16 States Sue Trump Over National Emergency Declaration
The attorneys general of 16 states filed a lawsuit Monday over the national emergency President Trump declared last week.
The national emergency was declared Friday after Trump signed a spending deal that includes nearly $1 billion for enhanced medial care and transportation for illegal immigrants, but offers just $1.4 billion for the construction of 55 miles of “barrier.”
The figure falls far short of the $5.7 billion Trump had originally proposed.
The spending deal also blocks Trump from using allocated funds to build the wall. By declaring a national emergency over the “invasion” at the border, he hopes to redirect $8 billion without Congressional approval.
While previous presidents have signed dozens of emergency declarations, none have been related to proposals Congress declined to fund. (However, more than 30 emergency orders are still in effect, some decades old.)
“This is plainly a power grab by a disappointed President, who has gone outside the bounds of the law to try to get what he failed to achieve in the constitutional legislative process,” argues House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who during the shutdown refused to consider border wall funding even in exchange for DACA and TPS guarantees.
States involved in the lawsuit (and their governors) are:
- California (Gavin Newsom)
- Maine (Janet Mills)
- New York (Andrew Cuomo)
- Delaware (John Carney)
- Hawaii (David Ige)
- Oregon (Kate Brown)
- Colorado (Jared Polis)
- Illinois (Jay Robert Pritzker)
- Connecticut (Ned Lamont)
- Michigan (Gretchen Whitmer)
- Maryland (Larry Hogan)
- Virginia (Ralph Northam)
- Minnesota (Tim Walz)
- Nevada (Steve Sisolak)
- New Jersey (Phil Murphy)
- New Mexico (Michelle Lujan Grisham)
All 16 states have Democratic AGs, and all but Maryland have Democratic governors.
The lawsuit, led by California AG Xavier Becerra, insists Trump’s actions represent a “flagrant disregard for the separation of powers” and specifically aims to block him from obtaining wall funds without Congressional approval.
The lawsuit also demands Trump consider the potential environmental effects of the wall before starting construction.
“Declaring a national emergency when one does not exist is immoral and illegal,” says New York AG Letitia James. “Diverting necessary funds from real emergencies, crime-fighting activities, and military construction projects usurps Congressional power and will hurt Americans across the country. We will not stand for this abuse of power and will fight using every tool at our disposal.”
Becerra insists the states have the right to challenge Trump on the declaration because some of the money he is trying to use for the border wall would have gone to states’ defense budgets.
“If the president is essentially stealing money that’s been allocated to go to the various states for various purposes but no longer will, we’re being harmed, our people are being harmed,” he said.
Meanwhile, Alaska’s Republican Governor Mike Dunleavy has offered his state’s National Guard to patrol the border.
Author’s Note: The lawsuit is partisan and completely expected and almost guaranteed to succeed in the notoriously liberal Ninth Circuit Court, where it will first be tried.
Like other Trump proposals defeated by liberal courts, the issue will likely go to the Supreme Court, whose conservative majority will support Trump. The legal fight is expected to continue into the 2020 election.
Editor’s note: Famed attorney Alan Derschowitz has said ” I think emergencies are things that happened suddenly” as his reason why Trump acted improperly. But given that many emergency declarations currently in effect have been in effect for decades (giving Congress ample time to put laws into effect), one can safely say that this has not been a requirement in the past.
People like Rush Limbaugh are right, illegal immigration is quite real and a “true” National Emergency. We elected President Trump to do a job: put a stop to illegal immigration and clean the “nasty” critters out of the DC swamp. Because he is doing just that, he has become the most embattled president in history, yet he has never given up or quit. Those “critters” will not go easily, when backed into a corner (as they have been), they will fight (just like rats) and that is what they are doing. Why have the “true” Democrats allowed their party to be taken over by radicals, socialists, un-american individuals, and power-hungry leaders? That is a question we cannot answer but, unfortunately, they have. President Trump is a fighter and not a quitter, he has stayed the course. “We the (American) People” need to contact our Senators and Congress men/women and tell them to stand up and do what they were elected (and paid) to do, represent us and not follow the “lead dog”! They need to support a president that only wants the best for the American people (whether they are Republicans or Democrats), they need to stop obstructing and harassing him or allowing others to do so. Help him do the job he was elected to do. It might also be a good idea if they “clean up” their own “house”, before they start pointing their fingers at someone else, President Trump (impeachment goes for “any” government official who commits an act of misconduct in office, not just a president)!!
AMEN
Simple solution: each of the 16 states formally sign on to take a portion of every illegal to house, feed,educate and police. No problem.
All 16 of these states should have there federal funding pulled..They are the ones responsible for more division in this country plus the fact that they are all democrats and socialist toboot.
I find it disgusting to be funding health AND transportation for invaders, while we are paying attorneys to pursue legal action to prevent OUR protection. “Chancy” pelo-hmer both need to pull their heads out of globalism’s butt, and realize who they made a vow to protect.
All the illegal aliens that work illegally in the casinos, and vote illegally in our elections, have outnumbered legal Nevada voters.
That is how socialist demoncrat Sisolacky was barely voted in as governor.
We need to E-VERIFY all workers in this country to get legal voters their honest votes back, and punish those that hire illegals.
People should read the Constitution, Article 4, Section 4. It spells out the role of the United States when states are invaded.
How many have land borders with Mexico? one? Democrats don’t want to protect us from invasion…There is another caravan in Panama, 15,000 people you have to wonder why the Democrats are so against a protected border. Who is paying who off.
President Trump is within his rights. People are ignorant of the threats on the border that many of us have actually experienced. Why didn’t they object when Obama or Bush declared any emergency? It’s all about the Democrats being unable to accept that Trump was elected fairly. They can’t handle losing and will do anything to fight President Trump. This childish and absurd behavior is simply to detract from their socialist agenda to ruin this country and oppress the people. Their behavior is an embarrassment and a disgrace!
God Bless our President! He is doing everything that “WE the People ” voted him into office to do. I believe the final step is to see Hillary put in prison if I’m not mistaken.