GOP senators visited Trump at White House to sway him on border dispute: report

Three Republican senators reportedly visited the White House on Wednesday evening in a last-ditch effort to work out a solution with President Trump and avert a Senate rebuke of his national emergency declaration at the southern border.

The Washington Post reported that Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) arrived unexpectedly as Trump dined with his family and pressed the president on a proposal that would alleviate the concerns of some members who view the declaration as unconstitutional and a usurpation of congressional authority.

{mosads}The Hill has reached out to each of the lawmakers’ offices for comment.

Trump was apparently unswayed by the late-night proposal, as he pledged Thursday morning to veto the measure should it pass the Senate.

Trump said he “will support” Congress’s efforts to update the law allowing presidents to declare a national emergency if they choose to do so “at a later date,” but told senators that “today’s issue is BORDER SECURITY and Crime!!!”

….If, at a later date, Congress wants to update the law, I will support those efforts, but today’s issue is BORDER SECURITY and Crime!!! Don’t vote with Pelosi!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 14, 2019

White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley said Thursday morning that he was not sure if Trump spoke with the three senators the night before.

He added in a Fox News appearance that the president has “engaged a little bit with some of those who have expressed some concern” about the declaration, but that he was “not aware” of any calls Trump had made Thursday morning to Republican lawmakers about the issue.

“Make no mistake, this vote today, if they oppose the president then they stand in opposition to the American people, to American communities and to safety and security,” Gidley said.

Several Republican senators are expected to join Democrats on Thursday to vote for a resolution of disapproval regarding Trump’s emergency declaration, which bypasses Congress to secure $8 billion in funding for a wall along the southern border.

Republican senators this week sought to craft a workaround proposal that would placate concerned members and avoid an embarrassing rejection of the president’s order, but talks collapsed on Wednesday.