The White House sent Congress a $4.5 billion emergency spending request citing the unfolding migrant situation at the U.S.-Mexico border, the Washington Post reported Wednesday.
The request includes $3.3 billion for humanitarian aid and $1.1 billion for border operations, representing a sharp increase in the administration’s efforts.
“The situation becomes more dire each day,” White House Acting Budget Director Russ Vought wrote in the request. “The migration flow and the resulting humanitarian crisis [are] rapidly overwhelming the ability of the Federal Government to respond.”
The emergency funding, if approved, would be in addition to the more than $8 billion President Trump proposed in his 2020 budget request for border operations, as well as some $6 billion in funding he sought as he declared a national emergency in February.
The request also includes $377 million for the Pentagon and National Guard for their border operations. Democrats responded with skepticism to the emergency request, which arrived as Congress is engaged in a dispute over a disaster aid bill that includes funding for DOD installation recovery.
House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) said she would review the new emergency funding request but criticized it as an attempt to expand border operations and detentions.
Photo by Robert Bushell