Thursday, January 18, 2018

Trump’s border wall promise was ‘uninformed’ and Mexico won't pay for it, John Kelly says

The L.A. Times reports:
White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly complicated immigration negotiations Wednesday ahead of a possible government shutdown, telling lawmakers that President Trump’s border wall was an “uninformed” campaign promise and not likely to be funded by Mexico.

Kelly stunned Congressional Hispanic Caucus members by also suggesting that Trump’s decision to protect so-called Dreamers was a “done deal” even though they have yet to work out a compromise over the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program that the administration is ending.

“He made it very clear we’re not talking about the Trump wall of the campaign — that was campaign rhetoric,” said Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Downey), whose questions about the wall provoked Kelly’s response during the closed-door session. “There was an understanding the concrete wall does not make sense.”

Kelly explained to the lawmakers that “candidates say things during the campaign that are not informed,” according to Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez (D-Ill.).
The illegal lobby gets their hopes up...