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Trump to give primetime public address regarding border wall on Tuesday

Speech is in the works and will likely air Tuesday
Posted at 1:33 PM, Jan 07, 2019
and last updated 2019-01-07 13:56:46-05

UPDATE (1:50 p.m. Eastern): President Trump tweeted that he will address the nation live on TV at 9 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday.

EARLIER STORY: President Donald Trump asked aides over the weekend about delivering a primetime address on Tuesday, a White House official said.

The official said the public address is in the planning stages now. Trump wants to make his case about the government shutdown and wall funding in advance of Thursday's border trip.

Bill Shine, the deputy chief of staff for communications, is meeting with aides today to discuss a potential address to the nation. The New York Times first reported Trump's desire to address the nation.

It's unclear whether the networks will take it or have yet been formally asked.

Trump will "meet with those on the front lines of the national security and humanitarian crisis" in his boreder wall visit Thursday, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders announced Monday morning on Twitter.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has flatly rejected providing any funding for a border wall to resolve the stalemate. And Trump has threatened to drag on the shutdown for months or even years if he does not get funding for the border wall.