U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials announced plans to begin construction of border wall prototypes later this summer. The test projects will begin near San Diego, California.
CBP Acting Deputy Commissioner Ronald Vitiello said his agency will issue contracts to being building prototypes to between four and eight companies. The companies will each have 30 days to build their section, Fox News reported Tuesday.
Vendors began lining up to build prototype sections of the walls which will stretch along parts of the southwestern border between Mexico and the U.S., Breitbart Texas reported. Nearly 300 companies signed up for the bidding processing in the first few days. Some companies expressed concerns about security both in dealing with protesters and drug cartels. “There will be a lot of different activity – protests, prayer vigils – on both sides of the wall,” Enrique Morones, executive director of Border Angels, an open border advocacy group, told the Daily Mail. “We pray and hope that they’re peaceful.” Earlier this month, California Assemblyman Tim Donnelly wrote in Breitbart California that the Trump Administration was behind schedule. “The border wall was the signature promise of Trump’s campaign and the most visible initiative of his presidency, yet has been allowed to fall behind schedule,” Donnelly stated. Just a few days ago, the president tweeted that Mexico is one of the deadliest countries in the world and that “We will BUILD THE WALL!”
Mexico was just ranked the second deadliest country in the world, after only Syria. Drug trade is largely the cause. We will BUILD THE WALL! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 22, 2017
President Trump also floated the idea that the sections might contain solar panels to produce electricity and reduce the cost, Breitbart News reported on June 7. “Think of it,” President Trump told supporters at an Iowa rally. “The higher it goes, the more valuable it is. Pretty good imagination, right?”
“The wall will be a great help, and it will happen; believe me,” the president told reporters.
Prototypes should be completed within 30 days of the issuance of the contracts from CBP.
