Kellyanne Conway says Trump has 'discovered' there are rivers and mountains on the border that make a physical wall unfeasible


President Trump has vowed to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, claiming during the campaign that the project "is easy, and it can be done inexpensively." At the time, experts warned him that it was not, in fact, simple and cheap — "our southern border is a mixture of winding river, desert, and mountains," former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson warned in October 2016. "Simply building more fences is not the answer."
CNN's Chris Cuomo went after that point on Wednesday night in conversation with presidential counselor Kellyanne Conway. Cuomo criticized Trump's newfound willingness to drop plans for a physical wall after he had insisted on one so determinedly during 2016. "When the president was promising it's going to be a big new wall all the way across, I'll build it in a year, people said exactly what you're saying now," Cuomo told Conway. "And [Trump] shook his head in defiance and said 'no, not me, that's these other guys.'" Cuomo added: "It's not a metaphor, it's not a fence, it doesn't mean sensors, it's a wall."
Conway, though, said Trump has since "discovered" that a physical wall is not feasible. "There are rivers involved, I'm told," Conway said (this is not a rumor, there is in fact an actual river). "There are mountains involved, there's terrain that isn't conducive to building an actual physical structure in some places."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
There might be one or two people out there sighing, "I told you so." Watch below. Jeva Lange
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Morales seeks re-election defying constitution and criminal charges
Under the Radar Supporters of former president Evo Morales clash with authorities as political and economic turmoil deepens
-
June 22 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include a SpaceX flight, Bibi pulling Donald Trump toward war, and an ICE agent looking like a bank robber
-
5 bunker-busting cartoons about the Israel-Iran war
Cartoons Political cartoonists take on Iran waiting for Pete Hegseth to leak war plans and Donald Trump's wish for a Nobel prize
-
Trump's LA deployment in limbo after court rulings
Speed Read Judge Breyer ruled that Trump's National Guard deployment to Los Angeles was an 'illegal' overreach. But a federal appellate court halted the ruling.
-
Marines, National Guard in LA can detain Americans
speed read The troops have been authorized to detain anyone who interferes with immigration raids
-
Trump vows 'very big force' against parade protesters
Speed Read The parade, which will shut down much of the capital, will celebrate the US Army's 250th anniversary and Trump's 79th birthday
-
Smithsonian asserts its autonomy from Trump
speed read The DC institution defied Trump's firing of National Portrait Gallery Director Kim Sajet
-
Trump sends Marines to LA, backs Newsom arrest
speed read California Gov. Gavin Newsom is filing lawsuits in response to Trump's escalation of the federal response to ICE protests
-
Trump foists National Guard on unwilling California
speed read Protests erupted over ICE immigration raids in LA county
-
Supreme Court lowers bar in discrimination cases
speed read The court ruled in favor of a white woman who claimed she lost two deserved promotions to gay employees
-
Trump-Musk relationship implodes in taunts, threats
speed read Musk said Trump's multitrillion bill would cause a recession and accused the president of involvement with Jeffrey Epstein