Did President Trump win his Mexican stand off over funding for his wall or was he soundly beaten at his own game by the Democrats?
Donald Trump insists he acted for the greater good by bringing the 35 day dispute to a close.
In that time he won no concessions from Democrat Nancy Pelosi who seems to play the role of long-suffering mum to the president’s persona of a toddler having a tantrum.
Trump tweeted that his decision was “in no way a concession”, but was “taking care of the millions of people who were getting badly hurt by the shutdown”.
Later, he added he was proud to fund the government until February 15, when this round of funding runs out.
No choice but to build a powerful barrier
The president also told the 800,000 federal workers impacted by the shut-down that they would receive any back pay in full and that he was still considering ‘a powerful alternative’ of declaring a national emergency to raise the $5.7 billion funding he is demanding for The Wall along the US/Mexican border.
Throughout the confrontation, the Democrats have flatly refused to pay a dime towards The Wall.
But the row is not over. Trump also Tweeted: “We really have no choice but to build a powerful wall or steel barrier.
“If we don’t get a fair deal from Congress the government will either shut down on February 15 again.
“Or I will use the powers afforded to me under the laws and the constitution of the United States to address this emergency.”
Federal funding milestone
Trump and the Republicans want to try and gainsome money for The Wall in the three weeks leading up to the new federal funding milestone.
And what about Nancy? The polls seem to think she scored a massive win over Trump, who is licking his wounds in the White House.
Even Trump’s own allies are in awe of Pelosi, the new leader of the house of representatives.
“Trump is a broken man. It’s over for him,” Tweeted political pundit Mike Cernovich, who social media following includes many pro-Trump voters.
Cernovich added Trump was outmanoeuvred by the “alpha” Nancy Pelosi.