In a Friday morning tweet, President Donald Trump threatened to shut down the U.S.-Mexico border in a bid to force a deal on wall funding.
In that tweet, Trump said he would be “Forced to close the Southern Border entirely if the Obstructionist Democrats do not give us the money to finish the Wall.”
We will be forced to close the Southern Border entirely if the Obstructionist Democrats do not give us the money to finish the Wall & also change the ridiculous immigration laws that our Country is saddled with. Hard to believe there was a Congress & President who would approve!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 28, 2018
That was an unsettling message in Nogales, Arizona, where stores depend on Mexican shoppers and the majority of sales tax revenues comes from those sales.
But impacts could also be felt across the state and region, according to County Supervisor Bruce Bracker.
“The Santa Cruz County economy is solely dependent on trade with Mexico,” he said. “But if you continue that into Pima County and Maricopa County, it has a huge impact as well.”
Particularly vulnerable are the export manufacturing and produce import industries, Bracker said. Most winter produce in the Western United States comes through Nogales and Texas ports of entry, and grocery store shelves could get sparse with just a few days of closure.
“And probably in a week you wouldn't have anything,” Bracker added.
In September, 260,000 pedestrians crossed through Nogales ports of entry, along with nearly 300,000 personal vehicles and more than 25,000 commercial trucks, according to federal data.
