Its advisory board included politicians and activists with a hard-line stance on illegal immigration, including former secretary of state of Kansas Kris Kobach;[7] former congressman Tom Tancredo;[8] Blackwater USA founder Erik Prince; former Milwaukee sheriff David Clarke;[9] and former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon,[5][10] who is chairman of the board.

[22] In an email to The Washington Post, Kolfage stated that he began the fundraiser as "political games from both parties" have been holding back funding for the wall.

[25][28] On July 8, 2019, as he stood in front of a "Build the Wall" banner, in Leavenworth, Kansas, Kobach announced his candidacy for the 2020 United States Senate election in Kansas to replace retiring Senator Pat Roberts, saying, referring to his campaign theme: "I've been on the southern border constantly in the past six months and I can tell you stories that will make your skin crawl."

[29] Kobach received the endorsement of former congressman Tom Tancredo,[citation needed] who is known for his political views on illegal immigration and is also a board member for We Build The Wall.

[33] Common Cause Vice President of Policy and Litigation Paul S. Ryan said, "At a minimum, this Kobach for Senate fundraising solicitation email appears to violate the 'paid for by' disclaimer requirement" for official campaign communications.

She criticized Kobach's employment in the controversial privately financed and constructed scheme to build the southern border wall.

[38][39] In June 2019, Florida's Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, which oversees Florida charities soliciting funds from the public, initiated investigations into several complaints, including allegations of questionable use of collected funds, the organization only having one director (Kolfage) on its board of directors instead of the mandatory minimum of three required for a nonprofit organization, and filing false statements about the board.

[40][41] In August 2020, the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District in New York announced indictments of Kolfage and Bannon for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering.

Shortly after the pardon, Vance subpoenaed Wells Fargo for records related to Bannon's role in We Build the Wall.

In an unannounced operation, the organization constructed between 1/2 and 1-mile of bollard fencing using "weathered steel" on a section of the border in Sunland Park, New Mexico, on the property of American Eagle Brick Company, near El Paso, Texas.

The section begins on the Rio Grande river and extends over 2,500 feet (760 m) to the lower elevations of Mount Cristo Rey in New Mexico.

The United Constitutional Patriots helped with site visits by We Build the Wall (WBtW) and supplied video that was used in their funding campaign.

"[54] Construction was delayed for two days after the mayor issued a "cease and desist" order, but resumed on May 30, 2019, after research on zoning showed the structure was within code.

[49][50][55] In May, after completing a demonstration half-mile wall on private property in Sunland Park, New Mexico, WBtW was accused by local officials of failing to first obtain required work permits.

Kolfage also tweeted "So Sunland Park officials support open borders, the sex slaves and illegal drugs coming into their communities?

The IBWC also accused WBtW of installing a gate for the wall on federal land in lieu of proper permits or authorizations, while illegally preventing access to waterways and a public monument.

According to emails obtained via Open Records Act requests, WBtW was informed about such permits and studies that were required to build the gate on federal property but ignored them and proceeded with construction anyway.

Kolfage responded with accusations, in lieu of any evidence, that both Sunland Park and IBWC officials were corrupt and conspiring with Mexican drug cartels.

[60] On December 3, 2019, Hidalgo County district judge Randy Crane ordered the group to temporarily halt all construction due to its plans to build in the floodplain the Rio Grande, which a lawyer for the National Butterfly Center argued would create a flooding risk.

[62] IBWC noted to Judge Crane that WBtW didn't supply the hydraulic models necessary for construction along the banks of the river, only providing a six-page analysis.

[56] On January 9, 2020, a federal judge lifted an injunction, allowing a construction firm to move forward with the 3 miles (4.8 km) project in the floodplain of the Rio Grande River.

[64] The Texas Tribune and ProPublica also noted that in February IBWC Commissioner Jayne Harkins donated $500 to Trump and a Republican PAC.

[56][60] In July, Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Paxton Warner told Judge Crane that four areas of erosion needed to be fixed.

[56][60] In response to the ProPublica report and erosion problems, Trump tweeted that "I disagreed with doing this very small (tiny) section of wall", going on to say "It was only done to make me look bad, and perhsps [sic] it now doesn't even work.

[67] As of July 2021, the property had been reassessed at 100 times its original value, and Fisher was hoping to sell a 3-mile section of wall (4.8 km) that had cost $30 million to build.