Aug 15, 2026
Roque Planas, – THe Guardian (U.K.)
Stephan: Trump thinks of himself as a king, and the United States as his personal territory. As this story validates he cares nothing for the wellbeing of America’s National Parks or forests. He can do as he likes with them, and he does, because the country no longer has a functional Congress.
Heavy machinery seen operating in famous Santa Elena Canyon amid outcry over new wall infrastructure in beloved Texas park Credit: Natalie Newman / Guardian
Bulldozers have begun plowing up ground at the mouth of Big Bend national park’s famed Santa Elena Canyon as part of the Trump administration’s multibillion-dollar “smart wall” expansion on the US-Mexico border, according to new footage taken by activists who have been monitoring the site.
Tensions have run high since the Trump administration announced plans to erect new border security infrastructure in the roughly 500-mile Big Bend region of south-west Texas, which includes the Lone Star State’s largest and most-visited national park.
Since last week, activists have shared video footage that appeared to show heavy machinery laying the groundwork for new border infrastructure that US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) did not announce and initially denied was happening. By Thursday, photographer Natalie Newman captured video footage of bulldozers plowing earth at the mouth of the […]
