Trump threatens Democrats, Mexico over DACA and border security
President Trump kicked off his Easter Sunday by announcing that he would no longer support a deal on fixing the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and threatened to pull out of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) if Mexico doesn't step up border security.
He tweeted early Sunday that "ridiculous liberal" Democrats were impeding Border Patrol agents' ability to "do their job," reiterating his points outside a church in Florida later in the morning.
It's unclear what prompted the president to issue the morning missives.
Border Patrol Agents are not allowed to properly do their job at the Border because of ridiculous liberal (Democrat) laws like Catch & Release. Getting more dangerous. “Caravans” coming. Republicans must go to Nuclear Option to pass tough laws NOW. NO MORE DACA DEAL!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 1, 2018
The president also appeared to reiterate his call for Senate Republicans to invoke the "nuclear option" to abolish the filibuster. Mr. Trump has long called for eliminating the filibuster to make it easier to pass legislation in the Senate.
He also blamed Mexico for doing "very little" to stop the flow of people and drugs into the United States. "They laugh at our dumb immigration laws," he wrote. Mr. Trump then threatened to "stop their cash cow NAFTA" if the flow did not cease, adding "These big flows of people are all trying to take advantage of DACA. They want in on the act!"
Mexico is doing very little, if not NOTHING, at stopping people from flowing into Mexico through their Southern Border, and then into the U.S. They laugh at our dumb immigration laws. They must stop the big drug and people flows, or I will stop their cash cow, NAFTA. NEED WALL!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 1, 2018
These big flows of people are all trying to take advantage of DACA. They want in on the act!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 1, 2018
As the president arrived at church in Palm Beach for Easter service with the first lady and his daughter Tiffany, he reiterated his calls that "Mexico has got to help us at the border" calling it a "very sad thing between two countries."
He added that Democrats had a "great chance" on delivering a fix to DACA but that they "blew it."
"They had a great, great chance but we have to take a look. But Mexico has got to help us at the border. They flow right through Mexico. They send them into the United States. Can't happen that way anymore," said Mr. Trump.
What's the status of DACA now?
After Mr. Trump vowed an end to DACA in September, giving Congress six months to develop a fix, the Supreme Court rejected the Trump administration's bid to get the justices to intervene in the DACA controversy in February. Permits that were due to expire on March 5 are now still in effect after court orders forced the administration to keep issuing renewals.
But just last month, the president suggested he was "willing and able" to provide a long-term fix to the DACA issue.
"We're trying to have a DACA victory by the way and Democrats are nowhere to be found, it's really terrible," said Mr. Trump at the Latino Coalitions's Legislative Summit in Washington, D.C. He added, "We're ready, ready willing and able, but they are nowhere to be found."
The president claimed that Democrats instead are refusing to approve his administration's own immigration plan because "they'd rather use it to to get elected, and that's not working so well."
Mr. Trump later urged the crowd of Latino business owners and coalition members "this is our time, this is our moment, go get DACA go push those Democrats. This is a moment for DACA, for all of us, but this is a very special moment."
As DACA protections were left off the sweeping $1.3 trillion spending bill passed late last month, the president threatened to veto the bill after his border wall and DACA protections were not fully funded.