GOP looks for a way out of the border with Trump

Senate Republicans are trying to avoid a collision with President Donald Trump this week, even as his new budget demands ensure that the painful political battle will drag on until the fall.

Some GOP senators are discussing a possible compromise with the White House to limit Republican defections in this week's vote to cancel Trump's emergency declaration, according to his senators and associates. Senators did not resolve the issue Monday night, but the discussions underscore the GOP's reluctance to fight with the Senate Speaker.

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Republican Senators, worried about the legality and precedent of Trump's unilateral decision to fund his wall, are asking whether the president will commit to signing a bill to amend the National Emergencies Act and reduce power presidential. In exchange, they would consider standing with the president and could vote against the disapproval measure adopted by the House.

"If there was a chance to make progress on the National Emergencies Act, which I think was problematic, then it would certainly be something I would consider," said Senator Marco Rubio ( R-Fla.).

Two GOP Senators, Mike Lee (Utah) and Thom Tillis (North Carolina), discussed potential changes to the law with the White House over the weekend. Tillis opposes Trump's national emergency declaration and Lee remains undecided as to how he will vote. A dozen GOP senators question the opportunity to vote against the White House.

"There are a lot of different discussions going on and I really think the White House has been great in talking to a number of members, including me one of them," said Tillis. He said that they were discussing how to reconcile the "individual power of the president" and the role of Congress.

Lee has tabled a proposal requiring Congress to approve any emergency declaration after 30 days, although the White House wants to extend this period considerably.

A close to the White House said that it was unlikely that the president would accept a compromise reducing executive power.

In addition to Tillis, the Meaning. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.) Announced that they would join the 47 Democrats and vote to reprimand Trump. A simple majority is enough to send the bill to the office of the president, which most Republicans would like to avoid after the president has begun to strengthen his engagement in recent days.

On Monday, Trump tweeted that "Republican senators have a very easy vote this week," adding, "Be firm!"

If the Senate Republicans and the President can reach an agreement, this will give a good indication of their ability to unite during what will be a difficult fall.

Trump claimed $ 8.6 billion for the wall next year in his budget Monday, in addition to about $ 8 billion that he sought this year. This decision creates a new, brutal legislative conflict, complicates government funding and raises the debt ceiling before October.

We do not know if last-minute negotiations will work. To change the law, it would take 60 votes in the Senate and the support of the Democratic House leaders, in addition to Trump's signature. And he may not be able to prevent the measure of disapproval from reaching the president's office because of the deep disagreement of some GOP senators over Trump's use of emergency powers.

A senator familiar with the discussions said, "Maybe we could get to a point where the president will give some assurance" to senators on the change of the law to avoid future problems around the Congress. But no final decision has been made and it will probably be difficult to convince the Democrats to be angry at Trump's declaration of urgency.

"There have been discussions about this … it will probably be a difficult sell. No president wants to limit their power, but I hope we will have a good conversation about it, "said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas). "All this kind of thing would be purely prospective, so I think we will treat the current statement on its own terms."

Most budget requests are generally rejected by Congress, but the border fence is something different. This is Trump's main political priority – his only legislative request – and this has already led to a historic 35-day closure.

White House officials on Monday pleaded for Congress to essentially complete the wall in line with Trump's budget plans for the 2020 campaign.

"This $ 8.6 billion is for what we would need in addition to this wall," said Russ Vought, Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Now that the Democrats control the House, the burden of fighting for the presidential boundary wall lies almost exclusively with the Senate GOP.

Republicans quickly said the White House's goal was ambitious.

"We will not stop the government. And the president, by his executive order, has anyway more money than he can build a wall in the next 18 months. So, I do not think it will be a problem, "said Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). "If you want to ask me if I would support him, of course."

But can more than $ 8 billion of wall money go through the Senate? Grassley said no, as did other GOP colleagues.

"It will be a real challenge, no doubt," said Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah).

"It's hard to imagine," said Senator Roy Blunt (R-Mo.).

However, it has become clear that the border battle will not take place in the next 20 months before the 2020 presidential election.

As long as the president maintains his state of national emergency in place, Democrats can impose a disapproval vote every six months, according to the law. And as long as he remains president, it would seem that Trump will continue to solicit more money from Congress to build his border wall.

"This is the beginning of the discussion. You never know what's going to happen here, "said Senate Speaker for Supply Richard Shelby (R-Ala.). "I'm not worried, I would say it's the first part of a long battle that will probably take place until the end of the year."

Eliana Johnson contributed to this report.