There you have it, folks. In a rambling press conference this morning, Trump went teleprompter-free—and accidentally admitted that this national emergency declaration is a sham.
In the middle of justifying the declaration, Trump’s argument took a puzzling turn: “I didn’t need to do this, but I’d rather do it much faster.”
We already knew that this declaration was illegal. Now, we know that Trump doesn’t even believe it’s necessary.
If it’s such an emergency, why did Congress oppose money for Trump’s wall in a bipartisan fashion? Why did Trump’s intelligence chiefs say nothing about this so-called emergency when laying out the greatest threats to American security? Why did Trump waste time polling his campaign email list to see if they thought declaring a national emergency was a good idea?
The answer is simple: “This is a desperate act by a president who knows he’s lost.” It’s nothing more than a cheap political move designed to placate the president’s base.
It is unprecedented to use the National Emergencies Act in this way, and several GOP senators are already on record opposing Trump’s use for this declaration. Will they stand by their word…for once?
VOTERS REALLY CARE ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE.
It’s common knowledge that health care is a potent concern for voters. New polling shows that, for Democratic primary voters, the climate crisis ties with health care as a top priority heading into 2020.
At a time when 150 Members of Congress and the President of the United States are climate deniers, it’s more important than ever that Democratic candidates up and down the ballot elevate this debate and propose real, concrete solutions to the climate crisis.
To learn more, find a summary of the poll here.
OFF-KILTER: STOP THE DEBT TRAP.
This week on Off-Kilter Podcast:
- How the CFPB is siding with predatory payday lenders over consumers
- The fight for a minimum wage in the Minor Leagues
- The news of the week ICYMI
Listen to the episode here.