The Biden administration demanded a collection of shipping containers Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey’s administration utilized to fill a hole in the unfinished border wall be taken down.
The Ducey administration is fighting back, arguing border states “cannot depend on the federal government to guarantee its protection.”
Federal Agencies Do Nothing
In a letter sent to Gov. Ducey’s administration last week, the Biden administration argued it was unlawful to plug roughly 4,000 feet of border wall holes in August with shipping containers covered in razor wire.
Early in August, Ducey declared that the holes will be filled.
60 double-stacked shipping containers were welded together to make the structure, and four feet of razor wire covered the top. It stands 22 feet tall and weighs around 9,000 pounds, according to his office.
At the time, Ducey declared in a release, “Arizona has had enough. We have to stop waiting.
The Bureau of Reclamation claims in its statement that Arizona erected containers on properties close to the Morelos Dam, as well as on property that is a portion of the West Reservation of the Cocopah Indian Tribe.
Additionally, it claimed the location conflicts with a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) initiative to close the gaps; it urged Arizona to halt all building work and help remove the containers.
Arizona fires back at Biden admin’s demand it remove shipping containers filling gaps at border https://t.co/WUrdTbFeVu
— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 20, 2022
In order to preserve operational readiness, the bureau’s objective, according to a spokeswoman, is to maintain the integrity of the freshwater delivery system and the security of its employees.
The letter was released at the same time that CBP announced its own intention to repair the holes at the Morelos Dam, upwards of two months following Ducey’s office fixing the gap.
Arizona blasted the federal government’s “lack of cooperation” and said states like itself “could not depend on the federal government to protect its security” in its scathing reaction to the Bureau of Reclamation’s statement.
Arizona Takes Action
Asserting that the disputed regulation exempts federal and state workers from its application while they are doing their official duties, Clark stated Arizona disagrees with the federal government’s assertion that the state has trespassed against the United States.
Arizona declares it is “dedicated to collaborating with all our federal partners,” but it also notes since December 2021, according to federal officials, border construction is scheduled to start.
The federal government ordered Arizona to remove shipping containers that are in place to try and plug gaps in the border wall. Criminals and traitors run your government.
— Matthew H (@MattH_4America) October 20, 2022
Arizona and the Biden administration are at odds as more states, in what they claim is a vacuum left by the federal government, take measures pertaining to illegal immigration and border protection into their own hands.
Together with Florida and Texas, Arizona is one of several states sending migrants north to places like Washington, D.C. in an attempt to raise awareness of the border situation and provide relief for their overburdened towns.
Unfortunately, the federal government doesn’t appear to be responding to this issue with a feeling of urgency or in good conscience, as C.J. Karamargin, a spokeswoman for Ducey, informed Fox News Digital.
This article appeared in The Patriot Brief and has been published here with permission.
