Thread by @Peoples_Pundit

So, you know know I've been pretty fair about all this, right?

The "border wall" bill is a bait and switch, and grossly demonstrates your representatives care more about foreign future voters than you and your families.

Opioid funding is a joke. So are construction limitations.

That said, Donald Trump could sign it and still declare victory.

Why?

I thought it was immoral? Right. This turned into a negotiation for 💰 and priorities. It's no longer about morality & sovereignty. Democrats hatching this out cede all moral authority.

But he shouldn't.

We went over this last time. Democratic constituencies and benefactors are far more dependent on government. This bill is so bad as a matter of policy, vs. what "experts" say we need, it's hard to argue why Trump shouldn't renegotiate the bill with them sweating under shutdown.

I'm not dumping on Trump, so save your tweets. His real flaw was trusting a liar like Paul Ryan, and not the people who helped get elected. It's not like conservative talk radio stars weren't telling him Ryan is a scumbag. But that's over now, and he'll have to decide what to do.

Let's do the hypothetical thing.

"If I were president," I'd worry about putting myself in boxes that did not exist before I signed this bill.

A cynical person would suspect this bill does nothing but set up a legal argument against his existing authority.

This would not be smart if he intends to declare a national emergency. The mayors will be the plaintiffs, and they'll point to the new authorities.

The "fencing designs" are limited to those in use as of 2017 and
prohibits construction on Bentsen-Rio State Park, the National Butterfly Center, the Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge, La Lomita Historical Park, and the Lower Rio Grande Wildlife Refuge between Brownsville, TX, and Gulf.

Then there's this gem.