Senator Wicker Statement on Final Removal of Gaza Pier

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the highest-ranking Republican on the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement in response to the Department of Defense's announcement that the U.S.-made pier constructed to deliver aid into Gaza has been permanently removed:

"This chapter might be over in President Biden's mind, but the national embarrassment that this project has caused is not. The only miracle is that this doomed-from-the-start operation did not cost any American lives," Senator Wicker said. "I have been calling for an end to this election-year gimmick since its primetime inception at the State of the Union. While I am glad it has finally concluded, we cannot buy back the $230 million needlessly spent, and significant questions remain about the Biden administration's poor planning for this mission."

Senator Wicker also presented the following facts about the pier:

• It took roughly double the amount of time to transport the pier than for the duration when the pier was actually in use.
• The $230M used to deploy the pier could have instead been used to purchase more than 1,200 Coyote counter-drone interceptors to keep U.S. troops safe in Iraq and Syria.

Below is an accounting of Senator Wicker's actions related to the pier:

• On March 21, Senator Wicker led a letter with 11 other Senate Armed Services Republicans demanding answers about the Gaza pier from the Biden administration, particularly as they relate to plans for U.S. force protection.
• On March 28, Senator Wicker wrote an op-ed in the Washington Examiner discouraging further use of the pier.
• On April 23, Senator Wicker condemned a reported mortar attack on the Gaza pier, calling on President Biden to abandon the pier project.
• On April 29, Senator Wicker noted the cost of the pier had "exploded" when estimates rose to $320 million.
• On June 7, Senator Wicker again called on President Biden to conclude the operation after the "astonishing" decision to reattach the pier following damage from heavy seas.
• On June 28, Senator Wicker noted that the "window has closed for this project to make any meaningful difference" after another series of shutdowns and restarts of the pier.