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U.S. NEWS Saturday 13 auguSt 2022

Arizona won’t wait for feds, starts filling border wall gaps

By BOB CHRISTIE Democratic President Joe
Associated Press Biden on immigration. It
PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona was immediately prompt-
began moving in shipping ed by the announcement
containers to close a 1,000- of the end of the “Remain
foot gap in the border wall in Mexico” program that
near the southern Arizona was announced this week,
farming community of Ducey’s top lawyer, Annie
Yuma on Friday, with offi- Foster said. That program
cials saying they were act- required asylum-seekers to
ing to stop migrants after return to Mexico and await
repeated, unfulfilled prom- a court date, although
ises from the Biden admin- thousands of migrants who
istration to block off the make it into the country
area. were not returned.
The move by Arizona Arizona has been sending
comes without explicit per- two to three buses of asy-
mission on federal land, lum seekers from Yuma to
with state contractors start- Washington over the last
ing to move in 60-foot-long three months to make a
(18.3-meter-long) ship- political statement as the This photo provided by the Arizona Governor’s Office shows shipping containers that will be used
ping containers and stack- number of arriving migrants to fill a 1,000 foot gap in the border wall with Mexico near Yuma, Ariz., on Friday, Aug. 12, 2022.
ing two of the 9-foot-tall overwhelmed local re- Associated Press
(2.7-meter-tall) containers sources. Ducey began the politicians have tapped but the administration later January through June in
on top of each other early program in May and has into border security as a agreed to some barriers, the Yuma sector, nearly
Friday. They plan to com- said everyone on the bus potent political foil in an citing safety. quadruple from the same
plete the job within days, trips are going voluntarily election year. He packed a The Department of Home- period last year. The only
and the containers will be to the capital with intend- signing letter for the budget land Security planned work other Border Patrol sectors
topped with 4 feet (1.2 me- ed final destinations in East with criticism of Biden. to close four wide gaps in with more traffic were Del
ters) of razor wire, said Ka- Coast cities. “Arizona will not sit idly by the wall near Yuma to bet- Rio and Rio Grande Valley
tie Ratlief, Republican Gov. Texas also is busing migrants as the Biden administration ter protect migrants who in South Texas.
Doug Ducey’s deputy chief to the East, and the mayors fails to do its job and safe- can slip down a slope or Despite the federal prom-
of staff. of New York and Washing- guard our state and nation drown walking through a ise to fill in the gaps, Arizo-
The state plans to fill three ton sought federal help last from the clear and present low section of the Colora- na officials said no action
gaps in the border wall month to deal with the in- danger of an unsecure bor- do River. had been taken to actually
constructed during former flux, a request that brought der,” Ducey’s letter said. Homeland Security Secre- close the gaps. The federal
President Donald Trump’s a gleeful response from The Biden Administration tary Alejandro Mayorkas government apparently
tenure in the coming weeks Republicans who say the announced late last month authorized completion of put the project out to bid
totaling 3,000 feet (914.4 pleas are evidence the U.S. that it had authorized com- the project near the Mo- this week, but that may
meters). is in an immigration crisis. pletion of the Trump-fund- relos Dam in July, a move takes weeks or months.
“The federal government As of Aug. 11, the state of ed U.S.-Mexico border wall officials said reflected the Foster said he decided to
has committed to doing Arizona had sent 1,425 asy- near Yuma. administration’s “priority to act even if the federal gov-
this, but we cannot wait for lum seekers to Washington, The area has become one deploy modern, effective ernment later objects.
their action,” Ratlief said. according to the gover- of the busiest corridors for border measures and also “At this point, we are clos-
John Mennell, a spokes- nor’s office. illegal crossings, and they improving safety and se- ing that gap and we’ll fig-
man for U.S. Customs and Ducey is using $6 million for planned to fill in four wide curity along the Southwest ure out the consequences
Border Protection, said the the project out of $335 mil- gaps. Arizona officials said Border.” as we move forward,” Fos-
agency had just learned of lion the Legislature autho- they did not know why Arizona points to a rising ter said at a briefing for
Arizona’s action and “is not rized in June to construct there was a discrepancy number of migrants com- reporters. “But bottom line
prepared to comment at virtual or physical fencing between the three gaps ing into the state and ac- is that the federal govern-
this time.” along the border with Mex- they identified and the fed- companying drug smug- ment has a duty to protect
The move is the latest push- ico. eral government’s plans. gling as a major reason the states — that’s part of
back by a Republican-led Ducey, who co-chairs the Biden had pledged during for their action. Agents the contract, that’s part of
border state to what they Republican Governors As- his campaign to cease all stopped migrants more the constitution. They failed
contend is inaction by sociation, and other GOP future wall construction, than 160,000 times from to do that.”q