On Wednesday, the Biden administration sued the state of Arizona for constructing a border wall out of shipping containers this year in an effort to stop the influx of illegal immigrants.
The lawsuit, which was filed in federal court in Arizona, alleges that the shipping containers trespass federal lands that the state is not authorized to use, according to CBS. Federal officials argue that the makeshift wall threatens public safety and hinders law enforcement from carrying out their duties.
As Townhall covered, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) ordered buses of released migrants to be sent to left-wing sanctuary cities like Washington, D.C., New York City and Chicago in an effort to slow immigration. And, he signed an executive order to have shipping containers placed along the border to close gaps in the wall. The lawsuit alleges that this violates the U.S. Constitution.
Previously, Arizona’s governor-elect, Democrat Katie Hobbs, claimed this wall was a waste of tax dollars.
“Look, as a border state, Arizona has certainly borne the brunt of decades of inaction from both parties in Washington. We need real action on immigration reform. We need real border security," Hobbs said during her campaign.
"But in the meantime, you know, a lot of things Governor Ducey has done, putting migrants on buses to Washington, D.C., placing shipping containers at the border, are really political stunts at the expense of taxpayer dollars where we could really be using those dollars where they are meaningful, providing meaningful relief in border communities that are feeling the effects of crime at the border,” she claimed.
Construction of the wall began in Yuma, Arizona after Ducey’s executive action. The project was overseen by the Interior Department’s Bureau of Reclamation and the National Forest System, CBS noted. As of December, the containers span four miles.
This week, Ducey’s office wrote a letter to the Justice Department responding to its intent to sue over the shipping container wall.
"Arizona's border barrier was always intended to be a temporary solution until the federal government erects a permanent solution," Anni Foster, Ducey's general counsel, reportedly wrote in the letter. "Arizona and contractors stand ready to assist in the removal of the barriers, but the federal government owes it to Arizonans and all Americans to release a timeline on when construction will begin and details about how it will secure the border while construction is underway."