Politics
A Blind Brook High School Student Publication
April 2019
Progress of the Wall By Lauryn Weintraub ‘20 uild the wall. This line served as the cornerstone of President Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. The President has been dedicated to protecting the southern border and the country from illegal immigrants, and in his mind, building a wall that spans the length of the Southern border is the only way to effectively accomplish that. Yet as his presidency has progressed and the country changed, so did his notion of the wall. When Trump first took office in January 2017, he had his heart set on a sturdy wall of solid concrete and steel. This was all part of his goal to build up the image of America to something great; a wall of solid concrete is symbolic of the United States as an impenetrable fortress. Congress soon realized his proposed wall could cost upwards of twentyone billion dollars. Suddenly, Trump switched to talking about a transparent wall, which would allow border officials to see through to the other side and monitor suspicious activity and scout out any immigrants attempting to cross. The wall went from a solid structure of fortitude to a less intimidating steel fence, although in Trump’s mind “the wall is a wall”. A year after his inauguration, the wall began to seem like a lost cause since Trump’s original goal was too ambitious to be carried out. Nevertheless, he continued to push for a border wall, since this was his foreign policy platform that he felt he had to follow through upon. For months, Trump scrutinized over details, deciding whether to propose a concrete or steel slab wall to Congress. Finally, by December 2018 Trump had his finalized “steel slat barrier” that needed around six billion dollars allocated towards it within the federal budget. Yet, as the government session was drawing to a close on December 22, Trump and Democrats in Congress refused to agree on the funding of a border wall. Thus, the President shut
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down the government. The infamous government shutdown lasted a total of 35 days—the longest shutdown in American history—all because Trump thought there was a security crisis in the country. In a frantic panic to pass his own agenda, Trump hurt millions of Americans who depended on their federal government jobs for salaries. People were laid off or asked to come into work for over a month without receiving an income. Americans who voted for Trump to protect themselves found uncertainty about how they could pay for their rent or food. In order to reopen the government, two leaders of the Democratic party, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, met with Trump on multiple occasions to try and negotiate terms. Yet the President was unwilling to budge. He would have a border wall whether it was the last thing he did during his presidency. When Democrats were still unwilling to pass his budget for the wall, Trump finally put an end to the shutdown and declared himself “open to anything” in a tweet on January 27, 2019. Although he tweeted, “As long as it can stop criminals, gangs, human trafficking and drugs”, he quickly reversed his position four days later and declared he wanted a wall again. Throughout Trump’s long and exhausting fight for a border wall, the country has suffered humiliation and a humanitarian crisis. The country has been ridiculed by other nations for ostracizing immigrants and spending money to keep people out, rather than help those within the country. In addition, the border has led to the largest atrocity of Trump’s presidency. Border security infamously separated young children from their families when they crossed the border and detained them, effectively keeping them in cages. Yet no matter what happens regarding the border, nothing can keep Trump from fulfilling his dream of a sea to sea border that will, in his mind, Make America Great Again!
