(Politico)
By BURGESS EVERETT 01/16/2019 12:14 PM EST
Senators in both parties are racing to deliver a letter to President Donald Trump indicating that if the government reopens, they are willing to work on a border security package with the president, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.
The senators are aiming to send the letter to the president as soon as Wednesday. It would put in writing a commitment to take up his request for billions more in border security money as a condition of Trump opening the government for a short period, a gambit the president has rejected in the past.
The letter says the group is “committed to resolving our current budget stalemate by strengthening border security and ending the government shutdown,” according to a draft obtained by POLITICO. It includes an assurance that the administration‘s $5.7 billion budget request would be taken up in the relevant congressional committees.
“We believe that such requests deserve consideration, through regular order, a process we support,” the draft letter reads, asking that the president agree to open up the government for three weeks to allow a debate “to give Congress time to develop and vote on a bipartisan agreement that addresses your request. We commit to working to advance legislation that can pass the Senate with substantial bipartisan support.”
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