Shortly after Gov. Doug Ducey held a news conference announcing his campaign platform Wednesday, including his commitment to keep Arizona’s National Guard at the border, President Trump signed his executive order to stop separating immigrant parents from their children.
He did not join eight other governors around the country to leverage an end to the child detainment policy as pressure mounted against the Trump administration. He avoided answering direct questions on the issue at his news conference.
But, when asked by Capitol Media Services why he did not pull Arizona’s own guard members, Ducey answered, "Because I'm a border governor. And the safety and security of the citizens of Arizona comes first for me. And we can do that along with keeping families together."
He admitted the administration’s separating children from parents was not ideal and said his heart breaks for the kids, but he has also blamed the parents for putting the children at risk.
