US Supreme Court clears US$2.5 billion in Pentagon funds for Donald Trump’s border ‘wall’
- The court ruled by five votes to four to lift a freeze put in place by a lower court that was designed to block the spending while a lawsuit went ahead
- It marks the first time the Supreme Court has intervened after Trump declared a ‘national emergency’ in February in a bid to free up funds
The court ruled by five votes to four to lift a freeze put in place by a lower court that was designed to block US$2.5 billion in spending while a lawsuit by environmental organisation the Sierra Club and another advocacy group went forward. The four liberal justices said they would have kept construction on hold.
The order marks the first time the Supreme Court has acted in the dispute over the “national emergency” that Trump declared in February in a bid to free up federal money for the wall.
“Wow! Big VICTORY on the Wall,” Trump said on Twitter. “The United States Supreme Court overturns lower court injunction, allows Southern Border Wall to proceed. Big WIN for Border Security and the Rule of Law!”
The wall segments to be built in Arizona, New Mexico and California would give Trump a tangible achievement to tout in his campaign for re-election. Until now, congressional and court resistance had thwarted significant progress toward a stronger barrier on the 3,200-kilometre (2000-mile) frontier. During his first campaign, Trump said Mexico would pay for the wall.
