Trump signs $1.3 trillion budget after threatening veto
U.S. President Donald Trump participates in a meeting with leaders of the steel and aluminum industries at the White House March 1, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON D.C. (Associated Press) - WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump signed a $1.3 trillion spending measure Friday averting a government shutdown at midnight, acting just hours after saying he was considering a veto.
Trump complained that the legislation does not fully fund his plans for a border wall with Mexico and does not address some 800,000 "Dreamer" immigrants who are now protected from deportation under a program that he has moved to eliminate. He said he signed it in order to provide needed money for the military.
Earlier Friday, Trump cast doubt on whether he would back the massive spending bill, saying he was "considering" a veto. Then, adding to the made-for-TV drama, he scheduled a news conference. Telegraphing the outcome, an internal White House television feed advertised the event this way: "President Trump Participates in a Bill Signing."
With Congress already on recess, Trump had said on Twitter that he was weighing a veto. He said that young immigrants now protected in the U.S. under Barack Obama's Delayed Action for Childhood Arrivals "have been totally abandoned by the Democrats (not even mentioned in Bill) and the BORDER WALL, which is desperately needed for our National Defense, is not fully funded."