House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said President Donald Trump's proposed border wall with Mexico should ultimately be funded, The Washington Post reported.
"We do agree that we need to have the physical barrier on the border," he said. "We do need to have border control. We do need to enforce our borders," Ryan said. "We completely agree on that."
Ryan's remarks come as Trump threatened to shut down the federal government over funding of the wall, according to the Post.
Trump has warned he wants money for the wall included in an overall government funding bill. The bill must be signed by Trump by Sept. 30 or the government will be forced to close down.
"Build that wall," Trump said at a Tuesday rally in Arizona. "Now, the obstructionist Democrats would like us not to do it. But believe me, if we have to close down our government, we're building that wall."
But Ryan downplayed the prospect of a government shutdown, the Post noted.
"So, I don't think anyone is interested in having a shutdown," Ryan said. "I don't think it's in our interest to do so."
He said that even if Republicans and Democrats still can't agree right away on wall funding, Congress would likely approve a stopgap extension to keep the government operating until everything is resolved, the Post reported.
And Ryan said Congress needed more time to complete the formal appropriations process to fund the border wall, The Hill noted.
"There are very legitimate problems and concerns on the border that need to be addressed," Ryan said, but "we're going to need more time to complete our appropriations process, especially in the Senate."
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