Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Wednesday that the border wall construction needs to “move rapidly” to keep down the number of illegal border crossings into the U.S.
“I think the border wall needs to move rapidly,” Mr. Sessions said on Fox News’ “Happening Now” ahead of his trip to the border later this week.
“It will be the final affirmation that the illegality is over. It will multiple many times the effectiveness of our border patrol officers,” he said.
Mr. Sessions said that President Trump’s policies are responsible for March being “the lowest month in 17 years of illegal immigration at our border,” but the wall will “drive home” the president’s message.
“If we don’t follow through and back up what he promised then I think we could see these numbers rise again,” Mr. Sessions said.
“He sent a clear message, which I’ve been pleading for for years,” he said. “That’s what a legal system is about.”
Mr. Sessions also said that although the Trump administration is not targeting those who have benefitted from Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, known as DACA, all those in the U.S. illegally are subject to deportation.
“Everybody in the country illegally is subject to being deported,” he said, “People come here and stay for a few years and somehow think they’re not subject to being deported. Well they are.”
This comes as the National Immigration Law Center released a statement Tuesday saying the first DACA recipient believed to be deported, Juan Manuel Montes, is suing the U.S. for the documents explaining his deportation.
