Why Trump should cross the Rubicon

Declaring a national emergency over the wall isn't insane. It is sensible.

President Trump.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Chronicle / Alamy Stock Photo, Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

There is every reason to believe that President Trump is about to declare a national emergency in the hope of building his fantasy wall by executive fiat with funding diverted from the military budget. For the good of the country, I not only expect him to do so — I welcome his decision.

If the government shutdown continues after Saturday, it will be the longest in our history. The impasse between the president and Democratic leadership in Congress cannot be breached. Trump has decided that he needs $5 billion to build a concrete wall or a steel fence or a wooden barricade or whatever combination of material and synonym for "obstacle" he's into this week. Democrats insist that the construction of any Mexico-facing edifice is on its face "immoral." Both have everything to gain and nothing to lose rhetorically by refusing to compromise.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Matthew Walther

Matthew Walther is a national correspondent at The Week. His work has also appeared in First Things, The Spectator of London, The Catholic Herald, National Review, and other publications. He is currently writing a biography of the Rev. Montague Summers. He is also a Robert Novak Journalism Fellow.