Members of Massachusetts’ congressional delegation signed on Friday to a U.S. House resolution that seeks to block President Donald Trump’s recent declaration of a national emergency at the southern border from taking effect.
Democrats, who have vocally rejected the White House’s push to build a wall along the United States’ border with Mexico, filed a resolution to terminate the president’s declaration and prevent him from bypassing Congress to secure funds for the controversial structure.
U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark, a Melrose Democrat and one of the measure’s 200-plus co-sponsors, argued that the resolution is needed to address what she called the “constitutional emergency” posed by the president’s executive action.
“House Democrats won’t stand for it,” she tweeted. “We’re fighting the president’s power grab.”
Congressman Stephen Lynch, D-South Boston, said he was proud to join his colleagues in co-sponsoring the resolution, which would specifically prevent Trump from redirecting funding from existing, congressionally approved national defense programs toward his proposed border wall.
“No president should be allowed to subvert the constitutional authority granted to the elected representatives of the people,” he said.
Lynch called on the U.S. Senate to join House lawmakers in advancing the legislation.
U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Salem, also urged senators to join House Democrats in supporting the resolution.
Congresswoman Lori Trahan, D-Westford, meanwhile, said she decided to co-sponsor the resolution “because no president, (Donald Tump)included, has the right to undermine the authority of Congress by declaring a fake national emergency just because they didn’t get their way.”
“The Senate should say the same thing,” she said.
The resolution’s introduction came one week after Trump declared the situation at the United States’ southern border a national emergency.
White House officials argued that the declaration would allow the president to access about $8 billion for border security.
The Trump administration is reportedly looking to build more than 230 miles of new barrier at the border and eying money from the Treasury Department drug forfeiture fund, Department of Defense drug interdiction program and other accounts for such construction.
Massachusetts lawmakers were quick to condemn Trump’s emergency declaration.
House and Senate Democratic leaders, meanwhile, pledged to challenge the president’s action "in the Congress, in the courts and in the public, using every remedy available.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi invited all chamber lawmakers on Thursday to co-sponsor the resolution to terminate Trump’s emergency declaration.
“All members take an oath of office to support and defend the Constitution. The president’s decision to go outside the bounds of the law to try to get what he failed to achieve in the constitutional legislative process violates the Constitution and must be terminated,” she said in a letter to House colleagues. “We have a solemn responsibility to uphold the Constitution, and defend our system of checks and balances against the president’s assault.”
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Original story here.