At this point in time, given Trump’s general trajectory of late, and the continued marginalization of Steve Bannon, I doubt a Border Wall will even be started, let alone completed. From The Hill (“Dems winning fight over wall”):
Democrats are winning the war over the wall.
Despite President Trump’s request for more than $1 billion to fund the Mexican border wall this year, GOP leaders are expected to exclude the money in the spending bill being prepared to keep the government open beyond April 28.
Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) says the choice is pragmatic and the money will come later.
But the issue has become a political thorn in the side of GOP leaders who are facing pushback from Republicans voicing concerns over the diplomatic fallout, the disruption to local communities and the enormous cost of the project, estimated to be anywhere from $22 billion to $40 billion.
With Democrats united against new wall funding, it’s unlikely the Republicans have the votes to get it through and prevent a government shutdown…
In its budget request, the White House had sought $1.4 billion in 2017 funds for the wall. But hoping to prevent a government shutdown, Ryan has suggested the Republicans will largely delay the wall funding debate until September, when Congress takes up spending bills looking ahead to fiscal 2018.
John McAmnesty and Nancy Pelosi weigh in:
In a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing Wednesday, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) expressed concern to Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly about a growing resentment in Mexico over the administration’s border policies.
“There is a lot of anti-American sentiment in Mexico. If the election were tomorrow in Mexico, you’d probably have a left-wing, anti-American president in Mexico. That can’t be good for America,” McCain said…
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she’s hopeful the Republicans will punt on the issue, citing recent polls indicating that voters are largely opposed.
“I would hope that they wouldn’t try that because … the American people don’t even support it,” she told reporters Thursday.
A Pew Research poll released in February found that 67 percent of voters oppose the wall, and only 35 percent support it.
I’d like to see how do what degree the Pew Research polls is comprised of leading questions… but I’m too tired to look into it.
Bottom Line: With Kushner and Company now largely running the show, a border wall will be talked about less, and punted indefinitely, until 2018 midterms or a 2020 election ensures it never happens.
Si! Se puede!
