Trump reportedly personally promised Rush Limbaugh he'd shut down the government over border wall funding

(Image credit: JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images)

published 20 December 2018

President Trump appears far more concerned with Rush Limbaugh's opinion of the government shutdown than that of congressional Republicans.

The conservative commentator said on his radio show Thursday that Trump got in contact with him to promise he will not pass any spending bill that doesn't have border wall funding in it. "The president got word to me 20 minutes ago that if it comes back to him without money, if whatever happens in the House and Senate comes back to him with no allocation of $5 billion for the wall, then he's going to veto it," Limbaugh said, per Chris Stigall and Breitbart's Charlie Spiering.

Limbaugh had been one of the biggest critics of Trump when he seemed willing to sign a stopgap spending bill to keep the government open, even though it didn't have border wall funding in it. "Trump gets nothing and the Democrats get everything, including control of the House in a few short weeks," Limbaugh concluded Wednesday, per The Hill. CNN's Kaitlan Collins reported Thursday that Trump had become "very sensitive" to the criticism he was receiving.

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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.