East Arizona News

Arizona Rep. David Schweikert openly criticized President Biden, attributing the escalating border crisis to ineffective border control policies. According to Schweikert, "It’s clear Biden has lost operational control of our southern border." He pointed out that there were "over 10,000 migrant crossings in the last 24 hours" and "roughly 140,000 apprehensions in the first 20 days of this month alone."

Border crossings are on the rise, casting doubt on the Biden Administration's border control policies. In the current month alone, there have been 140,000 illegal migrant crossings, marking a 60% increase from the figures reported in July. If this trend persists for the rest of the month, it is anticipated that there will be 210,000 migrant apprehensions, reaching the highest level since the spring of 2022, according to CBS News.

Arizona Rep. Justin Heap also highlighted the ongoing issue, stating that "30,000-50,000 illegal immigrants cross into Arizona every month." He raised concerns about the impact on the state's housing crisis, stating, "Many of them remain in Arizona indefinitely and those people take up housing units, reducing the supply of available units and driving up the cost of rents and home ownership. How will 20,000 new units solve the Housing Crisis when 20 times that number of new economic migrants flow into our state illegally every year?"

The current border situation has sparked major dissatisfaction among lawmakers who consistently voice concerns about inadequate border control, human and drug smuggling concerns, cartels, and the impact on Arizona's housing crisis. In July, the most significant surge in unauthorized border crossings took place within Tucson, where Border Patrol reported a record-breaking number of almost 40,000 apprehensions, according to CBS News.

The situation at the southern border continues to worsen, with Fox News Correspondent Bill Melugin reporting, "Per CBP sources, in the last 24 hours alone, over 10,000 migrants were encountered at the border, bringing us back to the all-time record high levels we last saw in May before the end of Title 42." Of those encountered, "8,500+ were Border Patrol apprehensions, 1,600+ at CBP ports of entry."

As the number of border crossings and apprehensions continues to rise, critics argue that the Biden Administration must take immediate action to regain control of the southern border and address the underlying issues contributing to the crisis.