President Trump said that Democrats would prefer a steel border wall over concrete.
“At the request of Democrats, it will be a steel barrier rather than a concrete wall,” Trump said during his address Tuesday night. “This barrier is absolutely critical to border security. It’s also what our professionals at the border want and need. This is just common sense.”
Last month, Trump has said that the border wall would be “beautiful” and made of “artistically designed steel slats.”
[WATCH: Trump holds prime-time address over shutdown, border]
He said that there would be parts of the wall where border security and other law enforcement agents would be able to see through to the other side.
Trump said during his address that law enforcement professionals have requested the $5.7 billion for a physical barrier at the U.S.-Mexico border.
During the prime-time speech, Trump said that the border wall would quickly pay for itself as it prevents illegal drugs from entering the country through way of Mexico. Trump had claimed during his campaign that the wall would be paid for by Mexico.
The government is in its third week of a partial shutdown after several federal agencies ran out of funding Dec. 21. Democrats in Congress and Trump were unable to reach an agreement on a spending bill.
The president says he will not sign a bill that does not include the $5.7 billion in funding for the wall.
