Pence says Trump has made 'no decision' on declaring a national emergency

Vice President Mike Pence told NBC News on Tuesday that President Donald Trump has yet to make a determination on whether to declare a national emergency in order to build portions of the massive wall he seeks along the U.S. southern border.

"The president has made no decision with regard to a national emergency," Pence said on "Today." Pence earlier said, as Trump has for days, that such a declaration is "something he's looking at and considering."

Asked directly if Trump will use his Oval Office address Tuesday night — his first as president — to declare a national emergency, Pence said he simply expects Trump to "explain to the American people that we have a humanitarian and security crisis at our southern border."

"It is a real crisis," Pence said, adding: "Tonight he will tell the American people why Congress should act."

Related: Government shutdown continues:

Pence's interview, and Trump's national address, comes as a government shutdown stretches into its third week. Trump has demanded more than $5 billion to build the border wall while Democrats have insisted they will not provide Trump with any additional wall funding. Both sides have been at an impasse.

Trump on Friday first suggested declaring a national emergency to reallocate existing, "un-obligated" Defense Department funds toward the building of a border wall. Legal experts told NBC News that such a move was likely to face legal challenges.

With hundreds of thousands of federal workers furloughed during the shutdown, Pence said he believes Trump "is very sensitive and grateful for all the public servants across this government."

The vice president added that there was "no reason why" those workers' paychecks "shouldn't go out on schedule on Friday."