Trump set to divert billions more to build wall

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump is expected to divert billions of dollars more to building the border wall that he repeatedly claimed would be paid for by Mexico.

While his 2021 budget proposals, to be unveiled this week, will request US$2 billion (RM8 billion) for the anti-immigration barrier, less than in previous years, the homeland security department could take billions more from the Pentagon, according to reports.

A “big, beautiful” wall was one of the centrepieces of Trump’s 2016 campaign, one which he repeatedly promised would be paid for by Mexico – which has flatly refused to do so.

Congress is responsible for government spending but the president’s priorities will be seen as politically significant ahead of his re-election bid in November.

As well as money for the border wall, he is expected to propose up to US$4.6 billion in spending cuts over the next 10 years, much of it from programmes like Medicaid, disability insurance and food stamps.

Government data seen by the Washington Post suggested the Trump administration was a long way from completing the 805km of new barriers the president had promised would be in place by 2021.

Most of what has been built is considered to be replacement fencing because building new sections of wall often requires the acquisition of private land.

Last year the president took US$2.5 billion from the military budget’s anti-drug programme for the wall.

This year that figure could be much higher, with the Washington Post claiming as much as US$7.2 billion could be diverted from the Pentagon help build the wall.

The controversial barrier has suffered a series of embarrassments, with videos showing people easily scaling the new sections and part of it being blown over in high winds last month. – The Independent