Border patrol chief of operations Brian Hastings said Thursday that portions of a barrier along the San Ysidro crossing on the U.S. southern border are in need of repair after a group of roughly 150 migrants tried to breach it on New Year’s Eve.
“There’s a barrier there, but it’s ’90s-era construction,” Hastings told Hill.TV’s Buck Sexton. “It’s basically landing mat that we repurposed and put into these areas.”
“If you’ve seen some of these videos of that area where the caravan has tried to enter, both during this past event that we just had on New Year’s Eve, as well as the prior event that we had, we’re seeing them tear that wall apart,” he continued.
“It’s not constructed to withstand time, for one, and it’s not standing up to the standards of … you saw them rip that barrier apart,” he said.
The official’s comments come days after Customs and Border Protection agents again fired tear gas at migrants after they attempted to breach the border.
The incident took place on day 11 of a partial government shutdown centered around immigration and border security.
President Trump has shown no signs of backing off of his demands for roughly $5 billion for his proposed border wall.
“The United States needs a physical barrier. It needs a wall,” Trump said on Wednesday, adding that parts of the government will remain closed for “as long as it takes.”
Meanwhile, Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) reaffirmed in an interview that Democrats plan to give Trump “nothing for the wall.”
— Julia Manchester
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