Trump says he spoke to Pelosi, McConnell on border package

President Trump said on Wednesday that he spoke to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) as Congress struggles to agree on a border and humanitarian aid package to address the flow of Central American migrants.

Trump told reporters on the South Lawn of the White House that he believes Pelosi “wants to get something done” and that the Senate and House will eventually “be able to do something very good.” 

“A lot of people are starting to realize that I was right when I said we have a crisis at the border,” the president said. “It wasn’t manufactured at all.” 

{mosads}Pelosi called Trump to try and reconcile the House and Senate border funding packages, according to a senior Democratic aide. The president and Speaker talked for 15 minutes. 

She told reporters at the Capitol that the House would not take up the Senate bill and that she asked the president for time for the two chambers to negotiate a compromise agreement. 

“They passed their bill, we respect that. We passed our bill, we hope they will respect that. And if there’s some improvements that we think can be reconciled,” she said. 

Senate Republicans are pressing House leaders to take up their own version of the border package and skip a formal negotiation through a conference committee. 

The House has passed a bill providing $4.5 billion in additional funds to help federal agencies handle the influx of migrants, and the Senate is set to approve legislation with a nearly identical funding level. 

But the two packages have significant policy differences over agencies like Immigration and Customs Enforcement and aid to Central American countries, creating uncertainty over whether a compromise can be reached before lawmakers leave Washington next week for the July 4 recess. 

The White House has threatened to veto the Democratic-led House’s package, saying it contains several “problematic policy provisions that would hinder the administration’s efforts to enforce our immigration laws and protect children.”

—Updated at 2:43 p.m.