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Businesses along San Diego's border brace for potential closure after President's threat

Border Fence San Ysidro
Posted at 6:19 PM, Mar 29, 2019
and last updated 2019-03-29 21:31:35-04

SAN YSIDRO, Calif. (KGTV) — Businesses along the U.S.-Mexico border are bracing for a potential border shutdown, after President Donald Trump tweeted the threat Friday morning.

"If you get a day or two of closures, then there are a lot of businesses that won’t make it," predicted Jason Wells, the executive director of the San Ysidro Chamber of Commerce.

He says, back in November when the San Ysidro Port of Entry was closed for six hours on a Sunday morning, it caused a $5.3 million economic loss to the businesses in the area.

RELATED: Trump threatens to 'close' parts of U.S.-Mexican border if Mexico doesn't halt immigration

Across the entire southern border, he says there is about $1 billion in commerce every day that could be impacted by a closure.

A lot of that impact would be felt on the Mexican side as well.

"This is a heavy handed ploy to get Mexico to react," commented Wells.