Thirteen Republicans Voted for Ending Trump’s National Emergency to Build the Wall

Thirteen House Republicans joined Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Democrats to pass a resolution that would terminate President Donald J. Trump’s national emergency to build a wall along the southern border.

The House passed a resolution Tuesday to end President Donald Trump’s national emergency to build a wall along the southern border. The bill passed; however, it did not receive enough votes to potentially override a presidential veto.

Although Republicans overwhelmingly voted with the president to sustain the national emergency and keep building the wall, thirteen Republicans decided to join Democrats and help the bill pass through the House.

The thirteen Republicans who voted with Democrats to end the national emergency include:

1. Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI)
2. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA)
3. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI)
4. Rep. Jamie Herrera Butler (R-WA)
5. Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX)
6. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD)
7. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY)
8. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA)
9. Rep. Francis Rooney (R-FL)
10. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI)
11. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY)
12. Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI)
13. Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR)

Many of these Republicans cited congressional authority granted under the Constitution that only Congress can have the “power of the purse” to spend money.

Massie tweeted Tuesday:

I support President Trump and I support the wall. In fact I voted to fund the wall for the full amount requested by @realDonaldTrump. I also called out President Obama when he tried to use his pen and phone to sidestep Congress on immigration, war, healthcare, and gun control.

I support President Trump and I support the wall. In fact I voted to fund the wall for the full amount requested by @realDonaldTrump. I also called out President Obama when he tried to use his pen and phone to sidestep Congress on immigration, war, healthcare, and gun control.

— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) February 26, 2019

 

Tonight I voted for the resolution of disapproval.

Strengthening our borders is an urgent necessity, but declaring a national emergency and reprogramming already appropriated funds without the approval of Congress is a violation of the Constitution. ➡️ https://t.co/GlxLq7hMbR pic.twitter.com/lXkwoHjMj2

— Fred Upton (@RepFredUpton) February 26, 2019

“Congress cannot grant the president by statute the authority to assume legislative powers at will, turning the executive branch into a legislative branch whenever the president uses magic words.” https://t.co/6to4FdVnjK

— Justin Amash (@justinamash) February 26, 2019

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers attempted to equate former President Barack Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) illegal alien amnesty to President Trump’s national emergency to build the wall as one reason she voted for the resolution. However, one federal district judge ruled in August 2018 that DACA was illegal, whereas many lawyers have argued that Trump has the authority under the National Emergencies Act of 1976 to reappropriate money to build the wall.

I’m 100% in favor of President Trump’s wall, and today’s vote had nothing to do with the need to build it. For the same reason I was against President Obama using his ‘pen and phone,’ I voted to disapprove of this unilateral executive action. pic.twitter.com/oGKN1kpPnw

— CathyMcMorrisRodgers (@cathymcmorris) February 26, 2019

Rep. Hurd once charged in January that the border crisis is a “myth,” although in a tweet Tuesday he now says that “we have a problem at the border.”