Judge dismisses House suit against wall funding

WASHINGTON—A federal judge on Monday rejected the U.S. House of Representatives’ attempt to block President Donald Trump’s transfer of Defense Department money to fund construction of a wall at the U.S. southern border. The president redirected the money as part of a national emergency declaration in February following a lengthy budget battle and partial government shutdown. Trump requested a total of $6.1 billion from the Pentagon, but acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan has yet to decide whether to transfer about $3.6 billion of the total. The money was originally designated for military construction.

The House and Senate passed a resolution to overturn the national emergency declaration in March, but the president vetoed it. Congress did not have enough votes to override the veto, and the Democratic-majority House sued to try to stop the White House from shifting the funds. Several other lawsuits challenge the emergency declaration.

“This is a case about whether one chamber of Congress has the ‘constitutional means’ to conscript the judiciary in a political turf war with the president over the implementation of legislation,” U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden wrote in his opinion. McFadden, a Trump appointee, said the judicial branch of the government should only intervene in separation-of-powers disputes as a last resort. “Congress has several political arrows in its quiver to counter perceived threats to its sphere of power,” he wrote. “These tools show that this lawsuit is not a last resort for the House.” House leadership is evaluating whether to appeal the decision.