Budget

The president said Democrats are looking for “amnesty” for illegal immigrants in exchange for a budget deal, charges that have irked leaders in the past.

Republicans are negotiating with Democrats on the contentious issue of how much the government should spend on the military and domestic agencies to avert a holiday shutdown, among other things.

The president signed the two-week spending measure in private at the White House after the House and Senate acted to prevent a government shutdown this weekend.

The shutdown reprieve came as all sides issued optimistic takes on an afternoon White House meeting between top congressional leaders and President Donald Trump.

The White House is encouraging Congress to pass a temporary spending measure to keep the government funded through Dec. 22.

Hard-right House conservatives signaled an openness Wednesday to backing a short-term spending bill this week, raising the odds that Congress will pass the measure and prevent a partial government shutdown on Saturday.

The military buildup President Donald Trump has called for would cost $683 billion more than current spending plans over the next decade, according to a new analysis by the Congressional Budget Office.

Trump told reporters at the White House before a trip to New York City that he would consider setting the corporate tax rate at 22 percent, compared to a 20 percent rate that he has pushed for with House and Senate Republicans during the fall.

The Senate and the House seek to achieve a sweeping overhaul of the nation’s tax code but go about it in different ways.

Trump on Saturday tweeted his thanks to Senate and House Republicans as they now begin trying to reconcile differences in legislation passed by both chambers, a behind-closed-doors process that is expected to move swiftly.