President Donald Trump Tweetstorm – The Saturday Shutdown Edition
President Donald Trump tweeted Saturday that he was “working hard” in the White House, the morning after the U.S. government was forced to shut down for a third time in 2018 after last-ditch budget negotiations failed Friday night.
Trump this morning was focused on the shutdown, which impacts about one-fourth of federal operations, as well as his decision earlier in the week to pull U.S. troops out of Syria, a move that might have been the last straw for Defense Secretary James Mattis, who resigned soon after Trump announced the plan.
“I am in the White House, working hard,” POTUS wrote this morning (see his tweets below). “News reports concerning the Shutdown and Syria are mostly FAKE.”
He later attacked the “fake news” over the way the media reported the resignations of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and U.S. Envoy in the fight against ISIS Brett McGurk over Trump’s decision to withdraw American forces from Syria.
There is no official guidance from the White House about Trump’s schedule today, though he tweeted that he planned to have a lunch in the residence with a group to discuss border security. A planned trip to his Florida base was canceled Friday amid harried negotiations in the House and Senate to fund government operations by the deadline.
He latter in the day announced that he would be canceling his Florida vacation and staying in Washington because of the shutdown.
The impasse was over funding for a wall along the southern U.S. border — Trump won’t budge without it, but no Democrat will vote for it. He said today that the stalemate “could be a long stay.”
The shutdown that took effect at midnight ET triggered closures for the Department of Homeland Security as well as Treasury, Agriculture, Interior, State, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Commerce and Justice, along with portions of NASA and the FDA. More than 400,000 people will work without pay for now, including border agents, customs officials and Coast Guard employees.
Some 53,000 TSA agents will keep working as will air-traffic controllers and safety inspectors with the busy holiday travel season now in full swing. Monday and Tuesday are federal holidays, but an estimated 380,000 workers will be furloughed after that if no deal is reached in Congress that Trump will sign.
White House pool reports said there was no Marine posted outside the West Wing this morning but that janitorial services proceeded as usual in the press area.
Here are today’s presidential tweets:
I won an election, said to be one of the greatest of all time, based on getting out of endless & costly foreign wars & also based on Strong Borders which will keep our Country safe. We fight for the borders of other countries, but we won’t fight for the borders of our own!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2018
The crisis of illegal activity at our Southern Border is real and will not stop until we build a great Steel Barrier or Wall. Let work begin!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2018
I am in the White House, working hard. News reports concerning the Shutdown and Syria are mostly FAKE. We are negotiating with the Democrats on desperately needed Border Security (Gangs, Drugs, Human Trafficking & more) but it could be a long stay. On Syria, we were originally…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2018
….going to be there for three months, and that was seven years ago – we never left. When I became President, ISIS was going wild. Now ISIS is largely defeated and other local countries, including Turkey, should be able to easily take care of whatever remains. We’re coming home!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2018
Will be having lunch in White House residence with large group concerning Border Security.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2018
I will not be going to Florida because of the Shutdown – Staying in the White House! #MAGA
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 22, 2018
Brett McGurk, who I do not know, was appointed by President Obama in 2015. Was supposed to leave in February but he just resigned prior to leaving. Grandstander? The Fake News is making such a big deal about this nothing event!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2018
If anybody but your favorite President, Donald J. Trump, announced that, after decimating ISIS in Syria, we were going to bring our troops back home (happy & healthy), that person would be the most popular hero in America. With me, hit hard instead by the Fake News Media. Crazy!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2018
When President Obama ingloriously fired Jim Mattis, I gave him a second chance. Some thought I shouldn’t, I thought I should. Interesting relationship-but I also gave all of the resources that he never really had. Allies are very important-but not when they take advantage of U.S.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2018
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