President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to close the US border with Mexico next week, potentially disrupting millions of legal border crossings and billions of dollars in trade if Mexico does not stop immigrants from reaching the United States.
Department of Homeland Security officials warned that traffic with Mexico could slow as the agency shifts 750 border personnel from ports of entry to help process asylum seekers who are turning up between official crossing points."Make no mistake: Americans may feel effects from this emergency," Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said in a statement. Ms Nielsen said the personnel shift would lead to commercial delays and longer wait times at crossing points.
But a border shutdown would disrupt tourism and commerce between the United States and its third-largest trade partner, which totaled US$612 billion last year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. "We are Siamese twins - we are so entangled together," said Alan Russell, chief executive of the Tecma Group, an outsourcing firm.
As president, Mr Trump has legal authority to close particular ports of entry, but he could be open to a legal challenge if he decided to close all of them immediately, said Stephen Legomsky, a former chief counsel at US Citizenship and Immigration Services under Democratic President Barack Obama.