Trump squashes Paul Ryan's compromise immigration bill
When President Trump stepped out of the White House for an impromptu interview Friday morning, he also dropped a bombshell.
Trump confirmed to Fox & Friends he wouldn't sign a moderate immigration bill. It's a blow to House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), who seemed confident his compromise bill was something the president would approve of, The New York Times reports.
Two GOP-written immigration bills, one moderate and one conservative, include border wall funding and are scheduled for a vote next week. A third bipartisan bill that focused on protecting immigrants affected by the revoked Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals provisions didn't make the cut, per the Los Angeles Times, and it now looks like the compromise bill won't make it far either.
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"I need a bill that gives this country tremendous border security," Trump told Fox & Friends, specifying a border wall and ending "catch and release" tactics as must-haves.
With Democrats firmly opposed to both bills, it's unlikely they would've made it to the Senate or the president's desk anyway. Still, Republican leadership had been working to whip up support for the moderate bill — which will likely disappear following Trump's declaration.
