PRESS RELEASE
February 19, 2019
February 19, 2019
For Immediate Release
Sandpoint Indivisible sandpointindivisible@gmail.com
Activists from throughout the area gathered on Monday to protest President Trump’s declared “National Emergency” over border wall funding. The event was organized to correspond with President’s Day protests across the nation. According to MoveOn.org, 277 sister events took place in 48 state, with at least 50,000 attendees. Locally 15-20 participants gathered in front of the Bonner County Courthouse. Those in attendance came not only from Sandpoint, but from Bonner’s Ferry, Bayview, and even from Montana.
Upon seeing the event, motorists from Ontario, Canada parked their vehicle and walked back to the Courthouse to introduce themselves to the local activists. The tourists explained, “Many of our friends are boycotting the States right now because of Trump. But we say ‘No way! There are a lot of great people down there.'”
According to event organizer Rachel Castor, there is a lot of local concern about the declared national emergency. She said “Trump’s anti-democratic power grab is rooted in racism. By declaring a fake emergency, Trump is circumventing constitutional separations of power. It sets a dangerous precedent that could erode our democracy.”
Local group Sandpoint Indivisible states, “We are calling on our members of Congress to do two things: The National Emergencies Act gives Congress the power to terminate a state of emergency and it is time for them to use this procedure. Additionally, they need to schedule hearings and investigations into this illegal power grab.”
President Trump declared a national emergency last week in response to a spending bill which did not include enough funding for the wall at the US-Mexico border which Mr. Trump promised supporters during his campaign.
Cover Photo by Jerry LeClaire
Deep Dive Background Info: http://mentalfloss.com/article/75449/where-should-you-place-apostrophe-presidents-day
Sandpoint Indivisible 