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Funding for Donald Trumps Mexico border wall will be front and center in next months budget debate, but there could be a broader constitution barrier staying in the way of the projects long-term completion.

There has been more media and academic discussion in the past few weeks about the feasibility of the U.S. government acquiring the land needed to build a wall, of any size, that extends over 1,300 additional miles between the United States and Mexico, not including land that doesnt already have walls or natural barriers.

Overall, the Trump wall project would stretch about 2,000 miles, including existing fences and barrier built in past years. According to a GAO report from 2015, about one-third of that land belongs to the federal government and tribal authorities. The other two-thirds of that land, mostly in Texas, belongs to state and private owners.

The Fifth Amendments Takings Clause would allow the federal government to claim the land for public use, provided it pays a fair price for the land as just compensation. Few experts dispute the Trump administrations ability to buy the land. However, the eminent domain process can be a long, expensive process for even the smallest pieces of land.

The often-cited example in this case is the legal battle involving Eloisa Tamez. About eight years ago, the Bush administration started a program to build more than 600 miles of fencing on the California, New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona borders, and it wanted one acre of Tamezs land in Texas. She went to court and after seven years of litigation, Tamez received $56,000 for a quarter-acre of land along with a security code for the fence.

Randal John Meyer from the Cato Institute wrote about these potential issues back in 2016 when Trump became the apparent Republican nominee, riding a wave of publicity about the wall.

The Great Wall of Trump would mean hundreds, if not thousands, of Tamezes, Meyer said. Citing GAO records, Meyer said it took about a decade to settle all the eminent domain lawsuits involved in the Bush-era fence plan, with about 500 homeowners affected in the plan to put barriers on 700 miles of land - and the federal government owned much of the land used in that project.

The Trump administration wall project is the opposite, Meyer said, since it involves at least 1,000 miles of land that will host a much-bigger wall, and most of that land, especially in Texas, isnt owned by the federal government.

A more recent article by University of Pittsburgh Law School law professor Gerald S. Dickinson gets into specifics about the current wall project. In trying to take land for the wall, the federal government would be held to time-consuming procedures that include consultation and negotiation with the affected parties including private landowners, tribes, and state and local governments before taking any action, Dickinson said.

And then theres the issue of taking property from Native American nations. The members of the Tohono Oodham Nation own 62 miles of border land in Texas, but they also have cultural roots in Mexico. The Supreme Court has ruled that the federal government must take tribal interests into account in these situations. Trump would need a bill from Congress to acquire the tribal lands, which are protected by treaties and other statutory equivalents, Dickinson said.

The end results could be a series of court fights that extend beyond the term of any Trump administration. Any federal eminent domain action on such a large scale against evena few landowners could triggerdecades of court disputesbefore anything is built, Dickinson concluded.

President Trumps proposed budget includes expenses for 20 attorneys to litigate eminent domain problems related to the wall. The lawyers are needed to pursue federal efforts to obtain land and holdings necessary to secure the Southwest border.

Alan Ackerman, an eminent-domain lawyer in Michigan, told The Wall Street Journal that the Trump administration could use a legal tactic by filing large groups of cases. Federal judges have appointed commissioners to oversee disputes over land compensation for very large projects, Ackerman told the Journal.

Scott Bomboy is the editor in chief of the National Constitution Center.

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Would the Fifth Amendment stop Trump's Mexico wall? - Constitution Daily (blog)

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Morning Agenda: Uber Executive Invokes Fifth Amendment - New York Times

AUSTIN, TX - MARCH 25: Phil Mickelson looks on after winning his match 4&3 on the 15th hole during round four of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play at the Austin Country Club on March 25, 2017 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

Phil Mickelson has long been known as one of golf's great talkers, but it seems he won't be opening his mouth at an ongoing insider trading trial. Mickelson, who was cleared last year of any wrongdoing in the case involving gambler Billy Walters, could potentially serve as a witness. However, Bloomberg News reported the five-time major champion is unlikely to be called to the stand because he would invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Mickelson's intention, reportedly, was revealed in court on Monday during a sidebar conference between lawyers and the judge.

"He is on our witness list, but we understand from his counsel he would invoke his Fifth Amendment if called," attorney Barry Berke said, according to a transcript obtained by Bloomberg. "So he will not be called as a witness, although his name will be mentioned."

Billy Walters, a golf buddy of Mickelson, stands accused of making $43 million on inside-trading tips received by Tom C. Davis, the former chairman of Dean Foods Co. Mickelson made nearly $1 million in trades involving Dean Foods after receiving information by Walters, but regulators didn't charge him with any crime. Mickelson has paid back the money and has been named a "relief defendant" by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

During jury selection earlier this month, Mickelson's fame was a common topic of discussion.

"Im going to excuse this juror," U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel reportedly told lawyers out of earshot of the potential jurors. "From my observations, there is an attachment. Mr. Mickelsons name is out there, but this juror impressed me with a different level of reaction. The look of rapture on her face at the mention of his name and her repeatedly saying it wouldnt influence her is enough for me."

At last week's WGC-Dell Match Play, Mickelson told the Associate Press, "I'm not a part of that . . . I'm out. I won't be called."

"I haven't even thought about it," Mickelson continued. "I don't think I'm going to say any more."

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Phil Mickelson to take the Fifth if called as a witness in insider ... - GolfDigest.com

The nations biggest association of police chiefs asked President Trump Wednesday not to punish sanctuary cities by cutting federal funding.

In a statement, the International Association of Chiefs of Police said, "[S]tate and local law enforcement agencies depend on the cooperation of immigrants, legal or not, in solving a wide array of crimes.Striking the proper balance between enforcement and cooperation requires the full participation of elected officials, community leaders and their law enforcement agencies."

The IACP said it opposed the use of sanctions to support policy. Penalizing communities by withholding assistance funding to law enforcement agencies and other critical programs is counter-productive to our shared mission of reducing violent crime and keeping our communities safe.

The Senate Intelligence Committee is in talks to interview Christopher Steele, the former British intelligence operative who compiled the dossier that alleges a conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia, three sources with direct knowledge told NBC News.

Steele, however, remains concerned about his safety and is not inclined to leave London. He is also concerned about how he might be treated by the Trump administration, according to the sources. The FBI was poised last fall to pay Steele, a former officer with the British Secret Intelligence Service, for information, but that deal fell through, sources familiar with the matter told NBC News.

Two Congressional officials told NBC News that the Senate Intelligence Committee has not yet reached an agreement on how and when to interview the Trump associates who have volunteered to testify, including Paul Manafort, Carter Page and Roger Stone. If any of those men seek criminal immunity for their testimony, the committee would not be inclined to grant it, officials say. The committee could then subpoena them, but they could assert their Fifth Amendment rights and refuse to answer questions.

Christopher Steele, the former MI6 agent who compiled a dossier on Donald Trump, poses in London where he has spoken to the media for the first time on March 7. Victoria Jones / PA via AP Images

A Russian man accused of attacking computers around the world, including thousands in the United States, pleaded guilty in federal court on Tuesday.

Maxim Senakh, 41, was arrested last year in Finland as he was returning to Russia from vacation a move that authorities in Moscow denounced as "an abuse of the law." Russia tried to persuade Finland not to hand over Senakh to American authorities, but he was ultimately extradited.

Prosecutors said Senakh admits he and his co-conspirators used malware to take over a globe-spanning web of computers, creating a botnet that directed users to Internet scams that generated millions of dollars.

He'll be sentenced Aug. 3 in Minneapolis federal court on one count of conspiracy to commit computer fraud and wire fraud.

President Trumps "cyber czar," ex-New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, has joined the defense team of a gold trader who is under federal indictment for fraud, money laundering and evading sanctions on Iran, and who has ties to Turkish President Recep Erdogan.

Reza Zarrab, 33, was arrested March 19 in Florida. Hes accused of ducking sanctions by moving hundreds of millions of dollars for the Iranian government and Iranian firms via offshore entities and bank accounts.

Prosecutor Joon Kim sent a letter notifying the judge in Zarrabs case that Giuliani had joined the defense, and that Zarrab had also hired ex-U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey. Kim said he was "advis[ing] the Court of potential conflicts of interest," since Giuliani and Mukaseys firms also represent some banks Zarrab used in transactions.

Erdogan defended Zarrab when the dual Turkish-Iranian citizen was fingered in a 2013 Turkish corruption scandal that also implicated Erdogan associates. The Turkish leader called Zarrab, who had given his wifes charity $4.5 million, a philanthropist. All charges against Zarrab and Erdogans pals were dropped.

Zarrabs lead attorney, Ben Brafman, told NBC News he would remain as lead counsel, and that neither Giuliani, Mukasey nor their firms would appear in court.

A former New York City prosecutor accused of forging judges' signatures to wiretap a colleague and a detective for personal reasons has been hit with federal charges.

Tara Lenich, 41, was indicted in federal court on Monday, four months after she was arrested and fired by the Brooklyn District Attorney's office, where she was a deputy bureau chief.

Authorities say that after Lenich forged the orders, she misappropriated equipment to eavesdrop on her targets' cellphones and also created bogus search warrants to obtain their text messages.

The scheme came to light when it was noticed that the wiretap orders were renewed again and again. A law-enforcement source said Lenich's motive was jealousy; she had a romantic interest in the detective and viewed a female prosecutor as a rival.

"Unfortunately, sometimes those close to the law stray far from the truth," FBI Assistant Director in Charge William Sweeney said. "As demonstrated today, however, everyone is expected to play by the rules; for this we'll make no exceptions."

Lenich's attorney did not immediately return a call for comment.

The anti-Assad, anti-ISIS group Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered tweeted out a graphic today that said coalition airstrikes on Raqqa, Syria, the ISIS capital, have increased by more than 100 percent since Jan. 1. Kurdish forces and U.S.-backed Syrian fighters are now massing north of Raqqa for a ground assault.

A top financial supporter of Hezbollah was arrested overseas earlier this month on an 11-count indictment unsealed Friday in federal court.

Kassim Tajideen of Beirut, Lebanon is charged with evading U.S. sanctions placed on his because of his financial support for Hezbollah, officially designated as a terror group by the U.S. government.

The arrest came after a two-year investigation let by the Drug Enforcement Administration, and is part of Project Cassandra, which targets Hezbollah's global support network. Tajideen is accused of operating front companies for Hezbollah, and was named a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in 2009.

The indictment says that over the past three years, Tajideen transferred more than $27 million via at least 47 wire transfers to individuals in the U.S., who helped Tajideen continue to do business with U.S. companies and ship U.S. goods out of the U.S.

Mark Warner, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, declined Thursday to endorse his House counterpart's assertion that lawmakers have been briefed on "more than circumstantial evidence," that Trump associates colluded with the Russian operation to interfere in the presidential election.

Leaving a closed-door briefing, the Virginia senator was asked by NBC News whether he agreed with Rep. Adam Schiff of California, the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee.

Schiff told Chuck Todd on MTP Daily Wednesday,"I can't go into the particulars, but there is more than circumstantial evidence now."

Warned responded, "There are ever increasing amounts of smoke."

Senior U.S. officials believe, based on the latest intelligence, that North Korea is not an immediate threat to the U.S. or Japan.

But South Korea is another story. The threat to South Korea, said one official, is "grave and current."

A senior intelligence official said that the U.S. assessment is that North Korea has eight to 10 nuclear weapons, with the number more likely to be eight than 10. That number is in line with estimates by outside experts. The Federation of American Scientists, for example, estimates 10-to-20, but as Hans Kristensen, director of the FAS Nuclear Information Project, says, "it is unclear if they are operational yet."

Miniaturizing warheads to put them on long-range missiles might be a challenge for the North Koreans. But Seoul is less than 40 miles from the DMZ that separates South and North. Korea has many shorter range missiles that could theoretically deliver nuclear payloads inside South Korea, as well as to border regions of China and Russia.

Kim Jong Un looks at a rocket warhead tip in this undated photo. (C) KCNA KCNA / Reuters / Reuters

The Pakistani Taliban said a U.S. drone strike over the weekend in Afghanistan killed a senior military commander who was known for his skill in training suicide bombers.

Qari Mohammad Yasin, also known as Ustad Aslam, died in a drone strike in Afghanistan's Paktika province. He was linked to an attack on the Pakistani military headquarters in Rawalpindi and an attack on a bus carrying Sri Lanka's national cricket team.

"We lost a brave man and the trainer of trainers in a U.S drone attack," said Asad Mansoor, the spokesman of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Jamaatul Ahrar ( TTP-JA), a splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban, presently based in Afghanistan.

Yasin was given the title "Ustad," or teacher, because he trained suicide bombers.

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Senate Intel Committee May Interview Ex-UK Spy Christopher Steele - NBCNews.com

Phil Mickelson's lawyer says that he is "innocent of any wrongdoing" in the case.

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Phil Mickelson won't be called to testify in the insider-trading case involving gambler Billy Walters because he would invoke the Fifth Amendment.Bloomberg reports that Mickelson would make use of his rights under the amendment, which protects against self-incrimination, to avoid testifying.

"He is on our witness list, but we understand from his counsel he would invoke his Fifth Amendment if called," said Barry Berke, one of the lawyers in the case.

Walters is accused of making $43 million using insider trading tips from Tom C. Davis, who was the chairman of Dean Foods Co. Walters was a golfing buddy of Mickelson's and passed some of these tips to Mickelson, who used them to make $931,000. Mickelson has since said he will repay this money. The government did not accuse Mickelson of committing a crime or of knowing that the tips he'd received were from an inside source.

On March 22, the Associated Press reported that Mickelson believed he would not be called to testify in the trial.

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Report: Phil to invoke Fifth Amendment if asked to testify in insider-trading case - Golf.com