Senior Armed Services Republican raises constitutional concerns about Pentagon moving money unilaterally
Top members of the House Armed Services Committee assailed Pentagon leaders Wednesday, warning that the administration’s reprogramming of $3.8 billion of Defense Department money for a border wall could damage its relationship with Congress.
Echoing a letter they sent to Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper on Tuesday, Reps. Adam Smith, D-Wash., and Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, said the reprogramming request could lead to Congress stripping the Pentagon of its ability to move funds around.
“This basically says that Congress doesn’t spend the money, the president does,” said Smith, the panel’s chairman, calling the shift of funds to pay for a southern border wall “very, very damaging” to the Pentagon. “The message it sends is that the Pentagon’s got plenty of money.” Continue reading