Largest Contract: $1.3 Billion for US-Mexico Border Wall Awarded
President Donald Trump's administration has awarded the largest border wall contract that worth $1.3 billion, according to a recently published article.
Apprehension and Arrests of Illegal Border Crossings
President Donald Trump has been very serious since his first year in office to stop or decrease the number of illegal border crossings in the the Northern and Southern Walls. Aside from this, he also sent Border Patrols to make sure that no one passed through the walls illegally.
In 2019, the number of apprehensions and illegal immigration arrests has increased in the U.S. and Mexico border because of the strong campaign of Trump's administration by sending more Border Patrol Officers. U.S. Customs and Border Protection Deputy Commissioner Robert Perez said that many of those who were arrested were led by human-trafficking cartels.
Meanwhile, Trump's administration did not only intensify the campaign against illegal border crossings but has also made new immigration policies that put low-income families from other countries have difficulties to migrate in the U.S. He also pressured the Mexican government to send Border Patrol Officers to help the U.S.
Number of Illegal Border Crossings During the Pandemic
The number of illegal border crossings has decreased by 60 percent in the U.S-Mexico borders since Pres. Trump extended the powers of the U.S. Border Patrol in the implementation of the immediate return of the immigrants due to the global pandemic, according to the previous article of Latin Post.
However, while the number of unauthorized border crossings has decreased in the southern walls, illegal border crossings in the porous U.S. Canada or northern walls have increased in the past three years ,according to federal data.
The global pandemic did not hinder Trump's administration to stop or neither suspend for the meantime the construction of border walls that separate U.S. from Mexico. In fact, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced last month that the 156 miles border was already completed.
Largest Border Wall Contract Awarded by the Federal Government
Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, a Republican lawmaker, confirmed that an amount of $1.3 billion border wall contract was awarded to Fisher Sand and Gravel Company to build the 42-mile section of Arizona.
Moreover, the date of construction and its completion has no date yet, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the construction will take place near Nogales and Sasabe which are both in Arizona.
Fisher was one of the companies in 2019 chosen to partake in the construction of $5 billion worth of border wall construction. And the contract awarded to the Fisher Sand and Gravel Company this month is part of the multi-billion project.
When the U.S. Army Corps and Engineers, which awards the contracts, was asked if there were other bidders, they said that they cannot provide details about it due to the procurement sensitivity.
Additionally, the federal government has awarded millions of dollars for the construction of the border walls. That includes 30-foot-tall barriers, new lighting, technology or CCTV, and infrastructure. Trump's administration also claimed that they have already built 187 miles of the wall and replaced the old.
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