Hello and welcome to the Intelligence on Economist Radio. I'm your host, Jason Palmer.

Every weekday we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

There's a general election in Nigeria this weekend. It'll be a close contest, and there

are already accusations of vote rigging.

Also, this week engineers at NASA at last said goodbye to opportunity.

Amar's rover that outlasted its formal 90-day mission by nearly 15 years.

First up though.

Last night Congress agreed on a funding bill that aims to avoid another government shutdown.

The bill would give President Trump nearly $1.4 billion for his border wall.

On this vote, the A's are 300, the A's are 128. The conference report is adopted without

objection, emotional reconsider is laid upon the table.

It's far less than the $5.7 billion President Trump wanted, but after a bruising government

shutdown for which he bore the brunt of the blame, he seems reluctant to force another

one.

The White House has said President Trump will declare a national emergency, an extremely

controversial workaround to get the border wall money anyway.

He's prepared to sign the bill. He will also be issuing a national emergency declaration

at the same time.

His promise to build the wall was a key part of his election campaign.

But the Constitution grants Congress the power of the purse. Democrats say the President

Trump's evident plan represents a dangerous shift in the balance of power.

I'm not advocating for any President doing an end run around Congress. I'm just saying

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