To Fund Trump Border Wall, Ally in Congress Floats Selling Bonds

(Bloomberg) -- A U.S. lawmaker is proposing a World War II style solution to the stalemate over President Donald Trump’s demand for a border wall that’s threatening a partial government shutdown.

Republican Representative Steven Palazzo of Mississippi is introducing legislation to direct the Treasury Department to issue government savings bonds to pay for a physical barrier between the U.S. and Mexico, one of Trump’s signature issues.

“This legislation would allow for the patriots of today’s era to help support American security in the same way as previous generations,” Palazzo said in a statement on the legislation, known as The Border Bonds for America Act. Bonds sold during World War II brought in $185 billion from 85 million Americans, he said.

Lawmakers are facing a Friday night deadline to reach an agreement on how to fund government departments that account for about a quarter of all discretionary spending. Trump wants at least $5 billion for the wall, while Democrats say they won’t agree to more than $1.37 billion for border fencing.

To contact the reporter on this story: Emma Kinery in Washington at ekinery@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Derek Wallbank at dwallbank@bloomberg.net, Vivek Shankar, Greg Sullivan

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