Trump holds firm on border wall, offers steel option as compromise

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Senior White House Advisor Jared Kushner walk from the West Wing to a meeting with Congressional staffers about ending the partial government shutdown at the White House in Washington, U.S., January 6, 2019. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump pledged on Sunday not to bend in his demand for a wall along the southern border with Mexico but said the barrier could be made of steel instead of concrete as a potential compromise with Democrats who refuse to fund it.

Trump's comments came at the start of the third week of a partial government shutdown resulting from the dispute that has left hundreds of thousands of federal workers idled or without paychecks.