Pressure is mounting on President Donald Trump as his own economists say the partial government shutdown is having a greater drag on the economy than projected.
Shutdown pressure on President Donald Trump mounted Wednesday as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called on him to delay his State of the Union address and his own economists acknowledged the prolonged standoff was having a greater economic drag than previously thought.
In a letter to Trump, Pelosi cited security concerns, noting that both the Secret Service and the Homeland Security Department are affected by the partial government shutdown, now it its fourth week. She added that unless the government reopens this week, they should find another date or Trump should deliver the address in writing.
The White House did not immediately respond to the high-stakes move on the 26th day of the shutdown, as Trump and Democrats are at an impasse over Trump’s demands for $5.7 billion to build a wall along the Mexican border.
Pelosi is refusing money for the wall she views as ineffective and immoral; Democrats say they will discuss border security once the government has reopened.
The White House planned further meetings with rank-and-file lawmakers Wednesday, though few saw those sessions as likely to budge either side. Administration officials sought to project confidence even as Trump’s economists indicated the shutdown was having a greater impact than previously predicted.
Kevin Hassett, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said Tuesday the shutdown is slowing growth more than predicted.
An economic shift could rattle Trump, who has tied his political fortunes to the stock market and repeatedly stressed economic gains as evidence that his tax-cut package and deregulation efforts are succeeding.
