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AOC Says She's Taking Action To Stop Trump's National Emergency Declaration

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CORRECTION, Feb 16, 2019: An earlier version of this story said Rep. Joaquin Castro is a Democratic candidate for president. His twin brother Julian Castro is.

Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Friday that she will introduce legislation in the House of Representatives, along with Democratic colleague Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas to block President Donald Trump’s national emergency declaration.

“.@JoaquinCastrotx and I aren’t going to let the President declare a fake national emergency without a fight,” the New York representative tweeted prior to Trump’s White House announcement.

Castro said in a statement that he would introduce a resolution under 50 U.S.C. 1622 — the National Emergencies Act — to overturn Trump’s declaration.

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The statute calls for Congress to vote on a joint resolution within a six-month window to decide whether an emergency declaration should be terminated.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler of New York said Thursday that he would back such a resolution, USA Today reported.

“I will fully support the enactment of a joint resolution to terminate the president’s emergency declaration, in accordance with the process described in the National Emergencies Act, and intend to pursue all other available legal options,” he said. “The Judiciary Committee will also use its authority to hold the administration to account and determine the supposed legal basis for the president’s actions.”

While the resolution would likely clear the Democrat-controlled House, it is not clear how it would fare in the Senate where Republicans hold a 53 to 47 majority.

Do you think Ocasio-Cortez's resolution will be successful?

The Hill reported Thursday that GOP Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Rand Paul of Kentucky, John Cornyn of Texas, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Marco Rubio of Florida have all expressed concerns about Trump appropriating border barrier funding by declaring a national emergency.

Trump has the power to veto a congressional vote to terminate his declaration, which would require a two-thirds vote in both the Senate and the House to override.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer released a joint statement following Trump’s declaration of a national emergency, claiming he has “gone outside the bounds of the law.”

“The President’s actions clearly violate the Congress’s exclusive power of the purse, which our Founders enshrined in the Constitution,” they further stated. “The Congress will defend our constitutional authorities in the Congress, in the Courts, and in the public, using every remedy available.”

Trump announced from the Rose Garden that he had signed the declaration, which directs $8 billion to construct or repair as much as 234 miles in border barrier, Politico reported.

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In addition to the $1.375 billion, Congress just voted to authorize, the White House will seek to redirect $3.6 billion from a military construction fund, $2.5 billion from a Department of Defense drug interdiction program and $600 million from the Treasury Department from a drug forfeiture fund.

The national emergency is specifically being used to tap the $3.6 billion from the military construction fund.

Among other statutory provisions regarding redirecting Pentagon funds to border security that the Trump administration will likely point to is 10 U.S.C 284.

In testimony before Congress last month, a top DOD official said the law authorizes the Pentagon to provide support for counter-drug operations if requested by the appropriate federal and state authorities.

The legislation specifically allows for the “construction of roads and fences and installation of lighting to block drug smuggling corridors across international boundaries of the United States.”

Trump predicted the Democrats and their allies will challenge his national emergency declaration in court, but believes the Supreme Court will side with his administration, if the case is treated fairly.

“The probably easiest one to win is declaring a national emergency, because we’re declaring it for virtual invasion purposes: drugs, traffickers, and gangs,” Trump said, referring to his past victory at the high court regarding his travel ban from certain countries. “We have removed thousands of MS-13 gang monsters.”

Many national emergencies have been declared by past presidents, including Barack Obama, Trump noted.

In fact, the president said he would use language from the Obama administration’s 2011 national emergency declaration in relation to transnational criminal gangs, which specifically identified the ruthless Los Zetas Mexican drug cartel.

In making the case for further barrier funding in late January, Trump said, “Last year alone, (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) officers removed 10,000 known or suspected gang members, like MS-13 and members as bad as them. Horrible people. Tough. Mean. Sadistic.”

“As commander in chief, my highest priority is the defense of our great country,” he added. “We cannot surrender operational control over the nation’s borders to foreign cartels, traffickers, and smugglers.”

Ocasio-Cortez has called for the abolishment of ICE on multiple occasions, Fox News reported.

“(ICE) do not deserve a dime until they can prove that they are honoring human rights, until they can make a good faith effort to expand and embrace immigrants … Until they can prove good faith to an American ideal, they do not deserve any resources for their radical agenda,” she said.

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Randy DeSoto has written more than 2,000 articles for The Western Journal since he joined the company in 2015. He is a graduate of West Point and Regent University School of Law. He is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths" and screenwriter of the political documentary "I Want Your Money."
Randy DeSoto is the senior staff writer for The Western Journal. He wrote and was the assistant producer of the documentary film "I Want Your Money" about the perils of Big Government, comparing the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama. Randy is the author of the book "We Hold These Truths," which addresses how leaders have appealed to beliefs found in the Declaration of Independence at defining moments in our nation's history. He has been published in several political sites and newspapers.

Randy graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point with a BS in political science and Regent University School of Law with a juris doctorate.
Birthplace
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Nationality
American
Honors/Awards
Graduated dean's list from West Point
Education
United States Military Academy at West Point, Regent University School of Law
Books Written
We Hold These Truths
Professional Memberships
Virginia and Pennsylvania state bars
Location
Phoenix, Arizona
Languages Spoken
English
Topics of Expertise
Politics, Entertainment, Faith




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