Trump threatens to close southern US border over wall funding

President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to close the southern U.S. border with Mexico unless he gets the money he wants for a wall, raising the stakes in a standoff that will present an immediate test next week for the new U.S. Congress.

“We will be forced to close the Southern Border entirely if the Obstructionist Democrats do not give us the money to finish the Wall & also change the ridiculous immigration laws that our Country is saddled with,” Trump tweeted.

“Either we build (finish) the Wall or we close the Border,” he added.

Democrats have made clear that the House measure, which would then have to go to the Republican-controlled Senate, will not include $5 billion Trump says is needed for the wall, a central part of his tougher positions on immigration than his predecessors.

Asked about Trump’s border-closing threat, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador told reporters it was an internal U.S. government matter. “We take great care of the relationship with the government of the United States,” Lopez Obrador said.

“Of course we will always defend our sovereignty ... We will always protect migrants, defend their human rights,” he said.

The standoff over Trump’s demand for money to help fund the border wall, estimated to cost about $23 billion in total, was in its seventh day and was widely expected to drag into January when Democrats take control of the U.S. House of Representatives.

The dispute over Trump’s wall has led to the shutdown of “non-essential” operations at numerous agencies because of lack of funding, including the departments of Agriculture, Homeland Security, Interior, Transportation, Commerce, and Justice.

Earlier this month, Trump said he would be “proud” to shut down the government over border security.

But since the shutdown started, he has tried to blame Democrats. In television interviews on Friday, Trump aides said Democrats have refused to negotiate over the matter.

Since their victory, House Democrats have talked about seeking common ground with Republicans, while also promising numerous investigations of Trump, who has painted himself and Republicans in the Senate into a political corner.

Rejecting next week’s spending measure from House Democrats would put a Republican stamp on the shutdown. But accepting it would mean backing away from Trump’s proposed wall.

The shutdown affects about 800,000 employees. Most of the federal government, which directly employs almost 4 million people, is unaffected. Even agencies that are affected never totally close, with “essential” workers still on the job.