On Whirlwind California Trip, Trump Tours Border Wall Mockups And Talks Military

President Trump is making his first visit to California since taking office, using the whirlwind trip to view prototypes for his signature border wall proposal and promote his defense policies to troops stationed in San Diego.

The trip Tuesday opened with a viewing of the eight options that his administration has selected for testing — and that might serve as his long-promised wall along the border of the U.S. and Mexico, if Congress decides to allot the funds to do so.

"If you didn't have walls," Trump told reporters during his tour, "you wouldn't have a country."

The president's arrival was awaited in the area by a cluster of police, chanting protesters and supporters clad in campaign gear, waving American flags.

Also at the site, awaiting him in contrasting silence, are the roughly 30-foot mockups the Department of Homeland Security picked to give a closer look — four of which are solid concrete, while the other four are built of "other materials," including steel. Built by private contractors from across the country, from Maryland to Arizona, the prototypes have been funded with $20 million from Customs and Border Protection.

Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and several Border Patrol officials briefed the president on the ongoing assessment of the prototypes, the White House says, "with a focus on how the features and attributes of each impedes illegal crossings."

Ultimately, the Trump administration expects that the whole border wall, when completed, would cost about $18 billion — though other estimates have ranged up to $38 billion. Despite a concerted effort from the White House and many GOP lawmakers, efforts to apportion that money have stalled in Congress, along with broader conversations around the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and other immigration programs.

Trump's campaign pledge to build a massive wall along the border between the U.S. and Mexico has proven just as divisive outside Capitol Hill. Just a day before Trump's arrival in California, the state's Democratic governor, Jerry Brown, called on the president to extend the focus of his visit beyond the wall.

"You see, in California we are focusing on bridges, not walls. And that's more than just a figure of speech," Brown said in a letter to the president he posted publicly Monday. - More, NPR

On Whirlwind California Trip, Trump Tours Border Wall Mockups And Talks Military