Arizona's Democrat Governor Katie Hobbs sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Friday making an "urgent request regarding our southern border" amid a surge of illegal immigrants that has completely overwhelmed border agents as the area becomes overrun and portions of a border wall have been breached.
Saying she has "deep concern," Governor Hobbs lamented that "[f]or far too long, Arizona has continued to bear the burder of federal inaction in managing our southern border" and warned things have devolved into an "unmitigated humanitarian crisis" following the Biden administration's decision to close the Lukeville Port of Entry. That closure, however, did not do anything to stop the slow of illegal immigrants.
NEW: Another enormous line of hundreds upon hundreds of adult men from around the globe crossed illegally into Lukeville, AZ last night, and are now waiting for Border Patrol to take custody of them, as they expect to be released into US. Non-stop flow of illegal crossings here. pic.twitter.com/vnqz6bDWlX
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) December 7, 2023
BREAKING: Border wall breach & mass incursion taking place in Lukeville, AZ in a completely different area than before. Hundreds crossing illegally east of the port of entry right now. Many men from Africa & families from Ecuador & MX. Men from Guinea chanting “America!” to us. pic.twitter.com/HeXvSGxpco
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) December 8, 2023
Border wall breach in Lukeville, AZ.
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) December 8, 2023
Federal contractors preparing to fix it. Discarded blade on the ground on the MX side still. Smugglers/cartels use power tools that can cut through the steel & concrete. Border Patrol says it’s whack a mole fixing holes & then new one opens. pic.twitter.com/wa4lJCPxyV
"Our ports of entry are essential to our state and our country's economy, and it is vital that they be properly staffed and resourced to continue to fuel economic growth in the state," Hobbs explained in her letter to Biden.
More on Hobbs' request from her letter:
Of the approximately 2,500 National Guard members currently on federal active duty orders on the southern border, 243 are already in the Tucson Sector and can be reassigned to reopen the Lukeville Port of Entry. I request that you do so immediately. Further, to the extent it is necessary, I am requested 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. With this additional manpower, I am confident you will have the resources necessary to continue trade and tourism through the port while keeping Arizona communities safe.
In addition to her request for more manpower, Hobbs asked Biden to reimburse her state for the $512,529,333 she said her state has spent "on border operations including migrant transportation, drug interdiction, and law enforcement" as a result of "the federal government's failure to secure our border."
The federal government must act immediately to solve the unmitigated crisis caused by the Lukeville Port of Entry closure.
— Governor Katie Hobbs (@GovernorHobbs) December 8, 2023
Today, I sent a letter to President Biden calling on him to reassign National Guard members to assist in its reopening, as well as reimburse the… pic.twitter.com/JYmiBLvi6k
The border crisis, of course, was not caused just by the closure of the Lukeville Port of Entry — it was caused by the Biden administration's flawed immigration policies that caused disastrous and deadly results that have even Democrat governors seeking help from the man responsible for their border woes.
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