$450 MILLION INTENDED TO BUILD SCHOOLS ON MILITARY BASES DIVERTED TO BUILD TRUMP'S BORDER WALL
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
$450 MILLION INTENDED TO BUILD SCHOOLS ON MILITARY BASES DIVERTED TO BUILD TRUMP'S BORDER WALL
New schools, dining halls, a new fire station and a rescue station are just some of the projects that military members and their families will not see on bases around the world as money is reappropriated from them to fund construction of the United States' border wall.
On Tuesday, Defense Secretary Mark Esper sent a letter to military officials which outlined the items scrapped by the Department of Defense in order to pay the estimated $3.6 billion needed for 11 construction projects that "are necessary to support the use of the armed forces in connection with the national emergency" declared by President Donald Trump in February.
In the letter, Esper approved the funding requested by Trump to curb illegal immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border and included a list of 127 projects lined up at U.S. military bases around the world that will be postponed as the money is rerouted to erect 175 miles of fencing at 11 different points along the border.
"These projects will deter illegal entry, increase the vanishing time of those illegally crossing the border, and channel migrants to ports of entry. They will reduce the demand for DoD personnel and assets at the locations where the barriers are constructed and allow the redeployment of DoD personnel and assets to other high-traffic areas on the border without barriers. In short, these barriers will allow DoD to provide support to DHS more efficiently and effectively," Esper wrote.
Among those projects being postponed are several new schools for children who reside on military bases in the U.S. and abroad.
The U.S./ Mexican border wall is seen on February 10, 2019 in El Paso, Texas. JOE RAEDLE/GETTY
One such school, Fort Campbell Middle School, previously garnered attention in February or being under the gun of the budget reappropriation.
"It's better for the middle school kids in Kentucky to have a secure border," South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham told CBS' Face the Nation in February when the Department of Defense revealed a list of projects that could be postponed or canceled to obtain the billions requested by Trump. "We'll get them the school they need, but right now we've got a national emergency on our hands. Opioid addiction is going through the roof in this country ... because we can't control the flood of drugs into this country and all of it's coming across the border."
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, (R-KY), dismissed the questions about the school in February as "hypothetical" as then-Acting Defense Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan had not decided what specific funds would be shifted from the Pentagon to help pay for the president's border wall.
On Thursday, McConnell's spokesman, David Popp told Newsweek that the senator spoke to Esper about Fort Campbell Middle School and "is committed to protecting funding" for the project.
"Regrettably, Democrat opposition to secure our borders has now led to the potential delay of certain Military Construction projects. We would not be in this situation if Democrats were serious about protecting our homeland and worked with us to provide the funding needed to secure our borders during our appropriations process," Popp added.
In a statement posted to his website, Tennessee Congressman Jim Cooper blasted the decision saying in part: "President Trump has stooped to new lows in trying to illegally fund more border wall. His latest funding grab includes raiding $63 million that was slated to build a much-needed middle school at Fort Campbell. Our troops and their families deserve better. Democrats are united in our opposition; it is up to House and Senate Republicans to stand up to the President and his unprecedented overreach."
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) also panned the move, calling it "a slap in the face" in a post to Twitter on Wednesday evening.
"It is a slap in the face to the members of the Armed Forces who serve our country that @realDonaldTrump is willing to cannibalize already allocated military funding to boost his own ego, and for a wall he promised Mexico would pay to build."
In South Carolina, Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army base home to airborne and special forces soldiers, saw $32 million moved to the border wall, money which had been set aside to build a replacement for Butner Elementary School. However, that project had already been put on hold prior to Tuesday's announcement.
Additional replacement buildings for schools on bases in Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Japan and Germany were also postponed. Altogether, the funds intended for the nine schools will supply almost $450 million for the border wall.
Other projects that will be postponed include a Crash Fire Rescue station at Fort Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida ($17 million); a replacement fire station at Laurel Bay in Fort Bliss, Texas ($10.750 million); dining facilities at bases in Texas and Puerto Rico (combined $31.5 million) and a Command and Control facility at Camp Tango in Korea ($17.5 million)
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The "Military Kids" haven't been going to school before this ?
If they have actually been going to school all this time, what happened to the schools they were originally going to ?
Not a damned thing. Just another "but Trumpism"
I figured as much !
I'm sure that you made that comment based on thorough research. Since you've declared this a non-issue, care to share your vast knowledge about the middle school at Fort Campbell?
Sure. Here is what I know. They are claiming over crowding and need to build more. There are actually some classes with 30, count 'em 30 students in them. When I was going to elementary AND, what would be classified today as middle school, there was always between 26 and 32 students in each of my classes. What has changed? Loss of teacher control over unruly, ill raised students.
Is what has been noted above about Existing Schools.... Not True ?
Please "Share" your "Vast Knowledge". We always like "Learning improved thingies" here.
We have a runner......................
So you missed that they closed one of the middle schools. Got ya.
BTW, what has changed is that it has now been documented that class size effects the quality of education.
I find it funny that ALL of the Republican Senators and Congressmen from Kentucky, including Moscow Mitch, had a fit about the cut and insisted that it would be refunded in 2021. It now looks like that isn't going to happen and even if it does, there's nothing stopping Trump from stealing THAT funding too. Hell Graham said that it was more important that those middle schoolers to have a 'secure border' than to have a school.
He was asked to share his knowledge/experience. I believe he gave a good answer.
Weird !
Back in my days of Schooling, we had a min. of 38 in a class, and we were "Required" to hold a certain grade average, or our parents were called for a meeting with the teacher AND the Principal of the school.
No, I didn't give the answer you wanted............period.
It isn't just this school either. More schools, fire stations and other things. Nice priorities there.
The Town/City doesn't have "Fire Stations" up and running ?
"Additional replacement buildings for schools on bases in Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Japan and Germany were also postponed."
There aren't "Fire Stations" and "Schools" available for use in those places either ?
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Jim,
You are wrong about that. I taught for over 20 years in a tough inner city school and we had control of our classes. The same problem exists today as it did when we were going to school. When you have a large heterogeneous population in a class, students get left behind. You teach to the middle and not the upper or lower ends of the class. Homogenous grouping might help that, but most schools don't do that since it is viewed as discriminatory and that is understandable. Everyone knows who the "dumb" kids are and it makes their lives horrible.
They did that in my high school. Nobody had the guts to tell the big ol' boys in the lower level they were dumb
The big ones always survive. It's the smaller ones that suffer.
Well, its not just schools and fire stations.
And that is basically what happened when I was in school. The classes were based on student performance and assigned to teachers who could improve their lot in life including the top and the bottom achievers. The lesser the achievers academic standing, slightly fewer students in the class and the more experienced and capable the teacher to deal with it and level the playing field. And yes, there was some snickering at who everyone knew may have needed more "coaching". And speaking of coaching, they were also the ones who excelled in other areas and especially sports.
Trump will keep shuffling money toward the wall unless Congress adds spending bill language that prohibits him from doing so , Roybal-Allard said.
Congress has so far failed to attach any prohibitive language since Trump declared a national emergency last February, successfully diverting $6.7 billion from military construction and other accounts for a southern barrier.
Congressional folks that don't like it, are just giving "Lip Service" pandering to the media. They should either "Put Up" or "Shut Up" !
Maybe if Mr. "I won't have time to play golf." didn't as much, the millions spent could have gone to the wall. But I guess taking education away from children is okay with him as long as he gets his useless wall.
Yep, in 2017 the Secret Service burned through $60 million in ADDITIONAL funding and had to come back for more. This year, Trump will blow past what the Obama's spent in 8 but hey, IOKIYAR.
They're just military kids, Paula....they don't need no education since they're gonna follow in Mother and Daddy's footsteps anway!
Do I really need a sarcasm tag?
I totally agree with your Trout. And while this administration can give lip service to the military, they certainly don't do much else.
And for the record, I am a navy brat.
My kids are Air Force brats. One of them actually follow in Mother and Daddy's footsteps. But he's done well for himself. I'm very proud of him
You should be! That is wonderful news. It's a big deal to bet into the Air Force!
I am half civilian on my mother's side. My father was a marine.
My kids are full blooded Air Force, I guess, since I wore the blue when I was pregnant with both of them
We have to take money from children because the democrats won't play nice with us.
We don't want to be mean but we have to because democrats won't play with us.
Democrats are rat bastards because they are making us take money from children.
$450 MILLION ? In Military Contractor Value that's half a dozen one room schoolhouses. Of coarse they'll go over budget and require additional funding.
I was a building inspector over 20 years ago and worked on some military housing playgrounds they were putting in and the Army Core of engineers requirement for the curb that encircled the playground was double continuous linear rebar reinforced 4000 psi concrete. For a playground. I figured they wanted to make sure tanks could drive over the playground without damaging it if they had to, but all 70 of the playgrounds I inspected were way over engineered and cost at least 20 times more because of it. And the fact that they had to have them inspected by myself and three Army Core Engineers who would follow me around during each inspection and testing was also serious overkill for a few dozen playgrounds.
Then there is terrible waste. That should be more like 450 classrooms for that price.
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