Trump wants to paint border wall black so it's hot to touch
Noem didn't say how much the project will cost or how long it will take. She applied paint herself to a small section of a fence during the media appearance in Santa Teresa, New Mexico.
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Noem's visit came as arrests at the southwest border have plunged to levels not seen in decades as the administration enacts stricter enforcement measures. It has also shut down the CBP One mobile app that had previously been a key way for migrants to schedule appointments to cross the border and seek asylum.
Walter Slosar, the interim chief patrol agent in the El Paso Sector, covering far West Texas and all of New Mexico, said the current seven-day arrest average is about 41 a day, with an additional nine migrants crossing daily without being stopped. A year ago the average was closer to 400 a day and it was roughly 2,300 in 2023.
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Still, the administration has pressed ahead with wall construction, filling in gaps in Santa Teresa, where about seven miles of new barriers are being installed.
Trump's plan to build out a southern border wall has long been a lightning rod, dating back to Trump's first term when his administration added razor wire to some sections and painted other areas black, but ultimately built far fewer miles of new barriers than initially promised. Despite that, Trump has kept the wall central to his immigration message, portraying it as a tool of enforcement.
Congress has approved a budget bill that set aside almost $47 billion for continued border wall construction and maintenance, giving the administration a new stream of money to carry forward Trump's plans.
The clampdown is visible across the desert region. In Sunland Park, New Mexico, residents can see a Stryker armored combat vehicle perched on a mesa overlooking Mexico, an American flag fluttering from its rear. Border Patrol agents and military personnel patrol the area, part of an arrangement that has thousands of active-duty troops deployed under US Northern Command.
The troops have been authorized to briefly detain and search migrants in newly designated 'National Defense Areas' near the boundary, which the Pentagon says are effectively extensions of US military installations.
For Lydia Pinon, who lives in a modest home in the area, the Stryker's presence has become the norm.
'At night there's a lot of lights and noise,' Pinon said. 'I think it's just there to scare the people,' she said of the armored combat vehicle.
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