Trump headlines GOP policy retreat in Doral

Trump pushes border crackdown at House Republican retreat as he caps first week in office

DORAL, Fla. ā€“ President Donald Trump regaled House Republicans on Monday with a rhetorical highlight reel from his first week in office, and he urged them to support his immigration crackdown and border security proposals.

WATCH TRUMPā€™S SPEECH:

ā€œWe have no apologies and weā€™re moving very fast,ā€ Trump said.

He said that ā€œI really focus on the border more than anything else,ā€ downplaying the importance of inflation, an issue that fueled his candidacy last year but one that he has less control over as president.

Speaking at House Republicansā€™ annual policy retreat, Trump made clear his political ambitions as he rallied lawmakers to advance their conservative agenda.

6 p.m. report:

ā€œWeā€™re forging a new political majority thatā€™s shattering and replacing Franklin Rooseveltā€™s New Deal coalition, which dominated American politics for over 100 years,ā€ he said.

The conference is being held at Trump National Doral Miami, a posh resort with four golf courses owned by the billionaire president. Although Republicans are euphoric over election victories that have given them total control in Washington, theyā€™re also facing difficult negotiations in the coming weeks and months.

They need to find consensus on a spending bill before a March 14 deadline, when funding for the federal government expires.

In addition, Republicans are working on a budget blueprint that would set the stage for their broader plans, including tax cuts, fossil fuel development and border security. With thin majorities in the House and Senate, they will need near-unanimity to pass their proposals without Democratic support.

Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, set the first week of February for the House Budget Committee to pass the blueprint that is key to the whole process.

ā€œThat will be where the lionā€™s share of these campaign promises we made are fulfilled,ā€ Johnson said. ā€œAnd thatā€™s what all the hard work here is, in the room with all of us negotiating and coming to consensus.ā€

Political capital is almost always at its peak at the start of a new presidential term, even more so because this is Trumpā€™s second and he is prevented under the Constitution from a third.

However, that didnā€™t stop Trump from joking about running again on Monday.

ā€œI think Iā€™m not around to run again,ā€ Trump said as he turned to Johnson. ā€œAm I allowed to run again Mike?ā€

Johnson is trying to lump many of the Republican priorities into one massive catch-all bill that Senate Democrats cannot filibuster, but many Republican senators think it would be better to do two bills ā€” the first focused on border security and defense, and the second on extending and expanding upon the tax cuts passed in Trumpā€™s first term.

ā€œWhether itā€™s one bill, two bills, I donā€™t care,ā€ Trump said in Doral.

Republicans are also eyeing potential changes to key safety net programs, such as work requirements for those participating in Medicaid, to help offset the cost of enacting their priorities. Trump has pushed expensive ideas like exempting tipped wages and Social Security checks from income taxes.

House Republicans said they expect more specifics to be announced after the retreat in Doral. Until then, they were highlighting Trumpā€™s first week in office, particularly reveling in the showdown that Trump had with Colombia this past weekend over accepting flights of deported migrants from the U.S.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that Colombia agreed to all of Trumpā€™s terms, ā€œincluding the unrestricted acceptance of all illegal aliens from Colombia returned from the United States, including on U.S. military aircraft, without limitation or delay.ā€

ā€œThink about it, President Trump, I donā€™t even think had finished the front nine before he successfully forced the Columbian president to take back their illegal immigrants,ā€ said Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich. ā€œThe days of America being walked all over are long gone thanks to President Trump.ā€

On the budget fight to come, Democrats are already casting it as one that would primarily benefit the wealthy at the expense of others, with House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries labeling the Republican plan a ā€œcontract against America.ā€

ā€œIt will hurt working families, hurt the middle class, hurt our children, hurt our seniors and hurt our veterans,ā€ Jeffries said.

Republicans are warning that if Congress does not act quickly to extend tax relief, capital will remain on the sidelines and families next year would see child tax credits and a guaranteed tax deduction greatly reduced, upping their federal tax bill.

Trump and Republican leaders are also going to have to find a way to extend the nationā€™s debt limit. The limit must be raised by Congress, and failure to do so risks the federal government defaulting on its debt and unable to pay all its bills.

Under President Joe Biden, Republican lawmakers sought concessions on spending before agreeing to suspending the debt ceiling, but itā€™s unclear how adamant they will be on deficit reduction during a Trump presidency.


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