Trump Says Shutdown Could Be ‘Blessing In Disguise’ For Broader Immigration Reform

The partial government shutdown is on day 19, and hundreds of thousands of federal workers continue to go without pay. But, for President Donald Trump, there may be a silver lining to the current situation.

Speaking from the Oval Office on Wednesday, January 9, during a bill signing on anti-human trafficking legislation, CNN reported that the president signaled he was open to a broader immigration deal. Trump reportedly described the government shutdown as a “blessing in disguise,” one that could lead to a broader immigration deal.

“I would love to see a big immigration bill that would really take care of this situation,” President Trump said. “Right now, we have a problem and we have to take care of this. But we would like to see real immigration reform in this country.”

A number of people have suggested putting an end to the partial government shutdown by leveraging Donald Trump’s demand for a fund of $5 billion to construct a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border with protection for DACA recipients.

In late December of last year, CNN reported that Senator Lindsey Graham had made the suggestion, which he said the president called “interesting.”

But despite the president’s comments today about the need for broader immigration reform, CNN noted that there has been no indication as to whether or not the White House would actually be willing to find a broader compromise to the partial shutdown — particularly one that would include both funding and protections for undocumented immigrants. The White House previously rejected a similar deal last year.

"I would love to see a big immigration bill, where we really take care of the situation," Pres. Trump tells @jonkarl amid shutdown.

"Everyone wants to see immigration reform…It's always been very political, and maybe this will turn out to be a blessing in disguise." pic.twitter.com/gY3vt4OnGl

— ABC News (@ABC) January 9, 2019

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has also rejected the idea when asked about this potential solution in December, reiterating that Democrats believe the wall to be “immoral, ineffective and expensive.”

Meanwhile, President Trump has remained strong on his demand for the border wall, which he stressed during the bill signing event earlier today was “a necessity.”

“They say it’s a medieval solution, a wall. It’s true because it worked then and it works even better now.”

On Tuesday, January 8, the president addressed the nation during a prime time event from the Oval Office. There, he further explained the “humanitarian and security crisis,” making his case for a barrier along the border. He again placed the blame for the partial government shutdown on the Democrats for not being willing to fund border security.

President Trump will be meeting with congressional leaders at 3 p.m. EST today, to discuss the shutdown.