Sixteen US states led by California have sued President Donald Trump over his decision to declare an emergency to raise funds for the Mexico border wall.
The lawsuit was filed in the Northern District of California.
Trump last week invoked a national emergency to bypass the Congress to secure funds for his campaign pledge on the wall.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said they were taking President Trump to court “to block his misuse of presidential power”. He added, “We’re suing President Trump to stop him from unilaterally robbing taxpayer funds lawfully set aside by Congress for the people of our states. For most of us, the office of the presidency is not a place for theatre.”
The lawsuit filed on Monday seeks a preliminary injunction that would stop Mr Trump acting on his emergency declaration while a legal battle takes place in the courts.
The first legal challenge reported was by three public citizens, they were told that the border wall may be constructed on their properties.
Joining California in the lawsuit were Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Virginia and Michigan.
The states argue that diverting funds to pay for the wall could cost damage to their economy.
The wall is estimated to costs US$ 23 billion for the 3200 kilometers of border wall. The emergency allows Trump to get almost US$ 8 billion.
Mr. Trump was aware that there would be legal challenges to his actions, the Supreme Court would make the final decision on the construction of the wall.