Ted Cruz wants to use $14 billion seized from El Chapo — to pay for the wall https://t.co/psJworoZBv
— Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy) April 25, 2017
… even less useful, and not quite as popular!
That money’s already earmarked for the tunnel that’ll go under the wall. https://t.co/sjzBeNlWjk
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) April 25, 2017
Some people are too clever for their own good, Ted Cruz is not clever enough https://t.co/Qp5d9I17bs
— Dan Pfeiffer (@danpfeiffer) April 25, 2017
After all, he got his GOP arse kicked by *this* mook…
… The wall, of course, was the biggest applause line for Trump throughout his campaign — often taking the form of a call-and-response with his approving crowds. And given how divisive it is, inserting it into must-pass legislation like a government funding bill seemed to be the best way to get what Trump wants…
Fast forward a little more than 24 hours, and Trump apparently abandoned that demand. With still four days to go in the funding battle, he showed his hard-line stance wasn’t so hard-line, after all. Basically, he had his bluff called — again.
He took what is likely his best chance at getting funding for something he promised to voters dozens upon dozens of times, and he didn’t even bring it close to the finish line to make Democrats sweat. Indeed, the likelihood that Congress is going to agree to fund the wall at a later date seems considerably less than it would be this week. Trump has essentially taken his wall and turned it into a metaphorical wall — substituting increased enforcement — rather than a brick-and-mortar one.
This kind of bluffing and having it called is undoubtedly something Trump is used to in the business and real estate worlds. But in the political world, you are negotiating with the same people over and over again. And the lesson of the first two big congressional debates is that when Trump says a bill must contain XYZ, he doesn’t really mean it; it’s just posturing. And that doesn’t bode well for future Trump demands….
From the Washington Post‘s pages to Murphy the Trickster God’s ever-cocked ears, she said piously.
Late Night Open Thread: Subtle As A Chili Fart…Post + Comments (24)