Last Friday, as we reported, Arizona’s Governor Katie Hobbs (D-AZ) expressed her displeasure over the Biden Administration’s “failure to secure our border,” requesting that he “reassign National Guard troops” to assist in the reopening of the critical Lukeville Port of Entry:
….Arizona Democrat Governor Katie Hobbs wrote a letter to the federal government demanding they reimburse her state over half a billion dollars for the transport of illegal immigrants, drug interdiction, and law enforcement “due to the federal government’s failure to secure our border.”
The governor also informed the federal government that it owes Arizonans “the $512,529,333 federal border inaction has cost us.” As my colleague Bob Hoge noted, “Hobbs complained in her letter that the Lukeville crossing is vital to Arizona’s health”:
“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,” she said.
It appears Gov. Hobbs didn’t get an answer she liked. On Friday, she issued an executive order placing National Guard troops on the U.S.-Mexico border, including at Lukeville, Arizona, according to reporting by Cameron Arcand of The Center Square:
READ: @GovernorHobbs signs Executive Order sending National Guard troops to the southern border, including Lukeville. pic.twitter.com/7IVS923y9E
— Cameron Arcand (@cameron_arcand) December 15, 2023
Hobbs issued an Executive Order on Friday to send troops to assist authorities at Lukeville and San Miguel. The Lukeville Port of Entry closed on Dec. 4 as U.S. Customs and Border Protection said they did not have the resources to keep it open while also handling the migrant surge in the area.
“Yet again, the federal government is refusing to do its job to secure our border and keep our communities safe,” Hobbs said in a statement Friday.
“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,” the Democrat added.
As this is a breaking story, RedState will provide further updates as they become available.
