President Trump departed Friday for a retreat with Republican congressional leaders at Camp David, promising that they have “a lot of things to accomplish” in the weekend meetings on immigration reform, infrastructure spending and other legislative priorities.
“We have a lot of things to work on,” Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House before boarding Marine One.
Noting another good day in the stock market and a positive jobs report, Mr. Trump said, “The tax cuts are really kicking in, far beyond what anyone thought.”
The White House said Mr. Trump and Vice President Mike Pence are hosting the GOP lawmakers at the presidential retreat in Maryland for discussions on “ensuring continued economic growth, national security, promoting responsible immigration reform, funding our troops, rebuilding our nation’s crumbling infrastructure,” as well as the fiscal year 2019 budget, welfare reform, the opioid crisis, healthcare and confirming the president’s nominees.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Paul Ryan and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Sen. John Cornyn of Texas and others also will discuss the party’s prospects in the midterm elections. The party of the president usually takes a beating in the midterms.
“I think we’ve got a good record to run on in 2018,” Mr. Cornyn said on Fox News, citing accomplishments such as judicial appointments and tax reform.
A pending March 1 deadline for young illegal immigrants — those brought to the U.S. illegally as children — is a top priority for Democrats. But Republicans say that won’t come without comprehensive immigration reform that includes border security and an end to a visa lottery system.
“There is a deal to be had here. but what we need is to restore a legal immigration system and enforcement,” Mr. Cornyn said.
Democratic lawmakers are expected to attend a meeting at the White House Tuesday on immigration, with the outline of a deal that would provide protections from deportation for so-called “Dreamers,” no limit on chain migration and no guarantee of funding for a border wall beyond 2018, items that are sure to be opposed by conservatives.
• Sally Persons contributed to this article.
• Dave Boyer can be reached at dboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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