Arizona Gov. Hobbs orders National Guard to the border, pleads for federal aid

Arizona Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs on Friday ordered her state's National Guard to the southern border to aid in managing the unprecedented surge in illegal border crossings.

"Yet again, the federal government is refusing to do its job to secure our border and keep our communities safe," she said in a press release. "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," she insisted. "Despite continued requests for assistance, the Biden administration has refused to deliver desperately needed resources to Arizona’s border."

She further excoriated the Biden administration for not responding to her request for $512 million to reimburse the state for border security expenses that she sent last week.

The Democrat's order marks a stunning rebuke of the Biden administration and the Democratic Party line on illegal immigration, which comes amid intense negotiations in the Senate. Republicans have pushed for tangible border security reforms as a condition for approving further aid to Ukraine, though talks have thus far not resulted in a compromise.

Since Biden took office in January 2021, millions of new arrivals have illegally crossed the border, with U.S. Customs and Border Protection reporting nearly 2.5 million southwest land border encounters in fiscal year 2023 alone.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.