Trump budget calls for building 65 miles of wall

WASHINGTON (AP) — The first stage of President Donald Trump's proposed border wall in Texas' Rio Grande Valley would be 65 miles long, costing an average of $24.6 million a mile. That's according to administration budget documents for 2019.

The administration had previously disclosed the amount of money it wanted to spend on the wall but hadn't said where it would be built or how long it would be.

Walls currently cover about one-third of the border with Mexico, and the administration wants to eventually spend up to $18 billion to extend the wall to nearly half the border. Trump has insisted Mexico pay for it; Mexico says that's a nonstarter.

The proposal sets aside $782 million to hire about 2,000 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and 750 more Border Patrol agents.