WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Committee, released the following statement after being notified of the Department of Defense’s (DoD) intent to divert $100 million in military construction funds to the southern border.

“Despite the Trump Administration’s repeated claims that the southern border is secure, DoD has announced it plans to take another $100 million away from military construction projects and instead use them at the southern border. 

“Military construction funds are crucial to the training, readiness, and safety of our service members and military installations. Taking money from those projects threatens our ability to ensure we are ready and able to defend against a variety of hostilities and from China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and various global extremists.

“We’re still paying the price for President Trump’s 2019 diversion of military construction funds, which triggered higher construction costs and delayed completion of important facilities needed to ensure military readiness and deterrence.

“Border security is a serious issue that we should continue to address, but not at the expense of DoD’s core mission. DHS has the responsibility and ample funding for securing the border. There is no need to siphon away $100 million from DoD on top of the recent passage of over $170 billion in additional funding for the Department of Homeland Security and DoD included in the reconciliation bill, the $200 million already taken from the military construction budget for the border earlier this year, the $1 billion in facilities maintenance funds diverted from the Army in DoD’s Fiscal Year 2025 continuing resolution, and the shifting of hundreds of millions of dollars from core function DoD accounts to DHS detention activities. 

“At this point, DHS has plenty of money to do its job without dipping into DoD accounts. I urge DoD and the President to reconsider this decision in the interests of our troops and national defense.”