Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and U.S. Representative Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY-7) today condemned President Trump for his decision to seize $400 million in military construction funding from Puerto Rico to build a wall at the Southern Border. Last week, the Pentagon announced that it would redirect over $3 billion in military construction funding for 127 projects across the country. Among the affected projects are the construction of a National Guard Readiness Center, a Power Substation, and a Maneuver Area Training Equipment Site in Puerto Rico. The members noted that under this plan, Puerto Rico would see the largest reallocation of funding as compared to the rest of the country. This comes as the Island still struggles to recover from the devastation of Hurricane Maria, an economic downturn, and an ongoing fiscal crisis. Gillibrand and Velázquez called on the President to immediately reverse his decision and ensure that no military construction funding will be allocated for the wall.
“Your indifference to the continued deterioration in Puerto Rico fails to take into account the continuing sacrifices of the thousands of Puerto Ricans serving in our military. These service members are being asked to deploy and fight for their country with the burden of worrying about the wellbeing of their families at home,” Gillibrand and Velázquez wrote. “We ask that your reverse course and undo your actions for all of the military projects already approved by Congress, and ensure that no military construction funding will be allocated for your wall. Americans everywhere deserve a Commander-in-Chief who puts the needs of the country above political gain.”
The full text of Gillibrand and Velázquez’s letter may be found here and below:
September 12, 2019
The President
The White House
16 Pennsylvania Ave, N.W.
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President,
We write today to express grave concern at your Administration’s decision to divert Congressionally appropriated funds to build an unnecessary wall along the United States-Mexico border. Reports outline 127 military construction projects affected by your order—effectively syphoning over $3 billion away from critical development projects previously agreed to by both the Department of Defense and Congress for what is essentially a unilateral and politically motivated idea.
This unneeded reallocation of resources has harmed a number of military installations, including the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, NY. In addition, this reallocation of resources will have an exaggerated impact where such installations are located in America’s underserved and economically depressed communities. This is readily apparent in Puerto Rico, which has seen the largest reallocation of resources as compared to the rest of the country, in addition to their previous economic downturn and fiscal crisis that was exacerbated by a natural disaster that caused billions of dollars in damage and the deaths of thousands of our own citizens.
Your administration has repeatedly failed to live up to the promise of assisting these American citizens who are rebuilding their communities and their lives, despite the billions of dollars in disaster aid funding Congress appropriated to your Department of Housing and Urban Development to address specific recovery needs post-Hurricane Maria.
Now, your actions will delay or eliminate $400 million in construction projects in these same communities in Puerto Rico, which continue to feel the effects of Hurricane Maria nearly two years later. The affected projects include a National Guard Readiness Center, a Power Substation, and a Maneuver Area Training Equipment Site. Not only will delay or potential elimination of these projects harm military readiness, it will eliminate hundreds of millions of dollars in economic activity for these communities, further denying the island of critical jobs in the short term and important economic investments for the future. Your indifference to the continued deterioration in Puerto Rico fails to take into account the continuing sacrifices of the thousands of Puerto Ricans serving in our military, including the paratrooper killed the day after these cuts were announced. These service members are being asked to deploy and fight for their country with the burden of worrying about the wellbeing of their families at home.
We ask that you reverse course and undo your actions for all of the military projects already approved by Congress, and ensure that no military construction funding will be allocated for your wall. Americans everywhere deserve a Commander-in-Chief who puts the needs of the country above political gain.