US: Trump’s $15 billion border wall being easily defeated by $5 ladders
The $15 billion border wall built under the administration of former President Donald Trump is being climbed over by people using $5 ladders, according to Texas Monthly.
Citing US Border Patrol agents, who monitor the wall along the US-Mexico border, the magazine reported discarded ladders are often found left by undocumented migrants who use them to scale over certain sections of the wall.
“These ladders are probably $5 worth of hardware, and they’re defeating a wall that cost $12 million a mile in that location,” Scott Nicol, an activist in Texas, told Texas Monthly.
“Unlike the wall, these ladders are functional,” he added.
The ladders are often found in specific areas between Granjeno and Hidalgo, Texas. Also, rope ladders are used which more commonly appear farther up the Rio Grande river.
Border Patrol agents reportedly drive their vehicles over the ladders, often made from scrap lumber, to destroy them, tossing them into piles to be sent to landfills, Texas Monthly reported.
Trump’s promises of building a border wall were the cornerstone of his presidential campaign in 2016.
He said the wall was needed to curb illegal immigration and drug trafficking across the southern border.
Democrats, however, called the wall immoral, ineffective and expensive.
The former Republican president’s pledge to construct a complete 1,000-mile wall along the US-Mexico border, however, was never fulfilled.
During his presidency, 80 extra miles of wall was built and much of his tenure was spent reinforcing 400 miles of fences and barriers which had already been installed during previous administrations.
Construction of the rest of the wall would prove extremely difficult as much of the border terrain is rugged, hilly terrain while other areas are controlled by private land owners.
Trump had promised that Mexico would fund the project, however, the estimated $15 billion in funding instead came from federal taxes.
Source: Presstv