Despite being a Democrat, Governor Katie Hobbs of Arizona has decided to mobilize the state’s national guard and send it to the border to bring some degree of sanity and stability to the Arizona-Mexico border. In her statement on the decision, Gov. Hobbs blamed Biden for not delivering border security.
The Arizona governor’s move comes amidst increasing problems at the border as more and more migrants flow across and Speaker Mike Johnson attempts to use aid to Israel and Ukraine as leverage to force the Biden Administration to intervene and defend the border.
Her office, announcing the move, said, “One week after her letter to President Biden asking him to reassign the Arizona National Guard to re-open the Lukeville Port of Entry, Governor Katie Hobbs signed an Executive Order to carry out the next step in Operation SECURE, mobilizing the National Guard to southern Arizona. There, they will assist the Department of Public Safety and local law enforcement agencies with enforcement activities, including fentanyl interdiction, analytical support, and human trafficking enforcement efforts.”
Similarly, in a statement on the matter, Gov. Hobbs said, “Yet again, the federal government is refusing to do its job to secure our border and keep our communities safe. 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.”
In a separate press release, the governor’s office described what the mobilized National Guard troopers would be used for and what makes the situation pressing enough for the state government to get involved. “Operation SECURE will create a new Border Security Office within the Department of Homeland Security. The office, funded for the year with $2 million from ARPA, will serve as a hub of coordination for border security operations to ensure local, state, and federal assets are being properly leveraged to keep Arizonans safe and maintain a secure, humane, and orderly border,” the press release claimed.
Continuing, the governor’s office said, “In addition, unless the Biden Administration promptly reopens the port of entry, the operation will mobilize up to $5 million for the National Guard to augment and support the Department of Public Safety and local law enforcement agencies along the southern border, including fentanyl interdiction efforts.”
Speaking about the situation at the time, Gov. Hobbs described the situation as an “unmitigated crisis,” saying, “The decision to close the Lukeville Port of Entry has led to an unmitigated crisis in the area and put Arizona’s safety and commerce at risk. Our ports of entry are vital for security and trade, and insufficient resources hinder our ability to properly manage the influx of migrants who have continued to come to Lukeville.”
Continuing, she said that Arizona is at a breaking point, saying, “With the launch of Operation SECURE, the State of Arizona is doing everything we can to secure the border, but we are at a breaking point. We need the federal government to step up, do its job, and bring security and order to our border.”
Featured image credit: By Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America – Katie Hobbs, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=128390248
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