The Department of Defense estimates that it cost $72 million to send more than 5,000 troops to the southwestern border in response to a caravan of thousands of migrants from Central America.
Department of Defense spokesperson Col. Rob Manning said that given the “estimated cost to deploy, operate, sustain, and redeploy forces is approximately $72 million” for the approximately 5,900 active-duty personnel at the border through Dec. 15.
Another $138 million has gone toward 2,100 National Guard troops who have been involved in a separate mission since the spring.
Manning said that the estimate only accounted for forces and support that had been requested and approved as of Monday.
Democrats have been pressing the Pentagon for answers on the troop deployment, which was in response to an executive order from President Trump just before the 2018 midterm election.
[Read more: Pentagon says no timeline for bringing border troops home]
In a statement on Tuesday, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., accused Trump and the Pentagon for using the troops for “crass political posturing” and claimed that Trump has not brought up the issue since the election, even though most of the migrants have not yet reached the border.
“And now we know the financial cost of the president’s overt political posturing: The Pentagon said it will have spent $72 million deploying nearly 6,000 soldiers on the president’s orders,” Feinstein said.
“These soldiers spent weeks away from home and the Pentagon wasted millions of taxpayer dollars so President Trump could stoke fears of asylum seekers and try to influence election results,” Feinstein said. “Using our military men and women as political pawns to support an anti-immigrant agenda is a low point, even for this president.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-Texas, and Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., also sent a letter on Monday to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis requesting details about the cost and length of the operation, why active duty military personnel were deployed rather than the National Guard, what legal authorities were used to “justify the deployment,” and what are the “Rules of Engagement” for the operation. They also inquired if the operation will negatively impact military readiness overall.
The Army said Tuesday that “no specific timeline for redeployment has been determined,” even though Army Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Buchanan initially said that the goal was to have all troops come home before Christmas.
