On Senate Floor, Duckworth Calls Out Trump for Prioritizing Border Wall Vanity Project over National Security
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) criticized Donald Trump and his Administration’s decision to endanger our national security by stealing taxpayer funds that had been allocated for important defense priorities, including Coast Guard programs, in order to begin construction on a wall he promised Mexico would pay for.
Video of the Senator’s speech is available here.
Key quotes:
“We must hold Donald Trump accountable for his vows and for his lies. We must ask what happened to Mexico paying for the wall. Trump promised every American…that they wouldn’t have to spend a dime on his wall, pledging that Mexico would pick up the tab… This was a lie: Mexico isn’t paying for his wall. Our servicemembers and their families are.”
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“Trump’s decision to build his vanity wall with funds stolen from military construction projects and homeland security initiatives isn’t really about border security. It’s about politics. If he actually wanted to secure the border, he wouldn’t strip away funding from the dedicated men and women who are responsible for defending it: the United States Coast Guard… As if that weren’t bad enough, he’s also defunding facilities dedicated to cyberwarfare ops and bomb defusing training. He’s slashing money from schools and childcare centers for our servicemembers’ children, too.”
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“My blood boils when I hear that children of U.S. servicemembers are being forced to learn in makeshift classrooms-within-classrooms. No child should have to learn in that kind of environment. In my view, that is the true national emergency.”
…
“In Trump’s mind, when you’re the President, you can do anything. Congress didn’t appropriate funds for your ineffective wall? Just grab funds that Congress authorized for more important programs. Tired of failing to convince Congress to spend American tax dollars on your wall? Just declare a fake emergency—Senate Republicans will let you do it!”
Duckworth’s full remarks as prepared are below:
- In this day and age, it’d be easy to grow cynical and simply tune out the noise of a 24-hour cable news cycle that feeds off the latest Trump tweet.
- From Donald Trump’s recent decision to invite the Taliban to join him for a retreat at Camp David for the week of the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks… to his earlier statements caught on tape bragging about sexually assaulting women… I fear that too many – including Members of this Chamber – have become numb to this repeated debasing of the presidency.
- Numb to a President who lacks even a hint of remorse or shame as he spews lies to the people he was elected to serve.
- But we cannot afford to become numb.
- We cannot—cannot—let this become normal.
- No. We must hold Donald Trump accountable for his false promises and for his lies. We must ask what happened to Mexico paying for the wall.
- Trump promised every American… over and over and over again… that they wouldn’t have to spend a dime on his wall, pledging that Mexico would pick up the tab, 100 percent.
- He even said: “It’s an easy decision for Mexico: make a one-time payment of $5 to 10 billion.”
- Of course, it wasn’t so easy.
- And now, Trump’s done a 180…
- Falsely claiming that he never said Mexico would write that check…
- Trying to gaslight us all with every lie he tells.
- We can’t let him get away with it.
- The truth is that Donald Trump already revealed who he really wants to pay for his wall. He discloses it every time his Administration begs Congress to spend billions of your tax dollars building it.
- He doesn’t care that many who live on the border believe building a wall from sea to shining sea is the least effective and most expensive way to secure the border.
- Trump may not care, but that helps explain Trump’s failure to convince Congress to fund his vanity project – even when Republicans controlled both chambers for two years!
- And his outrageous response to his failure reveals another sad truth: the presidency hasn’t changed Donald Trump one bit.
- President Donald Trump is the very same Donald Trump whose true character was revealed on the leaked Access Hollywood tape.
- In Trump’s mind, when you’re the President, you can do anything.
- Congress didn’t appropriate funds for your ineffective wall? Just grab funds that Congress authorized for more important programs.
- Tired of failing to convince Congress to spend American tax dollars on your wall? Just declare a fake emergency – Senate Republicans will let you do it!
- Listen, Trump’s decision to build his vanity wall with funds stolen from military construction projects and homeland security initiatives isn’t really about border security.
- It’s about politics. If he actually wanted to secure our nation’s border, he wouldn’t be stripping away funding from the dedicated men and women who are responsible for defending it: the United States Coast Guard.
- Yet that’s exactly what he’s done, ripping tens of millions of dollars away from Coast Guard programs.
- Ignoring that his actions could endanger our national security.
- Ignoring that we’re right in the middle of hurricane season.
- As if that weren’t bad enough, he’s also defunding facilities dedicated to cyberwarfare ops and bomb defusing training.
- He’s slashing money from schools and childcare centers for our servicemembers’ children, too.
- Donald Trump told us—over and over and over again—that Mexico would pay for his wall.
- That was a lie. Mexico isn’t paying for his wall. Our servicemembers and their families are.
- The families at Fort Campbell are, as their children will now have to keep eating lunch in their school’s library because Donald Trump decided that revving up his political base was more important than upgrading an aging military school.
- My blood boils when I hear that children of U.S. servicemembers are being forced to learn in make-shift classrooms-within-classrooms.
- NO child should have to learn in that kind of environment. In my view, that is the true national emergency.
- Of course, the Senate could put a stop to this.
- It’s up to us. Our actions – in this very chamber – will determine whether children at Fort Campbell will be able to eat lunch in a decent cafeteria and attend school in adequately-sized classrooms.
- We can defend the power of the purse… or we can be complicit in its destruction.
- Look, I’m not naïve.
- I know some don’t share my outrage… that some believe overcrowded military schools are unfortunate, but not a crisis, let alone a national disgrace.
- These Trump loyalists cower to his bullying tactics… and in the coming days, they’ll try to reward his abuse of power. They won’t stop Trump and return the stolen taxpayer dollars.
- Rather, they’ll argue we should dig even deeper into the nation’s funds to spend more of your tax dollars replace the money Trump stole.
- This is wrong. The Constitution entrusts Congress to authorize and appropriate funds, not the President.
- I urge all my colleagues to join me in condemning this raid of taxpayer funds. We must block these outrageous cuts that will harm military readiness, weaken our border security and hurt the families of those brave enough to serve.
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