Politics

Judge Napolitano Explains How Trump Could Win Border Fight

No featured image available

Judge Andrew Napolitano explained how President Donald Trump can win his border fight with congressional Democrats ahead of his planned oval office speech Tuesday.

Napolitano said Trump will have to convince the public of his immigration polices before working to overcome the federal court system.

“It’s a political test. In the president’s mind, it’s ‘will the people accept it?’ But in my mind, it’s ‘will the courts accept it?'” Napolitano said on “Your World with Neil Cavuto.”

“The courts will only accept it if the emergency complies with the definition of an emergency in a 1976 law. The ’76 law was written to clean up all the emergencies Richard Nixon had declared and LBJ had declared, which were technically still on the books. That definition says an emergency is a profound threat — an immediate and palpable threat.”

Napolitano said he doesn’t think Trump should attempt to declare a national emergency, but claimed it could help him politically if he decides to go through with it.

“I don’t know that the president will be able to make that case. But his task is to make that case tonight. A, for the American people. But down the road, for a federal judge — whatever federal judge it is — to whom the first challenge is filed once he signs that emergency declaration,” he said.

“He may want to do it for political reasons, because then he goes, ‘it’s not me — it’s that un-elected, black-robed person who was appointed by so-and-so that stopped me,'” Napolitano added.

You can Follow Nick on Twitter