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And even if he gets all the money he wants from Congress this year, the wall will not be nearly finished.
Contractors replaced miles of dilapidated fences with more modern alternatives, but they never built barriers where they did not exist.
It could change soon. Construction is expected to begin in February as part of a project that will bring 14 kilometers of new border wall to the Rio Grande Valley.
Meanwhile, Trump and Congress are stuck in a stalemate over financing the construction of additional walls. Officials claim that the $ 5.7 billion requested by the administration would cover the cost of more than 200 miles of new wall and replacement wall.
But that would still leave most of the border without a wall.
Here is a preview of what is already at the border, the planned construction and what the Trump administration wants to build:
Artificial barriers cover only about one-third of the border.
The US-Mexico border is expanding for 1,954 miles. Currently, physical barriers cover 654 of those miles, according to US Customs and Border Protection.
What is it called vehicle fences covers 280 miles. This is a fence that is flush with the ground. It would stop a car, but people can easily cross it.
What is it called pedestrian fences covers 374 miles. It's bigger and designed to prevent people from crossing on foot.
Some fences are made from helicopter landing mats.
Several pedestrian fences have been designed at different points of the border.
Some areas contain layers of barriers, called primary, secondary and sometimes tertiary fences. According to CBP, approximately 37 miles from the border currently have secondary barriers for pedestrians.
Most older fences are made from landing pads of helicopters from the era of the Vietnam War. The most recent fences usually consist of 18 to 30 feet high steel posts.
Trump now says that his "big and beautiful wall" can be steel.
Prototypes of walls have disappeared.
The idea of border barriers has not started with Trump.
It is true that Trump placed the idea of a border wall in the center of the campaign, but the idea of building barriers along the US-Mexico border took root long before he took office.
Since 2007, CBP claims to have spent approximately $ 2.3 billion on fencing and related infrastructure along the US-Mexico border.
Contractors are already working on hundreds of kilometers of construction.
A number of contracts have been awarded since Trump took office, funded by Congressional appropriations for the 2017 and 2018 fiscal years.
Among them: Nearly $ 300 million for the construction of 40 miles of alternative structures in several locations. These consist of pedestrian walls and vehicle barriers. By December 21, 35 of those 40 km had been completed, according to Andrew Meehan, CBP's Assistant Commissioner of Public Affairs.
Last year's funding provided $ 1.375 billion in funding for the construction of 82 miles of new gates and replacement gates in several areas of the border, said Meehan. Of this amount, $ 700 million has been awarded for contracts for the construction of new alternative wall and wall systems, he said, and $ 300 million "are ready to be allocated as soon as the reopening of government". The rest of the money, said Meehan, "supports CBP project management to include support in real estate, environmental, legal and program management and will be obligated for the duration of the projects. ".
Soon we will see a wall built in a new section of the border.
Called lifting wall system, the project includes the construction of a raised concrete wall, 18 feet high steel posts installed above the concrete wall and the removal of vegetation. along a 150-foot security zone. The price: 312 million dollars.
The administration wants $ 5.7 billion to pay 234 miles of construction.
Officials say that construction starting in February is only part of the picture. The 2018 FY funding, they say, also covers the cost of building an additional 70 km of gates, of which about 57 km is a replacement fence.
But since a government has been partially closing its government for five years now, it remains to be seen whether this work will take place – and what will happen next – nobody knows it.
CNN's Maegan Vazquez contributed to this report.
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