"Walls work, it’s not my opinion," Nielsen said at the ceremony near downtown Calexico, a rural border town of approximately 38,000 residents. "It’s not a tag line. It’s a fact."
Construction of the 30-foot, 2.5-mile-long wall began in February and lasted eight months. Nielsen watched as welders affixed a sign to the wall to commemorate the event. It's now the tallest barrier on the entire 2,000-mile-long southwest border.
"Looking at this, I would not attempt to climb it," Nielsen said.
A plaque with President Trump's name was welded onto the wall after the ceremony as Nielsen and U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan watched.
