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THE BIG DEAL—Trump declares national emergency at border: President Trump on Friday declared a national emergency to bypass Congress and build $8 billion in barriers on the border, a big step toward his long-desired wall along the southern border.
Trump’s move, announced in a rambling, improvised address from the Rose Garden, will launch a fierce constitutional battle in the courts with lawmakers and outside groups opposed to his decision.
{mosads}”I am going to be signing a national emergency,” Trump said after a long introduction to his remarks that touched on trade, China and the caravans of immigrants that Trump made a political issue of ahead of last fall’s midterm elections.
“It’s a great thing to do because we have an invasion of drugs, invasion of gangs, invasion of people,” the president said in seeking to justify the need for an emergency declaration.
Trump said later in the press conference that he “didn’t need” to declare an emergency, but chose to do so because “I just want to get it done faster” and bashed Congress for not moving quickly enough.
That remark is probably not going to help Trump fight a slew of legal challenges to the declaration, some of which the president said he expected to lose.
Trump predicted on Friday that the Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit will block his move to declare a national emergency to build the wall — but that he’ll win the fight at the Supreme Court.
Trump’s comments put Republican lawmakers skeptical of the move in a tough spot.
Several GOP senators spoke out against Trump moving forward with the plan as conservative allies fume that the deal to fund the government included only $1.375 billion for border barriers instead, not the $5.7 billion for the president sought.
- “I believe it’s a mistake on the president’s part. I don’t believe that the National Emergencies Act contemplated a president repurposing billions of dollars outside of the normal appropriations process,” said Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), saying Trump’s decision was “of dubious constitutionality.”
- Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) added that she didn’t “think that this is a matter that should be declared a national emergency.”
- Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who is fairly close to Trump, said he was “not in favor of operating government through emergency,” and insinuated that the move could violate the Constitution.
- “My concerns about an emergency declaration were the precedent that’s going to be established,” said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas). “I also thought it would not be a practical solution because there will be a lawsuit filed immediately.“
- Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said his stance will depend on the “structure” of the declaration but added that he generally doesn’t “think that’s a good approach, but we’ll have to deal with it.”
LEADING THE DAY
Trump signs border deal: The president on Friday also signed a spending package to avert another government shutdown, his top spokesperson said.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters Trump approved the measure on Friday afternoon in the executive mansion. Reporters were not on hand to witness the bill signing.
Roughly one quarter of the federal government, including the Department of Homeland Security, would have shuttered if Trump had not signed the legislation.
Winners and losers in the border security deal: After a weeks-long slog, Congress united on Thursday night to pass the massive federal spending bill that averts a second shutdown, just weeks after the longest government closure in the nation’s history.
{mossecondads}Here’s an early list of winners and losers from the drawn-out fight from Scott Wong and Mike Lillis.
Winners:
- Nancy Pelosi, who boosted her power within the diverse Democratic caucus, solidified her stature as the face of the Democrats’ anti-Trump resistance, and secured billions of dollars in new funding for a host of Democratic priorities.
- House and Senate negotiators, who were able to find common ground in a tenuous dealmaking process amid partisan rancor.
- Women as leaders on a powerful committee, Reps. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) and Kay Granger (R-Texas), the first two women to lead the House Appropriations Committee, who won a deal on border security that will prevent another shutdown.
- Federal workers, who don’t have to worry about another shutdown.
Losers:
- President Trump, who took blame for a costly shutdown without winning anything close to what he demanded from Congress.
- House conservatives, who helped convince Trump to shut down the government for wall funding and ended up giving him less money that he would have gotten before.
- Federal contractors, who won’t receive backpay, and programs for women that facing a funding shortfall since the deal didn’t extend grants offered under the Violence Against Women Act.
US, China says trade talks to resume in Washington next week: U.S. trade officials met with their Chinese counterparts and other top officials in Beijing on Friday, where the two sides worked to resolve a trade dispute that has engulfed the two countries for months.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday after a week of senior-level meetings in Beijing. Further discussions are planned for Washington D.C. next week.
NEXT WEEK: Lawmakers will be away from Washington in their districts and homes states next week.
GOOD TO KNOW
- The Treasury Department on Friday announced new sanctions against top Venezuelan officials in President Nicolas Maduro’s regime.
- Hundreds of companies have been granted waivers to import millions of tons of foreign steel without paying the Trump administration’s steel and aluminum tariffs.
- A former House aide who played a key role in crafting the Republicans’ 2017 tax-cut law is joining Ernst and Young (EY), the firm announced this week.
- The U.S. Chamber of Commerce issued sharp criticism of President Trump on Friday ahead of his announcement of a national emergency on the border, saying the move would “erode” the country’s system of government.
ODDS AND ENDS
- Two top Illinois Democrats urged Amazon on Thursday to reconsider Chicago for possible expansion after the company scrapped plans for a new headquarters in New York City.