Trump accuses Democratic leaders of poisoning budget talks with 'out of the blue' demand

President Trump on Sunday accused Democratic leaders of stymieing the efforts of their congressional negotiators to reach a budget deal and avert another government shutdown.

“I don’t think the Dems on the Border Committee are being allowed by their leaders to make a deal. They are offering very little money for the desperately needed Border Wall & now, out of the blue, want a cap on convicted violent felons to be held in detention!” Trump tweeted Sunday.

A group of Republican and Democratic lawmakers has been working to reach consensus on a bipartisan border deal before Friday, when funding for a slew of federal agencies will run out. Trump has threatened to declare a national emergency to bypass Congress and build a wall along the southern border if lawmakers fail to reach a deal on border security.

The president wants Congress to allocate $5.7 billion for a wall, but congressional negotiators have been discussing a deal that would include between $1.3 billion and $2 billion.

Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney invited a group of lawmakers to Camp David for talks this weekend, but Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., the chief Republican negotiator, said during an interview on “Fox News Sunday" that the negotiations have stalled.

More