During a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing prior to the Congressional recess, Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) questioned DHS Sec. Kristi Noem.
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00:00Thank you
00:03Thank you again, sir. No for being here. I just want to follow up briefly with
00:08Chairman Paul's questions about the the cost of the wall the billions of dollars that are going to be put forward. We do have to have
00:15Accurate numbers so that we could look at that for funding it
00:18But I would hope you also take a look at all of the cost of a vault wall because there are a lot of other
00:22Secondary kinds of defenses you have to put forward. I was at the wall. I've been with security folks
00:28They've they tell me that a lot of the cartels have have designed very sophisticated technologies to get over the wall
00:34They're called ladders, and they're called ropes
00:37So a wall doesn't really do the job if there's not a lot of other background technologies there
00:43So you just can't put out a cost for the wall. That's money. That's not going to be as effective without everything else
00:48So let's let's have a discussion about that
00:51For the first time in US history the federal government at the direction of President Trump is moving
00:57Immigrants apprehended and detained in the United States on civil immigration charges to naval station at Guantanamo Bay
01:05Which I know you're very familiar with in March
01:07I traveled to Guantanamo Bay with several colleagues to have a first-hand examination of the detention operations underway
01:16And I certainly have serious concerns about the cost involved there today
01:21Can you tell us the total cost for detaining individuals at Guantanamo Bay you want the cost per individual?
01:27Do you have that? I do not have that with me today, sir. I can get that for you. Well, I do have a number
01:33Do you know how much it costs to hold an immigrant in ice detention facility in the United States?
01:39Do you have that number now are you talking per day?
01:42I have a hundred and I believe the last estimate that I got was a hundred and forty two dollars a day around in that approximately a pretty
01:49Yeah, but it's close to my what I'm understanding. I understand. It's a hundred and sixty five dollars per day
01:54So it's in the range. I'm still waiting for detailed financial information from this administration
02:00From my time to Guantanamo Bay. In fact, we letter with ranking member or chairman Paul and the ranking member together. We wanted more information
02:07On the cost there the when I was there the the two month cost estimate for operations
02:15Was forty three million dollars when we were down there talking to the officials there and that does not include
02:20Transportation to and from the island. We find that people are sent to the island and then they're sent back to the United States again before they're sent out
02:27I'm not sure why we have all those costs. We have plenty of vice facilities to keep them here
02:31Why you have to send them there and back and on the day that I visited there were eighty
02:3687 people in custody and my understanding is that's a pretty normal number
02:41There's that at that time at least so my back of the napkin calculation. We're waiting for your numbers is that it's costing about a hundred
02:49Thousand dollars a day to keep someone at Guantanamo Bay
02:53Man, this is like ripe for doge. Why is doge not down there there? We're spending a hundred thousand dollars a day to keep someone at Guantanamo
03:01And we fly them down there. We keep them there a while
03:03Then we fly them back to the United States or we could keep them here for a hundred and sixty-five dollars a day
03:08I think that's kind of outrageous. So, you know, I'm concerned by the
03:12Staggering cost of of this and I would hope secretary you could commit
03:17Providing this committee a detailed breakdown of the total cost of that operation there
03:21There were just a sea of empty beds
03:23There was all sorts of security folks and nobody in those beds, which is why it's so expensive
03:29So a chairman Paul will probably use this on his
03:33Festivus report later. I'm sure of outrageous government spending and I'll look forward to seeing that
03:40Secretary know are you familiar with section seven or excuse me eight seventy-two of the Homeland Security Act of 2002
03:46How I'm I? It sounds familiar sir. You'll have to remind me the topic. Yes
03:53Well section eight seventy-two requires you as secretary to provide a sixty-day notice to Congress as any creation deletion
04:01consolidation or
04:02Alteration of organizations within the department that are not required in statute which must include an explanation for the rationale behind any charges
04:11It also prohibits you from making any changes to offices in the status
04:16So my question for you is why have you not provided notice to Congress of the changes you are making at the department?
04:22And will you be doing so in the near future and will you include intended reduction in forces in that for example?
04:29You've already terminated virtually the whole civil rights and civil liberties office staff without any communication to Congress
04:35About your intent and the only letter yesterday claiming all of the statutory responsibilities would be met
04:42You sent a letter, but it conflicts certainly with the whistleblower disclosure that I received last week
04:48So please explain to the committee why you are not following this law well senator
04:53We are following that law the those offices that you referenced are still open and functioning and providing their duties as required
05:01But they have been right-sized
05:03Many times the office of civil rights and civil liberties or the ombudsman office which you and I visited about before
05:09Had grown quite expansive. They were
05:13Used as a as a political tool
05:16Suing and attacking each other and censoring
05:19Individuals and not doing the job for which they were created so we've right-sized them put them back on mission
05:25And if there would be an instance to where notification is required. I certainly will follow that
05:31That time is expired senator marino
05:34Thank you again