Biden scuttles Trump’s dreams for border wall cash

The Biden administration is calling on Congress to cancel billions of dollars set aside for former President Donald Trump’s border wall so the White House is not forced to spend the cash on the U.S.-Mexico barrier.

The White House on Friday detailed its plans for handling money Trump diverted for the project, plus border wall funding Congress passed last year. More than $2 billion Trump diverted from military construction projects will be returned, funding 66 military projects in 11 states, three territories and 16 countries.

As required by law, the Department of Homeland Security will spend the money Congress provided for the border wall, while using “all legal authorities to stop wall expansion,” the Office of Management and Budget said Friday. A bipartisan government funding package signed into law late last year included $1.4 billion for the wall, in line with what Congress gave Trump through previous spending packages.

The new White House plans come as President Joe Biden faces a federal watchdog probe for hitting pause on billions of dollars in wall funding on his first day in office, instructing his administration to figure out next steps for the money. Dozens of Republicans in the House and Senate said the move amounts to a violation of federal budget law.

If Congress cancels border wall funding, OMB said, the money could instead be used for "effective border management measures like enhanced technology between points of entry and improved infrastructure" at land ports. “Unless and until Congress acts on the request, the Administration will continue to use the funds responsibly for their appropriated purpose, as required by law, and DHS has developed a plan to do so,” the agency said.

With $2.2 billion returning to Pentagon coffers, the White House highlighted several military construction projects that will see restored funding — including a $10 million plan to expand the missile interceptor field at Fort Greely in Alaska, as well as $79 million to renovate an elementary school for military children in Germany and over $25 million for a new complex for the Marine Corps at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.

Of the money returned, just under $300 million would go toward military construction projects in the United States and $608 million would fund infrastructure projects in Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Another $1.3 billion would go to overseas projects, including 16 projects that fall under the European Deterrence Initiative meant to improve U.S. and allied military efforts to deter Russia in Eastern Europe, according to a Pentagon list of funded projects.

Trump declared a national emergency in 2019 to siphon billions of dollars away from military infrastructure, as well as fighters, ships, equipment and personnel accounts. The declaration upset lawmakers in both parties, who were concerned about harming military preparedness and undermining Congress by short-circuiting the legislative process.

In total, the Trump administration diverted $3.6 billion from military constructions projects through an emergency declaration, prompting lawsuits from more than a dozen states and House Democrats. The Pentagon announced in April that it had begun the process of canceling contracts for border barrier projects and returning the unspent money to military infrastructure projects.

Through other statutory authorities, Trump tapped $601 million from a Treasury Department drug forfeiture fund and $2.5 billion from a Department of Defense drug prevention program. OMB said the Biden administration would return the remaining Treasury funds to the agency.