Arizona’s Democratic Gov. Sends National Guard To Border

Arizona’s Democratic Gov. Sends National Guard To Border

Gov. Katie Hobbs Citing Feds’ Inaction On Migrant Influx

By Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs signed an executive order on Friday to deploy National Guard members to the southern border with Mexico to tackle border issues, citing the lack of action from the federal government.

“Yet again, the federal government is refusing to do its job to secure our border and keep our communities safe,” Ms. Hobbs, a Democrat, said in a press release on Dec. 15.

---

“With this Executive Order, I am taking action where the federal government won’t,” the governor stated.

“But we can’t stand alone, Arizona needs resources and manpower to reopen the Lukeville crossing, manage the flow of migrants, and maintain a secure, orderly, and humane border,” she added.

Ms. Hobbs said the Biden administration has failed to respond to her request for reimbursement for border security spending.

“Despite continued requests for assistance, the Biden administration has refused to deliver desperately needed resources to Arizona’s border,” the governor stated.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Dec. 4 closed the Lukeville Point of Entry until further notice to redirect resources to increased illegal smuggling of migrants elsewhere on the border.

CBP said it was “surging all available resources to expeditiously and safely process migrants.”

Hobbs Requested Over $512 Million Reimbursement

Ms. Hobbs sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Dec. 8 urging him to reassign National Guard members to assist in reopening the Lukeville Point of Entry.

Ms. Hobbs said the federal government’s decision to close the border entry has led to “an unmitigated humanitarian crisis” and “put Arizona’s safety and commerce at risk.”

In her letter, Ms. Hobbs called on the Biden administration to reassign around 243 National Guard members stationed in the Tucson region to help reopen the Lukeville Port of Entry.

“Further, to the extent it is necessary, I am requesting that additional National Guard members currently on federal active duty orders be reassigned to Arizona to assist U.S. Customs and Border Protection to reopen the Lukeville Port of Entry,” she stated.

Ms. Hobbs also requested the Federal government to reimburse the state for over $512 million in costs incurred as a result of “federal border inaction.”

“Additionally, due to the federal government’s failure to secure our border, the State of Arizona has spent $512,529,333 on border operations including migrant transportation, drug interdiction, and law enforcement,” she said in the letter.

“I am requesting the federal government reimburse the state for these expenses,” the governor said.

Dozens of illegal aliens await instructions near the Lukeville Port of Entry in Lukeville, Ariz., on Dec. 7, 2023. (Allan Stein/The Epoch Times)

Border security has often been a partisan issue, with Republicans seeking more restrictive and aggressive measures while Democrats have placed more emphasis on the humanitarian needs of impoverished migrants and asylum-seekers coming from around the world.

President Biden has also felt pressure from some Democrats, including the big city mayors of Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, and New York, who have asked his administration for more funding and action to reduce their immigration burden.

CBP reported 232,972 migrant encounters for August—up nearly 27 percent from July’s total, including unaccompanied children.

Approximately 50,000 encounters in August were in the active Tucson sector, which includes most of the 372-mile-long southern Arizona border. The agency conducted 3,212 rescues, bringing the year’s total to 29,365.

Allan Stein and Reuters contributed to this report.

*********

(TLB) published this article by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times as posted at ZH

Header featured image (edited) credit: Migrants at border/Yahoo News screen shot

Emphasis added by (TLB)

••••

••••

Stay tuned to …

••••

The Liberty Beacon Project is now expanding at a near exponential rate, and for this we are grateful and excited! But we must also be practical. For 7 years we have not asked for any donations, and have built this project with our own funds as we grew. We are now experiencing ever increasing growing pains due to the large number of websites and projects we represent. So we have just installed donation buttons on our websites and ask that you consider this when you visit them. Nothing is too small. We thank you for all your support and your considerations … (TLB)

••••

Comment Policy: As a privately owned web site, we reserve the right to remove comments that contain spam, advertising, vulgarity, threats of violence, racism, or personal/abusive attacks on other users. This also applies to trolling, the use of more than one alias, or just intentional mischief. Enforcement of this policy is at the discretion of this websites administrators. Repeat offenders may be blocked or permanently banned without prior warning.

••••

Disclaimer: TLB websites contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available to our readers under the provisions of “fair use” in an effort to advance a better understanding of political, health, economic and social issues. The material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving it for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material for purposes other than “fair use” you must request permission from the copyright owner.

••••

Disclaimer: The information and opinions shared are for informational purposes only including, but not limited to, text, graphics, images and other material are not intended as medical advice or instruction. Nothing mentioned is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.