Lawmakers hopeful of agreement that would prevent shutdown

Capitol Hill negotiators are hopeful of an agreement as they officially kick off talks on a homeland security spending bill that is trapped in a stalemate over President Donald Trump's long-stalled border wall.

Left on their own, the seasoned House and Senate lawmakers say they could easily reach a border security deal as they have for two years in a row.

But whether Trump would sign it is another matter altogether.

Trump has grown impatient and his demands on his U.S.-Mexico border wall have become more insistent even though Democrats took back the House last fall.

Democrats remain united against Trump's vision for a massive wall project, yet some are signaling a willingness to deal in the wake of the 35-day partial government shutdown.

"We've consistently said that we do not support a medieval border wall from sea to shining sea," said Rep. Hakim Jeffries of New York, the No. 4 House Democrat. "However, we are able to support fencing where is makes sense, but it should be done in an evidence-based fashion."
"We've come to big agreements before," said the Senate's top Democrat, Chuck Schumer of New York. "What was the common theme? When the president stays out of the negotiations we almost always succeed. When he mixes in, it's a formula for failure. So, I'd ask President Trump, 'Let Congress deal with it on its own.'"
When asked to describe a border security agreement he'd support, McConnell said, "I'm for whatever works that would prevent the level of dysfunction we've seen on full display here the last month and also doesn't bring about a view on the president's part that he needs to declare a national emergency."