'No Cave!' Trump tells Republicans to stand firm on border wall as he insists Democrats 'want to play political games' with drug trafficking and crime rates on day 32 of government shutdown

  • No Democrats publicly back deal as Trump accuses Pelosi of acting ‘irrationally’
  • Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said Democrats are unwilling to negotiate any border security funding until Trump re-opens the government
  • Trump tweeted that Demorcats 'want to play political games' and told Republicans: 'No Cave!' 
  • Another missed paycheck looms for hundreds of thousands of workers as partial shutdown enters its fifth week
  • The House and Senate are scheduled to be back in session Tuesday but no votes have been scheduled so far on Trump’s plan 
  • About 1 in 10 TSA airport screeners skipped work on Sunday rather than working without pay 
  • Food pantries and restaurants are stepping up to help feed federal workers' families who are living paycheck-to-paycheck 

President Donald Trump began the 32nd day of an extended-play government shutdown by insisting Republicans shouldn't buckle to Democrats' demand to send 780,000 federal employees back to work without funding the border wall he has been promising since January 2015.

'Without a Wall our Country can never have Border or National Security. With a powerful Wall or Steel Barrier, Crime Rates (and Drugs) will go substantially down all over the U.S.,' Trump tweeted. 

'The Dems know this but want to play political games. Must finally be done correctly. No Cave!'

Another missed paycheck looms for hundreds of thousands of workers on Friday. But for the shutdown, their payroll would have been processed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Americans who work in the private sector are beginning to feel the impact: About 10 per cent of TSA airport screeners nationwide called in sick or otherwise missed their shifts on Sunday, rather than working without pay. That compares with 3.1 percent on a comparable day a year ago.

Senate Republicans have released a measure designed around Trump's  demand for $5.7 billion to build a southern border wall, all but guaranteeing Democratic opposition and no foreseeable end to the stalemate. 

President Donald Trump leaves the podium after speaking about the partial government shutdown, immigration and border security in the Diplomatic Reception Room on Saturday

President Donald Trump leaves the podium after speaking about the partial government shutdown, immigration and border security in the Diplomatic Reception Room on Saturday

The president tried to buck up Republicans on Tuesday, encouraging them not to 'cave' to Democrats' demand for an end to the government shutdown without border wall funding

The president tried to buck up Republicans on Tuesday, encouraging them not to 'cave' to Democrats' demand for an end to the government shutdown without border wall funding

President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence visit the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on  Monday in Washington

President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence visit the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on  Monday in Washington

No Democrats publicly back deal as Trump accused Pelosi of acting ‘irrationally’ in a tweet

No Democrats publicly back deal as Trump accused Pelosi of acting ‘irrationally’ in a tweet

Trump ranted about Nancy Pelosi throughout much of the holiday weekend 

Trump ranted about Nancy Pelosi throughout much of the holiday weekend 

Voting in Congress is not expected to unfold until later in the week. And it seems doubtful that the 1,300-page measure, dubbed 'End The Shutdown And Secure The Border Act,' had any chance of passing swiftly.

Senate Republicans hold a 53-47 majority but would need Democrats to reach the usual 60-vote threshold for bills to advance. Not a single Democrat publicly expressed support for Trump's proposal since he announced it over the week.

Details of the measure released late Monday highlight the trade-off of border wall funding for temporary protection from deportation for some immigrants. 

The Republican package would re-open the shuttered parts of government and boost some spending. To try to draw more bipartisan support, it adds $12.7 billion in supplemental funding for regions hit by hurricanes, wildfires and other natural disasters.

TSA has become the public face of the shutdown, as lines grow longer at some airports.

The agency has dispatched extra screeners to airports in Atlanta, LaGuardia Airport in New York, and Newark, New Jersey. A TSA spokesman said other airports might also be getting additional help.

With fewer screeners, TSA closed one of its security checkpoints at Baltimore Washington International airport over the weekend, reopened it, and then closed it again Monday afternoon. A checkpoint at Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport also remained closed. 

Long lines are seen at a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) security checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport amid the partial federal government shutdown, in Atlanta on Friday

Long lines are seen at a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) security checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport amid the partial federal government shutdown, in Atlanta on Friday

The percentage of TSA airport screeners missing work has hit 10 percent as the partial government shutdown stretches into its fifth week. A TSA agent above is seen screening passengers at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Friday

The percentage of TSA airport screeners missing work has hit 10 percent as the partial government shutdown stretches into its fifth week. A TSA agent above is seen screening passengers at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Friday

Food pantries and restaurants have picked up the slack to help federal workers' families who are living paycheck-to-paycheck.

One restaurant owned by musician Jon Bon Jovi is providing free meals to government workers and their families in New Jersey.

The meals are a result of a partnership between JBJ Soul Kitchen and Gov. Phil Murphy's organization the Phil and Tammy Murphy Family Foundation.

JBJ Soul Kitchen opened in 2011, and the restaurant allows customers to pay a donation or volunteer to pay for their meals.

Rock star Jon Bon Jovi sits in his JBJ Soul Kitchen community restaurant in Red Bank, N.J. in 2011. The restaurant provided free meals to local government workers and their families during the federal government shutdown

Rock star Jon Bon Jovi sits in his JBJ Soul Kitchen community restaurant in Red Bank, N.J. in 2011. The restaurant provided free meals to local government workers and their families during the federal government shutdown

JBJ Soul Kitchen advertised the event giving away meals to furloughed government workers on social media on Saturday

JBJ Soul Kitchen advertised the event giving away meals to furloughed government workers on social media on Saturday

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer's office reiterated earlier Monday that Democrats are unwilling to negotiate any border security funding until Trump re-opens the government.

'Nothing has changed with the latest Republican offer,' said Schumer spokesman Justin Goodman. 'President Trump and Senate Republicans are still saying: 'Support my plan or the government stays shut.' That isn't a compromise or a negotiation - it's simply more hostage taking.'

While the House and Senate are scheduled to be back in session Tuesday, no votes have been scheduled so far on Trump's plan. And senators, who will be given 24-hour notice ahead of voting, have yet to be recalled to Washington.

Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US House of Representatives (center), participates in the San Francisco Women's March on Saturday in San Francisco, California

Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US House of Representatives (center), participates in the San Francisco Women's March on Saturday in San Francisco, California

President Donald Trump speaks about the partial government shutdown, immigration and border security in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, in Washington

President Donald Trump speaks about the partial government shutdown, immigration and border security in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, in Washington

McConnell spokesman David Popp said Monday that the GOP leader 'will move' to vote on consideration of the president's proposal 'this week.'

Trump, who on Sunday lashed out at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, accusing her of acting 'irrationally,' continued to single her out on Twitter.

'If Nancy Pelosi thinks that Walls are 'immoral,' why isn't she requesting that we take down all of the existing Walls between the U.S. and Mexico,' he wrote Monday. 'Let millions of unchecked 'strangers' just flow into the U.S.'

House Democrats this week are pushing ahead with voting on their own legislation to re-open the government and add $1 billion for border security -including 75 more immigration judges and infrastructure improvements - but no funding for the wall.

Trump later tweeted: 'Democrats are kidding themselves (they don't really believe it!) if they say you can stop Crime, Drugs, Human Trafficking and Caravans without a Wall or Steel Barrier. Stop playing games and give America the Security it deserves. A Humanitarian Crisis!'

Meanwhile, the impact of the shutdown - the longest ever - continued to ripple across the nation as it stretched into its 32nd day Tuesday.

The Transportation Security Administration said the percentage of its airport screeners missing work hit 10 percent on Sunday - up from 3.1 percent on the comparable Sunday a year ago.

Trump, who on Sunday lashed out at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, left, accusing her of acting 'irrationally,' continued to single her out on Twitter

Trump, who on Sunday lashed out at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, left, accusing her of acting 'irrationally,' continued to single her out on Twitter

The screeners, who have been working without pay, have been citing financial hardship as the reason they can't report to work. Even so, the agency said it screened 1.78 million passengers Sunday with only 6.9 percent having to wait 15 minutes or longer to get through security.

The shutdown had also threatened to disrupt plans for an annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day service at Atlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church, where the civil rights leader was co-pastor with his father from 1960 until his assassination in 1968. The site is run by the National Park Service and had been closed. But a grant from Delta Air Lines is keeping the church and associated sites, including the home where King was born, open through Feb. 3.

Trump on Saturday offered to extend temporary protections for young immigrants brought to the country illegally as children and those fleeing disaster zones for three years in exchange for $5.7 billion for his border wall. Democrats said the proposal for a three-year extension didn't go nearly far enough, and that Trump was using as leverage programs that he had targeted. Meanwhile, some on the right, including conservative commentator Ann Coulter, accused Trump of offering 'amnesty.'

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer's office reiterated earlier Monday that Democrats are unwilling to negotiate any border security funding until Trump re-opens the government

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer's office reiterated earlier Monday that Democrats are unwilling to negotiate any border security funding until Trump re-opens the government

'No, Amnesty is not a part of my offer,' Trump tweeted Sunday, in response. He noted that he'd offered temporary protections for the immigrants in question, but added: 'Amnesty will be used only on a much bigger deal, whether on immigration or something else.'

That statement led some to suggest that Trump might be open to including a potential pathway to citizenship for the young 'Dreamer' immigrants in a future proposal to end the standoff.

Asked in an interview on 'Fox News Sunday' whether Trump's Saturday proposal represented a 'final offer,' Vice President Mike Pence said the White House was willing to negotiate.

'Well, of course,' Pence said. 'The legislative process is a negotiation.'

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