As the partial government shutdown enters its third week, President Donald Trump is hinting at a different approach to building his border wall: declaring a national emergency
He’s vowed to keep the government closed as long as it takes to secure funding for a wall along the U. S.-Mexico border.
Now, as the partial government shutdown enters its third week, President Donald Trump is hinting at a different approach: declaring a national emergency.
In recent days, Trump has said he may call a national emergency in an effort to get funds for a border wall without consent from Congress.
“We can call a national emergency because of the security of our country,” Trump said Friday during a news conference at the White House. “We can call a national emergency and build it very quickly. But if we can do it through a negotiated process, we’re giving it a shot.”
He did not offer any details.
But would declaring a national emergency get Trump funding for the border wall he has promised his supporters since early in his campaign?
Here are some answers:
That can be widely debated.
Presidents have called national emergencies in response to an array of events — terrorist attacks, cyber attacks, hostage situations. But the National Emergencies Act of 1976 does not specify what constitutes an “emergency.”
For months, critics have assailed the Trump administration, saying it is trying to create the appearance of a security crisis at the U. S.-Mexico border.
In arguing that a wall is needed, administration officials have, among other things, said that nearly 4,000 known or suspected terrorists were prevented from entering the U. S. in 2017. That number, however, counts stops made by Department of Homeland Security across the world, mainly at airports and not the southern border.
Yes.
Legal experts say the act gives the president the power to declare a national emergency. But the act does not require presidents to prove a crisis exists to declare an emergency — it’s at their sole discretion.
Congress can terminate a declared emergency, but it requires a two-thirds majority in both chambers, according to Loyola law professor Jessica A. Levinson.
Could Trump use government funds to build a wall during a national emergency?
It’s possible, but would likely be challenged in court, say legal experts.
Should he declare a national emergency, Trump would not have free-floating powers, said Kim Lane Scheppele, a legal scholar and professor at Princeton University’s Center for Human Values.
