Peña Nieto says Mexico does not “believe” in walls. Of course. That would be like rats "believing" in traps. - Maven Stark
Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will authorize $12 billion to $15 billion for a wall spanning the entire U.S.-Mexico border as soon as Sept. 30, the Republican leaders said Thursday.
They would not say whether they would offset the costs of the wall — which President Trump repeatedly vowed would be paid for by Mexico — with budget cuts elsewhere or taxes. The comments came midway through the Republicans’ annual retreat, this year called “Congress of Tomorrow,” during which lawmakers are plotting the first 200 days of action on such issues as repealing and replacing Obamacare and reforming the tax code.
InsideGov | Graphiq
After Ryan was asked several times if he planned to offset the billions for the wall, the speaker said he would “wait and see” what the Trump administration proposed.
“I’m not going to get ahead of a policy and bill that has not been written yet,” Ryan told reporters.
When asked if the lawmakers were concerned about Trump’s relationship with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, Ryan said, “I think it’ll be fine.” Two hours after Ryan’s comment, the Mexican president announced on Twitter that he was canceling his meeting with Trump next week.
Peña Nieto released a blistering video address on Twitter Wednesday, saying Mexico does not “believe” in walls. “I’ll say it again, Mexico will not pay for any wall,” he added.
Trump appeared to goad Peña Nieto into cancelling the meeting Thursday morning, saying it might be better for Peña Nieto to skip the trip if he didn’t plan to fund the wall.
“We intend to address the wall issue ourselves,” McConnell said. “The president can deal with his relations with other countries.”
In an interview with ABC News that aired Wednesday, Trump again claimed that Mexico would pay for the wall “in a form, … it may be a complicated form.” He did not elaborate.
Trump signed an executive order Wednesday saying it was his administration’s policy to immediately begin the wall’s construction. But the text of the order defines a wall as a “contiguous, physical wall or other similarly secure, contiguous and impassable physical barrier.” That leaves open the possibility that the “wall” could resemble existing fencing.
Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell at the GOP.
Nearly 700 miles of the southern border is already fenced off, thanks to the Secure Fence Act of 2006, which garnered bipartisan support. (Ryan pointed out that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer voted for it.) One analysis suggests building an entirely new wall would cost $40 billion, far more than the $15 billion McConnell and Ryan are talking about.
Ryan never used the word “wall” during his brief press conference with reporters, instead describing the barrier as a fulfillment of the Secure Fence Act.
Trump described the wall he envisioned as “impenetrable, physical, tall, powerful, beautiful” during the campaign, at one time saying it should be 55 feet tall. Trump also claimed that there was “a BIG difference” between a “wall” and a “fence.” It’s unclear if that’s what Congress has in mind.
After an intense backlash, House Republicans on Tuesday reversed their move gutting Congress’ independent ethics watchdog group.
The GOP vote to back down from reining in the Office of Congressional Ethics was unanimous, Jake Sherman of Politico reported.
Earlier in the day, President-elect Donald Trump, who campaigned on a promise to “drain the swamp,” criticized House Republicans for making their first move one that rolled back ethics safeguards. He said the Office of Congressional Ethics had been “unfair,” but Congress has bigger priorities they should attend to now.
Rep. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia proposed the original controversial amendment Monday night in a surprise closed-door meeting of Republicans. The move changed the name of the group from Office of Congressional Ethics to Office of Congressional Complaint Review, stripped it of its independence, blocked it from investigating any wrongdoing that occurred prior to 2011, and prevented it from releasing its findings to the public without the authorization of the House Committee on Ethics. The rules change also would have prevented the panel from alerting law enforcement to criminal activity without the approval of the House committee.
Rep. Bob Dold, R-Ill., gavels closed the 144th Congress. (Photo: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)
Rep. Bob Dold, R-Ill., gavels closed the 114th Congress. (Photo: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)
Watchdog groups on the left and the right harshly criticized the move, and at least one congressman said his office had been inundated with calls from angry constituents.
House GOP now in closed door meeting. Rep Walter Jones R-NC says his office swamped with calls on ethics changes.
“Can you imagine if the election results were the opposite and WE tried to play the Russia/CIA card,” Trump tweeted on Monday. “It would be called conspiracy theory
President-elect Trump speaks with Chris Wallace about the head of ExxonMobil in a 'Fox News Sunday' exclusive
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Trump: Tillerson is 'much more than a business executive'
President-elect Donald Trump, in an exclusive interview with “Fox News Sunday,” decried as “ridiculous” the CIA’s reported assessment that Russia intervened in the election to boost his candidacy – describing the claim as another “excuse” pushed by Democrats to explain his upset victory.
victory.
“It's just another excuse. I don't believe it,” Trump said. “… Every week it's another excuse. We had a massive landslide victory, as you know, in the Electoral College.”
Trump spoke with Fox News’ Chris Wallace in the president-elect’s first Sunday show interview since winning the election.
He spoke at length about his Cabinet selection process, defending his decision to tap several military generals while previewing an announcement soon on his secretary of state choice. He vowed as well to “clean” up and “speed” up government agencies, without necessarily dismantling President Obama’s legacy.
But while staying careful not to personally criticize the sitting president over his intelligence agencies’ analysis on foreign cyber-interference in the election, Trump made clear he rejects their assessment so far.
“Nobody really knows, and hacking is very interesting. Once they hack, if you don't catch them in the act you're not going to catch them,” he said. “They have no idea if it's Russia or China or somebody. It could be somebody sitting in a bed some place.”
Bolton said this means that a “really sophisticated foreign intelligence service would not leave any cyber fingerprints, and yet people say they did leave fingerprints in the hacks regarding our election.”
“So the question has to be asked: Why did the Russians run their smart intelligence service against Hillary’s server, but their dumb intelligence service against the election?”
Trump was responding to a Washington Post report that the CIA concluded in a secret assessment that Russia interfered in the race to boost Trump, not just undermine confidence in the system.
Intelligence agencies reportedly found individuals connected to the Russian government gave WikiLeaks hacked emails from the Democratic National Committee, as well as from Hillary Clinton Campaign Chairman John Podesta – though did not have “specific intelligence” showing Kremlin officials directed the activity.
The assessment was shared with key senators.
TRUMP TEAM SAYS 'MOVE ON' AFTER OBAMA SEEKS HACKING PROBE
Shortly before the interview with Trump aired on Sunday, a bipartisan group of senators described the Russia interference reports as serious.
“For years, foreign adversaries have directed cyberattacks at America’s physical, economic, and military infrastructure, while stealing our intellectual property. Now our democratic institutions have been targeted. Recent reports of Russian interference in our election should alarm every American,” Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz.; Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.; and Jack Reed, D-R.I., said in a statement.
“… Democrats and Republicans must work together, and across the jurisdictional lines of the Congress, to examine these recent incidents thoroughly and devise comprehensive solutions to deter and defend against further cyberattacks. This cannot become a partisan issue. The stakes are too high for our country.”
Amid the CIA findings, the White House also said Friday that President Obama has ordered his intelligence agencies to conduct a full review of hacking during the 2016 election and present their findings before he leaves office.
Trump’s transition team responded by saying the election “ended a long time ago” and “it’s now time to move on.”
WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange also has previously said the Russian government was not the source.
Trump and his supporters point to ambiguity inside intelligence and law enforcement agencies in arguing that Russia’s role is not clear. Indeed, the Post later reported that while the CIA pointed to Russia, a senior FBI official suggested to lawmakers that the agency and bureau were not on the same page on the matter.
Speaking with “Fox News Sunday,” Trump said “there’s great confusion.”
He went so far as to assert, “Democrats are putting it out because they suffered one of the greatest defeats in the history of politics in this country.”
Trump said the efforts could be political, adding Democrats are “very embarrassed.”
Trump, meanwhile, told Fox News he wants to make government more efficient, especially when it comes to the EPA.
“EPA, you can't get things approved. I mean, people are waiting in line for 15 years before they get rejected, okay? That's why people don't want to invest in this country,” he said. “... So we're going to clean it up. We're going to speed it up and, by the way, if somebody is not doing the right thing we're not going to approve.”
But asked if he’ll take a “wrecking ball” to the Obama legacy, Trump said, “No. I don't want to do that at all.”
Trump went on to defend his selection of several retired generals for key positions, including secretary of Defense and Homeland Security.
“I like generals. I think generals are terrific, you know? They go through schools and they sort of end up at the top of the pyramid. And it's like a test. They passed the test of life. … And I like the three that I have very, very much,” he said.
He also said he’s “getting very, very close” to picking a secretary of State nominee, amid indications he’s leaning toward ExxonMobil boss Rex Tillerson.
“He's much more than a business executive. ... He's a world-class player,” Trump said of Tillerson, without confirming the choice.
As for Trump’s recent attempts to pressure American companies not to move operations abroad, the president-elect was unapologetic and denied that moving and selling back to America represents the free market.
“That’s the dumb market, okay? That's the dumb market. I'm a big free trader, but it has to be fair,” Trump said. “We're being stripped of our workers.”
He said he wants to pursue a 35 percent tax on companies that leave, saying, “There are going to be consequences.”
He predicted “nobody’s going to move.”
Trump responded to reports that he’ll keep a stake in business interests like “Celebrity Apprentice” and his real estate operations. He defended the arrangements, saying he’ll have nothing to do with the management.
Trump said his executives and children will run his company, and denied any similarities to the Clinton Foundation taking money from foreign governments while his 2016 rival was at the State Department.
“This is different,” Trump said. “… I am turning down billions of dollars of deals. I will tell you, running for president -- the money I spent is peanuts compared to the money I won't make, and that's okay, because this is so important. … This is a calling.”
