SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Republican congressman from Utah says it would be a mistake for President Donald Trump to declare a national emergency to fund a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
U.S. Rep. Chris Stewart said in a statement Thursday that the declaration would set a dangerous precedent.
He says that it could pave the way for a future Democratic president to make a similar declaration over gun violence or climate change, and take steps Republicans may disagree with.
Stewart says the U.S. must secure its borders, but the power of the executive branch to make such declarations must be limited.
Trump is prepared to invoke a national emergency to build the U.S.-Mexico wall after Congress refused to provide $5.7 billion he was demanding as part of a budget compromise to avoid a federal shutdown.
