The Biden administration is reportedly considering restarting construction of former President Donald Trump’s wall along the U.S.-Mexico border as the administration struggles to maintain control of the worsening border crisis.
Biden Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said during a conversation with ICE employees last week that the administration was considering finishing “gaps in the wall.”
“It’s not a single answer to a single question. There are different projects that the chief of the Border Patrol has presented and the acting commissioner of CBP presented to me,” Mayorkas said, according to notes of the ICE session reviewed by The Washington Times. “The president has communicated quite clearly his decision that the emergency that triggered the devotion of DOD funds to the construction of the border wall is ended. But that leaves room to make decisions as the administration, as part of the administration, in particular areas of the wall that need renovation, particular projects that need to be finished.”
The Times said that Mayorkas specifically mentioned those “particular projects” included “gaps,” “gates,” and areas “where the wall has been completed but the technology has not been implemented.”
The report noted that the new completed section of border wall is more than just a wall as it includes technology that allows authorities to detect incursions and features “high-speed roads” that allows for rapid response. The report also highlighted recent polling that showed that the majority of Americans, 53% overall, support construction of the border wall.
Politico reported last month that Biden was under investigation by the Government Accountability Office for halting billions of dollars in payments that were scheduled to go out to companies that had been contracted to finish building the wall.
“Now the Government Accountability Office is launching a review to determine whether the new president broke the law by freezing the money in violation of budget rules designed to keep Congress in control of the cash flow,” Politico reported. “The probe highlights the challenge presidents have historically faced in fulfilling campaign promises that require money to be spent — or suspended — at odds with Congress’ intent.”
The report comes as Biden’s border crisis has overwhelmed the U.S.-Mexico border, promoting backlash against Biden from Republicans, Democrats, and even the president of Mexico.
Forty Senate Republicans said in a letter to the Government Accountability Office that in “the weeks that followed” Biden suspending construction of the border wall that “operational control of our southern border was comprised and a humanitarian and national security crisis has ensued.”
The letter added:
The President’s actions directly contributed to this unfortunate, yet entirely avoidable, scenario. They are also a blatant violation of federal law and infringe on Congress’s constitutional power of the purse. We write regarding these actions. We believe they violated the Impoundment Control Act (ICA), as interpreted by your office, and we request your legal opinion on the matter. Prompt action to end these violations is required to restore order at the border.
A new poll released this week showed that the majority of Americans do not approve of the job that Biden is doing on the border.