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After a series of political battles, the first completed section of President Donald Trump\u2019s border wall has been unveiled. But people are still arguing over whether it\u2019s a wall or a fence.<\/p>\n
The two-and-a-half-mile-long, 30-foot-tall barrier was built over eight months and unveiled by US Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen at a ceremony in Calexico, California on Friday. Nielsen pleaded for further government funding to complete the mammoth project, saying that \u201cwalls work<\/em>.\u201d She also refuted the oft-repeated claim that the barrier of steel bollards was actually just a fence.<\/p>\n Earlier this year, Trump unveiled eight border wall prototypes in California, some concrete and some metal structures like this one. \u201cIt\u2019s different than a fence in that it also has technology. It\u2019s a full wall system<\/em>,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s a wall, this is what the president has asked us to do. It\u2019s part of a system.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n Border security is national security. We need funding to continue building @POTUS<\/a>‘ wall. We need personnel to secure the border. And we need laws that work for the American people. I refuse to believe that this is too complex for Congress to solve, they must address this crisis. https:\/\/t.co\/FbDkF6dtyF<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Sec. Kirstjen Nielsen (@SecNielsen) October 27, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/center><\/div>\n READ MORE: Trump to migrant caravan: Go back home and apply legally, you won\u2019t be let in<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n The ceremony celebrated the replacement of shorter, older fencing that was installed in the 1990s. On Friday, a plaque was installed on the \u2018wall\u2019 to \u201ccommemorate the completion of the first section of President Trump\u2019s border wall<\/em>,\u201d it read. \u201cLooking at this, I would not attempt to climb it<\/em>,\u201d she continued. \u201cThis is the wall system we are requesting Congress to fund<\/em>,\u201d she later added.<\/p>\n READ MORE: Trump on \u2018mail bomber\u2019: Bring them to swift justice, we can\u2019t allow political violence in America<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n However, not everyone is convinced by Neilsen\u2019s comments and, once again, whether it is a wall or a fence was the source of furious debate on social media.<\/p>\n DHS Sec Kirstjen Nielsen unveiled 2 new miles of border fencing and declared it the first new section of the Trump’s border wall saying it was different than a fence cause it has technology which makes it a wall (It looks like a fence) <\/p>\n Got that 💩https:\/\/t.co\/7IhFBITgz7<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 🇺🇸Ellie🇺🇸 (@ellievan65) October 26, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/center><\/div>\n A Plaque Says This Fence In Southern California Is The First Completed Section Of Trump’s Border Wall…but it wasn’t. This is a wall section started under Obama & he is taking credit.https:\/\/t.co\/aGDAd2EZSu<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 6million$woman🇦🇼🇺🇸✡ (@6millionwoman) October 27, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/center><\/div>\n You are a joke, just like Trump. You acknowledged that this is a stretch of existing border fence being repaired, not a new wall. But then again, the MAGAts swallow whatever lies you spoon feed them.<\/p>\n \u2014 Ofputin (@maga_is_hate) October 27, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/center><\/div>\n C\u2019mon now: \u201c[T]he new structure [Nielsen visited] in Calexico is a fence, and the landing mat barrier that [it replaced was] actually a wall.\u201d https:\/\/t.co\/vM8WsZ7VSe<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Omar C. Jadwat (@OmarJadwat) October 27, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/center><\/div>\n This year\u2019s congressional spending bill allocated $1.6 billion for border security, $38 million of which was set aside for border wall construction. However, it specifically stated that it must be the same fencing used by previous administrations.<\/p>\n The construction funding \u201cshall only be available for operationally effective designs deployed as of the date of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017… such as the currently deployed steel bollard designs<\/em>,\u201d reads<\/a> the bill, which dates back to before Trump had even built his prototypes.<\/p>\n Like this story? Share it with a friend!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n
\u201cWalls work, it\u2019s not my opinion,<\/em>\u201d Nielsen said. \u201cIt\u2019s not a tagline. It’s not a political statement. It\u2019s a fact<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
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