Stefanik breaks with Trump, votes against national emergency declaration
Stefanik sides with Democrats
North Country Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY21) voted yesterday to break with President Trump over his National Emergency declaration. She was one of just 13 Republicans voting with Democrats to block emergency funding for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.
It was one of the Republican law maker’s biggest moments breaking ranks with a President who remains highly popular with many conservative voters in Upstate New York.
In a statement, Stefanik said she agrees with Trump’s goal of “securing our border” but she added that "declaring a national emergency that will take funding from our country’s military construction projects is the wrong decision.”
Stefanik went on to note that she had been an outspoken critic of President Barack Obama’s use of executive orders. “No matter what Party is represented in the White House,” Stefanik wrote, “I will stand up against executive action that circumvents Congress."
Vote reflects simmering disagreement with Trump over border policy
Stefanik has signaled for months that she was skeptical about the President’s border policy, including his efforts to dismantle NAFTA, his claim that Mexico would pay for a border wall wall, and later his suggestion that U.S. military spending might be used for the project.
"I certainly think we need to act when it comes to border security," Stefanik told NCPR last month. "But I believe as someone serving in Congress that we are a co-equal branch of government and we need to get this done."
But the border wall is one of President Trump’s top priorities and it remains highly popular with his cosnervative base. "What we really want to do is simple," Trump said when declaring the national emergency. "It's not like it's complicated, it's very simple. We want to stop drugs from coming into our country. We want to stop criminals and gants."
A debate erupts on social media
Stefanik was the only Republican lawmakers from New York state to break with the President.
On social media, some Trump supporters voiced anger. “You let our people down,” one person wrote on Twitter. “Can’t wait until they put a real conservative in the primary against you,” wrote another.
But Stefanik also won praise for her vote, with many commenters on social media saying it’s important to protect the separation of powers in Washington.
“I'm no Democrat,” one person wrote on Twitter. “But I love the Constitution. This was the right vote.”
Senate takes up matter next
Democratic lawmakers Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand are both expected to vote in favor of this resolution when it’s taken up by the Senate. President Trump’s emergency declaration is also being challenged in the courts by 16 states including New York.
Stefanik's full statement
Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik voted in support of the disapproval of the national emergency declaration and released the following statement:
“While I continue to be a strong supporter of securing our border, I believe the President declaring a national emergency that will take funding from our country’s military construction projects is the wrong decision,” said Congresswoman Stefanik. “For this reason, I voted in support of today’s resolution disapproving of the national emergency with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle. As a Constitutional conservative, I consistently criticized President Obama's executive overreach. No matter what Party is represented in the White House, I will stand up against executive action that circumvents Congress. I will continue to negotiate in good faith to fully fund securing the border, and I urge my Democrat colleagues to commit to doing the same.”
