Government shutdown: Trump blocks Pelosi's trip in State of the Union spat as State Department calls in workers
Donald Trump has escalated his spat with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi over a possible delay to the annual State of the Union address by cancelling her upcoming trip to Belgium, Egypt and Afghanistan.
The White House postponed Ms Pelosi's ability to use military aircraft, which is Mr Trump's perogative as commander-in-chief. It comes a day after Ms Pelosi asked Mr Trump to delay the annual State of the Union address. Both blamed the partial government shutdown.
The episode shows how neither side appear close to backing down over the border wall funding issue that sparked the government closure now into its 27th day.
To follow how events unfolded, follow our liveblog below
In his spat with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi over the location of the State of the Union address amid the federal closure, Mr Trump has said Ms Pelosi's trip to Belgium, Egypt and Afghanistan had been cancelled.
“Due to the Shutdown, I am sorry to inform you that your trip to Brussels, Egypt and Afghanistan has been postponed,” Mr Trump wrote in a letter to the top House Democrat. “We will reschedule this seven-day excursion when the Shutdown is over.”
In a letter to Pelosi on Thursday, Mr Trump said that due to theshutdowna trip to Egypt, Brussels and Afghanistan would be delayed, declaring: "In light of the 800,000 great American workers not receiving pay, I'm sure you would agree that postponing this public relations event is totally appropriate."
Democrat Senator Mark Warner has hit out at the Trump administration's treatment of the FBI, with the president have repeatedly hit out at former members of the service like James Comey.
Mr Warner was reacting to reports the FBI New York branch has opened a food bank to help deal with the shutdown.
The State Department has instructed all US diplomats in Washington and elsewhere to return to work next week with pay, saying it had found money for their salaries at least temporarily despite the government shutdown.
In a notice to staff posted online and sent to employees, the department said it had found money to pay most of its employees beginning Sunday or Monday for their next pay period. They will not be paid for time worked since the shutdown began in December until the situation is resolved, said the notice, which was signed by William Todd, the deputy undersecretary of state for management.
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has condemned the letter exchange between President Trump and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
Mr Graham called Ms Pelosi's letter to President Trump asking he move the date of his State of the Union address "very irresponsible and blatantly political." He also called Mr Trump's letter to Ms Pelosi denying her military aircraft for an upcoming overseas trip "inappropriate."
Representative Mark Meadows, a conservative Republican from North Carolina, told CNN he thinks Mr Trump will give his State of the Union address “somewhere else” and said this will hurt Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
“I think he'll give the State of the Union somewhere else, and Nancy's politics will come back to bite her," he said.
A whole stream of politicians have appeared on CNN, with House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer telling the network that “it demeans the presidency” for President Trump to have denied military aircraft for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s trip so abruptly.
The Deputy chief of staff to Ms Pelosi, Drew Hammill, has been tweeting about Mr Trump's letter. He says that the trip would have included a stop in Brussels for pilot rest, which would include meetings with Nato commanders. There would be no spot in Egypt, he adds.
The House has withdrawn passage of a bill to reopen shuttered portions of the government and will vote again on the measure next week.
The Democratic-controlled House passed the bill by voice vote on Thursday, but Republicans objected, saying they wanted a roll call tally.
Democratic Representative GK Butterfield of North Carolina, who was presiding at the time, said he did not hear any Republicans request a roll call vote.
Earlier on Thursday, Mr Trump said the Democratic Party has been "hijacked" by those opposed to his plan for a US-Mexico border wall as he seeks to turn up pressure on his political rivals over an ongoing partial government shutdown.
Mr Trump said at the Pentagon - as he launched a US defence review - that the government remains shut down because congressional Democrats refuse to approve border security.
He claimed without evidence that Democrats in the House and the Senate are willing to negotiate with him to make a deal to reopen the government but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi "will not let them negotiate."
Away from the shutdown, law firm Skadden Arps has just agreed to a $4.6 million settlement with the Department of Justice over its representation of Paul Manafort and will retroactively register as a foreign agent.
