The Marine Corps’s commandant says President Trump’s decision to deploy active-duty troops to the border and plans to siphon funds from military construction toward his border wall are sapping the corps’ “combat readiness and solvency.”
Gen. Robert Neller sounded an alarm in memos obtained by The Los Angeles Times, which reported the Marines have canceled or cut training in at least five countries and delayed repairs because of the border situation.
The general said there are other challenges, too, including repairs to facilities damaged by hurricanes.
But it was the border focus that Democrats highlighted, as they seek to rally lawmakers to overturn a presidential veto and end Mr. Trump’s border wall emergency.
“If the president won’t listen to the American people or Congress, then listen to the commandant of the Marine Corps,” said Sen. Richard Durbin, the second-ranking Democrat in the Senate. “When will the president wake up and put the U.S. military over his campaign promises?”
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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