(NewsNation) — President Joe Biden’s administration has decided to greenlight the further construction of a southern border wall in Texas amid mounting political pressure from both sides of the aisle to address the immigration crisis.
The White House announced it will permit the continuation of wall construction along a 20-mile stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border in Starr County, Texas. To kickstart this project, the administration is opting to waive more than two dozen federal regulations.
Congress had allocated funding for border wall construction during the Trump administration, with approximately $1.3 billion set aside for projects in the Rio Grande Valley. As of June, Customs and Border Protection had an estimated $190 million remaining from these allocations.
“There’s nothing under the law other than they have to use the money for what it was appropriated. I can’t stop that,” Biden said.
The president was under pressure to either use those funds or lose them. By using them, he backtracked on his own promises that he would not construct another foot of wall on the border under his administration.
This decision comes as Democratic-led cities express dissatisfaction with the administration’s efforts to combat illegal immigration into the United States.
During his campaign, Biden had unequivocally promised, “There will not be another foot of wall constructed under my administration.”
However, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has cited the urgent need for physical barriers in this busy Border Patrol sector, which has witnessed a high influx of illegal entries — 245,000 so far this year.
“There is presently an acute and immediate need to construct physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the border of the United States in order to prevent unlawful entries into the United States in the project areas,” said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
To facilitate this construction, the administration has waived 26 federal laws, including the Clean Air Act, Safe Drinking Water Act and Endangered Species Act.
Environmental advocates have strongly criticized this decision. The Center for Biological Diversity said in a statement, “It’s disheartening to see President Biden disregard our nation’s foundational environmental laws to build what they perceive as ineffective border walls that harm wildlife.”
This move mirrors the criticism faced by the Trump administration, which oversaw the construction of approximately 450 miles of border barriers along the Southwest border during its tenure. Of these, around 370 miles replaced existing sections, while 80 miles introduced new border walls in previously unprotected areas.
“So interesting to watch Crooked Joe Biden break every environmental law in the book to prove that I was right when I built 560 miles (they incorrectly state 450 in the story!) of brand new, beautiful border wall,” wrote former President Donald Trump, responding to the news on his social media platform, Truth Social.
Earlier this year, the Biden administration resumed rebuilding sections of the wall in Yuma, Arizona, citing environmental concerns.