President Trump: We’re Gonna Close The Southern Border And Keep It Closed For a LONG Time!

Politico had more on the closure:

President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to close the U.S-Mexico border next week if Mexico does not stop undocumented immigrants from coming into the United States, later adding that he's "not playing games" with his warning.

But a senior administration official undermined the president's threat, saying the Department of Homeland Security has no plans to close the border next week.

Trump, while speaking to reporters at an event at Lake Okeechobee in Florida, accused Mexico of choosing not to stop migrants coming to the U.S. southern border.

"If they don't stop them, we are closing the border," Trump said. "We will close it and keep it closed for a long time."

"I'm not playing games," he added.

Trump's comments to reporters came after he threatened in a tweet to close the border next week if Mexico does not take action.

"If Mexico doesn’t immediately stop ALL illegal immigration coming into the United States throug [sic] our Southern Border, I will be CLOSING...the Border, or large sections of the Border, next week," the president wrote in a series of tweets.

Shortly after the tweeted threat, the senior administration official said that officers would be redeployed by DHS from ports of entry to other areas to intercept illegal border crossers. The official said that DHS has no active plans to close the border in its entirety.
"It's short, at the moment, of the full closure of any port," the official said, adding that homeland security will "continue to operationally assess" the situation at the border.
"But I think what the president is making clear is with these numbers if we have to close ports to take care of all of the numbers who are coming, we will do that," the official continued. "It's on the table."

And from ABC News:

Threatening drastic action against Mexico, President Donald Trump declared Friday he is likely to shut down America's southern border next week unless Mexican authorities immediately halt all illegal immigration. Such a severe move could hit the economies of both countries, but the president emphasized, "I am not kidding around."

"It could mean all trade" with Mexico, Trump said when questioned by reporters in Florida. "We will close it for a long time."

Trump has been promising for more than two years to build a long, impenetrable wall along the border to stop illegal immigration, though Congress has been reluctant to provide the money he needs. In the meantime, he has repeatedly threatened to close the border, but this time, with a new surge of migrants heading north , he gave a definite timetable.

A substantial closure could have an especially heavy impact on cross-border communities from San Diego to South Texas, as well as supermarkets that sell Mexican produce, factories that rely on imported parts, and other businesses across the U.S.

The U.S. and Mexico trade about $1.7 billion in goods daily, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which said closing the border would be "an unmitigated economic debacle" that would threaten 5 million American jobs.

Trump tweeted Friday morning, "If Mexico doesn't immediately stop ALL illegal immigration coming into the United States through our Southern Border, I will be CLOSING the Border, or large sections of the Border, next week."

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