Republican Senators Mitt Romney and Mike Lee are not happy that President Trump is taking money earmarked for their state to build the wall at the southern border.
So, in a cynical ploy, they have co-sponsored a bill that will stop the President from diverting federal funds to border wall construction going forward.
Basically, they are saying that the Dems will come around and play ball. Which will never happen.
Their bill is called the Article One Act and it will severely restrict the ability of the President when it comes to national emergencies.
Romney should show grace and courage and say that Trump taking money from a red state shows the bipartisan nature of the fight and that we all have to make sacrifices to protect our border.
What could have been a leadership moment for Mitt Romney turned into just another cynical media moment. Very sad.
KSL reported that Utah GOP Sens. Mike Lee and Mitt Romney said the Air Force told them that money appropriated by Congress for the Hill projects would instead be spent on the wall as a result of President Trump’s emergency declaration in February. Both senators had urged the Defense Department to protect funding for the Utah projects.
“Congress has been ceding far too much power to the executive branch for decades and it is far past time for Congress to restore the proper balance of power between the three branches,” Lee said in a statement.
On Tuesday, Pentagon officials stated that the Defense Department would redirect $3.6 billion from 127 existing military construction projects to build about 175 miles of wall on the southern border.
Lee said his proposed “Article One Act” would correct the imbalances caused by the National Emergencies Act.
The bill would automatically end all future emergency declarations made under the National Emergencies Act after 30 days unless Congress votes to extend them. Congress now can cancel an emergency declaration only by passing a resolution that withstands a presidential veto.
Romney stated that he is “disappointed” that despite the concerns he and Lee raised, the projects will be “delayed.”
“Funding the border wall is an important priority, and the executive branch should use the appropriate channels in Congress, rather than divert already appropriated funding away from military construction projects and therefore undermining military readiness,” he said in a statement.
