As one of his first acts as president, Joe Biden stopped border wall construction and froze the billions Congress allocated for that purpose. Now, according to Politico, Biden is “under investigation” by the Government Accountability Office to “determine whether the new president broke the law by freezing the money in violation of budget rules designed to keep Congress in control of the cash flow.”
Biden under investigation for border wall cash freeze https://t.co/PRDDxXqTIS
— POLITICO Pro (@POLITICOPro) March 23, 2021
In a letter to the GAO last week, dozens of Republican senators said that “operational control of our southern border was compromised and a humanitarian and national security crisis has ensued,” since Biden halted construction and froze the border wall funds. The senators called the actions a “blatant violation of federal law and infringe on Congress’s constitutional power of the purse,” arguing they violate the Impoundment Control Act.
House Republicans also wrote to the GAO as “co-requesters” of the Senate GOP’s letter, asking for an investigation and the office’s legal opinion on the matter.
While Politico notes that an “unfavorable ruling … would bolster Republicans in branding Biden as a rule-breaker as they blame him for the surge of migrants and unaccompanied children at the southern border,” it’s unlikely the president faces “any formal punishment.”
Despite Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas insisting the border is “secure,” Border Patrol cannot keep up with the influx of migrants. More than 11,000 unaccompanied minors were detained in just the first few weeks of March, the Dallas Convention Center is about to be turned into temporary housing for illegal immigrant teenagers, there are reportedly “inhumane conditions” at overcrowded detention facilities, and the agency is releasing asylum seekers without even scheduling a court date. It’s no wonder a majority of voters now want the border wall finished.
