Sen. Lindsey Graham Says Kentucky Kids Need A 'Secure Border' Before A School
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Sunday defended the possibility of taking money away from building a middle school in Kentucky in order to erect President Donald Trump’s border wall, saying children need a “secure border” before a school.
Graham was grilled on CBS’ “Face the Nation” about money Trump will likely divert to build the wall in the wake of the president’s declaration of a national emergency after he failed to get the funds from Congress.
Host Margaret Brennan noted that some $3.6 billion of diverted funds could come from “military construction efforts, including construction of a middle school in Kentucky, housing for military families, improvements for bases.” She asked Graham: “Aren’t you concerned some of these projects ... are now going to possibly be cut out?”
Graham responded that “it’s better for the middle school kids in Kentucky to have a secure border.” He promised the kids would eventually get their school, but added, “Right now we’ve got a national emergency.”
Trump's emergency declaration for border wall funds could cut money for projects like a Kentucky middle school.
Graham: "It's better for the middle school kids in Kentucky to have a secure border. We'll get them the school they need, but right now we've got a national emergency" pic.twitter.com/Vty1rbx979— CBS News (@CBSNews) February 17, 2019
Statistics from Trump’s own Department of Homeland Security reveal that illegal border crossings are a fraction of what they were 19 years ago. Also, nearly 90 percent of illegal drugs cross the border at ports of entry, so a wall would not impact that traffic.
Trump conceded when he announced his declaration of a national emergency on Friday that he really “didn’t need to do this” now, but he wanted to build the wall “faster.”
The action is already being challenged in the courts.
Twitter had lots of pushback. Here’s a taste:
Yeah, the emergency is so bad, all the way in Kentucky, that the president decided he should go golfing yesterday and today and watch SNL so he could rage-tweet about it.
— Daniel Harder (@NewsOfMideast) February 17, 2019
I thought that guy was my senator. When did he take a job as #Trumpsplainer? #PhoneHomeLindsey
— Free Thinker (@Voters4Kasich) February 17, 2019
How lame is @LindseyGrahamSC? If this was such an emergency, why did the @GOP not address it last year (or before)? You had total government control the last 2 years! Come on man, I’ll wait!
— flapjaxx (@flapjackxs) February 17, 2019
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.