President-elect Donald Trump said Thursday that Mexico will somehow reimburse the United States for the building of a border wall, an apparent response to reports that he wants Congress to fund the project through the appropriations process early this year.
Trump proposed the idea of having the U.S.’s southern neighbor pay the federal government back, as opposed to footing the cost upfront, during a speech in October. Politico and the Associated Press, citing Republican lawmakers, aides, and transition officials, wrote Thursday about the GOP’s plans to use a 2006 border security law to appropriate money for the construction. There was no discussion of compelling Mexico’s financial obligation in the reports, however.
Trump responded Friday morning.
“The dishonest media does not report that any money spent on building the Great Wall (for sake of speed), will be paid back by Mexico later!” he tweeted.
Former Mexican foreign minister Jorge Castañeda has spoked about how the United States could get Mexico to fund the cost of the project. He specifically mentioned a variety of fees targeted at the Mexican population, not the Mexican government. Ethan Epstein filed this report in September:
