Trump Storms Out Of Meeting With Congressional Leaders, Threatening To Declare Emergency At Border
President Donald Trump stormed out of a negotiating meeting with congressional leaders Wednesday and threatened to declare a national emergency at the border after Democrats refused to yield to his demands for money for a border wall.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters that Trump abruptly ended the White House session after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she did not support his border wall.
“He just got up and said we have nothing to discuss, and he walked out,” Schumer said. “… He just walked out of the meeting.”
Schumer called Trump’s behavior “unbecoming of a president.”
Vice President Mike Pence and Republican lawmakers disputed the Democrats’ account and said the meeting ended after Democrats refused to offer a counterplan to reopen the government and demanded the GOP adopt their proposal.
Trump gave Schumer and Pelosi the floor to make their case, but “they want to argue,” said House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.
Trump treated the Democrats politely, McCarthy said, but they reacted with “embarrassing” behavior.
Trump himself seemed to confirm that he had walked out of the session, writing on Twitter: “Just left a meeting with Chuck and Nancy, a total waste of time. I asked what is going to happen in 30 days if I quickly open things up, are you going to approve Border Security which includes a Wall or Steel Barrier? Nancy said, NO. I said bye-bye, nothing else works!”
