We Build the Wall

We Build the Wall, Inc.
Founded2019
FounderBrian Kolfage
Type501(c)(4) Nonprofit organization
83-3040627
FocusFundraise and build the Trump Wall
HeadquartersPanama City Beach, Florida
Key people
Websitehttps://webuildthewall.us (defunct)
[1]

We Build the Wall is an organization that solicited donations to build private sections of the wall along the Mexico–U.S. border. It started as a GoFundMe campaign by United States Air Force veteran Brian Kolfage in December 2018.[2] Kolfage announced the formation of a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization in January 2019.[3] By mid-2020, over $25 million had been raised[4][5] and a 3-mile (4.8 km) section of fence had been built.[6] The organization was involved in the construction of walls along the border in Sunland Park, New Mexico and Mission, Texas.

Its advisory board included politicians and activists with a hard-line stance on illegal immigration, including former secretary of state of Kansas Kris Kobach;[7] former congressman Tom Tancredo;[8] Blackwater USA founder Erik Prince; former Milwaukee sheriff David Clarke;[9] and former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon,[5][10] who is chairman of the board.[11]

In August, 2020 Brian Kolfage, Steve Bannon, Andrew Badolato and Timothy Shea were charged with a scheme to divert over a million dollars from We Fund the Wall, of which at least $350,000 illegally went to Kolfage for personal use. The men faced federal felony charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.[12][5][13][14][15] Kolfage and Badolato pled guilty and were sentenced.[16] After Shea's first trial ended in a hung jury, he was convicted in October 2022 and received a 63 month sentence in July 2023.[17][18][16][19] Bannon was pardoned by then-President Trump but was indicted in September 2022 on state charges in New York.[20]

  1. ^ "WEBUILDTHEWALL INC | Charity Navigator Profile".
  2. ^ Miroff, Nick; Dawsey, Josh (May 23, 2019). "'He always brings them up': Trump tries to steer border wall deal to North Dakota firm". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  3. ^ "$20 million in donations for border wall to be refunded or shifted to non-profit effort". Politico. Associated Press. January 12, 2019. Archived from the original on March 25, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2019.
  4. ^ Orden, Erica; Scannell, Kara (August 22, 2020). "Steve Bannon, three others charged with fraud in border wall fundraising campaign". CNN. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  5. ^ a b c Binion, Billy (August 21, 2020). "Wall Funding Scandal Exposes Steve Bannon's False Populism". Reason. Reason Foundation. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  6. ^ Schwartz, Jeremy; Trevizo, Perla (July 2, 2020). "He Built a Privately Funded Border Wall. It's Already at Risk of Falling Down if Not Fixed". ProPublica. Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved August 23, 2020.
  7. ^ "When Mr. Kobach Comes to Town: Nativist Laws and the Communities They Damage". Southern Poverty Law Center. January 30, 2011. Archived from the original on July 22, 2019. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  8. ^ Potok, Mark; Schlatter, Evelyn (August 24, 2011). "The Company They Keep". Southern Poverty Law Center. Archived from the original on August 6, 2019. Retrieved August 8, 2019.
  9. ^ Kanno-Youngs, Zolan; Lipton, Eric; Saul, Stephanie; Shane, Scott (August 20, 2020). "How Bannon and His Indicted Business Partners Cashed In on Trump". New York Times.
  10. ^ Blumenthal, Paul; Rieger, J. M. (March 6, 2017). "This Stunningly Racist French Novel Is How Steve Bannon Explains The World". HuffPost. Archived from the original on July 24, 2019. Retrieved August 5, 2019.
  11. ^ Romero, Simon (May 28, 2019). "Border Wall on Private Land in New Mexico Fuels Backlash". The New York Times. Archived from the original on May 29, 2019. Retrieved May 29, 2019. Kris Kobach, who is known for his hard-line stance on illegal immigration and is on the advisory board of the group, We Build The Wall, which collects donations to finance a barrier on the southern border.
  12. ^ "Leaders Of 'We Build The Wall' Online Fundraising Campaign Charged With Defrauding Hundreds Of Thousands Of Donors" (Press release). United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. August 20, 2020. Archived from the original on August 20, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  13. ^ "Why there's a Colorado P.O. Box listed on that viral border wall GoFundMe page". KUSA. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  14. ^ "Castle Rock man charged alongside ex-Trump adviser Steve Bannon in border wall fundraising scheme". The Colorado Sun. August 20, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  15. ^ Hawkins, Erik (August 20, 2020). "Timothy Shea: Who Is Steve Bannon's Co-Defendant in Build the Wall Indictment?". Heavy.com. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  16. ^ a b Offenhartz, Jake (April 26, 2023). "'We Build The Wall' Founder Sentenced To 4 Years In Prison". AP News. Retrieved April 26, 2023.
  17. ^ Russell, John (June 7, 2022). "We Build the Wall fraud case ends in mistrial; jurors 'hopelessly deadlocked'". Courthouse News. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
  18. ^ Cite error: The named reference APSheaGuilty was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. ^ "Bannon co-defendant Shea sentenced to 5-1/4 years over 'We Build the Wall' fraud". Reuters. July 25, 2023.
  20. ^ Marcius, Chelsia Rose; Bromwich, Jonah E.; O’Brien, Rebecca Davis (September 8, 2022). "Bannon Pleads Not Guilty to New York Charges in Wall Case". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 29, 2022.