President-elect Donald Trump's transition team is telling Republican leaders in Congress that his preference is to fund the border wall through the appropriations process as soon as April, CNN reported.
The move goes against a promise Trump made during the campaign, when he said he would force Mexico to pay for construction of the wall along the border. In October, Trump suggested that Mexico would reimburse the United States for the cost of building the wall.
In a tweet Friday morning, Trump defended his preference.
"The dishonest media does not report that any money spent on building the Great Wall (for sake of speed), will be paid back by Mexico later!" Trump tweeted Friday.
Trump’s transition team argues it will have the authority through a law passed in 2006 to build the wall, lawmakers say, but it lacks the money to do so.
Messer admitted it's "big dollars, but it's a question of priorities." He pointed to a border security bill that Homeland Security Chairman Mike McCaul proposed last year that cost roughly $10 billion.
"Democrats may well find themselves in the position to shut down all of government to stop the buildout of a wall, or of a barrier, or of a fence," Messer told CNN.
The Associated Press and Politico first reported elements of the talks earlier Thursday.
If Mexico refuses to pay for the wall, the GOP could add billions of dollars into the spending bill that needs to pass by April 28 to keep the government open. But doing so would force a showdown with Senate Democrats and potentially threaten a government shutdown, CNN reported.
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