Senate rejects Trump border emergency as Republicans defect

(BBC Mundo) — El Senado de Estados Unidos votó este jueves a favor de anular la declaración de emergencia nacional que el presidente Donald Trump proclamó en la frontera sur con México el mes pasado.

Con una cómoda mayoría de 59 votos sobre 41, los senadores estadounidenses rechazaron así una medida que consideraron un exceso por parte de Trump en su intención de construir un muro fronterizo sin contar con el apoyo del Congreso.

Doce senadores republicanos rompieron filas con su partido para votar del lado de los demócratas.

La Cámara de Representantes, controlada por el Partido Demócrata, votó anteriormente a favor de la anulación.

Anticipándose a la votación de este jueves, el presidente Trump apuntó que “probablemente” tendrá que vetar la resolución. De confirmarse, será el primer veto de su presidencia.

El Congreso necesita una mayoría de dos tercios en ambas cámaras para anular un veto presidencial, lo que es improbable que se dé en este caso.

En cualquier caso, este voto se ve como una vergonzosa derrota para el presidente en su distintiva promesa de campaña.

Se produce además un día después de que el Senado le contradijera en política internacional al aprobar una ley para poner fin al apoyo de Estados Unidos a la coalición liderada por Arabia Saudita en Yemen.

English:

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Republican-run Senate firmly rejected President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency at the southwest border on Thursday, setting up a veto fight and dealing him a conspicuous rebuke as he tested how boldly he could ignore Congress in pursuit of his highest-profile goal.

The Senate voted 59-41 to cancel Trump’s February proclamation of a border emergency, which he invoked to spend $3.6 billion more for border barriers than Congress had approved. Twelve Republicans joined Democrats in defying Trump in a showdown many GOP senators had hoped to avoid because he commands die-hard loyalty from millions of conservative voters who could punish defecting lawmakers in next year’s elections.

With the Democratic-controlled House’s approval of the same resolution last month, Senate passage sends it to Trump. He has shown no reluctance to casting his first veto to advance his campaign exhortation, “Build the Wall,” which has prompted roars at countless Trump rallies. Approval votes in both the Senate and House fell short of the two-thirds majorities that would be needed for an override to succeed.

“VETO!” Trump tweeted minutes after the vote.

Trump has long been comfortable vetoing the measure because he thinks it will endear him to his political base, said a White House official, commenting anonymously because the official wasn’t authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

Though Trump seems sure to prevail in that battle, it remains noteworthy that lawmakers of both parties resisted him in a fight directly tied to his cherished campaign theme of erecting a border wall. The roll call came just a day after the Senate took a step toward a veto fight with Trump on another issue, voting to end U.S. support for the Saudi Arabian-led coalition’s war in Yemen.

In a measure of how remarkable the confrontation was, Thursday was the first time Congress has voted to block a presidential emergency since the National Emergency Act became law in 1976.

Even before Thursday’s vote, there were warnings that GOP senators resisting Trump could face political consequences. A White House official said Trump won’t forget when senators who oppose him want him to attend fundraisers or provide other help. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on internal deliberations.

At the White House, Trump did not answer when reporters asked if there would be consequences for Republicans who voted against him.