President Trump’s decision to declare an emergency at the southern border marks the 59th time that a law from 1976 has been used to justify unilateral action by the White House in the face of a crisis.
Many Democrats and even some Republicans believe Trump’s decision to declare an emergency will be struck down in court. But for now, Trump is leaning on the 1976 National Emergencies Act to give him access to billions of dollars to build the wall.
The law authorizes a president to declare a national emergency, but also lets the president and Congress terminate those emergencies. Democrats have said they will try to do just that by passing a resolution to negates Trump’s declaration.
As of Friday, 31 national emergencies were in effect, including three put in place under Trump. Since January 2017, Trump has declared national emergencies to punish foreign actors who interfere in U.S. elections, block the property of people involved in serious human rights abuse or corruption, and block the property of those contributing to instability in Nicaragua.
Trump has also continued dozens of emergencies that were in place when he was elected. For example, former President Barack Obama in 2011 declared a national emergency to create a “comprehensive strategy to address the growing threat of transnational organized crime.”
Former President Bill Clinton ended 11 emergencies but started six in his two terms, including a ban on transactions with terrorists who try to intervene in the Middle East process, limitations on Cuban vessels’ movements, and a stop on business with Sudan.
Clinton’s successor, former President George W. Bush, ended two and started 10, including one issued three days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
