Border wall construction during President Donald Trump’s second term is far ahead of where it was at the same point in his first term, but Department of Homeland Security officials say it should be going much faster this time around.
Officials involved in planning and implementing the border wall system along the 1,950-mile U.S.-Mexico border can agree that more progress should have been made by now, but they cannot agree on who is to blame.
A government document that outlines border wall progress as of Jan. 27, obtained by the Washington Examiner on Monday evening, states that more than 100 miles of wall and 93 miles of waterborne barriers in Laredo, Del Rio, and Big Bend, Texas, have stalled because the final approval is waiting on DHS Secretary Kristi Noem — a claim that the DHS denied.
The Customs and Border Protection memo states that the Big Bend, Laredo, and Del Rio regions of Texas will receive 102 miles of steel bollard wall, more than 90 miles of waterborne “buoy” barriers, and 2 miles of smaller replacement fencing.
The document states that the contract awards are ready to be made for those three sections of the wall, but that they are still pending approval from Noem, who is referred to in the document as “S1.”
The two-page document also states that CBP is awaiting DHS approval before awarding contracts to procure bulk steel; a project in El Centro, California; and a project in El Paso, Texas.
In mid-2025, Noem said she would personally review all contracts across the department that are worth more than $100,000, which government employees feared would lead to a major slowdown in grant and contract approvals.
Four senior federal sources told the Washington Examiner that they believe Noem’s demand to review all contracts is the reason for the delay in wall construction.
“She has required all contracts over 100K be signed off by her. I don’t think she fully understands how many 100K contracts DHS has. It has slowed several things down,” the official wrote in an email.
However, the DHS has pointed the finger at CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott. In a story published by Politico in January, anonymous sources said that Scott, who was confirmed in his job in June, was holding up progress.
DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin wrote in an email on Tuesday afternoon that “there are no wall contracts currently sitting in front of Secretary Noem.” McLaughlin added that because the wall funding was passed through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, contracts did not fall under the $100,000 contract approval process that Noem implemented last year.
“Bottom line is the premise of your story is inaccurate because wall contracts don’t even follow the $100k process,” McLaughlin told the Washington Examiner, “nor are there any border wall related contracts pending the Secretary’s review.”
A second senior federal source said that, regardless of the $100,000 approval process Noem implemented last year, the contracts have been sitting since December.
“The process doesn’t require all this s***,” the official said in a phone call. “This is Trump’s agenda. Why isn’t it getting through?”
As of Jan. 26, CBP had completed 29.5 miles of border wall during the second Trump administration, including 12 miles installed over the past 45 days.
In 2025, Republicans tucked $46.5 billion for border security projects into the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. That means that more than 1,400 miles of the entire southern border will have a physical barrier to deter people from crossing by the time the current and future projects are completed.
The remaining 535 miles are not viewed by planners as ideal for building a wall or are considered low-risk areas for illegal crossings. CBP is installing 550 miles of technology in parts of the border that have a physical barrier but lack ground sensors, cameras, and other tech.
Over the past four months, CBP has put $11.4 billion in funding toward 16 new wall projects across the southern border, the memo states.
TRUMP’S BORDER WALL SYSTEM GOES FAR BEYOND JUST A WALL. HERE’S WHAT TO KNOW
The Border Patrol is averaging 2 miles of wall installed per week as of mid-December 2025 and intends to increase this to 10 miles per week, according to Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks.
Banks explained during an interview in Brownsville, Texas, on Jan. 7 that the smart wall system comes with technology, lighting, infrastructure, ground-sensing radars, roads, and more.
