US states sue Trump over emergency wall declaration
California and 15 other US states have filed a lawsuit against Donald Trump’s emergency declaration to fund a wall on the US-Mexico border.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra released a statement saying the suit alleges Mr Trump’s administration’s action violates the US Constitution.
“President Trump treats the rule of law with utter contempt,” Mr Becerra said.
“He knows there is no border crisis, he knows his emergency declaration is unwarranted, and he admits that he will likely lose this case in court.”
California will be suing President Trump today to block him from unconstitutionally stealing our tax dollars to pay for his wall #fakenationalemergency https://t.co/vIJ5FwC4xs
— Xavier Becerra (@XavierBecerra) February 18, 2019
Joining California in filing the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Virginia.
Mr Trump declared a national emergency to fulfil his promise of completing the wall.
The move allows the president to bypass Congress to use money from the Pentagon and other budgets.
California has repeatedly challenged Mr Trump in court.
I’ll tell you what’s an emergency:
Separated familiesGun violenceClimate change
Those are some real emergencies we're facing — not a pointless border wall.
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) February 16, 2019
“President Trump is manufacturing a crisis and declaring a made-up ‘national emergency’ in order to seize power and undermine the Constitution,” said California Governor Gavin Newsom in a statement.
“This ’emergency’ is a national disgrace.”
Mr Trump responded by criticising California’s lead role in the lawsuit.
On Twitter, the president noted last week’s decision by Mr Newsom to cancel a high-speed rail line between Los Angeles and San Francisco.
As I predicted, 16 states, led mostly by Open Border Democrats and the Radical Left, have filed a lawsuit in, of course, the 9th Circuit! California, the state that has wasted billions of dollars on their out of control Fast Train, with no hope of completion, seems in charge!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 19, 2019
Mr Trump claimed the “failed Fast Train project” was beset by “world record setting” cost overruns and had become “hundreds of times more expensive than the desperately needed Wall!”
The president complained about the lawsuit filed in federal court in San Francisco, incorrectly identifying the plaintiffs as “16 cities” before later correcting this to “16 states”.