Donald Trump Mexico Wall 2017: 'Mexico's Not Going to Pay for the Wall,' Says Rubio
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has, so far, had "no conversation" with Mexican officials about whether Mexico will pay for President Donald Trump's promised southern border wall between the two countries.
During his interview with chief anchor George Stephanopoulos on ABC's "This Week" last Sunday, April 9, Tillerson was asked whether discussions about the supposed wall came up during his meeting at the State Department with Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray the previous week.
"We had no conversation about that issue," Tillerson said. "We have had, I think, very productive talks around actions that can be taken to slow and stem and discourage transmigration of people coming from Central America through Mexico and entering the United States."
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When pressed on the matter, Tillerson simple stated that the wall isn't a top conversation for him and Videgaray.
"It's just not part of our discussions between the foreign minister and myself," he said.
For Sen. Marco Rubio, on the other hand, the topic of the border wall was not off limits for him. In a separate interview on ABC on Sunday, Rubio said that the discussion about the wall did come up during his meetings. According to him, while Mexico refuses to pay for it, the United States should.
"Let me just say, Mexico's not going to pay for the wall. And, by the way, America should, if we believe that's in our national interests to do so," the Florida senator said.
"I think they have a real interest in their border security, in their southern border," Rubio continued, enumerating countries such as El Salvador, Guatemala and the Honduras as sources of migration. "Mexico's as much a transit point now as it is a source of origin for people coming into the United States."
Although Rubio and Tillerson positively described their meetings with Mexican officials, Rubio's statement that the United States should pay for the reinforced U.S.-Mexico border wall is a sign that President Trump could be breaking one of the biggest promises he made during his presidential campaign.
During his election campaign, Trump repeatedly promised his supporters that he would build along the southern border of the country and that Mexico would be paying for it.
The U.S. president has already encountered stumbling blocks in the past regarding his promised wall. In February, he had to deal with the fact that his "great, great wall" would cost $21.6 billion, which is way more than his estimated cost of $12 billion.
Last week, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly testified that the wall's physical reach would be limited.
