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Yuma County Sheriff Leon Wilmot: Border Wall Has Become A Distraction

Congressional leaders have until Feb. 15 to strike a deal on border security, a task that has been debated — and has failed — in Washington for decades.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has continued his threat to shut down the government again or declare a national emergency to fund a wall on the U.S.'s southern border.

But all of the focus on a wall has become a distraction, according to Yuma County Sheriff Leon Wilmot.

Wilmot is the chairman of the Southwestern Border Sheriff’s Coalition. He said there’s one thing all 31 border sheriffs from San Diego, California to Brownsville, Texas agree upon: the border must be secured.

They laid out their argument in a statement released this month, saying the issue has been mired in endless political debate for too long.

“It is time, past time, to move forward with meaningful border security” the statement reads.

The Show spoke with Wilmot more about it.

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Lauren Gilger, host of KJZZ's The Show, is an award-winning journalist whose work has impacted communities large and small, exposing injustices and giving a voice to the voiceless and marginalized.