President Trump pressured congressional Democrats Saturday to drop their demands for amnesty for young illegal immigrants as part of a year-end spending deal, saying their insistence on protecting illegals is part of a liberal mindset that led to the death of Kate Steinle in San Francisco.
“Unfortunately, Democrats in Congress not only oppose our efforts to stop illegal immigration and crack down on sanctuary cities,” Mr. Trump said in his weekly address. “Now they are demanding amnesty as a condition for funding the government, holding troop funding hostage and putting our national security at risk. We cannot allow it.”
Mr. Trump signed a temporary spending bill Friday that will keep the government operating through Dec. 22. But Congress and the White House still must agree on a longer-term spending deal, and Democrats such as House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California insist that an agreement must include a solution to extend deportation amnesty for some 800,000 young illegal immigrants known as “Dreamers.”
The White House and congressional Republicans want any immigration fix to be separate from a spending bill to keep the government operating into the new year. Mr. Trump said every lawmaker “will have to make a choice.”
[contentcards url=”https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/dec/9/trump-accuses-democrats-endangering-us-citizens/” target=”_blank”]