Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs and her gubernatorial opponent, GOP Congressman Andy Biggs, sparred at a public safety forum on Tuesday over his response to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Hobbs condemned Biggs for backing “J-6ers” and accused him of standing outside a D.C. jail with other supporters when President Donald Trump issued pardons in 2025.
“He called for pardoning of the Jan. 6 defendants and called them ‘J6 political prisoners,’” Hobbs said at the forum hosted by the Arizona Police Association. “And when those pardons were issued and those folks were being released, he went to the D.C. jail and stood with supporters.”
Biggs denied that to reporters following the forum.
“What she said is that I stood outside a D.C. jail to greet J-6ers who’d received a pardon. That's what she said. That is an absolute lie. It is a fabrication. It’s about as nutty as I’ve heard from her this campaign,” Biggs said.
NBC News reported live on the day of the pardons that Biggs was at the scene outside the jail. So did a local NBC affiliate station in Washington, D.C.
Biggs also said Tuesday that he didn’t support rioters or call for pardons.
“I never made a comment on the pardon. Some of them deserved it, some of them didn't. But that was [Trump’s] decision to make, not mine,” Biggs told reporters.
But in 2024, Biggs posted on X: “President Trump must pardon all J6 political prisoners on January 20, and Congress must hold accountable the bad actors involved in the sham J6 Committee.”
Biggs later celebrated the pardons on social media: “After four years of being held as political prisoners under a weaponized DOJ, @POTUS just pardoned more than 1,500 J6 hostages. Thank you, Mr. President. Promises made, promises kept.”
Hobbs, Biggs talk border
At the public safety forum, Biggs and Hobbs appeared on the same stage and answered the same questions, but appeared back to back because Hobbs has declined to debate Biggs.
Biggs said although the southern border is the most secure it's been in his lifetime, he still wants to devote more effort to securing it completely. He reiterated his intention to appoint an Arizona “border czar.”
“There are two places along the Southwest border where you have the most human trafficking and drug trafficking,” Biggs said.
Biggs said he’d ensure the state’s Border Security Strike force is fully funded and equipped to do its job. He added the state needs to work cooperatively with the Trump administration and bashed Hobbs for being weak on the issue.
Biggs accused Hobbs of supporting former President Joe Biden’s border policies.
When Hobbs took the stage after Biggs, she said Biden didn’t handle things the way she wanted and said Arizona has worked with Trump’s administration under her leadership.
“When I took office, the border was chaos, and the Biden administration had failed Arizonans on border security, and I knew that we needed to take action. It is not a Democratic or Republican issue,” Hobbs said.
She touted her administration’s work on preventing drug trafficking and prosecuting criminals.
“We've had great success. We have interdicted over 18 million fentanyl pills, thousands of pounds of other illegal drugs, over 1,500 illegal weapons, and we've built partnerships across the state that are helping us go after criminals that want to hurt Arizonans, and I know there's more to do,” Hobbs said.
Candidates disagree on Flock cameras
Biggs said an “overwhelming rejection” of Flock cameras is happening now, and the state needs to respond.
“The state will probably have to step in and say, ‘We're not going to have Flock cameras.’ And then you let the local jurisdictions handle some of the other stuff,” Biggs said. “But here's the deal: Flock cameras have been abused already. Flock cameras have now proudly announced that you can actually use their software to actually link that cellphone, for instance, with your license plate. That is a gross violation, in my opinion, of a free society where people expect to be able to have some measure of privacy without having their every move tracked.”
Hobbs said she’s heard privacy concerns, but also said the cameras help law enforcement do their work.
“It is not our job to tell communities how to enforce their laws. And when we're continuing to see constrained budgets and fiscal pressure, and we have technology available that helps law enforcement do their job, keep our community safe, communities should be able to use that technology, and I trust those local officials and leaders to make those decisions,” Hobbs said.
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