New Report from Senator Warren’s Office Reveals Trump Administration Siphoned At Least $2 Billion from Military Budget for Immigration Enforcement
Pentagon’s requested budget for 2026 indicates the Defense Department plans to spend at least $5 billion more for southern border operations alone
Warren: “It’s an insult to our service members that Pete Hegseth and Kristi Noem are using the defense budget as a slush fund for political stunts. Stripping military resources to promote a wasteful political agenda doesn’t make our military stronger or Americans safer.”
Cover Letter to the Pentagon (PDF) | Text of Report (PDF)
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Representative John Garamendi (D-Calif.) released a new report detailing the Trump administration’s diversion of funds and resources from the Department of Defense (DoD) to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for immigration enforcement, and its impact on readiness and morale.
Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), along with Representatives Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) and Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) co-authored the report.
Under a second Trump administration, the U.S. military has become heavily involved in immigration enforcement. Senator Warren’s new report, the first detailed review of the Pentagon’s spending on immigration, found that DoD has committed at least $2 billion to support immigration enforcement through mobilizing and deploying troops to American cities and the Southern border, deporting and transporting immigrants on military aircrafts, detaining individuals on U.S. military installations, and more.
“It’s an insult to our service members that Pete Hegseth and Kristi Noem are using the defense budget as a slush fund for political stunts. Stripping military resources to promote a wasteful political agenda doesn’t make our military stronger or Americans safer,” said Senator Warren. “Congress needs to step in and hold the Trump Administration accountable for mishandling billions of taxpayer dollars.”
“When President Trump recklessly diverts our military to support immigration enforcement, our armed forces pay the price. As this report shows, these disruptions come at a significant cost, in both dollars and readiness,” said Representative Garamendi.
Despite an unprecedented $170 billion budget allocated to DHS, it’s unclear how much DoD has received in reimbursement for any of its spending on immigration enforcement. Meanwhile, the military is funding these efforts in support of DHS with money allocated for other DoD projects including updates to barracks, maintenance hangers, and military construction projects in the Pacific. Concerningly, the Pentagon has requested an additional $5 billion for further immigration support in its budget request for 2026.
“Diverting the military from its existing missions and thrusting it into immigration enforcement does not make Americans safer. This multi-billion-dollar political stunt is an overt waste of taxpayer resources and undermines national security, military readiness, and resources for our servicemembers,” said the members.
The members’ report found that, in 2025, the Pentagon has committed:
- At least $1.3 billion for the deployment of troops and resources to the border;
- At least $258 million to support Trump’s orders to deploy troops to Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland, and Memphis, along with plans to reassign 600 Judge Advocates (JAGs) as immigration judges;
- At least $420.9 million for detaining immigrants at domestic military installations and overseas bases like Guantánamo and Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti; and
- At least $40.3 million for military flights to deport and transport noncitizen detainees.
The report raised concerns that, in addition to the cost of the DoD immigration efforts, it has resulted in “servicemembers…being pulled from their homes, families, and civilian jobs for indefinite periods of time to support legally questionable political stunts,” wrote the members. The deployments also unnecessarily put our servicemembers in harm's way: in November, Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, was killed while her West Virginia National Guard unit was deployed to Washington, D.C, and Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe was critically injured.
The deployment of troops for immigration enforcement has also weakened the military’s ability to respond to emergencies. For example, the 101st Airborne Division — the U.S. Army’s only air assault division — deployed to the border instead of standing ready for national security missions. Additionally, leading into peak fire season, the California National Guard firefighting unit was “understaffed because roughly half its members (were) deployed to Los Angeles.” These deployments may also require units to miss key training exercises necessary to ensure combat readiness, as the Government Accountability Office found occurred during the first Trump administration.
The diversion of DoD funds is having a devastating effect on the military’s ability to improve services for troops and their families. Among the projects impacted by the prioritization of border operations is a $1 billion renovation of military barracks. Secretary Hegseth also diverted funding from elementary schools at Fort Knox and a U.S. military installation in Germany, an ambulatory care center and dental clinic to service Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington, a jet-training facility in Mississippi, and Marine barracks in Japan.
During the first Trump administration, the DoD stopped deploying troops to the border after determining the deployments were hurting military readiness and morale. The border mission appeared to contribute to alcohol and drug abuse among service members, and may have even contributed to a number of tragic suicides among Texas National Guardsmen. The members raised concerns about similar issues arising again, particularly given the lack of clarity around how long deployments will last.
The report also slammed the administration’s failure to adequately inform Congress and the public about the diversion of funds. “The Trump administration’s secrecy leaves many questions unanswered. The administration has failed to provide clarity on basic questions about DoD’s role in supporting DHS,” said the members.
The coalition directed follow-up questions to Secretary Hegseth about the number of troops currently supporting immigration enforcement, how long military units will be supporting DHS, and whether DHS will reimburse the military.
On Thursday, December 11, 2025, the Senate Armed Services Committee will hold a hearing on deployment of the National Guard across the United States.
###
Previous Article