Republican Sen. Rand Paul explained his reasoning for opposing President Donald Trump’s use of emergency powers to get more funding for the southern border wall, writing in an op-ed for Fox News on Monday that defending the Constitution means standing on principle and rejecting hypocrisy.
Paul said that he and every other Republican, including Trump, correctly criticized President Barack Obama’s use of executive power to legislate, so “I would literally lose my political soul if I decided to treat President Trump different than President Obama.”
The Kentucky senator emphasized that he backs Trump on getting more funding for the wall and that there is a need for better border security, but “I cannot support the use of emergency powers… [because] the only way to be an honest officeholder is to stand up for the same principles no matter who is in power.”
Paul stressed that “My oath is to the Constitution, not to any man or political party.”
He made several arguments for his decision, stating no president has "used emergency powers to spend money denied by Congress, and [the statute] was clearly not intended to do that.”
He also said the government was shut down in a battle over how much money to spend on the wall and border security, with Congress clearly expressing its will not to allocate more than $1.3 billion and to restrict how much of that money could go to barriers.
Paul also argued that Trump’s emergency declaration turns on its head the principle of separation of powers in the Constitution that delegates the power of the purse to Congress.
The senator said he understands Trump’s frustration in dealing with Congress, but “his only constitutional recourse... is to veto the bill.”
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