President Trump discussed filling a border trench with alligators or snakes during private border security discussions.

During the height of border tensions within the White House in March, Trump privately floated a number of extreme ideas to defend against migrants. Those ideas included a water-filled trench stocked with either alligators or snakes and an electric wall with the ability to pierce human flesh, according the New York Times.

After the president suggested shooting migrants who threw rocks, staff informed him that it was illegal, and he backed off of the idea before wondering in a later meeting about shooting migrants in the legs to slow them down, which staff informed him was also illegal.

When Trump floated the ideas in March came at a time in which Trump also ordered advisers to shut down the whole 2,000 mile border by noon on the day following the meeting. Staff feared that doing so would strand tourists in Mexico and would lead to an economic meltdown. Trump backed off the idea after a week of meetings but began firing aides that had gone against him.

“The president was frustrated and I think he took that moment to hit the reset button,” said Thomas Homan, Trump’s former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “The president wanted it to be fixed quickly.”

One meeting that was supposed to be 30 minutes ended two hours later with staff attempting to appease him.

“You are making me look like an idiot!” Trump shouted to those in the room. “I ran on this. It’s my issue.”

In the following weeks, there was a shakeup within the Department of Homeland Security that included the departure of Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen.

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