US House of Representatives votes to block Trump's national emergency declaration
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi speaks about the Voting Rights Enhancement Act, H.R. 4 on Capitol Hill on February 26, 2019, in Washington, DC.
The US House of Representatives Tuesday voted to block the national emergency declared by US President Donald Trump regarding border security.
The lower chamber of Congress voted by 245-182 for the one page resolution that would terminate Trump's emergency declaration, preventing him from building a border wall by tapping into funds allocated for other purposes.
The Democratic party voted unanimously for the bill, also picking up 13 Republican votes. The tally fell short of the number needed to overturn a presidential veto.
The US Senate is expected to vote on the resolution in the coming weeks. With the Republican party in control, it is unclear if the the chamber would clear the bill.
The move marks the first time that the US Congress tried to block such a measure since it codified national emergencies in 1976.
Trump, currently on a trip to Vietnam, declared the national emergency on February 15 after Congress passed a spending bill with less money for the border wall than he had demanded.
