Donald Trump‘s supporters along the Texas border are currently realizing that the man they voted for was serious about building an end-to-end 30-foot high border wall between the United States and Mexico. Even if it goes right through their properties.
As reported by MS Now, the Big Bend region of Texas is currently grappling with the reality of Trump’s plans, which reportedly involve landowners being ordered to let the Trump administration onto their property, or face having it seized through eminent domain proceedings.
The article quotes a letter sent to the property owner explaining that if they don’t reach a “negotiated purchase”, the Trump administration will commence a “referral to the U.S. Department of Justice to initiate the eminent domain/condemnation process.” In addition, the plans required heavy construction in the beloved Big Bend National Park and the administration has waived rules to allow them to build on top of ancient Native American burial grounds.
“A dark blanket of anxiety and fear and anger”
None of this has gone down well with local Texans. The article quotes Terrell County Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland, a longtime conservative Republican who spent 26 years in the Border Patrol. He’s furious at Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Governor Greg Abbott, accusing them of running scared from Trump: “The reason is they’re all afraid of President Trump. Because they know that if they go against him, then he’ll lash out at them and possibly sink their political career.”
Sheriff Cleveland went on to praise Democratic candidate James Talarico‘s plans to protect the border with technology and manpower rather than a physical wall, saying this was precisely what Republicans had long asked for. He pointed out that he’s been able to meet with Talarico, but not with Paxton.
Similar sentiments were expressed by disgruntled Trump voter Bill Ivey, who owns tourist destination Terlingua’s Ghost Town in Big Bend National Park. He detailed that the construction is making the community anxious, to the point where his restaurants are now refusing to serve Trump administration construction workers.
Ivey explained that while he still considers himself a Republican, he’s going to have serious difficulty voting that way in November: “There’s been a dark blanket of anxiety and fear and anger. You can feel the bad energy here because it’s so in our face. … “I’m mad, I’m disgusted, and I’m disappointed in everybody in Washington. I’m a Republican, but I’m not a Republican for Paxton.”
Yolanda Alvarado, who said there was “zero communication” before the heavy machinery arrived, explained that the Trump administration plans will split her ranch in two, separating their family and livestock from the Rio Grande, their water source. She has been issued an eminent domain claim on her land and is fighting it, but is all too aware that the federal government is likely to win their case. As she said: “There’s going to be a huge scar through this land, and I don’t know if I’ll be able to experience it or see it again, or look at it the same way.
Published: Sep 14, 2026 07:15 am