FROM THE BORDER – The city of Yuma, Arizona has officially declared a state of emergency due to the high number of migrants crossing over.
On Monday, Mayor Doug Nicholls issued a formal state of emergency with Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey’s support.
A spokesperson for Ducey said, “Ultimately, this humanitarian crisis is the result of Congress’ failure to act. It will only be solved by Congress actually doing something, and the governor has vocally urged Congress to quit playing politics and take action.”
Yuma is the first city to declare a state of emergency, and the U.S. is still on track for 1 million apprehensions by the end of the fiscal year.
Mayor: Migrants being released into the community faster than they are departing, and shelters and the staff to run them are at max capacity. A state of emergency is declared.
— City of Yuma (@cityofyuma) April 16, 2019
In a press conference, Nicholls said that Tuesday was the breaking point he had talked about three weeks ago. By declaring a state of emergency, the city hopes to receive resources from FEMA. One of the biggest setbacks the city has is the limited bus routes to take migrants to their final destinations. Migrants in Yuma struggle to purchase transportation tickets, thus they stay for a longer duration in the housing shelters.
On Monday, Nicholls announced the housing shelters were at their full capacity.
Mayor: Migrants being released into the community faster than they are departing, and shelters and the staff to run them are at max capacity. A state of emergency is declared.
— City of Yuma (@cityofyuma) April 16, 2019
The city of Yuma also had to pull border patrol agents from surrounding areas to help process the surge of migrants. Border patrol officials have said they need more resources and support along the southern border.
Yuma’s declaration for a state of emergency comes on the heels of President Donald Trump’s push for Democrats to do something about the growing southern border crisis.
Democrats in Congress must return from their Vacations and change the Immigration Laws, or the Border, despite the great job being done by Border Patrol, will only get worse. Big sections of Wall now being built!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 17, 2019
Marissa Martinez is a political contributor for Accuracy in Media. She is the former political director to Massachusetts Governor’s re-election campaign, alumna of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and political consultant to national PACs. Follow her AIM border stories, @MarissaAlisa.
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