Ducey gets support of 11 Arizona sheriffs on plan to secure southern border

PHOENIX — Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey gained the support of 11 county sheriffs for the draft of his plan to get the state’s top politicians to join his efforts to secure the southern border.

Ducey and the sheriffs met Tuesday at the state capitol to discuss the Republican governor’s draft legislation intended for Democratic U.S. Sens. Mark Kelly and Kyrsten Sinema, and the state’s representatives in the U.S. House.

Ducey wants Kelly, Sinema and others to take action on the plan, which calls for more resources at the border, stricter criminal penalties for offenders and the resumption of construction of the wall.

“It’s not just an Arizona problem,” Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb said in a press release. “It’s an America problem.”

Ducey unveiled the plan Monday at his eighth and final State of the State address and stressed that border security would be a priority in 2022.

The group of sheriffs included Pima County’s Mark Dannels, but four weren’t present for the meeting.

That included Maricopa County’s Paul Penzone and Leon Wilmot of Yuma County, where Ducey visited last month with state leaders after a surge of border crossings there.

Ducey used his Yuma visit to blast the Biden administration, accusing the Democratic president of not doing enough to limit the flow of migrants into Arizona from the southern border.

“In Arizona, we will secure our border. We will protect public safety. We will not back down,” Ducey said. “We will fight this fight until Washington, D.C. finally acts.”

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