The tit-for-tat games play on in Washington, D.C., amid a partial government shutdown over border wall funding that is causing financial hardships for many federal employees.
On Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent President Donald Trump a letter asking him to postpone his Jan. 29 State of the Union speech. In it, Pelosi cited concerns about whether the hobbled government
could provide adequate security. Republicans, however, cast her move as a ploy to deny Trump the stage.
Thursday, the president responded with a letter to “Madame Speaker” informing her that “due to the Shutdown” her trip to Brussels, Egypt, and Afghanistan had been canceled.
“Obviously, if you would like to make the journey by flying commercial, that would certainly be your prerogative,” Trump wrote.
Former Democratic congressional candidate Andrew Janz of Fresno quipped about the letter on Twitter: “Does anyone else think we should defund all of Trump’s golfing trips?”
The New York Times reported Thursday that Pelosi was scheduled to depart Thursday afternoon, joined by Representative Adam B. Schiff of California, the chairman of the Intelligence Committee, and Representative Eliot L. Engel of New York, the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, and other members of Congress.
Trump’s Family Flies to Florida on Taxpayer’s Dime
About two hours after Trump grounded Pelosi and her delegation, an Air Force-modified Boeing 757 took off from Joint Base Andrews outside Washington with the call sign “Executive One Foxtrot,” reserved for the first family when the president is not traveling with them. It landed just before 7 p.m. at Palm Beach International Airport, less than two miles from the president’s private club.
A White House spokesperson did not answer questions about the flight.
You can read Trump’s letter below.
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