Local Officials Express Concerns Over Trump's Border Wall Plans

<p>The Trump administration has communicated a firm stance to state and local officials opposing the construction of a wall and other security measures along the 2,000-mile southern border, indicating that resistance is not an option.</p><p><strong>Driving the news:</strong> Recently, President Trump's representatives met privately with officials from Texas border counties where residents have opposed construction, citing that the plans are unnecessary in areas with few immigrant crossings and could harm the environment.</p><hr /><ul><li>During a closed-door meeting with Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott, officials were informed that there would be no negotiations regarding the construction.</li><li>The government is advancing plans to build hundreds more miles of a 30-foot steel barrier in various counties, with additional vehicle barriers and construction planned in the Big Bend state and national parks.</li><li>Val Verde County Judge Lewis Owens commented on the meeting, stating, "It is like my dad would say, it's sort of like pissing in the wind. You just, you know, it just ain't right, folks. This is completely asinine."</li></ul><p><strong>Zoom in:</strong> Scott informed local officials that wall construction along a more than 200-mile stretch from Hudspeth County to Presidio County was "not negotiable," as reported by Brewster County Sheriff Ronny Dodson, who attended the meeting.</p><ul><li>County sheriffs and judges, the primary elected officials in rural Texas counties, were the only attendees allowed to present their case to Scott while construction was temporarily paused.</li><li>Private landowners, ranch owners, and eco-tourism business owners affected by the construction were not invited to the meeting.</li><li>Owens remarked, "The people making the decisions above Commissioner Scott, they've never been down here. They don't know what the hell this place looks like, but yet you're making decisions on what's going to affect us that live here."</li></ul><p><strong>At the meeting:</strong> Scott acknowledged a lack of transparency from the federal government regarding construction plans, according to Dodson.</p><ul><li>Susan Hays, a candidate for a Presidio County commissioner position who was not invited to the meeting, stated, "They just paused for a couple of weeks and we are where we were before."</li></ul><p><strong>The latest:</strong> A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order pausing construction over approximately 600 miles of the border, but this order is set to expire at the end of the month.</p><ul><li>Significant construction on private land may be delayed for the time being.</li><li>Only about 20% of landowners in Presidio County, west of the state park, have granted land access to the federal government, while approximately 31% of landowners east of the park have done so, according to Presidio County Commissioner Deirdre Hisler.</li><li>U.S. officials have indicated that landowners who do not comply may face eminent domain lawsuits regarding their property.</li></ul><p><strong>What they're saying:</strong> A CBP spokesperson stated, "We are currently evaluating technology options to meet President Trump's mission of zero illegal border crossings while strengthening the most secure border in American history in highly remote and hard-to-access areas."</p><p><strong>The intrigue:</strong> Federal officials are allowing Brewster County, which contains much of the Big Bend national and state parks as well as the Black Gap Wildlife Management area, some flexibility to negotiate.</p><ul><li>These areas are not scheduled to have a 30-foot wall, but planned construction of patrol roads and vehicle barriers has raised concerns among locals who wish to protect the parks' environment and eco-tourism industry.</li></ul><p><strong>Dodson stated:</strong> He has been taking local CBP officials on site visits to persuade them against building a new road through the parks and to limit the number of vehicle barriers planned by CBP.</p><ul><li>"This county is concerned about tourism, and you may hear that word a lot," Dodson said. "But there's a lot of truth there because we don't have oil or gas or anything. We don't have much."</li><li>He added that "the stuff that people are saying on Facebook, — 'Oh this wall, wall, wall, wall' — it's already scaring people off because our tourism is down right now."</li></ul><p><strong>The big picture:</strong> The pressure on local officials in the Big Bend area to comply with construction plans reflects a broader pattern for CBP, which had constructed less than 200 miles of border wall as of last week.</p><ul><li>Construction has recently begun in Tohono O'odham Nation territory in Arizona, despite the tribe's legal efforts to halt the work.</li><li>Even religious sites are facing eminent domain lawsuits and significant construction.</li></ul>