President Donald Trump could accept a government funding bill that does not include money to begin building the wall he proposed on the Mexican border, The Hill reported Wednesday.
When asked if the border wall funding was a deal-breaker for an upcoming spending bill needed to keep the government running past April 28, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said "That is our request. We will continue to work with Congress on the rest of the [fiscal 2017] budget."
This appeared to signal the funding was not a make-or-break demand to include in a measure to keep the government funded beyond the end of April.
Spicer's comments come a day after Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., part of the GOP leadership, said negotiations over the bill to keep the government funded were progressing, but indicated money for the wall would not be part of it due to the issue complicating the talks, the Daily News reported.
"My guess is that comes together better without the supplemental," implying Trump's request for funds to start building the wall would be discussed in separate legislation.
The GOP needs some Democratic backing to prevent a government shutdown at the end of April, and Democrats have indicated they intend to block any bill that includes money allocated for a wall.
Trump requested $1.5 billion from Congress this year to start work on his proposed wall along the Mexican border to crack down on illegal immigration, which was a central theme of his campaign.