The U.S. House of Representatives plans to file a lawsuit challenging the emergency declaration President Donald Trump announced earlier this year to secure funding for a border wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Thursday that the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group voted in favor of authorizing the lawsuit.
"The House will once again defend our Democracy and our Constitution, this time in the courts," she said in a statement.
Trump declared an emergency on the southern border earlier this year after the battle over his request for $5.7 billion in border wall funding triggered a record 35-day partial government shutdown. Lawmakers in the House and Senate later passed a resolution aimed at overturning the declaration, prompting Trump to issue his first veto.
Democrats argued that despite the president’s claims, there is no emergency on the southern border. Instead, Democrats said Trump declared the emergency to circumvent Congress.
“The President’s action clearly violates the Appropriations Clause by stealing from appropriated funds, an action that was not authorized by constitutional or statutory authority,” Pelosi said.
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