President Donald Trump talks with reporters as he reviews border wall prototypes in San Diego. Trump is floating the idea of using the military’s budget to pay for his long-promised border wall with Mexico. (Evan Vucci / AP)
President Donald Trump, who repeatedly insisted during the 2016 campaign that Mexico would pay for a wall along the southern border, is privately pushing the U.S. military to fund construction of his signature project.
Trump has told advisers that he was spurned in a large spending bill last week when lawmakers appropriated only $1.6 billion for the border wall. He has suggested to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and congressional leaders that the Pentagon could fund the sprawling project, citing a “national security” risk.
After floating the notion to several advisers last week, Trump told House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., that the military should pay for the wall, according to three people familiar with the meeting last Wednesday in the White House residence. Ryan offered little reaction to the idea, these people said, but senior Capitol Hill officials later said it was an unlikely prospect.
Trump’s pursuit of defense dollars to finance the U.S.-Mexico border wall underscores his determination to fulfill a campaign promise and build the barrier despite resistance in the Republican-led Congress. The administration’s last-minute negotiations with lawmakers to secure billions more for the wall failed, and Trump grudgingly signed the spending bill Friday after a short-lived veto threat. [Chicago Tribune]
Even the CBS show, The Unit, talked about terrorists crossing the southern border. We already know hundreds of OTM illegals are caught and turned back every month.
Only people engaged in a criminal conspiracy with foreign nationals to evade capture and overthrow local, state, and/or federal laws could reasonably be against the wall.
IIRC, one of the Boston Marathon bombers was an illegal who entered through Mexico.
The only people who say “we cannot deport 12 Million” are people who insist we have less transportation capacity than we had in WW2 when we shipped about 35 million GIs and support people to other countries in under five years.
I don’t believe the wall will stop every illegal; but it will make them spend more money, a commodity few of them have. And it should slow the rate of entry/reentry enough we can get the rest of immigration laws rewrittrn more sensibly.
JoeC
6 years ago
Well if it’s our military holding the IOU Mexico is sure to reemburse them 🙄
setnaffa
6 years ago
JoeC, do you have any idea how much money is sent to Mexico via Western Union every year? Do you know what percent is from “undocumented guest-workers”?
You should come to Texas and see why some people, including many (legal) immigrants want it fixed. Your snark makes actual adult conversations less likely.
ChickenHead
6 years ago
Literally nobody believes Mexico is going to write a check to pay for the wall.
Anybody who approaches the discussion from this angle doesn’t belong at the adult table.
However, fewer illegal Mexicans with nothing invested in America will reduce burdens on the legal system, the prison system, the education system, the medical system, the social services system, the welfare system, the tax system…
…and open jobs for non-productive Americans who are currently a burden on many of these systems.
This makes the Wall an investment.
…and much of the cost… or all of the cost… or all of the cost plus a surplus… will be covered by money that didn’t go to Mexico.
That is close enough to Mexico paying for the wall.
The current arrangement isn’t working.
Ole Tanker
6 years ago
I think when Trumpo was threatening to Veto the Bill, Gen Mattis came to him and whispered in his ear. “Give me this money and we will build your wall.” Now mobilize the Seabees, Army Engineers, and Air Force Red Horse BN’s! We will build the wall! Realistic Training is the key to Victory, Just look at the wall around Sadre City!
johnhenry
6 years ago
Got news for Trump: It’s illegal to use the United States military for this purpose. See “Posse Comitatus Act”.
ChickenHead
6 years ago
“Got news for Trump: It’s illegal to use the United States military for this purpose. See “Posse Comitatus Act”.”
Johnhenry, kindly take this news to Trump and then inform him the Army Corps of Engineers needs to tear up all those wall-like things they have built for decades due to their illegally or whatever.
This is a budget allocation issue.
If he manages to get the military to build it by tricking all of congress, it is trickery for the history books by a results-oriented guy…
…but that level of budget voodoo sets a bad precedent.
setnaffa
6 years ago
From Wikipedia, we find JohnHenry was sadly mistaken.
“The Posse Comitatus Act is a United States federal law (18 U.S.C. § 1385, original at 20 Stat. 152) signed on June 18, 1878 by President Rutherford B. Hayes. The purpose of the act – in concert with the Insurrection Act of 1807 – is to limit the powers of the federal government in using federal military personnel to enforce domestic policies within the United States. It was passed as an amendment to an army appropriation bill following the end of Reconstruction, and was subsequently updated in 1956 and 1981.
The Act only specifically applies to the United States Army and, as amended in 1956, the United States Air Force. While the Act does not explicitly mention the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps, the Department of the Navy has prescribed regulations that are generally construed to give the Act force with respect to those services as well. The Act does not apply to the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard under state authority from acting in a law enforcement capacity within its home state or in an adjacent state if invited by that state’s governor. The United States Coast Guard, which operates under the Department of Homeland Security, is not covered by the Posse Comitatus Act either, primarily because although the Coast Guard is an armed service, it also has both a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency mission.”
The law prevents the government from using the army (and by extension the air force) as police to enforce the law. It does not (and cannot) prevent any military unit from building any “defensive works” or barriers the Commander-in-Chief believes are needed to protect the nation from any human enemy or environmental issue…
Liz
6 years ago
Re: “results-oriented”
The most recent appointed Assistant Secretary of the Airforce, Henderson (a civil engineer and very recently retired Colonel in the Army) got the job after the Secretary of the Airforce watched as he was grilled heatedly for two hours by Congress (a pipeline dispute with the Army corps of engineers I think). She was so impressed at the end of the grilling she pointed and said, “THAT is the guy I want to work for me…”
We have some phenomenal appointees right now. This is the best Secretary of the USAF I’ve seen in a while (they are cutting AFIs, aka “regulations”…how often do you see that?!?), Chief of Staff of the AF is also great.
Our little base got a call from the Whitehouse OMB (office of management and budgeting) a few weeks back. They wanted to set up a meeting to find out how our base went from worst maintenance (in these particular airframes) to best in the country, in less than a year, without any increase in manpower or funding.
Now….the very fact they even noticed gets my attention….let alone the fact they want to learn from it. I’ve never heard of an OMB that is THAT efficient.
Liz
6 years ago
We know posse comitatus doesn’t apply to the guard because we all watched those National Guard tanks break down walls and shoot gas into the Waco compound.
Liz
6 years ago
The current Secretary of the USAF is also proof you can have a really good, really competent woman in charge of things…if you aren’t using just “female” in the screening process. By contrast, Deborah James was catastrophic. No real experience, her only concern was “diversity”. If she were in charge, this base would be spending the majority of the man hours making sure there were enough minorities, homosexuals, and transvestites in leadership positions….and making sure everyone was sensitive enough to their individual concerns. Now they’re kicking the resource wasters out.
setnaffa
6 years ago
Liz, you’re giving me hope for the future. 😀
Liz
6 years ago
Oh, squee! Glad to hear it. 🙂
Seriously, it’s getting better.
Have a blessed Good Friday, Setnaffa.
setnaffa
6 years ago
And you!
lee
6 years ago
I voted for Trump, but I’m not a big fan of the wall. Just F=fix the parts that needs fixing and enforce the law.
Even the CBS show, The Unit, talked about terrorists crossing the southern border. We already know hundreds of OTM illegals are caught and turned back every month.
Only people engaged in a criminal conspiracy with foreign nationals to evade capture and overthrow local, state, and/or federal laws could reasonably be against the wall.
IIRC, one of the Boston Marathon bombers was an illegal who entered through Mexico.
The only people who say “we cannot deport 12 Million” are people who insist we have less transportation capacity than we had in WW2 when we shipped about 35 million GIs and support people to other countries in under five years.
I don’t believe the wall will stop every illegal; but it will make them spend more money, a commodity few of them have. And it should slow the rate of entry/reentry enough we can get the rest of immigration laws rewrittrn more sensibly.
Well if it’s our military holding the IOU Mexico is sure to reemburse them 🙄
JoeC, do you have any idea how much money is sent to Mexico via Western Union every year? Do you know what percent is from “undocumented guest-workers”?
You should come to Texas and see why some people, including many (legal) immigrants want it fixed. Your snark makes actual adult conversations less likely.
Literally nobody believes Mexico is going to write a check to pay for the wall.
Anybody who approaches the discussion from this angle doesn’t belong at the adult table.
However, fewer illegal Mexicans with nothing invested in America will reduce burdens on the legal system, the prison system, the education system, the medical system, the social services system, the welfare system, the tax system…
…and open jobs for non-productive Americans who are currently a burden on many of these systems.
This makes the Wall an investment.
…and much of the cost… or all of the cost… or all of the cost plus a surplus… will be covered by money that didn’t go to Mexico.
That is close enough to Mexico paying for the wall.
The current arrangement isn’t working.
I think when Trumpo was threatening to Veto the Bill, Gen Mattis came to him and whispered in his ear. “Give me this money and we will build your wall.” Now mobilize the Seabees, Army Engineers, and Air Force Red Horse BN’s! We will build the wall! Realistic Training is the key to Victory, Just look at the wall around Sadre City!
Got news for Trump: It’s illegal to use the United States military for this purpose. See “Posse Comitatus Act”.
“Got news for Trump: It’s illegal to use the United States military for this purpose. See “Posse Comitatus Act”.”
Johnhenry, kindly take this news to Trump and then inform him the Army Corps of Engineers needs to tear up all those wall-like things they have built for decades due to their illegally or whatever.
This is a budget allocation issue.
If he manages to get the military to build it by tricking all of congress, it is trickery for the history books by a results-oriented guy…
…but that level of budget voodoo sets a bad precedent.
From Wikipedia, we find JohnHenry was sadly mistaken.
“The Posse Comitatus Act is a United States federal law (18 U.S.C. § 1385, original at 20 Stat. 152) signed on June 18, 1878 by President Rutherford B. Hayes. The purpose of the act – in concert with the Insurrection Act of 1807 – is to limit the powers of the federal government in using federal military personnel to enforce domestic policies within the United States. It was passed as an amendment to an army appropriation bill following the end of Reconstruction, and was subsequently updated in 1956 and 1981.
The Act only specifically applies to the United States Army and, as amended in 1956, the United States Air Force. While the Act does not explicitly mention the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps, the Department of the Navy has prescribed regulations that are generally construed to give the Act force with respect to those services as well. The Act does not apply to the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard under state authority from acting in a law enforcement capacity within its home state or in an adjacent state if invited by that state’s governor. The United States Coast Guard, which operates under the Department of Homeland Security, is not covered by the Posse Comitatus Act either, primarily because although the Coast Guard is an armed service, it also has both a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency mission.”
The law prevents the government from using the army (and by extension the air force) as police to enforce the law. It does not (and cannot) prevent any military unit from building any “defensive works” or barriers the Commander-in-Chief believes are needed to protect the nation from any human enemy or environmental issue…
Re: “results-oriented”
The most recent appointed Assistant Secretary of the Airforce, Henderson (a civil engineer and very recently retired Colonel in the Army) got the job after the Secretary of the Airforce watched as he was grilled heatedly for two hours by Congress (a pipeline dispute with the Army corps of engineers I think). She was so impressed at the end of the grilling she pointed and said, “THAT is the guy I want to work for me…”
We have some phenomenal appointees right now. This is the best Secretary of the USAF I’ve seen in a while (they are cutting AFIs, aka “regulations”…how often do you see that?!?), Chief of Staff of the AF is also great.
Our little base got a call from the Whitehouse OMB (office of management and budgeting) a few weeks back. They wanted to set up a meeting to find out how our base went from worst maintenance (in these particular airframes) to best in the country, in less than a year, without any increase in manpower or funding.
Now….the very fact they even noticed gets my attention….let alone the fact they want to learn from it. I’ve never heard of an OMB that is THAT efficient.
We know posse comitatus doesn’t apply to the guard because we all watched those National Guard tanks break down walls and shoot gas into the Waco compound.
The current Secretary of the USAF is also proof you can have a really good, really competent woman in charge of things…if you aren’t using just “female” in the screening process. By contrast, Deborah James was catastrophic. No real experience, her only concern was “diversity”. If she were in charge, this base would be spending the majority of the man hours making sure there were enough minorities, homosexuals, and transvestites in leadership positions….and making sure everyone was sensitive enough to their individual concerns. Now they’re kicking the resource wasters out.
Liz, you’re giving me hope for the future. 😀
Oh, squee! Glad to hear it. 🙂
Seriously, it’s getting better.
Have a blessed Good Friday, Setnaffa.
And you!
I voted for Trump, but I’m not a big fan of the wall. Just F=fix the parts that needs fixing and enforce the law.