After President Trump announced Wednesday night that he will give his State of the Union address once the government shutdown is over, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) quickly responded, urging him to support efforts to end it as soon as Thursday.
Last week, Pelosi suggested Trump hold off on giving the State of the Union speech until after the shutdown was over. On Wednesday, the two went back and forth, with Trump saying he planned on delivering the speech in the House chamber on Jan. 29 and Pelosi writing back, saying not until the government re-opened. Trump finally tweeted that this was "her prerogative," and he'll wait until the shutdown is over. "I look forward to giving a 'great' State of the Union Address in the near future!" he added.
Pelosi pounced, tweeting: "Mr. President, I hope by saying 'near future' you mean you will support the House-passed package to #EndTheShutdown that the Senate will vote on tomorrow. Please accept this proposal so we can re-open government, repay our federal workers, and then negotiate our differences." On Thursday, the Senate is scheduled to vote on two opposing bills to end the government shutdown. One proposal would extend 2018 funding levels through Feb. 8, and the other would re-open the government in exchange for Trump receiving his requested $5.7 billion for a border wall and a three-year extension of DACA.