BORDER/GOP/SENATE/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/WALL: “A last-ditch gambit to spare Senate Republicans a hostile showdown with President Trump over the Constitution’s separation of powers was torpedoed on Wednesday [3-13-19] by the president himself, increasing the likelihood that the Senate will vote on Thursday [3-14-19] to overturn the president’s emergency declaration and force the first veto of his term. Hoping to avoid a confrontation with Mr. Trump over his declaration of an emergency to build his coveted border wall, Republicans tried to rally behind legislation to limit the power of presidents to declare emergencies in the future while allowing the current president’s end-run around Congress. But Speaker Nancy Pelosi quickly derided that idea and then Mr. Trump threw cold water on it himself, phoning the Republican author of the new legislation, Senator Mike Lee of Utah, during a Senate luncheon to inform him it was no deal. As a result, Mr. Lee said he would now vote to end the emergency declaration, the fifth Republican “yes” vote — and other Republicans, with no alternative route, are likely to follow.”
–Carl Hulse, “G.O.P.’s Attempt to Avoid Emergency Showdown With Trump Is Scuttled, by Trump,” The New York Times online, March 13, 2019