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FACT BRIEF

Has President Joe Biden taken down the southern border wall that former President Donald Trump built?

By Olivera Perkins
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NO

On Joe Biden's first day in office as president, January 20, 2021, he ordered a "pause in construction and obligation of funds" relating to the expansion of the border wall that former President Donald Trump had decreed.

Biden's order says nothing about tearing down the part of the wall between the United States and Mexico built during the Trump administration. In fact, Biden's order gives the option of resuming wall projects.

Biden's order undoes Trump's February 15, 2019, proclamation declaring a national emergency at the southern border.

Biden's order calls for the secretary of defense, the secretary of homeland security and other federal officials to "develop a plan for the redirection of funds concerning the southern border wall."

A January 22, 2021, Associated Press article said "billions of dollars of work" remain unfinished on the wall, but is still under contract.

See a full discussion of this at Lead Stories
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
White House Proclamation on the Termination Of Emergency With Respect To The Southern Border Of The United States And Redirection Of Funds Diverted To Border Wall Construction 
Federal Register Declaring a National Emergency Concerning the Southern Border of the United States
AP News Biden halts border wall building after Trump’s final surge
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Lead Stories
Lead Stories is a fact checking and debunking website at the intersection of big data and journalism that launched in 2015. It scouts for trending stories, images, videos and posts that contain false information in order to fact check them as quickly as possible. It actively monitors the fake-news ecosystem and doesn’t wait for reader tips or reports before getting started on a story.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.