Trump pitched solar-powered border wall ‘so it pays for itself’

During a meeting with Republican Congressional leadership on Tuesday, President Trump pitched the idea of putting solar panels on his border wall.

“The president is committed to building the wall and securing the border and I commend him for it. He’s continuing to fight and following through on that promise. One idea he is looking at is a wall that would actually function as a solar panel to ultimately pay for itself,” House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) told The Hill after meeting with Trump at the White House.

“I’m glad he’s being innovative and I’m fully supportive of helping him build the wall however we can can legislatively,” Scalise added. “He is continuing to pursue every option to make sure it happens.”

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Trump’s suggestion comes after the Associated Press reported in April that one of the proposed designs for the wall includes solar panels on sections of the wall. 

“I like the wall to be able to pay for itself,” said Thomas Gleason a managing partner of Gleason Partners LLC. which proposed the solar panel design.

The wall was a major campaign promise from Trump, who had vowed that Mexico would pay for the wall, something that the country has rejected. Trump has since turned to Congress to fund the wall, but has had a tough time gaining support for it in his proposed budget.

As of April, the Trump administration reportedly only had $20 million to fund the structure. Trump’s proposal for a wall covering 1,000 miles is estimated to cost $20 billion.