Governor Hobbs signs Executive Order to send AZ National Guard to border communities
PHOENIX (KYMA, KECY) - Governor Hobbs signed an Executive Order to send the Arizona National Guard to the southern border.
The order comes a week after the governor asked President Biden to reassign the Arizona National Guard to reopen the Lukeville Port of Entry.
According to the press release, this move is the next step in Operation SECURE which will mobilize the National Guard to southern Arizona.
They will help the Department of Public Safety and local law enforcement agencies with border enforcement activities.
Including fentanyl interdiction, analytical support, and human trafficking enforcement efforts.
“Yet again, the federal government is refusing to do its job to secure our border and keep our communities safe,” said Governor Katie Hobbs. “With this Executive Order, I am taking action where the federal government won’t. 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. Despite continued requests for assistance, the Biden administration has refused to deliver desperately needed resources to Arizona’s border.”
The National Guard will be stationed at multiple locations along the southern border, including near the Lukeville Port of Entry and the San Miguel crossing.
To read the Executive Order, take a look at the file below.
In response, Representative Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Arizona) issued a statement.
“I do not support Governor Hobbs’ decision to send the Arizona National Guard to the border as a result of the void left by the inaction of the Republicans in Congress and the Biden administration. The Biden administration’s lack of adequate resources and personnel on our southern border has forced Governor Hobbs to take this last resort action in an attempt to reopen Lukeville and address this mounting humanitarian crisis. But I do appreciate that Governor Hobbs has rejected the brutal and cruel tactics of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Texas Governor Greg Abbott who have taken advantage of this crisis to inhumanely and illegally use migrants as political pawns and to politicize and pander instead of working on real solutions.”
“Moving forward in the near-term, President Biden must prioritize resources for southern Arizona and our ports of entry by disseminating aid fairly, as was done with New York City and other major cities faced with migrant influxes. Republicans in Congress must agree to pass a supplemental that surges resources instead of holding our asylum laws hostage. Congress must act now to fix our broken immigration system.”
Representative Raúl M. Grijalva
