New Democrat Coalition National Security Task Force Statement on Administration’s $3.6 Billion Military Funding Grab
Today, New Democrat Coalition Chair Derek Kilmer and National Security Task Force Co-Chairs, Reps. Brad Schneider (IL-10), Anthony Brown (MD-04), Brendan Boyle (PA-02), and Abigail Spanberger (VA-07) released the following statement on the Trump Administration’s plan to repurpose $3.6 billion in military construction funds for a border wall:
“Despite the clear threats and challenges America faces around the globe, the administration intends to steal $3.6 billion from the important work and services of the men and women who keep us safe. That funding was intended to improve military readiness, to increase the quality of life for the families of servicemembers, and was developed with bipartisan support in consultation with the Department of Defense to address the critical requirements of our military. Now, the Administration plans to delay everything from child development centers to port repairs to training facilities in order to build an inefficient and ineffective border wall.”
“This runs counter to our own national security interests, undermining projects vital to our servicemembers and allies in strategic regions around the globe. At a time when we should be reinforcing our global posture to counter Russia and China, the administration is instead cutting $1.3B from our infrastructure in Europe and nearly $500M from bases in the Asia Pacific, on top of $1.8B for our servicemembers at home.
“The administration appears intent on using an unfounded national emergency to violate the Congress’s constitutional role to appropriate and authorize federal spending. We urge the Administration to rethink this reckless overreach and call on our colleagues across the aisle to join us in ensuring the funds appropriated by Congress are used as intended.”
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