(Article by Jenna Curren republished from LawEnforcementToday.com)
Arizona's Ducey joins Abbott in busing migrants to Washington - MSNBC https://t.co/y176fFl4KE
— MediaWizz2 (@Media2Wizz) May 15, 2022
On Thursday, May 12th, Republican Governor Doug Ducey announced that the first bus made its inaugural drop-off of passengers near the U.S. Capitol just one day earlier and according to a senior state official, a second bus was already en route.
This announcement follows a similar operation that was executed by Texas officials in April. However, unlike the state of Texas’s bus initiative, Arizona expects the Biden administration to pick up the tab. C.J. Karamargin, a spokesman for Ducey, said:
“This is a problem caused by Washington. We’re bringing it to Washington and we expect Washington to foot the bill. We’re going to send them a bill.”
Reportedly, passengers are both buses traveled to the southern border from countries around the world, including Angola, Brazil, Congo, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Peru, Senegal, and Uzbekistan.
Karamargin said that upon arriving in Washington, the migrants plan to travel to Connecticut, Florida, Maine, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia.
On April 6th, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced that the state would use emergency evacuation procedures to transport migrants out of the state in an effort to “take the border to President Biden.” The Gateway Pundit reported that Texas has already transported over 900 migrants to Washington, D.C.
Arizona Is Busing Migrants To DC. Guess Who They Want To Pay For It? https://t.co/7wAOofEJ1X via @dailycaller
— HUNTER'S LAPTOP (@TheBigGuy110) May 15, 2022
Both Texas and Arizona have taken this action in advance of the Biden administration’s plan to end a Trump-era policy known as Title 42. Title 42 allows the Border Patrol to turn away hundreds of thousands of migrants out of concern they may spread COVID-19. Ducey said in a statement:
“With Arizona community resources under all-time demand and litter action or assistance from the federal government, individuals who entered Arizona seeking asylum have the opportunity to voluntarily be transported to Washington, D.C.”
The Gateway Pundit previously reported on Trump-endorsed Arizona Gubernational candidate Kari Lake’s plan to finish the wall and secure the southern border. She said in an interview:
“I think it’s kind of cute that they’re sending these buses around the county, but let’s face it, when we send a busload of illegal aliens into Washington, D.C., they’re still our problem. We’re going to send them back across the border.”
She added:
“We’re going to give them safe passage back across the border, but they’re not staying in Arizona and we’re not going to allow them to be shipped to other states either.”
State and local officials have said the Biden administration is not offering advice or help to respond to the number of people it releases into its cities and towns each day. Karamargin said:
“Our communities are strapped. A tremendous financial burden is being imposed on them. We have food banks in Yuma that can’t keep up. There’s one community hospital in Yuma. The 911 system in Yuma crashed not too long ago. A county supervisor said three churches contacted them Sunday because migrants were showing up [from the border] and they didn’t know what to do.”
Arizona follows Texas, begins busing migrants from southern border to D.C. https://t.co/pdWykwhGth
— Diana Hurst (@DianaHu42465710) May 15, 2022
According to the Washington Examiner:
“Over the past year, fewer than half of the people who illegally cross the southern border have been released into the U.S., but with encounters rising from 20,000 per month two years ago to more than 220,000 in March, the mass releases have placed a significant strain on small and large border communities that do not have the shelter space, food, transportation, or other means to help people get to other parts of the country where they have family or friends.”
Read more at: LawEnforcementToday.com