North Carolina Republican Rep. Madison Cawthorn has rolled out legislation that would protect former President Donald Trump’s southern border wall by making the barrier a national monument.
What are the details?
The proposal is named the “Donument Act,” and would create a “Southern Border Wall National Monument” thereby giving the wall “permanent protection from alteration,” according a news release from the congressman’s office.
The Charlotte Observer reported, “The national monument would consist of 289,920 acres of land in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas,” and “the secretary of interior would be in charge of administration of the monument.”
“For four years President Trump worked to secure the southern border of the United States by constructing a wall in places where there was little to no fencing,” Cawthorn said in a statement. “President Trump was able to build 455 miles of wall by the time he left office, and had funds allocated for further construction. A secure southern border was no longer simply a dream, it was a tangible reality. Sadly this reality is fast disappearing.
“Immediately after gaining office, Biden issued a slew of Executive Orders, one of which directed a pause in planned wall construction and a reallocation of funds obligated for that purpose,” he continued. “Following Biden’s decision to place partisan politics over the security of the American people, illegal immigration, and drug trafficking rates skyrocketed. It’s time to put the safety and wellbeing of Americans first.”
Cawthorn added, “I will make every effort to protect and secure the southern border, and advance an America first agenda. If Biden refuses to finish the wall, you can be sure that American patriots will do everything in their power to protect it.”
I’m proud to introduce the Donument Act, which places America’s border security first and dedicates the border wall… https://t.co/bZpEj7B0xr
— Madison Cawthorn (@Madison Cawthorn)1618341356.0
USA Today noted that, if passed, the “Donument Act” would make the southern border wall the 159th national monument in the U.S. However, it has little chance of making traction in the Democrat-controlled House.
Cawthorn, 25, is the youngest member of Congress. He was sworn into office in January and spoke last year at the Republican National Convention.
Anything else?
On President Joe Biden’s first day in the White House, he terminated the emergency order Trump had placed on the southern border and issued a “redirection of funds” that had been allocated for further wall construction. Now, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol says March saw the highest number of illegal immigrants in a decade pouring into the U.S. from Mexico.
In the midst of the crisis, the Department of Homeland Security under Biden is now reportedly considering opening construction of the wall again in areas where there are “gaps.”