On Wednesday House Speaker Nancy Pelosi withdrew an invitation for him to address Congress, saying government services should fully reopen first. "Why doesn't Nancy Pelosi say: 'You can come".
On January 3, Nancy Pelosi sent a customary letter to the president inviting him to deliver the State of the Union address in the House Chamber.
While other options exist for delivering the speech - including delivering it for somewhere outside of Washington - White House officials say they are hesitant to hold a campaign-style rally instead of the State of the Union address because they realize it's not formal enough to replicate the traditional speech. "I agreed. She then changed her mind because of the Shutdown, suggesting a later date".
The Constitution states only that the president "shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union", meaning the president can speak anywhere he chooses or give his update in writing.
He also spoke to Fox News' "Hannity" Wednesday night and said that the more extreme Pelosi gets, the more likely it is that lawmakers will reach a deal on border security.
Traditionally the president's annual speech is delivered before a joint session of Congress in the ornate chamber of the House of Representatives. "After law enforcement agencies addressed security questions first raised by Speaker Pelosi, today's action proves that Democrats are more concerned with scoring political points than ending this shutdown".
The gamesmanship began last week when Pelosi sent a letter to Trump suggesting that he either deliver the speech in writing or postpone it until after the partial government shutdown is resolved, citing security concerns.
The Senate is set to vote Thursday on two different proposals to end the shutdown, one that was passed by the Democratic-controlled House and one built off Trump's own proposal presented in a speech on Saturday.
Trump now appears to have capitulated. Trump wants $5.7 billion for a border wall, but Democratic leadership refuses to give it.
Democrats want far more to be protected - in negotiations past year Trump proposed extending the safeguards to 1.8 million people, including many who'd not yet applied - and want the program's coverage to be permanent.
Earlier in the day, the California Democrat formally disinvited Trump from giving the address from the House chamber, catching White House officials off guard and leaving them scrambling for a response.
The Senate votes have the potential to break the impasse, but since each requires 60 votes to advance in the 100-member chamber, their passage is unlikely.
"All of us believe that if we had three weeks with the government open, with all the discord coming from a shutdown, that we could find a way forward to produce a bill that he would sign", Graham said on the Senate floor. "Ultimately, the American people will have their way, because they want to see no crime".
"More judges, more border control, additional technology - these are the kinds of things that we are going to be putting forward, and I think can be done using the figure that the president has put on the table", Clyburn said. "She knew it wasn't a security problem, she blamed security, but she knew it wasn't a security problem".
