Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
At the Border, Trump Moves Closer to Emergency Declaration
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
January 11, 2019

Share

MCALLEN, Texas — Taking the shutdown fight to the Mexican border, President Donald Trump edged closer Thursday to declaring a national emergency in an extraordinary end run around Congress to fund his long-promised border wall.
Pressure was mounting to find an escape hatch from the three-week impasse that has closed parts of the government, cutting scattered services and leaving hundreds of thousands of workers without pay.

“We’re either going to have a win, make a compromise — because I think a compromise is a win for everybody — or I will declare a national emergency.”President Donald Trump
Trump, visiting McAllen, Texas, and the Rio Grande to highlight what he says is a crisis of drugs and crime, said that “if for any reason we don’t get this going” — an agreement with House Democrats who have refused to approve the $5.7 billion he demands for the wall — “I will declare a national emergency.”

First Missed Payday Will Be Friday

Some 800,000 workers, more than half of them still on the job, were to miss their first paycheck on Friday under the stoppage, and Washington was close to setting a dubious record for the longest government shutdown in the nation’s history. Those markers — along with growing effects to national parks, food inspections, and the economy overall — left some Republicans on Capitol Hill increasingly uncomfortable with Trump’s demands.
Asked about the plight of those going without pay, the president shifted the focus, saying he felt badly “for people that have family members that have been killed” by criminals who came over the border.
Trump was consulting with White House attorneys and allies about using presidential emergency powers to take unilateral action to construct the wall over the objections of Congress. He claimed his lawyers told him the action would withstand legal scrutiny “100 percent.” But such a move to bypass Congress’ constitutional control of the nation’s purse strings would spark certain legal challenges and bipartisan cries of executive overreach.
“We’re either going to have a win, make a compromise — because I think a compromise is a win for everybody — or I will declare a national emergency,” Trump said before departing the White House for his politically flavored visit to the border. He wore his campaign-slogan “Make America Great Again” cap throughout.

AP chart of asylum request backlog
The government shutdown over President Donald Trump’s demand for a border wall is playing havoc with the nation’s already backlogged immigration court system, forcing the postponement of hearings for thousands of asylum seekers.

No Negotiations in DC

It was not clear what a compromise might entail, and there were no indications that one was in the offing. Trump says he won’t reopen the government without money for the wall. Democrats say they favor measures to bolster border security but oppose the long, impregnable barrier that Trump envisions.
No negotiations were taking place at the Capitol.
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said at one point that he didn’t “see a path in Congress” to end the shutdown, then stated later that enough was enough: “It is time for President Trump to use emergency powers to fund the construction of a border wall/barrier.”
Visiting a border patrol station in McAllen, Trump viewed tables piled with weapons and narcotics. Like nearly all drugs trafficked across the border, they were intercepted by agents at official ports of entry, he was told, and not in the remote areas where he wants to extend tall barriers.
Still, he declared, “A wall works. … Nothing like a wall.”
He argued that the U.S. can’t solve the problem without a “very substantial barrier” along the border, but offered exaggerations about the effectiveness of border walls and current apprehensions of those crossing illegally.

Trump: I’m ‘Winning’ the Shutdown Fight

Sitting among border patrol officers, state and local officials and military representatives, Trump insisted he was “winning” the shutdown fight and criticized Democrats for asserting he was manufacturing a sense of crisis in order to declare an emergency. “What is manufactured is the use of the word ‘manufactured,'” Trump said.
As he arrived in Texas, several hundred protesters near the airport in McAllen chanted and waved signs opposing a wall. Across the street, a smaller group chanted back: “Build that wall!”
In Washington, federal workers denounced Trump at a rally with congressional Democrats, demanding he reopen the government so they can get back to work.
On Capitol Hill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi accused the president of engaging in political games to fire up his most loyal supporters, suggesting that a heated meeting Wednesday with legislators at the White House had been “a setup” so that Trump could walk out of it.
In an ominous sign for those seeking a swift end to the showdown, Trump announced he was canceling his trip to Davos, Switzerland, scheduled for later this month, citing Democrats’ “intransigence” on border security. He was to leave Jan. 21 to attend the World Economic Forum.
The partial shutdown would set a record early Saturday, stretching beyond the 21-day closure that ended on Jan 6, 1996, during President Bill Clinton’s administration.

DON'T MISS

Trump Says Musk, Vivek Will Form Outside Group to Advise White House on Government Efficiency

DON'T MISS

Fate of Clovis Trustee Race Still Up in the Air. So Are Clovis, Sanger School Bond Measures.

DON'T MISS

Richardson Widens Lead Over Bonakdar in Nail-Biting Race for Fresno City Council

DON'T MISS

What to Know About John Ratcliffe, Trump’s Pick for CIA Director

DON'T MISS

Here Are the People Trump Has Picked for Key Positions So Far

DON'T MISS

Waymo’s Robotaxis Now Open to Anyone Who Wants a Driverless Ride in Los Angeles

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Man Accused of Filing Fake Disability Claims in $300K Fraud Scheme

DON'T MISS

Trump Nominates Fox News Host Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary

DON'T MISS

Economists Warn of Inflation and Debt Risks in Trump’s Second Term Plans

DON'T MISS

How Many Smoke Shops Is Too Many? Fresno Plan Would Allow Only 49

UP NEXT

Gov. Newsom Said No, but California Voters Overwhelmingly Said Yes

UP NEXT

Chris Wallace Is Leaving CNN, Eager to Explore New Media Landscape

UP NEXT

California Counts Methodically as House Control Hangs in the Balance

UP NEXT

Voters in California City Reject Measure Allowing Noncitizens to Vote in Local Races

UP NEXT

Voters in Oakland Oust Mayor Sheng Thao Just 2 Years Into Her Term

UP NEXT

California Gov. Gavin Newsom Will Spend Part of Week in DC as He Tries to Trump-Proof State Policies

UP NEXT

US Regulators Investigating Whether Engines on 1.4 Million Hondas Might Fail

UP NEXT

When to Catch the Last Supermoon of the Year

UP NEXT

California Farmers Enjoy Pistachio Boom, With Much of It Headed to China

UP NEXT

Mattel Says It ‘Deeply’ Regrets Misprint on ‘Wicked’ Dolls Packaging That Links to Porn Site

What to Know About John Ratcliffe, Trump’s Pick for CIA Director

6 hours ago

Here Are the People Trump Has Picked for Key Positions So Far

6 hours ago

Waymo’s Robotaxis Now Open to Anyone Who Wants a Driverless Ride in Los Angeles

6 hours ago

Fresno County Man Accused of Filing Fake Disability Claims in $300K Fraud Scheme

6 hours ago

Trump Nominates Fox News Host Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary

6 hours ago

Economists Warn of Inflation and Debt Risks in Trump’s Second Term Plans

6 hours ago

How Many Smoke Shops Is Too Many? Fresno Plan Would Allow Only 49

7 hours ago

US Says It Will Not Limit Israel Arms Transfers After Some Improvements in Flow of Aid to Gaza

7 hours ago

Who With Valley Ties Could Land Spots in the Trump Administration?

8 hours ago

Tulare Gang Member Gets Life Without Parole for 2022 Murders

9 hours ago

Trump Says Musk, Vivek Will Form Outside Group to Advise White House on Government Efficiency

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday said Elon Musk and former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will lead a new “D...

5 hours ago

5 hours ago

Trump Says Musk, Vivek Will Form Outside Group to Advise White House on Government Efficiency

5 hours ago

Fate of Clovis Trustee Race Still Up in the Air. So Are Clovis, Sanger School Bond Measures.

5 hours ago

Richardson Widens Lead Over Bonakdar in Nail-Biting Race for Fresno City Council

6 hours ago

What to Know About John Ratcliffe, Trump’s Pick for CIA Director

6 hours ago

Here Are the People Trump Has Picked for Key Positions So Far

6 hours ago

Waymo’s Robotaxis Now Open to Anyone Who Wants a Driverless Ride in Los Angeles

A Fresno County man has been indicted on mail fraud charges for allegedly submitting over $300,000 in falsified disability claims using stolen identities. (GV Wire File)
6 hours ago

Fresno County Man Accused of Filing Fake Disability Claims in $300K Fraud Scheme

Pete Hegseth walks to an elevator for a meeting with President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower in New York, Dec. 15, 2016. (AP File)
6 hours ago

Trump Nominates Fox News Host Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary

Search

Send this to a friend