Row erupts over Donald Trump's plan to declare national emergency to get border wall funding

Jacob Jarvis15 February 2019

A row has erupted over Donald Trump's plans to declare a national emergency to get funding for his border wall.

On Thursday, the US President agreed to sign a border security compromise to avert another government shutdown.

But a new row has erupted after he announced plans to bypass lawmakers and declare a national emergency to siphon billions more for his wall on the Mexican boundary.

Money in the bill for border barriers, about $1.4 billion, is far below the $5.7 billion Mr Trump insisted he needed and would finance just a quarter of the 200-plus miles he wanted.

The White House said he would sign the legislation but act unilaterally to get more, prompting condemnations from Democrats and threats of lawsuits from states and others who might lose federal money or said Trump was abusing his authority.

The uproar over Trump's next move cast an uncertain shadow over what had been a rare display of bipartisanship to address the grinding battle between the White House and lawmakers over border security.

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Both the Senate and the House have voted in favour of the legislation.

The Senate passed the legislation 83-16, with both parties solidly on board, while the House followed with a 300-128 tally,

President Trump is expected to sign off on the plans on Friday.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the President has indicated he is prepared to sign the government funding bill but could declare an emergency at the same time.

With the new legislation passed, politicians spoke of their relief that the agreement had averted a fresh closure of federal agencies.

It comes just three weeks after a record-setting 35-day partial shutdown.

In an unusual joint statement, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said such a declaration of a national emergency by the President would be "a lawless act, a gross abuse of the power of the presidency and a desperate attempt to distract" from Mr Trump's failure to force Mexico to pay for the wall.

Ms Pelosi and Mr Schumer also said "Congress will defend our constitutional authorities".

The national emergency strategy, expected to be declared by Trump on Friday, is also dividing Republicans.

Senator Susan Collins, a Republican moderate, said in a statement: "Declaring a national emergency for this purpose would be a mistake on the part of the president."

But Representative Mark Meadows, chairman of a right-wing Republican faction in the House, said: "At this point, President Trump must look at taking executive action - and I will stand with him to protect our sovereign borders."

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