The Republican National Convention starts tonight, and as a prelude John Oliver has looked back at Trump’s biggest campaign promise in 2016: building a border wall. What’s the status of that “super-duper wall,” as Trump called it, after almost a full presidential term? Would it surprise you to find out that it’s basically a disaster?
Yes, this wall is absolutely pointless. Yes, it’s fundamentally racist, and creates a variety of environmental and ecological problems. Yes, it’s mostly just replacing barriers that already exist. But it’s oh so much more! Did you know it’s easily climbable? Vastly expensive? Being built in completely unnecessary locations, like atop mountains in a wildlife refuge? Hell, you probably heard that Steve Bannon, Trump’s former puppet master, was arrested on a yacht last week; that comes right back to the wall, as well, as he was arrested for fraud over a bullshit scheme to raise money to close off the border.
On the cusp of the RNC, after four years of Trump as president, we’re dealing with massive unemployment, a pandemic that’s killed over 170,000 Americans, the greatest political and social divisions we’ve seen in 50 years, and an utterly pointless wall that’s basically just one giant racist scam. To the extent that it exists, it’s a perfect metaphor for the complete travesty that is the Trump administration. Cool.
Here’s Oliver with more on the insane boondoggle that is the border wall, and remember, the RNC starts tonight.