Arizona congressman says people don’t want shutdown for border wall

PHOENIX — A week after President Donald Trump threatened to shut down the government unless he gets funding for a border wall between the United States and Mexico, an Arizona congressman said that may not be what the country wants.

“I don’t think people really want to shut down government,” Republican Rep. Andy Biggs told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News on Tuesday.

Trump seemed to mine no words during his rally at the Phoenix Convention Center, saying “If we have to shut down that government, we’re building that wall.”

Biggs said he saw Trump’s words as motivation for the Senate rather than a threat.

“I think he’s just saying, you know, ‘I’ve got an agenda,'” Biggs said. “‘The American people elected me to do something. Let’s do it. Let’s get it done.’

“He was being emphatic about it.”

The House passed a spending bill late last month that allotted $1.6 billion for the border wall. The House passed it to the Senate, where it has languished ever since.

Biggs said the president’s promise also showed how dedicated he was to carrying through on a key campaign promise.

“I thought that indicated some real commitment on his part as to fulfilling his agenda,” he said.

The federal budget will be funded through Sept. 30. After that, parts of the government will shut down until a budget deal is reached.

Biggs said Congress should pass a continuing resolution as soon as it gets back from the August recess and then get to work.

“Let’s rewrite a budget that’s really going to do something solid immediately to get us on the right footing,” he said.