for re-election in states that Trump won. If Mitch McConnell just stays the course, he can pressure them into approving the wall or force them to go on the record against it during a heated election year. It is a win-win. Two Democrats - Joe Manchin (WV) and Joe Donnelly (IN) have already flipped and agreed to give Trump all the funding he needs.
But McConnell refuses to budge. He would rather dare Trump to shutdown the government than secure the southern border...
We have never been closer to defeat. Never.
There is still time to turn this around. Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell may hold the power, but they are still only two votes.
This legislation still needs to make its way through subcommittees and multiple committees. Then, it will be subject to a floor amendment process.
We can still get Congress to fund the border wall, but only if you get loud.
It is up to you to force the rest of Congress to shut this betrayal down!
Fight back before it's too late,
Joe Otto
Conservative Daily
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