BUDGET BATTLE
Trump might shut down the government because Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh think it's a good idea
In the latest example of the president taking notes from conservative pundits, President Trump said Friday afternoon that he might shut down the government later this month because it would help Republicans politically.
A new spending bill must be agreed upon by Sept. 30, just weeks before the midterms. Trump has provided a wide variety of answers as to whether he'd shut down the government in an attempt to secure funding for his border wall, but on Friday, he claimed that conservative figures like Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, and Rush Limbaugh favor the tactic.
Per the Washington Examiner, the president said aboard Air Force One on Friday that he "would do it because I think it's a great political issue." Limbaugh "says it's the greatest thing you can do," Trump said. "Levin, greatest thing you can do. Your friend Hannity, the greatest thing you can do."
Trump said Thursday that he'd rather avoid a government shutdown because it might hurt Republicans in the November election, Politico reported. On Wednesday, he said that he's "willing to do anything" to get the wall funded and "if [a shutdown] happens, it happens."