President Donald Trump has said he may pursue a national emergency to fund the construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border should negotiations over spending fail, Federal Times reported Wednesday.“I think we might work a deal and if we don’t, I may go that route. I have the absolute right to do national emergency if I want,†he told reporters Wednesday at the White House.
The report said the administration might redirect funds of the Department of Defense towards the border wall.
Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he warned Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan that the president’s emergency declaration plan would result in “a major breach of relations between DoD and the oversight committees.â€
Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) cited the move’s potential impact on the Future Years Defense Program, according to the report.
“Every dollar you take out of the FYDP is a dollar you take away from readiness, sustainment — and we’re talking about medical facilities for service members, overseas [military construction], hangars for our F-22s,â€Â said Schatz, a ranking member of the Senate Appropriation Committee’s military construction and veterans affairs subcommittee.
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