‘That’s Against The Law!’: Richard Blumenthal Tears Into DHS Sec Kristi Noem For ‘Spending Recklessly’

During Tuesday's Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) questioned DHS Sec. Kristi Noem about spending.

Transcript

00:00It was a dereliction of their work.

00:03Let me go to

00:05some of the expenditures that your department is making.

00:08$200 million for an ad campaign

00:11fawning over President Trump's supposed accomplishments.

00:15$21 million between January and April for transporting

00:18around 400 immigrants to Guantanamo Bay.

00:21About half of them were flown back to the United States.

00:24$6 million to El Salvador to imprison

00:27300 individuals in a prison known for grave human rights violations.

00:32And many more, including $1,000 to immigrants wishing to self-deport.

00:39I understand one of the planes left within the last 24 hours.

00:43None of these expenditures are in your present budget.

00:48Aren't you going to run out of money before the end of this fiscal year?

00:52The continuing resolution doesn't cover any of them.

00:54No, all the dollars being spent are being utilized as authorized

00:59and appropriately for the situation.

01:01None of them have been authorized, though,

01:03under the continuing resolution or any other way that we normally authorize money.

01:09You're just spending recklessly, and it would seem wastefully,

01:14without authorization. That's against the law.

01:16Well, Senator, I completely disagree with you.

01:18I'm doing the job that the Secretary of Homeland Security is supposed to be doing,

01:21the one that the last Secretary refused to do,

01:23that endangered the future of our country.

01:25You may think you're doing the job, but you operate under authorization that this committee provides.

01:31You are acting in a way you think you're doing your job, but you also have a responsibility to follow the law.

01:40The American people overwhelmingly in the last election said we want a secure border.

01:45We want to make sure that no longer are the scales of justice tipped in favor of criminals.

01:50They did not tell you to act outside your legal authority and spend money that is not in your budget.

01:53All money is being spent according to how it is authorized appropriately.

01:57Let me ask you about the money that is being used to supposedly repatriate.