Protesters In Tucson, Across The U.S. Gather To Speak Out Against The Border Wall
Download mp3 (2.18 MB)In Tucson this President's Day, protesters will gather to speak out against the national emergency declaration and the wall.
"The effect we hope to have is primarily to wake up Congress to the need to pass a joint resolution to cancel this fake emergency, because we don’t believe the president should be trying to seize power on an illegitimate basis," said Steve Diamond, a member of Justice Alliance, a grassroots advocacy group in Tucson.
That question of legitimacy is being heavily debated now as lawsuits begin filing in.
The president argued on Friday that past presidents have declared national emergencies many times in the past, and that he has every right to do so now.
But Steve Diamond said he’s very concerned about President Trump’s attempt to bypass Congress to build a wall.
"You know, this is something that he has taken to the Congress, even when Republicans controlled both houses, and he couldn’t get the funding that he wanted," said Diamond. "He couldn’t get it several times. And now he’s using the emergency act in order to try to bypass the will of Congress. And this kind of power grab is deeply concerning. It’s deeply concerning because we wonder, what happens next? If Congress won’t stand up to him now, what happens next?"
The protest is part of a national day of mobilization, with protests planned across the country.
