House Passes Bill to Block Trump's Emergency Declaration

President has promised a veto if it passes Senate
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Feb 26, 2019 6:16 PM CST
House Passes Bill to Block Trump's Border Emergency
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., accompanied by Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, left, and others, speaks about a resolution to block President Donald Trump's emergency border security declaration on Capitol Hill, Monday, Feb. 25, 2019 in Washington.   (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Democrats ignored a veto threat and rammed legislation through the House Tuesday that would stymie President Trump's bid for billions of extra dollars for his border wall, escalating a clash over whether he was abusing his powers to advance his paramount campaign pledge. The House's 245-182 vote to block Trump's national emergency declaration throws the political hot potato to the Republican-run Senate, where there were already enough GOP defections to edge it to the cusp of passage, the AP reports. Vice President Mike Pence used a lunch with Republican senators at the Capitol to try keeping them aboard, citing a dangerous crisis at the border, but there were no signs he'd succeeded. "I personally couldn't handicap the outcome at this point," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who's planning a vote within the next three weeks. He even said Republicans remained uncertain about the legality of Trump's move, telling reporters, "We're in the process of weighing that."

Senate passage would force Trump's first veto, which Congress would surely lack the votes to override. Underscoring their desire to avoid a tally suggesting that Trump's hold on lawmakers was weakening, House Republican leaders worked to keep the number of GOP supporters well below 53. That's how many would be needed to reach a two-thirds majority of 288 votes, assuming all Democrats vote "yes," the margin required for a veto override. Thirteen House Republicans joined all voting Democrats Tuesday to support the Democratic resolution. In the Senate, three Republicans have said they will back Democrats' drive to block the emergency declaration: Maine's Susan Collins, Alaska's Lisa Murkowski and North Carolina's Thom Tillis. One more GOP defection would provide enough votes to approve the Democratic measure, assuming all Democrats and their independent allies back it. (More on Pence's meeting with Republican senators here.)

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