By ASTRID GALVAN
PHOENIX — The White House has touted a two-mile stretch of fencing President Donald Trump is visiting Friday as the first section of his proposed border wall to be built.
In reality, the newly fortified structure commemorated with a plaque bearing his name and those of top immigration and homeland security officials was a long-planned replacement for an old barrier.
It is one of a handful of projects that total $1 billion to replace existing barriers and build new ones across the border.
FILE – In this Oct. 26, 2018, file photo, mounted Border Patrol agents ride along a newly fortified border wall structure in Calexico, Calif. President Donald Trump is visiting Calexico on Friday, April 5, 2019, to tour the recently-built portion of the border fence that bears a silver plaque with his name on it. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
FILE – In this Feb. 5, 2019, file photo, a Border Patrol agent walks towards prototypes for a border wall in San Diego. The prototypes were taken down in February. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
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FILE – In this Jan. 10, 2019, file photo, a woman records with her phone, as floodlights from the United States light up the border wall, topped with razor wire along the beach in Tijuana, Mexico. The government is working on replacing and adding fencing in various locations, and Trump in February declared a national emergency to get more funding for the wall. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
FILE – In this Oct. 26, 2018, file photo, Border Patrol agent Michael Sullivan, right, poses for a picture next to a plaque adorning a newly fortified border wall structure in Calexico, Calif. President Donald Trump is visiting Calexico on Friday, April 5, 2019, to tour a recently-built portion of the border fence that bears the silver plaque with his name on it. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
FILE – In this Feb. 5, 2019, file photo, Border Patrol agent Vincent Pirro looks on near where a border wall ends that separates the cities of Tijuana, Mexico, left, and San Diego, in San Diego. The government is working on replacing and adding fencing in various locations, and Trump in February declared a national emergency to get more funding for the wall. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
FILE – In this Jan. 22, 2019, file photo, workers place sections of metal wall as a new barrier is built along the Texas-Mexico border near downtown El Paso. The government is working on replacing and adding fencing in various locations, and Trump in February declared a national emergency to get more funding for the wall. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
FILE – In this Feb. 27, 2019, file photo, a border wall prototype falls during demolition at the border between Tijuana, Mexico, and San Diego, in San Diego. The government demolished the prototypes that instantly became powerful symbols of his presidency when they were built nine months after he took office. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
FILE – In this Jan. 9, 2019 file photo, construction crews install new border wall sections seen from Tijuana, Mexico. The government is working on replacing and adding fencing in various locations, and Trump in February declared a national emergency to get more funding for the wall. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)
FILE – In this Dec. 10, 2018, file photo, people look on from the Mexican side, left, as U.S. Border Patrol agents on the other side of the U.S. border wall in San Diego prepare for the arrival of hundreds of pro-migration protestors, seen from Tijuana, Mexico. The southern border is nearly 2,000 miles long and already has about 650 miles of different types of barriers, including short vehicle barricades and tall, steel fences that go up to 30 feet high. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)
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As Trump promotes his signature campaign promise as the solution to the recent surge of migrant families crossing the border, here are questions and answers about the various barriers along the border and those that are in the works.
WHATS ALREADY THERE?[hhmc]
The southern border is nearly 2,000 miles long and already has about 650 miles of different types of barriers, including short vehicle barricades and tall, steel fences that go up to 30 feet high. Most of the fencing was built during the administration of George W. Bush, and there have been updates and maintenance throughout other administrations.
WHAT HAS TRUMP DONE?[hhmc]
Trump has yet to complete any new mileage of fencing or other barriers anywhere on the border. His administration has only replaced existing fencing, including the section he is touring Friday.
Construction for that small chunk of fencing cost about $18 million, began in February 2018 and was completed in October. Plans to replace that fence date back to 2009, durRead More – Source
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