Posted on 01/10/2019 5:40:16 AM PST by servo1969
Full Title: DOD IG REVEALS THE PENTAGON LET $27.7 BILLION ‘EXPIRE’ AS TRUMP SEEKS $5.7 BILLION IN BORDER WALL FUNDING
The Defense Department has relinquished over $27 billion to the U.S. Treasury since 2013 simply because it couldn't spend the money quick enough, according to a DOD Inspector General report released Tuesday.
The DOD was required to fork over the "expired funds" because the Pentagon failed to spend it "within the legal timeframes," according to the report.
The revelation comes as President Donald Trump is considering declaring a state of emergency that would allow him to bypass Congress and leverage unobligated military funds to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The partial shutdown of the federal government entered its 19th day on Wednesday as Trump remains steadfast in his demand for $5.7 billion in border wall funding from Congress. Democrats, in turn, say they won't negotiate with the president on the wall until the government reopens.
Legal analysts say Trump would have the authority to leverage unused DOD funds to construct a wall in the event he declares a national emergency.
"My instinct is to say that if he declares a national emergency and uses this pot of unappropriated money for the wall, he's on very solid legal ground," Harvard law professor Mark Tushnet told NBC News.
The Pentagon reported an "expired unobligated balance" of $27.7 billion in its most recent financial report, a figure that represents the amount of unused funds the Pentagon returned to the Department of the Treasury during the five-year period between fiscal years 2013 and 2018.
Funds from the federal government "expire" if they aren't obligated on a contract anywhere between one to three years after their date of appropriation, according to the Alternative Dispute Resolution Working Group.
The $27.7 billion the Pentagon returned to the Treasury between FYs 2013 and 2018 represents "approximately 1 percent of our overall budget," Pentagon spokesperson Chris Sherwood told The Daily Caller News Foundation. "It's not as big as it may seem."
A border wall along the U.S.-Mexico border could cost up to $21.6 billion, the Department of Homeland Security reported in 2017.
The Pentagon lost out on even more funds between FYs 2012 and 2017, when it failed to spend $33.6 billion on time, according to the DOD's financial report.
Despite the Pentagon's failure to fully commit its existing budgets on time, Trump has backed plans to increase the DOD's budget to $750 billion in FY 2020, an 8 percent hike from the $692 billion defense budget signed into law in December 2017, according to Task & Purpose.
The Wall is coming. That seems guaranteed to me. Nothing will stop it.
Trump is trying to do things the standard way -- request Congress allocate the funding. He gets the Wall, Pelosi and Schumer would get something in return. That's how deals work.
But Pelosi and Schumer won't make a deal. They don't want anything. Really?
Trump has access to the money, he can declare a state of emergency, the courts are not going to be able to stop his allocation of funds.
If Trump does that, he gets his Wall, Pelosi and Schumer get nothing, the shutdown can end, and Trump gets 100% of the credit, and the Democrats get nothing but bad publicity.
Who doesn't see this?
So why won't Pelosi and Schumer recognize the situation and try to get something out of it?
“But Pelosi and Schumer won’t make a deal. They don’t want anything. Really?”
What they “really want” is Trump’s head on a platter. Other than that, they don’t want a damned thing! Being blinded by hatred will produce that kind of response.
Pelosi or Schumer will not lift a finger to protect the American people. They need to find votes, to keep power, even if they are from illegal aliens.
With the IG report that $27.7 billion of Pentagon money has expired, President Trump needs to up the ante. He should announce TODAY that the price of The Wall has gone up. Instead of $5.7 billion, it's now going to be $10 billion.
"TODAY, I am declaring a state of emergency. I will be authorizing the use of DOD funds in the amount of $10 billion to build a wall along our Southern border. With the increase in funds, we're going to build the longest, tallest, finest wall known to mankind. I've been very reasonable in my request to ensure the safety of our country, but the Democrats, led by Chuck and Nancy, have thrown up their own wall, blocking my every effort. I can no longer sit idly by and watch the Democrats destroy this country. As I am not an unreasonable man, Chuck and Nancy have until 5PM today to offer a better plan. Either way, construction of The Wall begins tomorrow!
Good build the wall with the unused DOD funds but leave the govt. closed until you get the 5.7 billion for border security and then use that to start a deportation force. Get out the illegals, all 30 million of them. The dems will squeal to high heaven and we can laugh all the way to electoral juggernaut for generations to come.
I think that you know, better than many (not including FReepers), that on the D side, there IS no compromise..
Mattis was too busy writing his resignation letter to focus on the business at hand.
Just emailed the President and told him full funding for the wall now available, and told him to go for it. 8>)
From your keyboard to the big computer in the cloud above.
Illegal immigrants costs taxpayers money and raises the debt. Who will repay the debt? Our children and grandchildren. What is the plan?
What kind of BS headline is that! Makes it look like Trump’s DOD squandered the money!
Happened in 2013!
Apples and oranges.
Because they, most of the GOP, Mueller, Deep State operatives, moneybag billionaire donors to both parties, and the U.S. Chamber are all on the same team. And they are holding out to see if they can just impeach and remove Trump and be done with this entire immigration issue once and for all.
The picture of Pelosi’s home with a prominent wall is appearing on other threads.
There is one reason, and ONE reason only, for opposition to funding the wall. It is to deny President Trump a “win” of any kind.
Based on what is read here...
GO FOR IT MR PRESIDENT!
End the stalemate, but do it only AFTER the wall is up and finished. Take credit, blame S and P (leaving them to take the blame). WTP stand with you. We WANT that DAM WALL!
BS is right. Idiot reporting. Expired funds can still be obligated on existing contracts for up to five years. They simply reside in an expired funds account. Now, once funds "cancel" then they go back to the treasury. Cancelled funds are bad. Expired funds are expected.
Most people don't understand how basic government works let alone the financial structure or terminology.
Unspent appropriations are not squandered. (Not infrequently, furious end-year spending does yeild waste.)
Funds to not rollover into a suspense account - they expire from the budget and actually remain in the treasury.
There is no pot of money waiting to be spent.
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