The president warned this might happen, and his supporters have actually done it. Just a couple of days after President Trump said his administration was ready to “build a Human Wall if necessary” to protect the nation from illegal immigration, a group of his supporters in New Mexico joined hands along the U.S.-Mexico border in support of the construction of a border wall.
These wall supporters were waving American flags and holding handmade signs as they advocated for increased border security. They actually formed a human shield along the partially fenced border at Sunland Park, N.M. It was just across the line from Ciudad Juarez in Mexico’s Chihuahua state.
Trump had cited “Tremendous numbers” of people entering the U.S. through Mexico as the reason for his “human wall” pledge in a Tuesday tweet.
“Tremendous numbers of people are coming up through Mexico in the hopes of flooding our Southern Border. We have sent additional military. We will build a Human Wall if necessary. If we had a real Wall, this would be a non-event!”
Tremendous numbers of people are coming up through Mexico in the hopes of flooding our Southern Border. We have sent additional military. We will build a Human Wall if necessary. If we had a real Wall, this would be a non-event!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 5, 2019
On Sunday, the Pentagon announced nearly 4,000 additional active duty troops will be deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border. Congress has battled over Trump’s demand for $5.7 billion to construct a border wall. The impasse led to a 35-day partial government shutdown, as well as a potential second shutdown in a matter of days.
Congress is apparently close to a deal that would include far less money for the wall — about $1.6 billion. But it is not clear whether Trump would accept the plan, which would also avoid the second government shutdown.
In January, Trump signed a resolution that temporally reopened the government while lawmakers negotiated over border security funding. He has said he may declare a national emergency to avoid another shutdown when the resolution ends on Feb. 15.