NOT GOOD

Marine Corps Commandant Warns Pentagon: Deploying Troops at Border Poses ‘Unacceptable Risk’

Marine Corps Gen. Robert Neller criticized the deployment of troops, saying it has delayed base repairs and stopped training exercises.

In two internal memos, the Marines’ top general reportedly warned the Pentagon that military deployments along the U.S.-Mexican border pose an “unacceptable risk to Marine Corps combat readiness and solvency.” According to the Los Angeles Times, Marine Corps Gen. Robert Neller wrote in the March memos that the “unplanned/unbudgeted” deployment that President Trump ordered last year required him to reduce or cancel military training in five countries and delay repairs at bases. Neller reportedly wrote to Navy Secretary Richard Spencer and Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan that the deployment and “funding transfers” were detracting from making repairs at hurricane-damaged bases and housing in North Carolina and Georgia.

He also wrote that the Marines would not be participating in “planned training exercises in Indonesia, Scotland and Mongolia” and would have to reduce its participation in Australia and South Korea. The White House and Defense Department have claimed Trump’s deployment of 6,000 troops along the southern border and his emergency declaration have not negatively affected the armed forces. The Pentagon reportedly declined the newspaper’s request for comment.