President Biden’s decision this week to move forward with border wall construction that Democrats have long denounced shocked allies and immigration advocates.
The stunning reversal came just days after administration officials participated in an immigration roundtable at the Capitol featuring Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) members and immigration advocates.
The administration’s participation in the roundtable drew praise from CHC members; administration officials did not mention plans to restart border wall construction.
CHC leaders called the decision “disappointing” Thursday.
“While this border wall funding was signed into law by President Trump under Republican leadership, this decision is not in line with the current Administration’s commitments to end border wall construction. Republicans remain committed to building border walls that are ineffective, a poor use of taxpayer funds, and a strain on the local environment, endangering families and children who are fleeing from dangerous conditions and that seek legal asylum in the United States,” CHC Chairwoman Nanette Díaz Barragán (D-Calif.) said in a statement.
A notice posted on the Federal Register on Wednesday waived a series of environmental and historical protection laws to allow for wall construction in Starr County, Texas, using funds appropriated in 2019 for that purpose.
Biden told reporters Thursday that his administration moved forward with the waivers and construction to comply with a legal obligation to use the appropriated funds.
“One question on the border wall: The border wall, money was appropriated for the border wall. I tried to get them to reappropriate, to redirect that money. They didn’t. They wouldn’t,” Biden told reporters in the Oval Office.
“And in the meantime, there’s nothing in the law — they have to use the money for what it was appropriated. I can’t stop that.”
Asked whether he believes the border wall works, Biden sighed, “no.”
His explanation came more than 12 hours after The Associated Press first reported the story, based on the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) quiet announcement in the Federal Registry.
The administration had forewarned some allies such as Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) that it would obligate the funds to avoid violating the 1974 Impoundment Control Act, but it omitted a key detail.
“[Biden] tried to divert money; he tried to do everything that he could from my understanding. He tried to transfer and reprogram authorities. So he did a whole bunch of stuff, but it’s only limited to 5 percent of what they could transfer,” said Cuellar, an appropriator and a fierce opponent of wall construction.
Cuellar said Biden is “stuck with the Impoundment Control Act,” but raised doubts about the environmental waivers.
“But on a different point — and I’ve been trying to get answers from the administration because we just found out yesterday — why did they waive the environmental laws? That’s something else. And we’ve been trying to get an answer, and they can’t give me an answer,” Cuellar said.
An administration official said new construction will use “Jersey barriers” rather than digging to bury foundations for the planned expansion in an effort to mitigate environmental damage, but otherwise pointed to precedent for the administration’s waiver announcement.
“I’ll just point out that new border barrier construction has never been completed without utilizing the waiver — waiver process. That’s why the waiver process was passed into law, and it’s an essential part in the barrier construction process,” said the official.
“Despite that, we complete thorough environmental surveys and make every effort to comply with the intent of the environmental laws to safeguard the border environment.”
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas pushed back against criticism that the announcement represented either a policy shift or a contradiction for the administration.
“There is no new Administration policy with respect to border walls. From day one, this Administration has made clear that a border wall is not the answer. That remains our position and our position has never wavered. The language in the Federal Register notice is being taken out of context and it does not signify any change in policy whatsoever,” Mayorkas said in a statement published on X, formerly known as Twitter.
https://thehill.com/latino/4241165-bidens-border-wall-bombshell-shocks-allies/
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