Vice President Vance said on Wednesday he thinks President Trump is hoping to finish building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border by the end of his term in 2029.
During a visit to Eagle Pass, Texas, a reporter asked Vance how he and the president would define "success" when it comes to the initiative and how much of the border needs to be "walled off" before the end of Trump's administration.
"I think the president's hope is that by the end of the term we build the entire border wall," the vice president replied.
"And of course that's the physical structure — the border wall itself — but we even heard today, there are so many good technological tools, so many great artificial intelligence-enabled technologies that allow us” to guard the southern border, he added.
Vance also suggested the administration would employ artificial intelligence (AI) tools to aid with efforts to combat illegal immigration — a top priority for Trump, who promised while on the campaign trail to conduct the largest deportation operation in history. The vice president pointed to AI-enabled cameras that can spot migrants up to 2 miles away from the border, before they cross over.
“We're using artificial intelligence to make us better at the job of border enforcement, but we've got to make sure that technology is deployed across the entire American southern border,” Vance said.
“We're going to do it as much as we can, as broadly as we can, because that's how we're going to protect the American people's security," he added.
Building the wall was a centerpiece of Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. During his first term, his administration reinforced more than 400 miles of the already existing wall and added about 80 miles of barrier to the border.
Since returning to the Oval Office in January, Trump has focused less on building the wall and more on deportations, stopping the flow of drugs and other forms of border security. During his first major speech to lawmakers this term, the president also called out former President Biden for the surge of migrant crossings and for what he and Republicans have long claimed was an "open" border.
Late last year, he also applauded a federal judge's decision to block the sale of border wall materials, which was ordered by the Biden administration.
Trump administration officials recently told GOP senators that they’re running out of money to secure the border and need Congress to immediately pass $175 billion to complete the U.S.-Mexico border wall and hire more law-enforcement agents.
The call came as Republicans are working to pass Trump’s sweeping legislative agenda, including a crackdown on immigration. The House passed a resolution last month, but its fate now rests with the Senate, which is eyeing significant changes.