Border Patrol agents held a groundbreaking event on Monday for a new "bollard wall" intended to replace roughly 20 miles of vehicle barriers along New Mexico's southern border.
Though the replacement wall doesn't match the stature or complexity of the eight border wall prototypes built in California, Border Patrol agents insisted to reporters on Monday that the bollard wall is the same wall that President Donald Trump famously promised voters throughout his campaign.
"This is the beginning, in this sector, of the president's border wall, yes," Chief Patrol Agent Aaron Hull, of the US Border Patrol's El Paso sector, said at a press briefing.
Trump has run into numerous obstacles in constructing his wall — the most significant being Congress' reluctance to fund it.
Lawmakers in March shot down Trump's request to provide $25 billion for the wall, much to his annoyance. Instead, Congress supplied only $1.6 billion for border security and fencing similar to what already exists along the border.
See what the bollard wall looks like:
A 20-mile stretch along New Mexico’s southern border, near the Santa Teresa port of entry, is currently lined with a short vehicle barrier.
The Customs and Border Protection agency said this particular sector has seen a high number of arrests related to illegal border-crossing and drug smuggling.
Source: CBP
In fiscal year 2017, Border Patrol agents arrested 25,193 people for crossing the border illegally. They also seized 34,189 pounds of marijuana and 140 pounds of cocaine.
Source: CBP
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