In all of the back-and-forth, the simple clarity of the president’s promise to build the wall was lost. But it will not be lost on his voters. Can Trump run for re-election in 2020 by promising to build a wall in his second term, coming up with some excuse for not doing it in his first?
He can certainly try, but even his supporters might not buy it.
Recently I texted an influential lawmaker to ask whether he thought Trump would eventually win funding for the wall. He sent back an emoji of a boy with his hands in the air in the universal how-should-I-know gesture.
That’s not good enough. Trump voters expect him to do what he said, or give everything he’s got trying. At the moment, the president is acting like he has all the time in the world. He doesn’t.
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