Rep. Dennis A. Ross (R-FL) recently reintroduced the Finish the Fence Act, which would amend the Illegal Immigration and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to complete a 700-mile border fence between the United States and Mexico by Dec. 31, 2017.
“Since I was first elected, securing our border has been a top priority of mine. I am excited this is also a shared priority of President-elect Trump,” Ross said. “I reintroduced the Finish the Fence Act because finishing the construction of the fence along our Southwest border is the first incremental step in securing our border, providing for our national security, and halting the massive influx of illegal entry into our country.”
In a statement, Ross cited a 2006 congressional mandate that originally mentioned the building of a 700-mile fence along the Southwest border with Mexico, however, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has yet to complete the project. He added that Congress recently provided DHS $11 billion to finish the fence’s construction.
“This is also an issue of national security,” Ross said. “ISIS is looking for every possible opportunity and weakness within our security systems to infiltrate and radicalize individuals to join its jihadist regimes to kill Americans, including recruiting and training those illegally crossing our border and entering our country. We cannot waste any more time on this, and I call on my colleagues to join me in demanding that this fence be finished.”