Twardlow Loc: Arkansas

News

Administration Admits Border Deployment Was a $200 Million Election Stunt

The military is leaving the southern border, and the caravan hasn’t even arrived yet.

November 19, 2018
By Bess levin

Several weeks before the midterm elections, worried that Democrats would sweep the House and start digging into his finances, Donald Trump started telling a series of bald-faced lies in an attempt to get people to vote Republican. One of them was that his trade war with China was just about to wrap up. Another was that Americans could kiss their “beautiful” 401(k)s goodbye if Dems flipped just one chamber of the Congress. The most elaborate by far, though, was about a migrant caravan made up of asylum-seekers approaching the U.S.-Mexico border. First, the president claimed, with no evidence, that “criminals and unknown Middle Easterners are mixed” in with the group. Then he spread the quite obviously false rumor that liberal hedge-fund manager George Soros has been paying these people. Later, he declared that the caravan comprised mostly of women and children fleeing violence and poverty is “actually mostly men” who were “pushing the few kids right up to the front” when the cameras are out, and that a group of people planning to surrender at the border and ask for amnesty through the proper legal channels is no different than a hostile invasion from a foreign country. (“You look at that, it almost looks like an invasion. . . . I think it could be considered an invasion of our country. We can’t have it.)

But evidently, Trump still felt he had to do more to show voters that their lives were in grave danger, i.e. to really drive home the point that he and his fellow Republicans were the only thing standing between them and Democrats enacting a new policy wherein for every migrant allowed to stay in the country, three U.S. citizens have to go live in Honduras. So he pulled out the big guns: he deployed some 6,000 active-duty troops to the southern border, which from the get-go was a patently obvious political stunt given that (a) the military couldn’t even make arrests while they were there, and (b) the caravan was hundreds of miles away (and traveling on foot). Obviously, the whole thing failed to stop Democrats from flipping the House. But one would think that even this administration would understand it should see the stunt through a little while longer, so that it wasn’t, like, completely crystal clear that the president of the United States had turned members of the military into pawns in one of his cheap tricks. But: surprise!

The Pentagon is set to begin a drawdown of its 5,800 troops from the Southwest border as early as this week, the Army commander overseeing the mission told POLITICO today—even as the approaching caravan of refugees prompted U.S. customs officers to close a port of entry near Tijuana, Mexico.

All the active-duty troops that President Donald Trump ordered sent to the border before the midterm elections should be home by Christmas, said Army Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Buchanan, who is running the mission from San Antonio, Texas.

In other words, the president spent millions in taxpayer dollars on a stunt that failed completely. Despite the withdrawal, Trump insisted on Sunday that the U.S. is basically under siege, tweeting “the U.S. is ill-prepared for this invasion, and will not stand for it,” saying that the caravan “causing crime and big problems in Mexico” and directing the migrants, who we’re sure are checking social media right now to “Go home.

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/11/trump-troops-border-caravan-stunt

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

About as much as his golf games.
TRAMPO is ALL about OPM!!!
NEVER spent a dime of his own, if he even has a dime!!!? LoL
SS

letmedance Loc: Walnut, Ca.

Recheck your sources please.

Twardlow Loc: Arkansas

Trump’s Border Stunt Is a Profound Betrayal of Our Military


The president used America’s military not against any real threat but as toy soldiers, with the intent of manipulating a domestic midterm election.

By Gordon Adams, Lawrence B. Wilkerson and Isaiah Wilson III

Mr. Adams is professor emeritus at American University’s School of International Service. Mr. Wilkerson, a retired Army colonel, is a professor of government and public policy at the College of William & Mary. Mr. Wilson, a retired Army colonel, is a senior lecturer with Yale University’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs.

Nov. 19, 2018

A week before the midterm elections, the president of the United States announced he would deploy up to 15,000 active duty military troops to the United States-Mexico border to confront a menacing caravan of refugees and asylum seekers. The soldiers would use force, if necessary, to prevent such an “invasion” of the United States.

Mr. Trump’s announcement and the deployment that followed (of roughly 5,900) were probably perfectly legal. But we are a bipartisan threesome with decades of experience in and with the Pentagon, and to us, this act creates a dangerous precedent. We fear this was lost in the public hand-wringing over the decision, so let us be clear: The president used America’s military forces not against any real threat but as toy soldiers, with the intent of manipulating a domestic midterm election outcome, an unprecedented use of the military by a sitting president.

The public debate focused on secondary issues. Is there truly a threat to American security from an unarmed group of tired refugees and asylum seekers on foot and a thousand miles from the border? Even the Army’s internal assessment did not find this a very credible threat.

Can the president deny in advance what could be legitimate claims for asylum, without scrutiny? Most likely, this violates treaty commitments the United States made as part of its agreement to refugee conventions in 1967, which it has followed for decades.

The deployment is not, in the context of the defense budget, an albatross. We are already paying the troops, wherever they’re deployed, and the actual incremental costs of sending them to the border might be $100 million to $200 million, a tiny fraction of the $716 billion defense budget.

Still, we can think of many ways to put the funds to better use, like improving readiness.

It’s also not unusual for a president to ask the troops to deploy to the border in support of border security operations. Presidents of both parties have sent troops to the border, to provide support functions like engineering, logistics, transportation and surveillance.
But those deployments have been generally in smaller numbers, usually the National Guard, and never to stop a caravan of refugees and asylum seekers.

So, generously, some aspects of the deployment are at least defensible. But one is not, and that aspect is the domestic political use — or rather, misuse — of the military.

James Mattis, the secretary of defense, asserted that the Defense Department does not “do stunts.” But this was a blatant political stunt. The president crossed a line — the military is supposed to stay out of domestic politics. As many senior military retirees have argued, the forces are not and should not be a political instrument. They are not toy soldiers to be moved around by political leaders but a neutral institution, politically speaking.

Oh, some might say, presidents use troops politically all the time. And so they do, generally in the context of foreign policy decisions that have political implications. Think Lyndon Johnson sending more troops to Vietnam, fearing he would be attacked for “cutting and running” from that conflict. Or George W. Bush crowing about “mission accomplished” when Saddam Hussein was toppled. Those are not the same thing as using troops at home for electoral advantage.

Electoral gain, not security, is this president’s goal. Two of us served in the military for many years; while all troops must obey the legal and ethical orders of civilian leaders, they need to have faith that those civilian leaders are using them for legitimate national security purposes. But the border deployment put the military right in the middle of the midterm elections, creating a nonexistent crisis to stimulate votes for one party.

When partisan actions like this occur, they violate civil-military traditions and erode that faith, with potentially long-term damage to the morale of the force and our democratic practice — all for electoral gain.

The deployment is a stunt, a dangerous one, and in our view, a misuse of the military that should have led Mr. Mattis to consider resigning, instead of acceding to this blatant politicization of America’s military.


Gordon Adams is professor emeritus at the School of International Service, American University, and was the senior White House budget official for national security from 1993 to 1997. Lawrence B. Wilkerson, a retired Army colonel and a professor of government and public policy at the College of William & Mary, was chief of staff to the secretary of state from 2002 to 2005. Isaiah Wilson III, a senior lecturer with Yale University’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, is a military veteran who was an active-duty Army officer for 28 years of service that included multiple tours of combat service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/19/opinion/president-trump-border-military-troops.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage

EyeSawYou

LOL Biggest BS Liberal lies, The Trump Admin did NOT admit that the Border Deployment Was a $200 Million Election Stunt, you Libs are making sh*t up again. Is it really necessary to blatantly lie about what was said or implied? Another one of your links lies is that the Caravan has not even arrived at the U.S border yet and the U.S Troops are already leaving, both are blatant LIES! The Caravan has already arrived at the U.S border about a week ago and Troops are scheduled to start leaving next week. You post such BS lies it's not even funny anymore, your sources suck and you wonder why President Trump calls them "Fake News". lol



First Migrant Caravan Groups Begin Arriving at U.S. Border in Tijuana

http://time.com/5454711/migrant-caravan-arrives-border-tijuana/

silver Loc: Santa Monica Ca.

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

Perhaps the troops would have been better sent to the Canadian Border. We Trumpites need to win a war for the 2020 election.

Canada offers the capture of great resources one example being Pot farms. They speak our language, so the like the Russian justification for the invasion of Ukraine, that and Canada being the land between the lower 48 and Alaska, well, we have great excuses for invasion. We have already declared Canada to be a threat to national security.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

While troop withdrawals have yet to begin, you may want to agree upon which caravans are being referenced before stating a general location of activity. That is unless of course some believe Brownsville is right down the road from Tijuana or Mexico City and there's a singular caravan.

Twardlow Loc: Arkansas

Your ignorance and immaturity are showing.

Sources are beyond reproach.

letmedance Loc: Walnut, Ca.

If that is your source you should think about finding a more reliable one.

Twardlow Loc: Arkansas

Unclear what source you refer to.

Do you not trust Colin Powell’s Chief of Staff?

Colin could have been Vice-P, maybe more, if he hadn’t lied to the UN. But I respect him, and I respect his Chief, the Colonel.

A week ago the Caravan numbered 3,500-4,000, and they were 800 miles away, walking.

Do you think they were walking 100 miles a day?

Now we’re to be “invaded’ by widows and toddlers??

It was a cheap stunt, even the Secretary of Defense said that!

And now that the election’s over, trump doesn’t even mention the “invasion.”

letmedance Loc: Walnut, Ca.

Tom lets just quit this bit of argument. You obviosuly not aware that they did not walk to Tijuana and several thousand are in line waiting for their interview. If you cannot follow the actual news you have no business posting opinion.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

Really? Why were troops sent to McAllen, Texas area and Az, etc. I mentioned earlier that there were multiple caravan factions and they're not all coming through Tijuana.

letmedance Loc: Walnut, Ca.

Tom seems to think that the troops were not necessary, they have however forced the Immigrants to use the proper entry points to the country. He slso seems to think that the caravan is still on its way and thousands have not arrived in TJ and Mexicali.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

It is true that there are more on the way to the border. Reports vary, but again, there are numerous groups heading for multiple areas. At least that's what I'm seeing. It's about 1500 miles from Tijuana to Brownsville with numerous crossings and troop disbursements.