Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon and a handful of President Trump’s most vocal supporters will visit two Midwest cities next week to call on Americans to donate money to an organization that wants to build a barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Bannon, former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke, and failed wall crowdfunder Brian Kolfage have teamed up to host “We Build the Wall Town Hall” events in Ohio and Michigan next week.
The organization’s website states its “highly experienced” and “highly competent” team is accepting donations so it can deploy its own team to build a barrier.
“American citizens in the private sector are better equipped than our own government to use the donated funds to build an actual wall on the southern border,” the website for We Build The Wall, Inc states. “We Build The Wall, Inc … will complete significant segments of the wall in less time, and for far less money, than the federal government, while meeting or exceeding all required regulatory, engineering, and environmental specifications.”
The group, which is not affiliated with the Trump administration, does not share where it would take up construction or a timeline for doing so. Kobach and Clarke are on the organization’s board.
[Also read: Company offers to build 234 miles of border wall for $1.4 billion]
The 330,000 people who donated roughly $20 million to a crowdfunding campaign to fund the construction of a wall at the U.S.-Mexico border found out last month they are eligible for a refund after the GoFundMe page creator changed the terms of the fundraiser.
Kolfage, who created the campaign, announced in February he was unable to reach his $1 billion goal to build a barrier at the southern border. Donors will instead have the option of redirecting their gifts to We Build the Wall, Inc.
“Heartened by the overwhelming support of fellow Americans who have donated over $20 million to the viral GoFundMe campaign ‘We the People Will Fund the Wall,’ war hero and triple-amputee veteran Brian Kolfage announced the launch of a 501(c)4 called ‘We Build the Wall, Inc.’ which will fund the private construction of a wall along the United States’ Southern Border,” the organization wrote in a press release.
Because Kolfage changed the terms of his campaign, GoFundMe will refund all donors unless they choose to forward their donation to the organization. Kolfage previously vowed to return everyone’s money if they could not reach $1 billion.
