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Hobbs will keep National Guard at border despite Lukeville Port reopening

Gov. Katie Hobbs says National Guard Troops she sent to the border after the closure of the Lukeville Port of Entry will remain in place even though the port reopened Thursday.

Hobbs signed an executive order sending the National Guard to areas around the border on Dec. 15. Under the order, those troops are authorized to participate in local law enforcement activities, like efforts to disrupt the fentanyl trade and combat human trafficking.

Hobbs says that assignment will continue for the time being.

“So they’re right now working with local and state law enforcement on some of those drug interdiction and other security activities, and we’re going to continue monitoring the situation and keep them down there for now, because that crisis has not abated,” Hobbs said.

A National Guard spokesperson said she could not comment on the number of troops currently deployed under the governor’s executive order and did not have information available about how many operations those troops have participated in.

Even with those troops in place, Hobbs says there is still a need for additional federal resources and border patrol staffing to address the ongoing influx of migrants that initially prompted the Biden administration to close the Lukeville port on Dec. 4.

And she stopped short of saying she is confident that there will not be additional port closures in the future.

“Confident is a strong word that I wouldn’t use based on my conversations, but I’m thankful that it’s open now and hopeful that the path we’re on continues,” Hobbs said.

The governor sent a letter to President Joe Biden on Dec. 8, asking him to deploy National Guard troops in Tucson to the border. A federal order would allow National Guard troops to aid Border Patrol officers currently processing arriving migrants. 

“I think the bigger issue is the level of additional support personnel that’s needed to be able to address the increase, influx of migrants that we’re seeing … and to keep the border secure and to keep commerce flowing and tourism,” Hobbs said.

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Wayne Schutsky is a broadcast field correspondent covering Arizona politics on KJZZ. He has over a decade of experience as a journalist reporting on local communities in Arizona and the state Capitol.