President-elect Joe Biden’s promise to stop the construction of more border wall between the United States and Mexico would be a reversal of a Trump administration policy, but the overall effect on U.S. border security is less certain.
Biden vowed in August that “there will not be another foot of wall constructed on my administration.” However, the already-funded projects could leave border security in good shape even if no more wall is built, according to Heritage Foundation’s Vice President of Foreign and Defense Policy Studies James Carafano.
“The administration was very smart in the way they did this,” said Carafano. “They really made sure that they covered the really important smuggling corridors. So, I think the dirty little secret is, they probably really built the wall they need, in both the capabilities that it has and also where it needs to be. It’s kind of an easy thing for Biden to say, ‘We’re not going to build any more wall,’ when, essentially, he has the wall he needs.”
Much of the completed wall has been in places that had significantly shorter barriers that were easy to cross. Although 1,000 miles of the 2,000-mile border is still wall-less, the portions completed have largely been in populated areas where illegal crossers could quickly blend into communities. The unsecured areas are remote spots, often with no access to roads on either side of the border.
Sixty percent, or 415 miles of the 738 miles, of funded wall projects have been completed, as of Monday. Customs and Border Protection, the federal law enforcement agency overseeing where the wall is installed, has 236 miles more of wall under construction and 87 miles ready to be installed.
CBP is rushing to complete 450 miles worth of wall by Dec. 31, a timeline that government officials promised earlier this year they would meet. In an email, CBP told the Washington Examiner that the majority of its contracts have been awarded and construction is “well under way.” Construction crews along the southern border have been working night and day to get as much wall installed as possible before Jan. 20, 2021.
Migration Policy Institute Associate Policy Analyst Jessica Bolter said one of the easiest actions that the Biden White House can take on day one would be to issue a presidential proclamation that ends the emergency declaration that allowed the Trump administration to siphon Pentagon and Treasury funds for wall construction. In February 2019, President Trump declared a national emergency at the border, which gave him access to these funds. Out of the $15 billion in funding acquired for the wall, $10.5 billion was taken from non-wall projects. Bolter said this is where Biden will likely start with cutting off the project.
“Then there’s a question of what would be done with the funds that have already been transferred, but not yet used,” Bolter said. “Ending the transfer of future funds doesn’t mean in itself that wall construction stops. But Biden has also promised to end wall construction. If Biden wants to follow through with his promise not to build another foot of wall, his administration could terminate current contracts for wall construction, possibly even if they are in the middle of construction, which the government does have a lot of leeway to do.”
The Federal Acquisition Regulation allows the government to end contracts with private sector construction companies suddenly, but mandates builders are paid for unforeseen wrap-up costs.
Biden would be the first president in decades not to build any new border barrier, a break from the past five administrations, Bolter said. Carafano warned that Biden’s refusal to put up barriers, even as Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama did, will not leave the U.S. helpless but will be tested if a migration surge unfolds in 2021.
