Snopes claims every President since 1976 has declared a National Emergency.

[liberalnarb]

According to the Brennan Center for Justice, at the time of President Trump’s declaration of a National Emergency Concerning the Southern Border of the United States in February 2019, some 58 national emergencies had previously been declared by various presidents since 1979, with 31 of them still in effect as of February 2019.

Here's the link to the full passage.

Is this really a normal occurrence?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. This is true.

The difference between those declarations and Trump's is that the previous presidents didn't use the national emergency statute to declare an emergency when none existed in order to circumvent Congress' refusal to allocate funds to do something he wanted to do.

[ripcord]

2. I wish Congress gave some kind of guidance when the authorized national emergencies

All too often SCOTUS gives wide latitude to POTUS on national security, I'm afraid that if an emergency isn't defined it could be left to the President to decide, especially since Congress has a way to overturn the emergency. I wish this was over.

[SunSeeker]

5. Most didn't even require funds. Most were just asset freezes.

They were just orders blocking the property of certain individuals who were contributing to unrest overseas, for exmple individuals providing weapons to rebel/terrorist fighters.

[liberalnarb]

9. Dissapointing that Snopes made no effort to differentiate them. nt

[SunSeeker]

3. The vast majority of these declarations involved freezing assets of warring foreign nationals.

For example, Obama blocked property of certain persons aiding the fighting in Yemen. This did not involve taking money from another department after Congress refused to give him money.

Here's a list of all emergency declarations by the last 7 presidents:

https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/national/here-list-the-national-emergencies-declared-the-last-seven-presidents/Fb5dM2Fy17mKyuo8jgMW9K/

None of these prior emergency declarations involved an end run around Congress, after Congress explicitly refised to fund a pet project the President wanted. None.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

4. Why is this hard to believe?

[Drahthaardogs]

6. Very normal. What is ABNORMAL is using it to attempt

To use it to reappropriate funds already appropriated through Congress for their identified bonafide need.

[Takket]

7. yes, the law exists for a very good reason, to allow the president to act in time of crisis

unfortunately, like everything he touches, drumpf has turned the routine into a complete clusterfuck

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

8. This

[Autumn]

10. Yes it is normal but Presidents don't declare fake emergencies to fund un needed pet projects

when Congress says no.

[Recursion]

11. There are 32 active national emergencies right now, the oldest dating back to Carter

Most of them are trade sanctions with countries, which for some weird legal reason have to be declared national emergencies.

Far and away the most far-reaching is the national emergency declared in the wake of 9/11.

[shanny]

12. sounds right.

usually it has to do with freezing bad guys' assets in the US etc. Many are still in place.

I don't ever recall one that was about doing shit Congress wouldn't let the preznit do. For that level of illegality I think you have to go back to Iran-Contra, when Congress refused to continue funding aid to the Contras in Nicaragua and Preznit Stupid I, Bush I, Ollie North and co. decided to trade arms to Iran, with Israeli help, to keep up the fight...Of course, that was secret, not out in front of Dawg and everybody.

As Charles P Pierce would say, "This is your democracy, America. Cherish it."

[spanone]

13. trump's problem is that THERE IS NO EMERGENCY

[Blue_true]

14. None, not even W, declared one to bypass Congress.

That is the major difference.