The day before the Arizona House of Representatives is expected to pass a border security bill, lawmakers led by House Speaker Ben Toma visited the border to witness and assess the impact of open border policies on Arizona.
The official delegation visited the U.S. border to observe illegal traffic and its federal facilitation, address Yuma County Supervisors, visit a local crisis shelter, and participate in a roundtable discussion with public and private leaders to understand how the historic border crisis affects the community.
“Arizonans need to ask Democrats like President Joe Biden and Governor Katie Hobbs why they are fighting to keep America’s border wide open. It’s unsafe, it’s unsecure, it’s un-American, and it’s indefensible,” said Toma after the trip.
“Nothing good comes from open borders,” continued Toma. “Only crime, deadly drugs, violence, unsafe communities, and an unending financial drain on American taxpayers. Yet, Democrat leaders fiercely oppose doing anything about it.
“Arizonans have had enough and want change. They want safe communities and a secure border. House Republicans do too. That’s why we support, and this week will finally pass, HCR 2060, sending it to the ballot, so the will of Arizona voters is heard,” concluded Toma.
Delegation member Rep. Leo Biasiucci described the trip in a tweet:
Early this morning, I went to the southern border with my Republican colleagues to see for ourselves what was happening. At 3am, we came across 35 illegal immigrants from Columbia and Paraguay that were being processed by border patrol.
Clean clothes. Cleanly shaven. All were dropped off right in front of our eyes by vehicles from Mexico.
People from 115 different countries are coming through this section, including women and children whom were raped and trafficked along the way.
In 2022, my bill HB2696 was signed into law. It allows Arizona law enforcement to arrest and prosecute Human Smuggling. Since my law went into effect, Arizona has prosecuted over 400 human smugglers!
Tomorrow, Republicans will once again be voting on a bill that will allow Arizona to do the job the Biden Administration has failed to do for almost 4 years. HCR2060 will allow Arizona Law Enforcement to arrest and prosecute anybody entering the U.S. through a NON official port of entry.
At what point did it become ok for children to be raped and trafficked? At what point did it become ok for Fentanyl to kill our brothers and sisters? Republicans in the Arizona Legislature are sick and tired of this Administration ignoring the open border.
Since they won’t do anything about it, we will! #HCR2060
Early this morning, I went to the southern border with my Republican colleagues to see for ourselves what was happening. At 3am, we came across 35 illegal immigrants from Columbia and Paraguay that were being processed by border patrol.
Clean clothes. Cleanly shaven. All were… pic.twitter.com/Rog5jhaQMW
— Rep. Leo Biasiucci (@Leo4AzHouse) June 4, 2024
In late May, the Arizona Senate passed the Secure the Border Act on a party line vote, sending it to the House for a final vote before appearing on the November ballot for Arizona voters to approve.
The Secure the Border Act, also known as HCR 2060, is similar to Texas’ SB 4 and would provide local, county, or state law enforcement the authority to arrest individuals who are non-U.S. citizens entering Arizona from Mexico outside of a lawful port of entry. SB 4 is currently on hold as it’s being litigated in federal court. If upheld by the courts, and if Arizona voters approve the Secure the Border Act in November, this specific provision of the bill would take effect in Arizona 60 days after implementation in Texas.
Other provisions in the bill, not contingent on court rulings, include harsher penalties for drug dealers trafficking fentanyl across the border that leads to an overdose death of a person. Additionally, the measure will establish a state crime of any individuals living in Arizona illegally who knowingly submit false information or documents to apply for government benefits or apply for employment. Lastly, it will require state agencies administering benefits to use the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements program, in addition to current state verification systems when determining eligibility of non-U.S. citizens.
According to new data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the number of suspected terrorists entering the U.S illegally has skyrocketed more than 2500% since Joe Biden took office. Federal agents apprehended 367 individuals, whose names were on the terror watch list, at both the southern and northern borders between FY 2021 and FY 2024, reaffirming the urgent need for a border security measure like HCR 2060 to protect our citizens and our state.
“The Governor’s reckless disregard for the safety and well-being of our citizens has left us no other option than to send the Secure the Border Act to the ballot to empower Arizonans to take matters into their own hands,” said Senate President Warren Petersen.
Votes to continue evil, selfish agenda…a game of chess with these pathetic pawns! Disgraceful. We can do something, call our reps, voice your concerns and PRAY!
They site apprehension figures, have their political photo ops with apprehended crossers. It looks like the border is secure, we are capturing them before they get far. The GOP just wants another photo op to tweet, they should be looking at their actions instead.
Even in the face of this the ‘veto vixen’ wants and condones open borders? Why do American politicians want to import more violence than we already have?