Democrats in the House of Representatives are urging Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to pull-the-plug on President Trump’s $450m border wall project; directly asking the Pentagon boss to abandon the military-funded barrier in Arizona.
Rep. Adam Smith sent a scathing letter to Mattis this week; calling the proposal “utterly irresponsible” and a move that would directly impact “military readiness and infrastructure.”
“It is utterly irresponsible and appalling that President Trump wants to take away funding for military readiness and infrastructure in order to spend it on his border wall,” Smith said in a statement. “We are trying to ensure that our men and women in uniform have the facilities and training they need to face serious dangers while defending our country. If Secretary Mattis follows through on this request, it would undermine those efforts.”
The proposal would build a 31-mile fence along a section of Air Force Base Barry M. Goldwater which sits on Arizona’s border with Mexico.
“We’re going to have our wall, and we’re going to get it very strongly. The military’s going to be building some of it,” Trump said earlier this year.
Read the full report at the Washington Examiner.
CALIFORNIA CHAOS: Federal Judge SIDES WITH TRUMP on Border Wall Construction
President Trump’s proposed border wall with Mexico got one step closer to construction this week, with a federal judge ruling against environmental activists and the state of California who challenged the physical barrier; claiming the “wall” would severely harm the region’s ecosystem.
US District Court Judge Gonzalo Curiel ruled in favor of the Trump administration; swiping down a case that claimed a “border wall” would seriously violate existing environmental protection laws.
The President hailed the court’s decision on social media Wednesday morning, writing “I have decided that sections of the Wall that California wants built NOW will not be built until the whole Wall is approved. Big victory yesterday with ruling from the courts that allows us to proceed. OUR COUNTRY MUST HAVE BORDER SECURITY!”
I have decided that sections of the Wall that California wants built NOW will not be built until the whole Wall is approved. Big victory yesterday with ruling from the courts that allows us to proceed. OUR COUNTRY MUST HAVE BORDER SECURITY!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 28, 2018
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra slammed the court’s ruling, accusing the Trump administration of committing “federal overreach.”
“A medieval wall along the U.S.-Mexico border simply does not belong in the 21st century,” Becerra said.
CALIFORNIA CHAOS: GOP Rep. Proposes 'BORDER WALL' Between California and Arizona
A Republican congresswoman from Arizona proposed the construction of a “border wall” between her state and California; citing the ongoing chaos caused by the Golden State’s ‘sanctuary city’ policies and soaring crime rates.
Rep. Martha McSally made her surprising remarks while speaking at a round-table discussion at the White House Tuesday, saying Arizona residents need to protect themselves from California’s “dangerous policies.”
“As we look in Arizona, we often look into the dangers of the southern border,” said the congresswoman. “But if these dangerous policies continue out of California, we might need to build a wall between California and Arizona as well to keep these dangerous criminals out of our state.”
“[They can’t] provide sanctuary for these criminals and think that it’s only impacting California dangerously,” she added.
The state’s outrageous ‘sanctuary city’ policies were thrust into the national headlines again this week, when a small southern California town voted to officially reject the “unconstitutional” guidelines that prohibit law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration agents.
h/t The Hill