Utah Sen. Mitt Romney says 'good chance' Trump declares border emergency

Democrats promised Reagan 30 years ago to fix immigration........and today here we are, no solutions from Democrats! But they sure know how to party while the Govt is shut down!

Give Trump the $5 billion or he will build it without you, and will be fixing the lie Democrats made 30 years ago!

If Trump abuses his executive power to declare an "emergency" and spend ear marked money for his pet project then both parties must impeach!

The politicians vying for political power only and impeding President Trump need to get on board or get out of the way. Let the doers get things done. President Trump should give them an ultimatum similar to the one Captain Moroni gave to government. This will restore order and peace. This is how to drain the swamp.

Good cop; bad cop.

Romney bridging the gap between "The Art of The Deal" President and Democrats.

If Romney is seen, from both sides, as a respected problem solver, he might pull it off.

Thus, the value of positioning himself, not as Trump's sycophant, but an independent Mr. Fix it.

Yes, Democrats have voted for the wall in the past but in those bills they were also getting things they wanted e.g. DACA solution. Trump turned them down. Currently, Trump is taking the "my way or the highway" approach to negotiations with as much theatrics involved as possible. We need adults on both sides of the aisle to step up and take responsibility for finding a bipartisan solution that addresses the hard issues. Lindsay Graham and some other Republican Senators tried yesterday and Trump stamped it DOA. The Senate needs to stand up and do their job.

Senator Romney and worf. There is an huge difference between boarder fencing where it makes sense and a 30 foot high 1,000 mile structure.

Trump went to the boarder (McAllen Texas) to see the crisis for himself and to talk to the people..here's what they said. "Julie Hillrichs, spokeswoman for the Texas Border Coalition, a group of border mayors (including Darling), county judges and border communities focused on issues that impact border quality of life for more than 2.5 million people, tells TIME the Coalition believes the real way to increase security at the border would not be a wall, but increased investment in the legal ports of entry that already exist in their area."

“We don’t feel a crisis in our city, of McAllen” mayor Darling says. “That’s one of the problems with just saying there’s a crisis on the border: It affects border towns. We’re a vibrant area. McAllen is the safest city in the state of Texas, and we’re right on the border, so that kind of rhetoric resonates and sells newspapers, but it hurts our area.”

Agents showed Trump confiscated items..all from legal ports of entry. Wall a dumb idea.

Trump has backed himself into a corner and now he has to try and find a way to save face.

I cant wait for a couple of years from now when the new democratic president will declare an 'emergency' for climate change and our broken health care delivery system.

I am positive all those calling for trump to do this will line up to cheer him/her on, right?

The senate needs to stop capitulating to this wannabe dictator.

National Media is lying about Romney.

Of course, Fox News is maintaining that Romney would not support a Declaration of Emergency, he never said that. He said that approach is not the ideal, and it isn't.

The way I read it, he (Romney) is behind Trump on this issue 100%.
Time for Trump to get the Army Corps of Engineers, with the rainy day fund, and get it done.

Everything that Romney said about Trump was fair and true. Time for the Trump sycophants to stop whining and get real.

"Romney said if Trump declares a state of emergency, the Democrats will have lost an opportunity to get things they want through negotiation." This is nothing short of ridiculous, and Sen. Romney should know better. Trump doesn't "negotiate" at all, unless we're talking about a whole new version of the word "negotiate." His whole pitch in any "negotiation" is simply to say: "This is what I want. Give it to me." This is unlike any presidency in the history of our nation, and we all have the right to be very, very worried about this man.

Vox clamatis in deserto, to borrow a phrase from another Utah contrarian, Edward Abbey. We would do well to heed Sen. Romney's call to see each issue on its merits, or lack thereof, and not succumb to blind partisanship or personal animus. Many of us object to President Trump's personality, but sometimes he is right, and when he is, we have to be big enough to admit it, and support the policy, if not the man. The border wall, where practicable, is a sound idea. To my Democrat friends I say, will you fling open the doors of your apartments and houses, and let anyone walk in? I think not. Why then, should our country not deserve the same consideration and protection?

Following past examples for this administration, a declaration of National Emergency, if made, would be expected to be stopped by the courts. They would plan on this, and could then say they've done all they can, and capitulate. They save face, the government reopens, and the crisis is over. The problem comes if the courts do not step in to stop the process. A poorly thought out and hastily conceived usurpation of legislative power would precipitate a real crisis in our nation.

The latest estimate for a full wall is 59 billion dollars. I thought Mitt was pledging to lower the deficit?

For those posting they should have passed a bill when they had both houses in case you don't know 51 senators can't cast 60 votes so your argument is full of holes. There hasn't been 10 democrats that have the guts to vote for something they voted for last year even though there are close to 40 that did. There only object in this shutdown is to go against Trump.

If President Trump has to declare an emergency crisis or similar condition, so be it!
It does NOT mean it's the traditional way to do things, but it does mean he is for once, unlike many countless other politicians, serious about "getting things done."

This is a precedent to President Trump, he keeps, to the best of his abilities "his promises."
I like that!

What I'd admire even more is if Mitt would get behind the President to also "be a doer of things and not a talk only" type of politician.

Trump: "If this doesn't work out, probably I will do it, I would almost say definitely."

Also, now appearing in the dictionary after the word "eqivocate."

Republican supporters are really manufacturing a crisis when there is none. The question is, are border patrol agents even getting paid during the shutdown and if they are not that is the real issue.

Trump needs to grow up and Congress needs to stop deferring to trump and pass a veto proof bill tomorrow.

I better never again here about how the democrats are fiscally irresponsible. The GOP continues to increase spending while drastically cutting taxes.

The GOP is eerily silent on deficits when they are in control. Again.

Look at the skyrocketing deficits. Wow.

And dont forget, it is Congress that spends the money. Unless of course, King Trump suddenly decides to invoke National Security to get his way.

Mitt Romney makes a lot of sense in having Democrats and Republicans negotiate a solution. Clearly total hypocrisy by Democrats who’ve supported wall in the past but now don’t because Trump is president.

worf - McAllen, TX
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Obama got fifty billion to build a southern wall and two hundred eighty billion for a stimulus package and shovel ready jobs.

Except for giving out cell phones, what happened with these tax payer funds?

Has Trump lost track of tax payer money? (No)! Or as Pelosi would say== "crumbs"?
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Don't know what this has to do with the topic at hand, but Texas Governor Rick Perry would be the one to explain to you in McAllen TX, where the some $12B or so stimulus funds went that the state of Texas received from the program. A brief search yields that the funds seem to have gone to Medicaid, social supports, bridge and freeway renovations.

Since this is in the context of the present debate about a wall on the border, I'd be hard pressed to see how such an expenditure for a wall would translate to the benefit of ordinary Texans, outside of a few construction companies, and of course the army of lawyers to handle eminent domain issues of depriving citizens of their private property along the border.

Romney's comments are much more rational than some of his recent pronouncements.

But,the goal must not be "compromise,"t raditionally defined by Democrats as getting all they want and promising maybe considering Republican stuff later, if at all. The goal must be protecting the country with a wall as both sides have admitted is needed.

Previous posters have blamed Republicans for not getting the wall funded when they were majority, but they overlook the fact that passage in the Senate requires 60 votes, and not a single Democrat was willing to help pass it, so it failed.

Mitt needs to fight for what is right, even if it means siding with Trump (how has many unpleasant attributes), rather than finding excuses to cuddle up with Chuck Schumer and be "bipartisan."

Same with Rep. McAdams- we need to wall, and you don't needs Nancy Pelosi's permission to vote for it. (Remember, "it is sometimes easier to get forgiveness than permission.")

Build the wall, the safety of our country depends on it. Congress has failed to secure the border since the 1986 Simpson-Mizzoli compromise, and Trump is right to force them to finally get it done.

We Utahns are fortunate to have a safer device representing us in the United States Senate for once.

The Majority Leader is not bringing valid legislation to the floor.

He has relegated his responsibility to the Executive Branch.

Senators should pass their legislation to the President after they and the House pass a bill.

If the President uses his Executive Power to veto a bill, the Constitution of the United States of America has spelled out that process.

The Constitution doesn’t state the Senate should abrogate it’s responsibilities to govern.

Enough said, lets get border security going.
The sooner we get started the sooner we get finished.

Obama got fifty billion to build a southern wall and two hundred eighty billion for a stimulus package and shovel ready jobs.

Except for giving out cell phones, what happened with these tax payer funds?

Has Trump lost track of tax payer money? (No)! Or as Pelosi would say== "crumbs"?

He couldn’t get it approved with a Republican majority which means there are Republicans against it as well. Why blame Democrats only?

Also, yes Democrats have voted for increased border security and control but a WALL is NOT the answer. If they’re determined to get here, they will. They can come by legal means but simply not leave. They can come out into the Pacific Ocean and Gulf of Mexico to land on our shores. If they’re really daring and can find a way to set it up, they could even fly into private airstrips or skydive into the country from a plane. A wall isn’t going to stop them, it will only slow them down.

Besides the arguments about welfare and jobs are getting stale. The jobs they take are ones no one else will take. As for welfare, unless the DHS workers aren’t doing their jobs correctly, anyone here illegally isn’t able to get welfare. I’m not saying illegals don’t get it because some DHS workers will let it slide. But in that case, you take away benefits, deport, and fire the worker.

Quoted from Romney
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"And I think we Republicans will be concerned that this kind of approach could be used by perhaps a Democrat president in the future, and that's not something we want to see either," he[Romney] said.
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Well then, how about reining Trump in with a veto override to end the shutdown?

Obviously Romney and the Republicans are not worried about such consequences, otherwise the Senate would revive the funding bill passed by the Senate in December, and returned to the more sympathetic House.

Unfortunately Romney is following the path of many other so called critics of Trump on the Republican side, and walking lock step with Trump's shutdown.

Trump said he would be proud to own the shutdown, but as he has shown for every other bad decision he has made, he points the finger to others, when it is clear his decision is a disaster.

Good! Do it! The sooner the better. Built the wall. This is a no brainier.

I like to follow Utah and national politics so I am interested in what Senator Romney has to say but I am also interested in Senator Lee and what he has to say as well.

For two years trump and the GOP were in control. The didn't fund the wall and it was not an emergency.

Now it's suddenly an emergency?

The only emergency for trump is that he got nothing done with the majority. Now that he's facing a democratic House he's pretending this is suddenly vital.

I would love to hear from our great Constitutional scholar, the senior Senator from the State of Utah, Honorable Mike Lee, on the constitutionality of declaring a National Emergency to build the Trump Monument. It seems like he's always prepared to address these types of issues. Hopefully, he's working it now.

Well if he can do that then he doesn't need the gov't shut down for anything.

Romney seems naive on this issue. Has he thought it through?

Israel's wall dropped illegal aliens from 55,000 to 14.

Don't we love Mexico enough to build a wall to protect Mexican families from US drug money and US guns killing Mexican families?

We need to build a wall to protect Mexico from us.

Democrats, he said, are in an "awkward" position having voted for border walls in the past and now saying it's immoral to build any more. "That just doesn't fly," Romney said. Democrats, he said, "have painted themselves into a corner and they're having a hard time getting themselves out of that corner."

Mr. Romney, you are spot on! Thank you for standing up for what's right!

All to prove a point. A foolish point. This will eventually be overruled in court. Trump is taking Billions from our military and deploying troops that are needed elsewhere. If the GOP doesn't rein him in now, they will lose the Senate next election. Trump thinks he's King, and the GOP is not telling him different. I can't believe this is happening in America.