On the 35th day of the longest government shutdown in USA history, President Donald Trump came to his senses. Or he’s come up with another strategy to get federal funding for his Border Wall.

February is here. What will happen if President Trump does not get his way again? Another wall brawl?

Another Trumpian threat: “If we don’t get a fair deal from Congress,” Trump said, “the government will either shut down on February 15 again or I will use the powers afforded to me under the laws and the Constitution of the United States to address this emergency.” Is he planning a cabal over the wall?

“There should be an honest attempt at the reconciliation of differences before resorting to combat.”—Jimmy Carter

And why is one human being, a politician with power, so obsessed over a wall? During elections, candidates make campaign promises they know they can’t keep. It’s hype and hyperbole. It’s publicity and propaganda. It’s styling and profiling.

“The wall is a metaphor. But it’s a metaphor for racism, nationalism and white supremacy. The wall Trump desires isn’t made of concrete or steel,” surmised a 2019 article in the Sacramento Bee.

What are a president’s emergency powers? Is money for a wall considered an emergency? Would this be considered an abuse of power? 

“In the mid-1970s, Congress passed a law designed to provide some check on the president’s power while also preserving flexibility to act in an emergency,” according to a 2019 article on the NPR website.

Hmmm. Did Congress foresee a rogue leader? How can the National Emergencies Act of 1976 be used for an unwise presidential decision? Can a president declare an “immigration emergency” under the Immigration and Nationality Act?

The media is buzzing with the question: Does a president have the authority to use presidential emergency powers to obtain federal funding without congressional approval?

“Congress can terminate a declared emergency, but it requires a joint resolution – a high hurdle. House Democrats, now in power, would have to convince Senate Republicans, who still control their chamber, to join them in blocking Trump’s move. Then they would have to get a signature from the president, the same person who declared the emergency in the first place, or override his veto,” according to a 2019 article in USA Today.

Trump is threatening to use “emergency powers.” Is he planning to don a red cape and leotards and circle the White House?

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;

All the king’s horses and all the king’s men

Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

How will Trumpty Dumpty fare if he abuses his presidential powers to coerce Congress and the American people into a further wall brawl on February 15?

“Thoughtful criticism and close scrutiny of all government officials by the press and the public are an important part of our democratic society.”—Jimmy Carter

Take the 2017 book off your shelf: The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump: 27 Psychiatrists and Mental Health Experts Assess a President and read it again.

“Human rights is the soul of our foreign policy, because human rights is the very soul of our sense of nationhood.”—Jimmy Carter

Melissa Martin, Ph.D., is an author, columnist, educator, and therapist. She lives in Ohio. www.melissamartinchildrensauthor.com.