Biden Defunds Border Wall, Returns Billions to Military

TIJUANA, MEXICO - JANUARY 28: Construction of the U.S. border wall is halted after a car rolled down an embankment and landed against the wall on the Mexican side of the border on January 28, 2019 in Tijuana, Mexico. The U.S. government had been partially shut down as President Donald Trump battled congress for $5.7 billion to build walls along the U.S. border with Mexico. Despite President Trump agreeing to end the shutdown, the debate over border wall funding and other immigration issues continues. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

To pay for his signature project – the border wall – President Trump dipped into money earmarked for the military. Today, the Department of Defense announced they are cancelling all construction contracts that rely on those funds. More than fourteen billion dollars will be returned to the Pentagon.

Big: DOD is canceling all contracts for border wall construction on the US-Mexico border that had used funds originally intended for military missions and functions. Under Trump, the administration dipped into Pentagon funds to build additional border barriers. pic.twitter.com/HeJ5RxOmOn
— Priscilla Alvarez (@priscialva) April 30, 2021

President Biden has long hinted that such an action was coming. On day one of his presidency, he ordered a pause on border wall construction. Now, the DOD has dealt the unpopular project another blow. From a statement by Jamal Brown, deputy pentagon spokesman:

“Consistent with the President’s proclamation, the Department of Defense is proceeding with canceling all border barrier construction projects paid for with funds originally intended for other military missions and functions such as schools for military children, overseas military construction projects in partner nations, and the National Guard and Reserve equipment account.”

Brown added that the released funds will go to other construction projects within the military’s purview. Some of the money will be spent repairing environmental damage from the construction of the wall.

NEW: The Biden administration will return $14 billion+ in military funds to the Pentagon, money seized by the Trump administration to build the border wall.

They'll also cancel those contracts, repair levees in the Rio Grande Valley, and erosion near San Diego.
— Ben Siegel (@bensiegel) April 30, 2021

The White House released a statement contextualizing the announcement:

“Border wall construction under the previous administration tied up more than $14 billion in taxpayer funds, shortchanged our military, and diverted attention away from genuine security challenges, like human traffickers. Rushed and haphazard wall construction also resulted in serious life, safety, and environmental issues.”

Politico offers a reminder of how military money was diverted toward one of Trump’s top priorities:

Trump’s emergency declaration, which he signed in early 2019 and Biden ended in February, was an end-run around Congress after repeatedly failing to secure the funding his administration wanted to build an imposing wall along the border. As a result, Trump diverted billions from the Pentagon and Treasury Department to be repurposed for border barrier projects.