“I have the absolute right to declare a national emergency,” Trump said, contradicting legal scholars who have questioned the president’s right to take such action in this case. As part of a series of events at the border, Trump held a roundtable discussion between his officials, border enforcement figures and local citizens, including ranchers, to discuss security. At the meeting Trump claimed, without providing evidence, that a border wall would bring crime down and listened as a sympathetic panel praised his leadership. What is a national emergency – and could Trump use one to build his wall? “It is time for President Trump to use emergency powers to fund the construction of a border wall/barrier,” said Senator Lindsey Graham, a close Trump ally, in a statement.

Source: The Guardian January 10, 2019 12:44 UTC