Sen. Tim Scott: Will Finish Border Wall If Elected President

Sen. Tim Scott said Friday that if he's elected president, he'll finish the border wall started during former President Donald Trump's administration and add surveillance technology to "stop fentanyl from killing another 70,000 Americans in the next 12 months."

"The devastation that we are experiencing as Americans is preventable," the South Carolina Republican said on Fox News' "America's Newsroom." "Much of it is preventable if we finish the wall, use technology, fire Joe Biden, and hire me. I will be the president that finishes the wall."

Scott visited the southern border in Arizona Friday, making his first trip to the border as a presidential candidate. In his interview, he blamed Biden for the deaths from fentanyl and the illegal immigration numbers, saying that his administration has not worked to close the border.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, both campaigning for the GOP nomination, have also visited the border this summer.

In 2016, Trump's call to build a wall — and make Mexico pay for it — was a key part of his first presidential campaign. But after Biden was elected, his administration stopped wall construction and reduced funding for it.

Meanwhile, Scott said that "when you have a president who unleashes unsecured borders, we cannot be surprised by more than 6 million illegal crossings," let alone the deaths of 70,000 Americans to fentanyl.

Meanwhile, Trump still leads the polls, with The New York Times showing him at 54% while Scott remains at 3%. But the senator said he's excited, because his campaign is still in third place behind Trump and DeSantis in Iowa.

"What we are understanding every single day is that the voters in Iowa want an optimistic positive message anchored in conservatism," said Scott. "The more we meet people, the more excited we are about the future of this campaign.

"The good news is we have not yet started the sprint, and we are still on the long journey. That starts the fourth quarter. And I'm excited that we will be at the finish line, and we will get there first."