No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeNewsCosta RicaU.S. Pentagon shifts $3.8 bn to Mexico border wall construction

U.S. Pentagon shifts $3.8 bn to Mexico border wall construction

The US Defense Department is shifting another $3.8 billion from procurement and other operations towards paying for a wall on the US-Mexican border, official documents sent to the US Congress showed Thursday.

The move took to $9.9 billion the total the Pentagon has been forced by President Donald Trump to reallocate to the barrier, after Congress repeatedly blocked funding.

The president declared a national emergency last year to be able to draw federal budget funds already allocated to other needs for the wall, which aims to deter migrants from entering the country illegally.

In January an appeals court backed Trump’s diversion of already-purposed federal budget funds to the project, removing a stay on spending set by a lower court after opponents filed suit.

The Pentagon told Congress it was transferring the $3.8 billion to “counter-drug activities” on the border in support of the Department of Homeland Security.

The money was to be culled from various programs for buying tactical vehicles for the Army National Guard, vessels for the Navy, and combat and transport aircraft for the Navy and Air Force.

Trump promised to build the wall along most of the 2,000-mile (3,200-kilometer) US-Mexico border — paid for by Mexico — during his 2016 presidential campaign.

After he was elected however he sought some $25 billion from Congress but was repeatedly turned back amid opposition to his harsh stance against undocumented migrants already living in the country.

Meanwhile the number of illegal border-crossers detained soared as hundreds of thousands of migrants poured into the US, mostly from Central America, seeking asylum.

A crackdown and changes in policy that made it far more difficult stay in the United States after submitting an asylum request has seen border apprehension numbers plunge in recent months.

The figure stood at fewer than 37,000 last month, from more than 58,000 a year earlier.

Trending Now

U.S. Strikes Drug Boat in Pacific Near Colombia, Killing Two

The United States military carried out its first strike in the Pacific Ocean against a boat suspected of drug trafficking, killing two people near...

Costa Rica Joins US-Led Bid for 2031 Women’s Soccer World Cup

The United States, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Jamaica have teamed up to bid for hosting the 2031 FIFA Women's World Cup. This marks the...

Latin America Questions US Boat Strikes in the Drug War

US military strikes that Washington claims have targeted "narco-terrorists" ferrying drugs to American soil are having little to no impact on Latin America's bustling...

Venezuela Arrests Suspects in Alleged CIA Cell Plotting Attack

Venezuela claimed Monday to have dismantled a CIA-financed cell plotting a false-flag attack on a US warship deployed to the southern Caribbean, as Washington...

Why This U.S. Expat in Costa Rica Chooses Local Over Headlines

In the weeks leading up to my trip to the US, I scanned several news sites both left-leaning and right-leaning to better inform myself...

Uncertainty Dominates Costa Rican Voters Ahead of 2026 Elections

A new poll from the University of Costa Rica's Center for Political Research and Studies (CIEP-UCR) paints a picture of widespread indecision among Costa...
spot_img
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica