Former House Republican: Trump will lose the presidency if he backs away from border security

Former Rep. Mia Love (R-Utah) said Sunday that she believes President Trump will “lose the presidency” if he’s unable to secure funding for his proposed wall along the southern border.

“I believe that If the president actually backs away from border security and his border wall, he will lose the presidency and Republicans are going to have a really hard time,” Love said on “State of the Union” on CNN. 

She suggested that the wall is so critical to Trump that Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) should use it as leverage to demand permanent protections for “Dreamers” or immigrants receiving Temporary Protected Status (TPS), or other immigration reforms. 

“She can ask for anything and at least start there,” Love said.

Fmr GOP Rep. @MiaBLove: “I believe that if the President actually backs away from border security and his border wall, he will lose the presidency and Republicans are going to have a really hard time. I think that’s the reason why we’re not getting counteroffers” (Corrects quote) pic.twitter.com/2tzn5iqzBL

— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) January 20, 2019

{mosads}Love lost her re-election bid last November. Trump singled her out in a press conference after the midterm elections, criticizing her and other defeated Republicans for failing to embrace him on the campaign trail.

Trump on Saturday proposed a deal that would include more than $5 billion in funding for a wall along the southern border, a three-year extension of protections for “Dreamers” who benefit from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and Temporary Protected Status holders and funding for additional immigration judges. 

The bill, if passed, would end the partial government shutdown that has lasted 30 days and counting. The shutdown was triggered by Trump’s demand for border wall funding. 

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said he would bring Trump’s proposal up for a vote this week, but Democrats quickly signaled they did not support the measure, with Pelosi dismissing it as a “non-starter.”