U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has commended a reported agreement between auction house GovPlanet and the Trump administration to return border wall construction materials to the federal government.
In a statement following news of the agreement, Chairman Wicker said:
“I was proud to lead the passage of the FINISH IT Act in the FY24 NDAA, which exposed the Biden administration’s decision to spend tens of millions of dollars to store southwest border wall construction materials, rather than using those materials to protect our country from drug and human traffickers, illegal immigration, and other national security threats.
The Biden administration was so hostile to border security that it later sold many of these taxpayer-purchased border wall construction materials to an auction house, which then liquidated the construction materials for pennies on the dollar. The FINISH IT Act halted these sales to ensure the remaining construction materials are available for their intended purpose—to secure the border and protect our country.
The results of President Biden’s failed open-border policies are evident: an unprecedented surge in illegal immigration, a severe drug-trafficking crisis, and tens of thousands of Americans dying annually from overdoses of fentanyl that originated in Mexico. Thanks to President Trump’s strong focus on ending illegal immigration, countering the Mexican cartels, and securing the border, these negative trends have been reversed. Rather than associate with any aspect of President Biden’s weak border policies, GovPlanet has chosen to put the American people first and return border wall construction materials so they can finally be used to secure our border.”
Senator Wicker highlighted his role in passing legislation known as the FINISH IT Act within the fiscal year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The law brought attention to federal spending on storing unused southwestern border wall supplies after a shift in policy by President Biden’s administration. According to Wicker’s remarks, these changes led not only to storage costs but also eventual sales at reduced prices through auction.
Wicker further argued that policies under President Biden contributed to increased illegal crossings at U.S. borders as well as challenges related to drug trafficking and opioid-related deaths. He contrasted this with measures taken during former President Trump’s tenure aimed at stricter immigration enforcement.
GovPlanet reportedly agreed not only to halt ongoing liquidation but also return unsold materials so they could be deployed for their original purpose along U.S. borders.
