Twenty US states have resorted to justice to try to prevent the construction of the wall with Mexico

A coalition of 20 states, led by California, have filed a preliminary legal challenge to the US President Donald Trump 's national emergency declaration to cover the construction of the wall on the border with Mexico..

This is the first step in the legal battle to prevent the federal government from using $ 1.6 billion in federal funding to build part of the border wall, a key election promise of the President-in-Office. .

"President Trump steals money from our communities and puts them at risk for the construction of the wall," California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said Friday at a news conference.

Precisely Trump travels to California this Friday to personally visit the border town of Calexico a new section of the border fence with Mexico.

Before starting his trip, the president pointed out that they "built a lot of walls" and that "a lot of very positive things" were happening in the field of migration. He pointed out that during the "last four days", Mexico had arrested some 1,400 migrants every day. They were heading for the US border.

With this lawsuit, The Golden State again launches a lawsuit against the Trump administration and resorts to the courts of the Northern District of California., where he has already managed to stop and revoke controversial Republican decisions, particularly on immigration issues.

The states have asked the court to immediately issue an order barring the government from using the Congressional budget line badigned to local and federal authorities.

The $ 1,600 million in litigation would initially go to the Treasury Department's Forfeiture Fund, from which they deviated $ 601 million this week for the Border Patrol to use that money for the construction of the wall. badured Becerra.

The money would be destined for the fight against drugs, said the prosecutor, who said that the reduction of these resources would affect the state and other regions of the country, stressing that this money came from taxes paid and that the states could claim in what the money is invested.

"Diverting funds from key initiatives to fund a useless and unjustified wall is fundamentally irresponsible, undermines the power of Congress, and will hurt all Americans in this country," said the Attorney General of New York. Letitia James, announcing that her state participated in the legal complaint.

The twenty states would not be alone in this battle, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Sierra Club organization, among others, also filed a motion who seeks to stop the construction of the wall considering it illegal.

"We must immediately stop this process in order to avoid the irreparable damage that a south wall could inflict on border communities and our country," said Dror Ladin, an ACLU attorney.

In addition to the illegality in obtaining funds, the organizations argue that if the border wall project is conducted under the indications of the proclamation of a national emergency, the border communities and the Environment will be harmed.

States have also used this argument to request a preliminary order expected before May 9.

Becerra questioned President Trump's arguments by saying that with an urgent declaration, he was defending the country. "But to whom," the prosecutor questioned, adding that the president was using immigrants from Central America for political purposes.

The number of detainees who crossed the border illegally in March could also be known in the coming days, although immigration officials have already forecast that this number could reach 100,000, compared to an average of 50,000 to 60,000. last year. monthly