Trump insists he didn't have temper tantrum but 'politely said bye-bye' in government shutdown meeting

'No slamming', claims president

Donald Trump has denied having a “temper tantrum” during a meeting with leading Democrats over the government shutdown, insisting he “politely said bye-bye and left”.

The president was responding to claims from Chuck Schumer, the leading Democrat in the Senate, that he “slammed the table” and left the room after House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi refused a proposal to fund a wall on the US-Mexico border.

In an early morning tweet on Thursday, he said: “Cryin Chuck told his favorite lie when he used his standard sound bite that I ‘slammed the table & walked out of the room. He had a temper tantrum.’ Because I knew he would say that, and after Nancy said no to proper Border Security, I politely said bye-bye and left, no slamming!”

The president’s meeting with Democrats on Wednesday ended abruptly after less than 30 minutes, in a sign the two sides are no closer to a deal to end 20 days of federal government shutdown.

According to Mr Schumer’s account, Mr Trump stormed out of the room because he “couldn’t get his way”.

He said: “He asked speaker Pelosi, ‘Will you agree to my wall?’ She said no. And he just got up and said, ‘Then we have nothing to discuss’, and he just walked out. Again, we saw a temper tantrum because he couldn’t get his way.”

Following the meeting, Mr Trump tweeted: “Just left a meeting with Chuck and Nancy, a total waste of time. I asked what is going to happen in 30 days if I quickly open things up, are you going to approve Border Security which includes a Wall or Steel Barrier? Nancy said, NO. I said bye-bye, nothing else works!”

Vice-president Mike Pence, who was also in the meeting, disputed Mr Schumer’s depiction of the president’s behaviour.

“The president walked into the room and passed out candy. It’s true,” he told reporters outside the West Wing. “I don’t recall him ever raising his voice or slamming his hand.”