COURT BACKS PRESIDENT ON MILITARY MONEY FOR BORDER WALL

A federal appeals cour t r uled Friday that a lower cour t was wrong to bar the Trump administration f rom taking $3.6 billion from militar y construction projects for a border wall.

A panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Cour t of Appeals said that El Paso County and the nonprof it Border Network for Human Rights did not have the standing to challenge President Donald Trump’s redirecting funds from more than 100 militar y constr uction projects, including a $20 million road project at a base located in the city.

The appeals cour t found that neither the county nor the Border Network proved it was directly harmed by Trump’s move. The cour t reversed a December 2019 ruling by U.S. District Judge David Briones.

Trump took roughly $6 billion from militar y funds under a national emergency he declared in early 2019 af ter Cong ress refused to fully fund his demands f or wall f unding, leading to the longest government shutdown in histor y.

President-elect Joe Biden has pledged to end that national emergency, though the Trump administration has locked in constr uction contracts with the f unding and already built many new stretches of wall across the southwest border.

The U.S. Supreme Cour t has already ag reed to review a different ruling on the use of militar y construction funds.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Cour t of Appeals previously ag reed with a coalition of border states and environmental g roups that contended the transfer of money was unlawful and that building the wall would pose environmental threats.

In its order Friday, the 5th Circuit said it disag reed with the 9th Circuit’s r uling and would “decline to follow it.”