Arizona’s Democrat Attorney General Kris Mayes has boldly declared she is unafraid to stand against President-elect Donald Trump's sweeping deportation plans, signaling her commitment to opposing more vigorous border enforcement. This stance reflects a growing divide between leaders prioritizing political correctness over national security and those advocating for stricter immigration policies. Critics argue that such opposition undermines federal efforts to combat illegal immigration and protect American communities, especially in a border state such as Arizona. Her remarks underscore the ongoing battle between state officials and federal immigration policies aimed at upholding the rule of law.
Speaking to the Guardian, Mayes said that any attempts to send Dreamers, beneficiaries of the Obama-era DACA program, back to their home countries would be crossing a “red line” and that she would not tolerate the incoming Trump Administration’s plans to deport them. She threatened to do everything in her power to fight so-called family separation at the southern border legally or what she likes to call the construction of “deportation camps.”
“Not on our soil,” Mayes said, arguing that the Dreamers, or illegal aliens, are “part of the very fabric of our state and we will protect them.”
Supporters of DACA— a controversial Obama-era program that grants temporary legal status and work permits to individuals brought to the U.S. illegally as children argue that it provides opportunities for young people who grew up in the U.S. to contribute to society. However, critics see it as an overreach of executive power that undermines immigration laws and incentivizes illegal immigration. Conservatives often stress that while compassion is essential, DACA bypasses Congress, creating a patchwork solution instead of addressing broader immigration reform or securing the southern border.
“I think the Supreme Court will ultimately see the merits of protecting them," Mayes said of the program. “We want to give the courts the opportunity to make the right decision here, and we’ll be making very strong arguments on that proposition."
President-elect Donald Trump opposed DACA during his first term, but the Supreme Court stopped it in DHS v. University of California.
Pro-Trump lawyer Mike Davis accused Mayes of obstructing Trump’s immigration plans and “plotting to overturn the will of American voters.” He threatened to send her to prison and “make political lives Hell” if she refused to comply with Trump’s mandate.
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