Rep. Tlaib joins call to stop president grabbing congressional power
Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib and Rev. Paul Perez were among the leaders in support of immigrant families’ call for justice in the wake of Donald Trump’s illegal move to usurp Congress’ power of the purse to build a southern border wall. The president’s efforts are rejected by Americans and were largely rejected by Congress. His attempt to avoid legal checks and balances is based solely on false statements about the border.
“I’ve crossed the border into Mexico because our broken immigration system took my husband from me and our children,” said Cindy Garcia, wife of Jorge Garcia deported after decades in the U.S. “Virtually everything Trump says about the situation there is false. It’s business as usual at the border except for the bottle neck Trump’s created for asylum seekers fleeing violence. I know there are legal challenges coming to stop his illegal funding of the wall, but congress needs to step up. We need to be working to protect immigrant families because we are American families and we are human beings.”
That call for congressional action was echoed by one of Michigan’s newest members of congress, Rashida Tlaib representing the 13th District.
“The President’s attempt to snatch money that’s designated for other projects is truly outrageous given the moral need to keep immigrant families together,” said Rep. Tlaib. “Instead of this stunt, Trump should be focused on urgent priorities like providing healthcare protection for all Americans, ridding our communities of poverty, gun safety, and comprehensive immigration reform.”
“The moral implications of the President’s latest moves are just as bad as the legal one,” said Rev. Perez, associate director, Mission and Ministry, Michigan Conference of the United Methodist Church, “We have a moral obligation to one another, to our families and to those seeking asylum from violence as are the families at the border. We as nation have a moral obligation to be a refuge for parents and children seeking safety. That has to be one of the top priorities of our elected leaders because it’s so basic to being human.”
