Barbara Lee: “Let me thank the gentlewoman for yielding and, also, for her tremendous leadership on the House Rules Committee. Mr.…”

“Let me thank the gentlewoman for yielding and, also, for her tremendous leadership on the House Rules Committee. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the rule and Congressman Castro's resolution to stop President Trump's fake, so- called national emergency at the border. Let me be clear: This emergency declaration is a blatant attempt to subvert the Constitution and get around Congress' sole power of the purse. Let me remind you also, that this is a democracy, not a dictatorship. We have three branches of government, not one, and Congress has the power of the purse strings. Also, let's make one thing clear: There is no emergency at the border. The only crisis at the border is the humanitarian crisis that the President created himself through his hateful family separation policies. And instead of protecting our national security, this President is doing just the opposite: He is stealing money from military construction projects to try to build an unauthorized wall. As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I can tell you that we will not allow this President to circumvent our authority at any cost. I am proud to cosponsor this resolution to put a strong check on this President and terminate his ability to declare this fake national emergency. I call on my Republican colleagues and the Senate to vote ``yes'' on this rule and ``yes'' on this resolution.…”