Biden says he’s being FORCED to build the border wall because funding was secured – and still claims they DON’T ‘work’ – even though his Homeland Secretary Mayorkas said its needed to deal with the migrant surge

President Joe Biden said he is being pushed to build a border wall and he doesn’t think it is an effective way to stop migrants from crossing the border.

He said Congress appropriated the money to build the wall and he should use the money that way.

“The money was for the border wall. I tried to get them to re-appropriate that money. They didn’t. They wouldn’t do that. In the meantime, there is no other option under the law than that they must use the money for what it is intended. “I can’t stop that,” he said.

When asked if he thought the border wall was effective, he said, “no.”

But his comments do not echo those of his Homeland Security secretary, who said there was an “immediate need” to build the wall.

On Wednesday, the Biden administration made a stunning reversal in migration policy, revealing it will build a 20-mile border wall to combat the latest wave of migrant crossings. The DHS decision contrasts with the Biden administration’s position that a wall is not necessary.

However, White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates argued that the administration was “forced” to build it.

“Congress is forcing us to do this under a 2019 law,” Bates wrote on X. “We have called on Congress to stop these funds. They didn’t. We follow the rule of law.’

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre made the same argument.

“These funds were appropriated in fiscal year 2019 under Republican leadership, and DHS is required by law to use the funds for the appropriate purpose. That’s what we see. This was announced by DHS in June. And look, we believe there are more effective ways to move forward and secure our border,” she said during her daily news conference.

“We have asked Congress to reallocate the funds,” she added. ‘That’s what we would prefer to see: not wasting the funding the way they are doing it now, the way we have to do it, but they refused. And so now we move forward.”

In a shocking announcement Wednesday evening, the Department of Homeland Security said it is waiving 26 federal laws to begin building a new “physical barrier” started under Donald Trump.

The Biden White House has consistently condemned Trump’s harsh migration policies and even canceled wall construction when Biden took office.

On his first day in office, Biden even declared that building a wall was not a “serious policy solution.”

But the recent acceleration in migrant crossings and pressure to deal with the crisis have now forced the federal government to change direction.

The reversal comes as Democratic-run cities like New York and Chicago demand Biden do more to prevent border crossings from spilling into their communities and straining resources.

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks with border patrol agents as he walks along the border fence during his visit to the U.S.-Mexico border to review border enforcement operations, in El Paso, Texas, U.S., January 8, 2023

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with U.S. Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott (R) as they participate in a ceremony commemorating the 200th mile of border wall at the international border with Mexico in San Luis, Arizona, June 23, 2020

A U.S. Border Patrol agent monitors as immigrants enter the United States after crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico in Eagle Pass, Texas, on September 30, 2023. The officer had cut rolls of barbed wire to allow them to pass through for processing

“There is currently an acute and immediate need to construct physical barriers and roadways near the United States border to prevent illegal entry into the United States in the project areas,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in the statement .

Trump, whose Republican administration has created about 450 miles of border barriers, responded to the announcement by saying this Fox News digital that the Biden administration should “go back to Trump’s policies.”

He also wrote on Truth Social on Thursday morning: “Will Joe Biden apologize to me and America for taking so long to move, and allow our country to be flooded with 15 million illegal immigrants, from unknown places.’

“I’m waiting for his apology.”

“So interesting to see Crooked Joe Biden breaking every environmental law in the book to prove I was right to build 560 miles (they incorrectly mention 450 in the story!) brand new, beautiful border wall,” Trump added.

“As I’ve often said, there are only two things that have worked consistently over thousands of years: wheels and walls!

“Biden sees that our country is being invaded,” Trump told the newspaper in an interview. “What is he going to do with the 15 million people from prisons, mental institutions, insane asylums and terrorists who have already entered our country?”

A Trump campaign spokesperson said the DHS decision shows that “President Trump is always right.”

According to government data, approximately 245,000 illegal entries were recorded in the Rio Grande Valley Sector, which includes Starr County, during the 2023 fiscal year through early August.

DHS will waive statutes, including the Clean Air Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Endangered Species Act, to make way for construction, using money from a congressional appropriation to build border walls in 2019.

The waivers prevent time-consuming reviews and lawsuits challenging violations of environmental laws.

The hilly ranchlands of Starr County, located between Zapata and McAllen, Texas, are home to approximately 65,000 residents over a sparsely populated area of ​​approximately 450 square miles that are part of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge.

DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas waived 26 federal laws to allow construction of several miles of border wall in South Texas

Asylum seekers cross the Rio Grande from Mexico into the United States on September 30, 2023 in Eagle Pass, Texas

While no maps were provided in the announcement, an earlier map shared while gathering public comments shows that the piecemeal construction will add an additional 20 miles to the existing border barrier system in the area.

Starr County Judge Eloy Vera said the tour will begin south of the Falcon Dam and pass through Salineño, Texas.

‘The other concern we have is that the area is highly erosive. There are a lot of arroyos,” said Eloy Vera, the county judge, pointing out the creeks that ran through the ranchland and flowed into the river.

The concern is shared with environmentalists who say structures will run through public lands, habitats of endangered plants and species such as the Ocelot, a spotted wild cat.

“A plan to build a wall through it will destroy an impenetrable barrier right through the heart of that habitat. It will stop the migration of wild animals. It will destroy a huge amount of protected nature reserve. And it is a horrific step backwards for the borderlands,” Laiken Jordahl, southwest conservation advocate for the Center for Biological Diversity, said Wednesday afternoon.

During the Trump administration, approximately 450 miles (720 kilometers) of barriers were built along the southwest border between 2017 and January 2021.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott renewed those efforts after the Biden administration halted them early in his presidency.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection had no immediate comment.

The announcement sparked a political debate within the Democratic administration, which has faced an increase in the number of migrants entering through the southern border in recent months, including thousands who entered the U.S. through Eagle Pass in late September.

“A border wall is a 14th century solution to a 21st century problem. It will not strengthen border security in Starr County,” U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar said in a statement. “I continue to oppose the wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars on an ineffective border wall.”

Political supporters of the border wall said the waivers should be used as a springboard for a change in policy.

“After years of denying that a border wall and other physical barriers are effective, DHS’s announcement marks a major change in the administration’s thinking: a secure wall is an effective tool for maintaining control of our borders,” she said. Dan Stein, president of the Federation. for U.S. immigration reform, a statement said.

“Having made this concession, the government should immediately begin building a wall across the border to prevent illegal traffic from simply moving to other parts of the border.”