US House votes to block border emergency
February 27, 2019
The US House of Representatives has approved a resolution blocking President Donald Trump from obtaining funding to build a border wall with Mexico by declaring a national emergency.
The Democrat-controlled House voted 245-182 in favor of the legislation, in a move designed to prevent Trump from diverting several billion dollars in federal funds to build a wall along the southern border.
Read more: Trump's national emergency at the border: What you need to know
Thirteen Republicans backed the resolution introduced by Democrats last week.
The bill will now go the Republican-controlled Senate, where its prospects of passing are uncertain.
Trump plans to veto
Trump has said he will issue his first veto if the bill comes to his desk for a signature.
Overcoming a veto requires a two-thirds vote in both chambers of Congress, an unlikely scenario.
Trump and many Republicans have said the wall is needed to address a security and humanitarian crisis along the border with Mexico. Democrats have argued the emergency declaration violates Congress' constitutional power to allocate federal funds.
Trump declared the national emergency on February 15 after securing less than $1.4 billion (€1.2 billion) of the $5.7 billion he demanded from Congress for the border wall.
The Trump administration plans to redirect several billion from the Pentagon budget for military construction projects to build the wall.
cw/cmk (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)