House Speaker Nancy Pelosi slammed President Trump’s wall on Friday as the wrong path to securing the border.
“We’re not talking about a wall, we’re talking about funding a campaign applause line,” the California Democrat said during an interview at The Economic Club of Washington.
During January’s partial government shutdown over Department of Homeland Security funding, Mrs. Pelosi passionately denounced the wall as immoral and vowed not to allocate a single dollar for what Democrats painted as Mr. Trump’s “vanity project.”
In the end, the president was given $1.375 billion for border fencing.
The top Democrat said her party is still committed to defending the border, but there’s no evidence that the president’s demand for the wall will be effective.
Rather, her party wants to remain focused on funding improvements to the ports of entry and rely on technology to scan for drugs, weapons and other contraband.
They also want to ensure there’s funding for facilities that house immigrants and more immigration judges.
“I do think that from a standpoint of a sea to shining sea, impenetrable wall is not the way we relate to other countries and other people,” she said.
• Gabriella Muñoz can be reached at gmunoz@washingtontimes.com.
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