Truth or Consequences
"I would build a great wall, and nobody builds a wall better than me, believe me, and I'll build
them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall on our Southern Border."
- Presidential Candidate Donald Trump, Trump Tower, June 16, 2015
Faced with failing to complete any new barrier walls along the Southern Border, President Donald Trump has charged advisor / son-in-law Jared Kushner with the responsibility, multiple sources confirm.
"So right now the 78 miles that have been built have been built where there was an existing form of barrier. We just started breaking ground in RGV (Rio Grande Valley) where we're building miles of new wall where there has been no structure there at all," Acting Customs and Border Protection Chief Mark Morgan admitted, November 14.
Reports about the lack of progress had become increasingly embarrassing to the president, according to The Washington Post.
Kushner's political contributions to date include encouraging Trump to sign the First Step Act, drawing down criminal sentences for mostly minority inmates, and green-lighting the formal annexation of additional lands for Israel.
"My hope is Jared can put a laser focus on the project and the process. Maybe he can light fire under the responsible agencies, but if recent history is any indication, he will likely get frustrated before he gets results," Senator Kevin Cramer (R-North Dakota) speculated.
Trump's signature campaign promise has met push back from within his own party, Democrat lawmakers, and partisan judges.
Mark Krikorian of the Center for Immigration Studies said, "The point is to get as much built in the next year or so, so that the president can say in the face of intense, almost demented opposition, he has made reasonable progress."
Kushner aims to have up to 450 miles of new wall built before Election Day, November 3, 2020.
Trump sees sizable progress along the United States - Mexico boundary as key to his reelection bid.
In White House meetings Kushner has blamed former Chief of Staff John Kelly and former Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, known to many as Lady DACA, for the delays, WaPo said.
With 49 weeks to work with, and the entire 450 mile goal ahead, Kushner needs to capture lightning in a bottle to build momentum toward a second Trump presidential term.
Any bettors?
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A two-day trek northwest from Isafjordur, Iceland in June, 2007 is as close as I ever got to Hornstrandir.
It's an idyllic 230-square mile reserve in the extreme northwestern corner of The Land of Fire and Ice known for its fjords and unique tundra vegetation.
Icelanders have prohibited any new structures to be built there for more than 40 years, though families with summer homes are allowed to make renovations.
Reader Brad located the linked video where outdoorsman Kraig Adams traverses 60 miles over four days.
"Hornstrandir is the best place to feel completely alone on planet Earth," Adams says.
I've added his map from AllTrails.
| | This Summer I hiked 60 miles (I tracked 80 miles total including going back to grab my camera lol) alone in the Hornstrandir Nature Reserve in Northern Iceland. My journey took me through streams, past waterfalls, around cliffs, over passes and eventually to the stunningly beautiful horn cliffs. Solo hikes usually don't involve much talking and ... |
 | 50 mile hike through Iceland's Hornstrandir Nature Reserve. I went in July and had a wonderful time except for the little tiny annoying flies that buzz around your head. The silence and solitude of this hike are unmatched and I barely saw any other hikers. The busiest point and most photogenic is of course "the Horn" at the northern tip of the area. |
2 comments:
RISK AND REWARD FOR FIRST STEP ACT
"Kushner's political contributions to date include encouraging Trump to sign the First Step Act, drawing down criminal sentences for mostly minority inmates..."
GRA:We need a Second Step Act--to stop these unwarranted early releases.I understand Trump thinking he needs black votes to squeak by in 2020,but I don't think he does.
If the Dems choose a white candidate,the blacks will stay home,on their porches and not travel to vote--or even mail in an absentee ballot.Trump would win.
If a black megastar(Oprah,Mobama) is pushed into the frey by a brokered convention(like Bill Richardson believes),the blacks,whose asses Trump is kissing now with the First Step Act,will forget that decision and POUR into voting booths to vote blackie and Trump would lose.It's all about race for blacks--and nothing else.
So giving black felons an early break from prison sentences is a decision,which has no possible chance of rewarding Trump for helping black thugs,but plenty of risk for American (white)citizens.
--GRA
I'd rate the chances of Kushner even building half of the 450 miles as less than 50% - and that may be generous. What the USA needs is a working E-Verify system! The video of Kraig Adams hiking in Iceland is great!
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