Puny? You aren't dumb enough to think that there won't be cost overruns like everything else govt. does, are you? You aren't dumb enough to think the wall is a one-time expenditure, are you? You aren't dumb enough to think the govt. can just plow through private and tribal lands without it being a mess, are you?
The GAO estimated just a fence along the border (what remains anyway) would
cost $6.5 million, per mile. That doesn't include infrastructure (like roads and subsequent maintence) needed to be built to get to some of these areas.
DHS estimated a mile of
fencing to be $16 million.
MIT estimates a 30ft wall (with 10ft tunnel barrier) would cost $31.2 billion.
In 2017, DHS spent
$274 million on maintenance alone. One can estimate a YEARLY maintenance budget of $750 million on a full wall. In 2011 alone,
CBP fixed more than 4,000 fence breaches.
2/3 of the border is owned by the govt. or tribes. That was fenced after the 2006 Act to do so. Ever wonder why there isn't one running along Texas, where a majority of the border is priovate land? Because legal battles are expensive and lengthy. Eminent Domain is an option I guess, but keep in mind that under Bush, they tried that. The legal battle for
that one case took 7 years. At least one indian tribe
has said they don't want a wall along their 75 mile stretch. You probably can't blame them after contractors
dug up an indian burial ground while building a fence in 2007. The
DHS said in 2009 that non-federal property procurement delayed the fence construction.
