Informed Citizens. Accountable Power.

Central Question: 

Does the US Constitution support the construction of a border wall? And if so, are there limits on the basis for building a wall?

Key Terminology: 

Government Shutdown:  A government shutdown occurs when Congress fails to pass sufficient appropriation bills or continuing resolutions to fund federal government operations and agencies, or when the President refuses to sign into law such bills or resolutions.

Appropriation Bills: A proposed law that authorizes the expenditure of government funds. It is a bill that sets money aside for specific spending that requires approval of the legislature for disbursement.

National Emergency: A national emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to perform actions not normally permitted. It can occur, for example with a general declaration of emergency made by the President. The National Emergencies Act regulates this process at the federal level. It requires the President to specifically identify the provisions activated and to renew the declaration annually so as to prevent an arbitrarily broad or open-ended emergency. Presidents have occasionally taken action justified as necessary or prudent because of a state of emergency, only to have the action struck down in court as unconstitutional by the judicial branch.

Judicial Review: The ability of a court to review, and potentially overturn, legislation or Executive actions that are allegedly in violation of the US Constitution. 

Stalemate: A situation in which further action or progress by opposing or competing parties seems impossible.

Checks and Balances: Counterbalancing influences by which an organization or system is regulated, typically those ensuring that political power is not concentrated in the hands of individuals or groups.

Executive Power: The power vested in the President of the United States, including the power delegated to executive officers and executive agencies.

Legislative Power: Power vested in the bicameral Congress, divided between the House, which provides proportional representation that changes every two years and the Senate that is made up of two Senators from each state elected for six years, with elections staggered so that one-third of the seats are up for election every two years.

Speaker of the House: The leader, presiding officer, de facto leader of the body’s majority party, and the administrative head of the House of Representatives. The House elects its speaker at the beginning of a new Congress. To be elected speaker a candidate must receive an absolute majority of the votes cast.

Some Key Legal Authorities: 

Legislative:

National Emergencies Act: Places certain procedural and temporal restrictions on the declaration and continuation of a national emergency.

Case Law:

Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer, 343 U.S. 579 (1952)

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