Congressional Republicans have been waiting since then for guidance from the White House on next steps -- a counter proposal? Every day the White House waits to send forth a proposal or options is a day less to go through that dance. There are several senior White House officials who believe the smart play here is to punt this fight until after the holidays. Who wins out between the camps in the White House in the days ahead is an interesting sidebar. What to readBehind the scenes -- and note of general cautionOn Friday, there were reports that Trump was "mulling" a punt on the wall funding.

Source: CNN December 17, 2018 13:52 UTC