The White House prepares an order of urgency that Trump could issue on funds: CNN | Top news

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House is preparing an emergency statement that President Donald Trump could issue to bypass Congress if lawmakers do not fund a wall along the southern border of the United States, CNN reported on Thursday, citing internal documents.

The proclamation bill was updated as early as last week, a US government official told CNN. CNN said Trump's advisers remained divided on the issue.

The report comes as a group of bipartisan deputies presented to the Senate an amendment that would temporarily open the US government, which was partially closed for a record 34 days after Trump's application. wall of financing.

A senator stated that he did not think the measure contained wall funding.

Trump claimed $ 5.7 billion for a wall, an essential idea in his electoral candidacy and an essential part of his candidacy. its radical policies on illegal immigration. The Democrats rejected his request and instead sought to provide funds for other security measures at the border.

The manager told CNN that among the options being considered for paying a wall, $ 681 million from a Treasury Department asset forfeiture fund was $ 3.6 billion. from military construction funds, $ 3 billion worth of civil engineering work at the Pentagon, and $ 200 million from the Department of Homeland Security.

"We are looking at all our options" but nothing is imminent, said a senior Trump administration official about the report. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a separate request from Reuters for a comment.

If an emergency case was declared, the US Army Corps of Engineers would build the wall, reported CNN.

The documents indicate that environmental studies could be ignored. and that DHS could use exemptions to circumvent contract laws, which could speed up construction.

(review by Tim Ahmann and Steve Holland, edition of David Alexander and James Dalgleish)

Copyright 2019 Thomson Reuters