Arizona Representative Paul Gosar (R-AZ-04) and other state leaders have spoken out on the number of southern border encounters recorded in July 2022, as recently revealed by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency.
“For the seventeenth straight month, more than 150,000 illegal aliens crossed the southern border including [nearly] 200,000 illegal aliens in July 2022. Since Biden and the open border democrats took over in January 2021, they have facilitated an invasion of our sovereign borders of more than 4.2 million illegal aliens. Included in this invasion are terrorists – over five dozen documented so far, drug traffickers, sex traffickers and common criminals,” Gosar said.
He also commented on the flow of drugs that came into the country, including 2,000 pounds of fentanyl in July alone. This is a 203 percent increase from June and enough to kill 459 million people, according to Gosar.
“Mr. Biden’s open border policies are a welcome invitation to criminals and drug cartels to cross into our country unchecked,” Gosar said while concluding his statement.
Ross Tumbler, media contact for the Kari Lake campaign, spoke with The Arizona Sun Times via email, saying that Lake’s “Defend Arizona” border plan needs to be implemented to stop the flow of trafficking and drugs from reaching Arizona’s communities. Lake’s policy would include an interstate compact for border security, finishing the border wall, enhancing national guard presence, and cracking down on smuggling by destroying cartel tunnels.
Moreover, Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) commented on the statistics, saying these immigrants will likely be released.
“CBP agents encountered nearly 200,000 illegal aliens at the southern border last month. Since Biden took office, CBP agents have encountered more than 3 million illegal aliens there,” Biggs tweeted. “The vast majority of these folks will be released and likely never heard from again.”
CBP agents encountered nearly 200,000 illegal aliens at the southern border last month.
Since Biden took office, CBP agents have encountered more than 3 million illegal aliens there.
The vast majority of these folks will be released and likely never heard from again.
— Rep Andy Biggs (@RepAndyBiggsAZ) August 16, 2022
As reported by The Sun Times, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich filed a brief at the U.S. Supreme Court opposing a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) policy known as Permanent Guidance. He argued that under the policy, DHS is unlawfully permitting migrants entry into the U.S. when they are meant to be in mandatory detention.
Furthermore, Gov. Doug Ducey also commented on the situation, stating that there has been an increase in encounters in Arizona.
“More than 41,000 of those encounters were in Arizona. Yuma saw the highest increase of any sector,” Ducey tweeted. “Washington has broken our border. Arizonans cannot wait any longer for them to deliver.”
More than 41,000 of those encounters were in Arizona. Yuma saw the highest increase of any sector.
Washington has broken our border. Arizonans cannot wait any longer for them to deliver. https://t.co/pPTIy5i4bf
— Doug Ducey (@DougDucey) August 16, 2022
According to the CBP, a total of 199,976 migrants were encountered at the southern border during July. Of those, 162,792 were unique encounters. The total encounters fell four percent compared to June, making this the first time since October 2021 that border encounters have declined two months in a row. Additionally, this marks the first time monthly encounters in 2022 are at lower numbers than their 2021 counterpart, as the southern border saw over 200,000 encounters during July of last year.
However, as Ducey said, encounters did increase in Arizona during July, with the Yuma sector seeing a 64 percent increase in encounters, according to the CBP.
Furthermore, monthly encounter data reveals a historical trend of encounters slowing down in the summertime. From 2000 to 2020, encounters at the southern border typically lowered in June and rose later, usually around January. There are three exceptions to this – 2017, 2020, and 2021 – when encounters rose during the summer.
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Neil Jones is a reporter for The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Neil on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Paul Gosar” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0. Photo “Andy Biggs” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0. Photo “Doug Ducey” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0. Background Photo “U.S. Southern Border Wall” by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
