Langevin Votes to Cancel Trump Border Emergency

WASHINTON – Congressman Jim Langevin (D-RI), a senior member of the House Homeland Security and Armed Services Committees, issued the following statement after voting in favor of a resolution to terminate President Trump’s border emergency declaration. It passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 245-182 and, by law, must be considered in the Senate within the next three weeks.

“I was proud to join my fellow Democrats this evening in reasserting the importance of the legislative branch of our government. I opposed President Trump’s unnecessary border wall during our government funding debates, and I was outraged when he made an unprecedented end run around Congress by declaring a national ‘emergency’ to give him access to military construction accounts. Stripping away critical resources from our military personnel to pay for a wall is simply nonsensical. Beyond that, the President’s declaration suggests he can simply circumvent the legislative process as he desires. This is an extremely dangerous – and antidemocratic – precedent to set.

“This issue is not about partisan politics or political ideology. Democrats support strengthening our border security, and we made important investments in technology and personnel in our Homeland Security funding bill two weeks ago. Today’s vote is about defending the checks and balances defined in our Constitution. I strongly urge my colleagues in the Senate to protect our democracy by rejecting the President’s executive overreach.”