Border patrol union chief sees necessity of Trump wall
Jan 10, 2019, 7:59 AM | Updated: 1:22 pm
(AP File Photo)
(AP File Photo)
PHOENIX — As a partial federal shutdown over funding for a border wall enters its 20th day, the head of the Border Patrol agents union said walls work.
Border Patrol union chief Brandon Judd has no doubts a wall would be an effective deterrent to illegal crossings.
“We see that physical barriers actually do work,” Judd said Thursday on KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News, hours before he was scheduled to meet with President Donald Trump in McAllen, Texas.
The president will visit a border patrol station for a roundtable on immigration and border security, which Judd will attend.
Trump will also get a security briefing on the border.
“I’ve worked in areas that didn’t have walls. We’ve built walls and I’ve seen how they work,” Judd said, citing a big drop in crossings from 2003 to 2004 at the Naco, Arizona, station.
Judd, president of the National Border Patrol Council, worked the Naco station.
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With a wall, he said, “We get to dictate and control the flow of traffic.”
Border agents have been working throughout the shutdown, among the 500,000 deemed “essential” federal employees. They aren’t being paid.
Trump wants $5.7 billion for the wall that has been his signature promise since his presidential campaign. Democrats remain opposed to the wall.
“We’ve gotten out and spoken directly to agents working in Texas, (in) Arizona. The vast majority of agents … support the president 100 percent,” Judd said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
