WH: Trump Hasn't Given Up Having Mexico Pay for Wall

In a terse, no-nonsense response Tuesday afternoon, the White House made clear its view the president has not abandoned his idea of Mexico paying for the border wall which Mr. Donald Trump insists will be a part of his immigration package.

During the regular briefing for reporters at the White House, Newsmax noted in his recent remarks advocating the wall and asking House and Senate members to appropriate funds to build what was a showcase piece of his campaign rhetoric, the president had stopped using the phrase he always used on the campaign trail to close his call for the wall: "And make Mexico pay for it."

Does his dropping of those words and his own encouragement of lawmakers to appropriate funding for the wall mean he has abandoned the idea of Mexico paying for it, we asked.

"No, he hasn't," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders responded.

John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.