For the US president, a closure of the administration could force an agreement for the construction of the wall on the border with Mexico

Donald Trump, using a negotiating tactic, threatened the congress to close the administration if an agreement is not reached regarding immigration policy, in this case related to the construction of the wall. The president made the threat through his favorite social network, Twitter, in which taking IGNORE INTO account the next year's close, he warned that he could use this tactic to pressure the Democrats.

Leer en español: Así negocia Trump: cerraría el gobierno si no hay votos para seguridad fronteriza

"I would be willing to shut down the government if the Democrats do not give us the votes for border security, which includes the wall," Donald Trump wrote in his Twitter account. The president demands a greater commitment from the legislators and the immigration authorities, emphasizing increasing the requirements to settle in the North American country. For the president, the country must move its immigration system to a meritorious system with which not everyone can reach the country. Trump suggests eliminating all systems that grant visas, such as lotteries.

I would be willing to "shut down" government if the Democrats do not give us the votes for Border Security, which includes the Wall! Must get rid of Lottery, Catch & Release etc. and finally go to system of Immigration based on MERIT! We need great people coming IGNORE INTO our Country!

– Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 29, 2018

September 30 is the end of the fiscal year, the threat of Trump would become effective on October 1. The goal is to pressure the Democrats to approve the construction of the wall, because despite the Republican majority in the Senate, a vote of nine Democrats in favor is needed to pass budget laws.

Also read: United States: Trump moves further and further away from the European Union, Russia, and China 

The threat: a play that can become counterproductive

The US president used the campaign against irregular migration as his political flag. Since taking office in January 2017, Trump has tried to fulfill his promise to build a wall on the southern border that divides Mexico from the United States. However, this is a risky move since a closure implies that only the urgent and necessary activities will continue to work. The real risk is that only 5 weeks after the close of the fiscal year there are legislative elections, where the control of the two chambers could change the Democrats if the voters want to punish the Republicans.

The fight is not only between parties

Although there is control by the Republicans in both chambers, the disagreements within the party exist. Both conservative and moderate Republicans have their own dispute, which has hampered a quick legislative solution. A survey by Reuters and analyst Ipsos, published in July, said that 81% of Republicans approve of the handling of the immigration issue. However, the remaining 19% could be the percentage that punishes the party in the elections.

Trump asks the congress for a budget of 25,000 million dollars to build the wall. However, only 1,600 million have been approved, according to data from the Treasury Department, which will be used to repair the parts that already exist. For Trump, the issue of migration has been his great challenge and has brought him great problems and criticism; for example, the policy of zero tolerance that divided families, which even among the most conservative brought great criticism.

LatinAmerican Post | Carlos Eduardo Gómez Avella
Translated from “Así negocia Trump: cerraría el gobierno si no hay votos para seguridad fronteriza”