The constructed wall on the southern border of the United States has surpassed 400 miles.
On Monday, Rodney Scott, the head of U.S. Border Patrol, revealed on Twitter that 402 miles of the border wall have been completed, in addition to 249 miles being under construction and 87 miles under pre-construction.
Border Wall System Update:
402 miles completed
249 miles under construction
87 miles under pre-constructionTo see the latest on the Border Wall System go to: https://t.co/1P24vPbOcu pic.twitter.com/XtwrvfzIef
— Chief Rodney Scott (@USBPChief) November 16, 2020
A $15 billion project, constructing the wall on the southern border was President Trump’s signature promise during his 2016 presidential campaign. During the campaign, he vowed for a tougher approach to limiting illegal immigrants from entering the country.
According to the White House, apprehensions of those entering the country illegally fell by 70% between May 2019 and August 2020. U.S. law enforcement also seized over 100,000 pounds of cocaine, 83,000 pounds of meth, and 2,700 pounds of fentanyl in that time frame.
The Trump administration has taken an aggressive approach to prioritizing funds to secure the border and to toughen consequences for illegal entry.
When the wall hit 400 miles last month, acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf touted the progress.
“The progress we are celebrating here did not happen by accident,” Wolf said. “The many miles of border wall system exists because of the will and vision of President Trump and the dedication and hard work of the men and women of DHS, the Army Corps of Engineers, and our colleagues from across the administration.”
The administration has been scrambling to achieve as much construction of the wall as possible before President-elect Joe Biden takes office in January. Wolf said he expects 450 miles to be completed by the end of the year.
Biden has not yet made any public comments on the wall since he was declared victorious in the presidential election. However, in the past, he has expressed that he would not continue progress on the wall.
In August 2019, Biden told NPR that if he were elected president, “there will not be another foot of wall constructed on my administration.”
The Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees the wall project, said it expects contractors to continue work but won’t speculate on any actions a Biden administration may or may not take on the wall.
