All pain, no gain: Trump ends up with the same border deal he once rejected

[DonViejo]

First Read is your briefing from "Meet the Press" and the NBC Political Unit on the day's most important political stories and why they matter.

Feb. 14, 2019, 8:23 AM EST

By Chuck Todd, Mark Murray and Carrie Dann

WASHINGTON — After a two-month battle over border funding that resulted in the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, it looks like President Trump will end up with the SAME amount of fencing/barrier money he was offered before the showdown began.

Democratic leaders Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer offered Trump some $1.3 billion for fencing and barriers in early December, and the legislation that Congress will vote on today and the president *probably* will sign contains – wait for it – $1.375 billion for fencing and barriers at the border.

“We shut down the government for 35 days, we put America through this crisis, we jeopardized our economy — for what?” said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., per the New York Times. “Totally unnecessary.”

So we went from Democrats once offering $25 billion for a border wall in exchange for protection for DACA recipients … to Dem leaders offering Trump $1.3 billion for border fencing … to a floated compromise of $2.5 billion during the shutdown … to a final deal of $1.375 billion for fencing.

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https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/meet-the-press/all-pain-no-gain-trump-ends-same-border-deal-he-n971466?cid=public-rss_20190214

[ginnyinWI]

1. Such a master dealmaker!

Too bad so many people were hurt in the process.

[customerserviceguy]

2. Clearly, he's learning the limitations

of having to deal with a House of Representatives in Democratic hands. But, that might mean that he will turn to non-legislative "solutions" to get some of what he wants. And he knows that in the end, it all comes down to a GOP-picked Justice, John Roberts, as to whether or not he can get away with it.

That's why the coming DACA case is a two-edged sword. If executive power is limited by the SCOTUS, the DACA beneficiaries are screwed. If the Court upholds DACA, it sets precedent for present and future non-legislative use of executive power.