By The FirstGubernatorial candidate Kari Lake is making border security a cornerstone of her campaign when she runs for governor of Arizona this year. Lake wrote an op-ed for the Independent Journal Review, explaining her “Defend Arizona” plan —not surprisingly, it involves a wall.
“The ongoing humanitarian and security crisis at the… border is ravaging Arizona communities and threatening the stability of our civil society,” Lake says. “A record 2 million illegal immigrants were apprehended by Customs and Border Protection last year, with an estimated 400,000 individuals evading apprehension and disappearing into the interior of the U.S.”
“Even when the Biden administration isn’t intentionally demonizing our brave Border Patrol agents trying to do an impossible job, agents remain overwhelmed by the crisis and demoralized by Washington’s disinterest and ineptitude,” Lake continues.
“Compounding this humanitarian disaster is the fact that over 11,000 pounds of the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl were seized by Border Patrol agents in 2021, trafficked by murderous drug cartels who have operational control over large swaths of the border. The fentanyl seized last year alone is enough to potentially kill over 2.5 billion people — almost a third of the entire world population.”
“Under my “Defend Arizona” plan, Arizona will invoke its inherent authority under Article I of the U.S. Constitution to repel the invasion occurring on our border…we will deter lawlessness by finishing the uncompleted portions of former President Trump’s border wall…[and] I will expand the Arizona National Guard’s mission on the border and task them with destroying human trafficking and drug smuggling tunnels.”
“We will keep Washington informed of our efforts, but Arizona will not seek permission to defend ourselves.”
