Talks on Trump’s Mexico border wall stall as new US shutdown deadline looms, officials say
- A key issue is how many beds US immigration enforcers have access to, as Democrats try to limit the number of people who can be detained
Bipartisan talks aimed at resolving the US-Mexico border wall dispute and averting another US government shutdown starting this Friday have broken down and are at an impasse, two people familiar with the situation said on Sunday.
The people spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the private deliberations.
Lawmakers had been trading offers, trying to finalise how much money could go to barriers along the border as President Donald Trump demands money for his wall. Trump has asked for US$5.7 billion, but lawmakers were trying to find a number between US$1.3 billion and US$2 billion that would be acceptable to both sides.
At the same time, Democrats were trying to limit the number of detention beds the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency would have access to. Democrats want to cap detention beds as a way to limit aggressive detention activities by ICE. One of the people familiar with the situation said that was the issue that led to the impasse.
