Republicans Furious as Biden Sells Unused Trump Border Wall for Millions

Republicans expressed outrage at President Joe Biden on Saturday following a report that the federal government is allegedly selling millions of dollars of unused parts of the U.S.-Mexico border wall.

GovPlanet, an online marketplace for surplus government materials, recently oversaw the sale of hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of square structural tubes produced by Nucor Tubular that were apparently intended for former President Donald Trump's border wall, a key promise of his 2016 presidential campaign.

Trump has touted the completion of more than 450 miles of the wall during his tenure as president, though most of that was replacing existing structures. Only about 80 miles of primary and secondary barriers were built in areas where there were previously no structures. Biden, who has said a border wall is not a serious immigration solution, ended its construction when taking office in January 2021.

Since late July, $497,705 worth of these materials have been sold, according to GovPlanet.

A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) spokesperson told Newsweek on Sunday morning that the materials are being disposed of "in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulation."

"USACE has already transferred approximately $154 million worth of the roughly $260 million of bollard panels and other materials in accordance with standard excess property disposition procedures. USACE stands ready to implement a decision regarding disposition of the remaining materials," the spokesperson wrote in a statement.

News of the alleged sales drew condemnation from Republicans, who have blamed the Biden administration's more humanitarian-focused immigration policies for an influx of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. The Biden administration, however, highlighted its investments in border patrol and other border enhancements in a fact sheet report in March. Experts also note that external economic and political factors play a significant role in migration patterns.

According to data from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, there have been 1,973,092 encounters at the U.S.-Mexico border so far in 2023. That number was 1,947,310 at the same point in 2022, 1,332,845 at the same point in 2021 and 350,400 at the same point in 2020.

Biden's Republican critics took to the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, to voice their frustrations.

"Instead of securing the border, President Biden is auctioning off taxpayer-funded wall materials for pennies on the dollar. He cannot avoid Congress' accountability and must use these parts for their intended purposes. BUILD the wall and FINISH it!" posted Iowa Senator Joni Ernst.

"Biden has no regard for taxpayer dollars — or how his open border is bankrupting communities across the country that are footing the bill for his failures," posted Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York.

Fox & Friends host Brian Kilmeade described the sale as sickening.

Meanwhile, congressional Republicans have sought to place limitations on what the Biden administration can do with unused border wall materials. In May, Senators Ernst, Ted Cruz of Texas and Roger Wicker of Mississippi announced the Finish It Act, which would require the federal government to either use the materials for wall construction or transfer them to state governments, according to a press release from Wicker's office.

An investigation that concluded in March that was conducted by Republicans on the Armed Services Committee found that the federal government is spending $47 million per year on storing border wall materials.

While Biden pledged to end construction of the border wall, his administration has approved construction to fill in gaps and levee improvement projects. Meanwhile, the president has not torn down any existing barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border.