DEMING, New Mexico — The Biden administration has begun quietly filling in small portions of unfenced areas on the southern border where it had abruptly halted Trump-era projects after the president wagered a brutal campaign condemning the idea of a wall.

The Department of Homeland Security is halfway through filling in 129 gaps in border wall projects after President Joe Biden had abruptly halted the remaining 300 miles of Trump-era wall construction when he took office in January 2021, according to DHS agency U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

WALL OF WASTE: BIDEN ENDING TRUMP WALL LEAVES BORDER RANCHER WITH FIELD OF 'RUSTING' STEEL

The move, not publicized with pictures and press conferences, is a pivot by the White House from its knee-jerk reaction of stopping wall construction on Biden's first day in office that wasted billions of congressional funding and materials for the wall.

Dozens of gaps have been filled across Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Texas, where more than 450 miles of 18- and 30-foot slatted steel wall was installed by former President Donald Trump. But despite such efforts, much of the 2,000-mile boundary is wide open.

"To date, DHS has authorized the completion of multiple life, safety, environmental and other remediation activities which include, among other activities, the closure of 129 gates and gaps across the Southwest Border. Of the 129 approved gates and gaps, 68 have been completed to date with an additional 50 anticipated for completion by September 30, 2023," CBP said. "The remaining 11 are anticipated to be completed in Fiscal Year (FY) 2024."

The Biden White House had immediately halted all wall construction on day one to determine if any remaining construction was necessary. In studies it conducted in 2021 and 2022, it determined 129 gaps should be filled and a slew of environmental concerns, such as runoff, should be addressed. But the building was slow to start.

"There never was any legitimate justification for waiting nearly 2 1/2 years to get around to doing construction that should have never stopped and that should have been completed by now," said Ken Oliver, director of Right on Immigration at the conservative think tank Texas Public Policy Foundation. "It was a highly irresponsible and unlawful action by the Biden administration to halt construction of duly appropriated border wall funding in the first place."

The gaps in between projects being filled don't come close to matching the 300 miles of new barrier that was not installed. However, the gaps are being funded with leftover money from the Trump wall projects. The Biden administration has not disclosed how many miles the gap projects total.

Biden vowed in an interview with NPR in August 2020 that "there will not be another foot of wall constructed on my administration, No. 1."

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had authorized the Department of Defense to terminate all projects funded with $10.5 billion in money that Trump had redirected from the Pentagon. Just $2 billion of the $10.5 billion was unspent, and that balance was returned.

An additional $5 billion on top of the $10.5 billion came from Congress and was specifically for border infrastructure. The Biden administration chose not to spend what was left of it on wall but rather on other types of infrastructure, such as roads.

What was left of the $5 billion has gone toward filling select gaps. The money will also go toward installing gates that allow vehicles through, finishing or installing drainage systems, completing permanent erosion control and slope stabilization measures, creating roads along the border, and clearing away unused materials.

One such gap in Deming that was no wider than 20 feet and had been left open for 2 1/2 years was finally shut in the last two weeks when CBP installed a matching gate in the opening, according to landowner and fourth-generation rancher Russell Johnson.

Mexican cartels funneled people through the smaller gap. During a tour of Johnson's property, he pointed to well-worn foot trails leading away from the gap as an indication of just how popular a spot this was.

The Border Patrol's El Paso region identified more than 20 gaps where gates were needed. Progress has been slow, as the last available count for all projects in October 2022 revealed that none of the gaps had been filled. Johnson's new gate is now among the first.

In Arizona, the holes are starting to be filled, according to Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), who visited the border city of Yuma in June.

"Significant progress has been made on construction for all the gaps, with two nearly finished and all four expected to be complete within two months," a spokesperson for Kelly said in a statement. "This remains a priority for him and he will continue pushing to have the construction finished as soon as possible."

Immigrants trying to enter Yuma were inadvertently funneled to certain spots where gaps existed — and where Border Patrol agents were waiting. Theoretically, fewer gaps mean fewer people coming through, but it could also funnel people seeking to enter to other spots without a wall.

Border wall projects, including the ones in Yuma, may have had different parts completed at different times. If wall projects were canceled before being completed, it would have resulted in gaps in the overall project — sometimes 10 feet, a few hundred feet, or several miles wide.

Instead of installing the same type of dark steel slatted beams, CBP in Yuma placed 30-foot-tall wire mesh panels in some of the gaps, as well as doors that open to allow police to come and go.

Local officials, including Yuma Mayor Doug Nicholls, called it an "important first step to getting this border crisis under control."

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) opposed the fill-in projects and suggested that DHS should "refocus" on fixing environmental damage and removing walls that he described as "divisive."

The Washington Examiner reached out to the White House for comment.