President Trump has just announced a deal to reopen the government after the longest shutdown in history.
The announcement came just moments after judges released Trump’s adviser, Roger Stone, on a $250,000 bail following his arrest earlier this morning.
According to President Trump, the government will reopen for a period of three weeks. “I am very proud to announce we have reached a deal to end the shutdown and reopen the federal government,” he said to his cabinet reports Fox News.
The bill to reopen the government will go before the Senate immediately to determine government funding through February 15th and begin coordinating back pay for federal employees. Funding for the border wall remains uncertain.
Under the deal, lawmakers have three weeks to reach an agreement on President Trump’s wall funding. If an agreement is not reached, Trump may declare a national emergency.
The president commented that his ability to declare a national emergency was a “very powerful weapon” to achieve his campaign promises, but he “does not want to use it.”
“Walls should not be controversial,” Trump continued.
The current government shutdown began in December following a disagreement over the President’s request for $5.7 billion to pay for a border wall between the United States and Mexico.