There has been a wave of political response from both sides of the aisle after President Trump declared a National Emergency to fund the southern border wall.
Political analyst Dr. David Smith expects a swift legal response in the weeks ahead.
“In terms of the lawsuits, it could be a slow moving process, but also because of the importance of it and how fast it’s gonna start happening, there’s a 15-day window that Congress has to act, but I think we’re going to see things moving a lot more quickly than that,” Smith said.
Michael Bergsma with the Nueces County Republican Party said a wall is necessary to reduce crime in border cities like McAllen.
“Many of the democrats, the left wing-part of the democrats, do not want to enforce the border laws,” Bergsma said. “I don’t see any way that we can control our border without some barriers.”
Joseph Ramirez, a member of our local democratic party, believes there are other approaches to beef up security.
“We’re adding I think 120,000 more troops on the ground, actual boots on the ground, through Customs and Border Patrol and ICE, and I think 120,000,000 in smart technology that’s been added for border security,” Ramirez said.
In a statement regarding the declaration, U.S. Representative Michael Cloud said he supports the president’s decision, and the border wall should already be funded.
“It is the responsibility of Congress to fund border security and finish completion of the border wall authorized under the Secure Fence Act of 2006 – that is clear. As a Constitutional conservative, I’ve always been open to a legitimate debate on where Congress needs to reclaim its Article I authority from the Executive Branch, regardless of who occupies the Oval Office,” Cloud said. “The reality is that Congress has given the president authority to declare a national emergency and reprogram funding under Title 10 of the U.S. Code, and this declaration is one of 58 national emergencies declared by U.S. presidents since 1979. The President is absolutely right when he says the situation on our southern border is a humanitarian and national security crisis.”
Experts said the most immediate response we can expect to see is from South Texas landowners.
“Really that’s where the first step is going to be,” Smith said. “Any landowner affected is going to want to file a suit to make sure they’re properly compensated in hopes they don’t have to give up their land, so those are the two main things based on eminent domain.”
Several state Attorneys General and members of Congress have already come forward promising to pursue legal action to stop the President’s declaration.
