President Trump Authorizes Border Wall Work To Begin On 115 Mile Stretch In Texas

Working on Christmas Eve and through the government shutdown over border wall funding, President Donald Trump tweeted he had authorized the construction of a 115-mile stretch of border wall in Texas.

"I am in the Oval Office & just gave out a 115 mile long contract for another large section of the Wall in Texas," President Trump tweeted Monday night. "We are already building and renovating many miles of Wall, some complete.

"Democrats must end Shutdown and finish funding. Billions of Dollars, & lives, will be saved!"

Working in the Oval Office after canceling his trip to Mar-a-Lago in Florida because of the shutdown, President Trump met Monday with Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and other officials to discuss border security issues as a partial government shutdown over his U.S.-Mexico border wall entered Christmas without a clear resolution in sight.