Congressman Cohen Votes to Override Trump Veto

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) voted to override President Trump's veto of a bipartisan resolution to overturn his declaration of a national emergency on the U.S.-Mexican border and to spend unauthorized money on a wall. The override vote, which requires a two-thirds supermajority, failed by a vote of 248 to 181.

Congressman Cohen made the following statement:

"The President's illegal and desperate use of the National Emergencies Act and fearmongering about a fake emergency on our southern border will now move to the courts, which, I hope, will uphold Congress's constitutional power of the purse. Congress, not the President, decides how federal dollars are spent."

The House voted on February 26^th and the Senate voted on March 14^th for H.J. Res. 46, a joint resolution to reject the President's emergency declaration and protect the constitutional system of checks and balances. On March 15^th, President Trump vetoed the measure. Today's vote was an effort to override that veto.