Trump threatens to shut Mexico border unless Democrats fund wall

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to "entirely" close the southern US border with Mexico if lawmakers refuse his demands to fund a wall.

"We will be forced to close the Southern Border entirely if the Obstructionist Democrats do not give us the money to finish the Wall & also change the ridiculous immigration laws that our Country is saddled with," Trump tweeted.

The Republican leader’s warning came as a partial federal government shutdown was set to drag on into next week, with legislators in Washington failing to reach a compromise over Trump’s insistence on funding the border barrier.

Both sides have dug in, with Democrats refusing to provide $5 billion for the project and the president -- who has made hardline immigration polices a centerpiece of his presidency -- vowing he will not fully fund the government unless he gets the money.

In November, Trump threatened to close the "whole border" with Mexico if "it gets to a level where we’re going to lose control or people are going to start getting hurt." Days later US authorities dramatically shuttered a border crossing in southern California after hundreds of migrants -- part of the "caravan" Trump had roundly condemned -- tried to breach a fence from the Mexican city of Tijuana.

The temporary closing saw border agents halt vehicles and pedestrians at the San Ysidro crossing point, one of the busiest between the neighbouring countries.In January, Democrats will take control of the House.

The incoming speaker, Nancy Pelosi, has said the chamber “will vote swiftly to reopen government and show that Democrats will govern responsibly in stark contrast to this chaotic White House”.

The longer the shutdown continues, the more the public will feel its effects. Smithsonian museums have so far remained open with money they had on hand, but announced on Thursday that all museums and the National Zoo will be closed starting on 2 January.

Nine cabinet-level departments, including homeland security and the justice department, are affected by the shutdown, along with dozens of other agencies.

Federal workers are still set to receive paychecks beginning on Friday, which were processed before the shutdown. But those who were supposed to work last Saturday, the first day of the shutdown will be short a day’s pay. The next paycheck will not come if the shutdown continues.

The government offered tips for federal workers unable to pay rent, mortgages or other debt and looking to fend off creditors. “I am a federal employee who has recently been furloughed due to a lack of funding of my agency,” said one of the sample letters from the Office of Personnel Management.