The conversation, taped weeks before the 2016 election, showed that Mr. Trump knew about the payments, a fact that his campaign had denied. “Obviously up here, we want to keep the government up and functioning,” said Senator John Thune of South Dakota, the No. 3 Senate Republican. “I’m not sure where the president is coming from.”Senator Orrin G. Hatch of Utah, the longest serving Republican in the Senate, chalked the comments up to a negotiating technique — though perhaps an ill-advised one. Between those bills and a short-term spending measure to bridge the gap, they believe they can push off any potential fights — including over border wall funding — until later in the fall.

Source: New York Times July 30, 2018 19:47 UTC