The number of migrants entering the US near Yuma was lower than expected on Friday. No one knows if it is the end of a wave or just a law.
The backlog of migrants waiting to be processed remains high. As is the anxiety level of some members of Arizona’s congressional delegation, who believe that appeals to the Biden Administration before the end of Title 42 fell on deaf ears.
“They have ignored the issue and now they want to believe that the border is not open and a message from the Secretary of National Security Mayorkas would have been enough to send all the people to go home and not enter. This does not work. way,” he said Arizona Congressman Juan Ciscomani.
Local, county, state and federal officials in Arizona have been confused by the Biden administration’s lack of response to their concerns.
Arizona’s border with Mexico is in Congressman Raúl Grijalva’s district.
“You plan for the worst and if you don’t have the worst it’s good. But you plan for the worst,” Grijalva said.
It’s something the congressman believes the Biden administration failed to do. It’s an issue he believes Republicans will exploit.
“I’m sure that the Republican party and their candidate for the presidency, which appears to be Trump, this will be the issue that creates the division that they see as beneficial to themselves,” Grijalva said.
While the Title 42 approach may hurt the president’s reputation in Arizona, Grijalva doesn’t think it will affect Arizona Democrats like 2024 Senate candidate Ruben Gallego.
“Ruben Gallego’s position on this issue has been solid,” Grijalva said. “He’s been pragmatic. He was one of the first critics in the Biden administration that you should be prepared.”
Grijalva said voter sentiment about democracy, women’s reproductive rights and the economy will factor into his decision-making in the 2024 election.
“People in Arizona are just like anyone else in the country. They can chew gum and walk at the same time.”
