Alabama Senator Katie Britt faced mockery and pushback after delivering the GOP's response to President Joe Biden's State of the Union address on Thursday.
Britt aimed to skewer Biden on his record on immigration, crime and safety issues and the economy. Delivered from her kitchen table, her rebuttal was directed at "my fellow moms" across the country.
Speaking about immigration and the crisis at the southern border, Britt claimed that construction of the wall between the U.S. and Mexico has been stopped.
The Claim
During her speech delivered after the State of the Union, Britt said Biden "halted construction of the border wall" when he took office.
The Facts
Britt's claim was part of a broader argument about Biden's actions since he became president. The senator argued that he had "inherited the most secure border of all time" from Donald Trump, a claim that analysts have questioned
While Britt is right that Biden suspended further construction of Trump's border wall extension, the president has approved new construction since then. In October 2023, the White House was criticized for approving the development of a new section of border wall in southern Texas.
The controversy was sparked by a notice posted in the Federal Registry by the Department of Homeland Security, which said the Clean Air Act, the Endangered Species Act and other federal laws would be waived to proceed with the construction project.
The 20 new miles of barrier in the Rio Grande Valley were on the southern tip of Texas, in an area deemed to be of "high illegal entry," according to documents signed by Secretary of State Alejandro Mayorkas.
The Biden administration said the money for the wall had been appropriated in 2019, before he took office, and its appropriation required that the funding be used and construction completed in 2023. Biden said he attempted to get the funding redirected, but Congress refused.
Biden did, as Britt claimed, stop the development of Trump's border wall in 2021, calling the project a "waste of money."
Trump has drastically exaggerated the size of what was built during his presidency. Eighty-one percent of the work was rebuilding or repairing existing structures.
In any case, while Britt is right that Biden halted construction of the U.S.-Mexican border when he took office, the senator did not mention the sections of the wall the president's administration later authorized for construction.
The Ruling
Needs Context.
Biden did halt further construction of Trump's border wall project when he took office, calling it a waste of money.
However, the Biden administration later approved the development of 20 new miles of wall in Texas.
FACT CHECK BY Newsweek's Fact Check team
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