(The Center Square) – Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs visited the southern border in Lukeville, Arizona, as the Tucson Sector faces a migrant surge.
Hobbs has taken a critical tone toward the Biden administration in recent weeks, and she wrote a letter to the president on Friday asking for $512 million for costs incurred by the state on border security and for National Guard troops already in the area to be reassigned.
“But Arizona can’t do this alone, nor should we have to,” she said in a video on Saturday. “We’re asking the federal government to reimburse us for the cost to Arizonans.”
“For far too long, Arizona has borne the brunt of federal inaction on our southern border and I am tired of it. Now is not the time for partisan politics. It’s time for action,” the governor continued.
In addition to the letter sent on Friday, Hobbs also launched Operation SECURE, which would use $2 million in federal funds allocated to the state to bolster border security operations. The Center Square reported Friday that the state government set aside $5 million to deploy the National Guard if it does not reopen “promptly.”
Although the border of entry is smaller compared to others, it is a key tourism access point to get down to Puerto Peñasco, Mexico, which is a popular beach community popular with Arizonans known as “Rocky Point.”
The closure is the result of a larger trend within the Tucson Sector, as migrant apprehensions continue to increase in recent weeks. Last week, there were 18,900 apprehensions in the sector, according to a post from its chief patrol agent. The week before there were 17,500 apprehensions, and the week before that there were 15,300.
Leaders in Arizona have criticized the decision by Customs and Border Protection to temporarily shut down the port of entry.
“The closure has caused an immediate collapse of economic activity and legal movement through that critical port of entry,” Arizona House Republicans wrote in a letter to President Joe Biden on Thursday. “Arizonans along the way to Lukeville will needlessly suffer as businesses shutter in communities such as Gila Bend, Ajo, and Why. Additionally, your proposed alternative routes to cross the border force Arizonans and Mexican nationals to travel through known cartel corridors, putting the lives of Americans at risk.”
Some Democratic lawmakers also took a critical tone.
“Ports of entries along the U.S.-Mexico border have been neglected for far too long and we are now experiencing the drastic impacts of this failure,” Sen. Rosanna Gabaldón, D-Sahuarita, said in a statement on Monday. “Instead of closing the Lukeville port of entry, the federal government needs to work on enacting legislation that creates a streamlined immigration system that benefits all interested parties.”
