Donald Trump Once Told Students To "Go Around" Any Walls, Which Is Pretty Ironic
At this point, it doesn't seem like the president is letting this border wall go without a fight. Even though he may believe that building a wall between the United States and Mexico would fix some sort of issue, people can't ignore how ironic this video of Donald Trump telling students to go through walls during a 2004 commencement address actually is. You know what they say, once it's on the internet there's no turning back.
Late on Wednesday, Jan. 9, Daily Show host Trevor Noah resurfaced an old video of Donald Trump at a 2004 commencement address at Wagner College in Staten Island, New York. Throughout the address, Trump made the crowd laugh with quick jokes, but eventually led into an "inspiring segment where he told students to "never give up." However, it's his immediate statements after that will make for arguably one of the most ironic moments of 2019.
"Never, ever give up," Trump told the crowd. "Don’t give up. Don’t allow it to happen. If there’s a concrete wall in front of you, go through it. Go over it. Go around it. But get to the other side of that wall."
Elite Daily reached out to the White House for comment about this video and Trump's comments, but did not hear back in time for publication.
Oh internet, you truly do spill the hottest tea in the most unexpected times. Even though Trump might have been all about breaking down walls in the past, it looks like he's changed quite his tune over the past decade. The president's insistence in building a border wall between the United States and Mexico has been an ongoing battle between him and House Democrats, who have consistently denied the $5 billion Trump's requested to build the concrete wall. As a result, the United States is in its third week of a partial government shutdown, which had led national parks and museums to close and impacted some 800,000 federal workers, some of whom are home without pay, while others are required to work but not receiving paychecks.
At first, Trump was vehement that a concrete wall was the only way the United States would solve a serious "border crisis." However, as it became more and more apparent that Democrats weren't having it, Trump decided steel slats would be equally appropriate, despite Democrats not approving that idea either. However, judging by a reported recent prototype of the steel slats design... it might not be that effective.
On Wednesday, Jan. 9, NBC News shared a photo of the Department of Homeland Security testing out prototypes of Trump's steel barriers that would supposedly make up the border wall. According to NBC News, Border Patrol personnel were instructed to try to attempt to break through and destroy these barriers with "common" tools, and it turned out that these steel barriers could be easily destroyed by only using a saw.
In a statement, DHS told NBC that the prototype design had informed more recent steel slat designs, but the prototype was not being replicated. "While the design currently being constructed was informed by what we learned in the prototypes, it does not replicate those designs," said DHS spokesperson Katie Waldman. She added that nevertheless, "even a wall that is being breached is a valuable tool in that it allows us to respond to the attempted illegal entry."
For his part, the president told reporters on the morning of Jan. 10 that "that’s a wall designed by previous administrations." Well, 2019 Trump may not be pleased with the easily-countered wall prototype, but 2004 Trump might have been.
When Trump delivered this address, it's unlikely that he ever thought he'd become the president of the United States. However, now that's a reality. It's truly incredible what can change over the years.
