Trump blasts Arizona’s Katie Hobbs over her immigration policies in Super Tuesday speech

PHOENIX — Former President Donald Trump critiqued Gov. Katie Hobbs over her immigration policies during a Super Tuesday speech.

“Today, it was announced that 325,000 people were flown in from ports unknown. Migrants were flown in,” Trump told a crowd at Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Florida, at around 8 p.m. He didn’t cite his source for the number.

“They’re pouring into California and they’re pouring into Arizona because those governors are not doing anything. They’re doing nothing,” Trump added. “That really tells you where they’re coming from. They want open borders — and open borders are going to destroy our country.”

His comments came a day after Hobbs’ first veto of 2024, which shot down a GOP-backed border bill known as the Arizona Border Invasion Act.

Senate Bill 1231 would have made it illegal for people who aren’t U.S. citizens to enter Arizona through places that aren’t lawful points of entry. Hobbs cited constitutional concerns as the reason for her veto.

Hobbs also called the bill “anti-immigrant” and said it would hurt Arizona businesses. In response, Arizona Senate Republicans accused her of not protecting Arizonans from “heinous crimes associated with Joe Biden’s border invasion.”

Trump slams Biden’s border policies during Super Tuesday speech

“We’ve watched our country take a great beating over the last three years,” Trump told the crowd. He briefly touched upon the Russia-Ukraine war and the war between Israel and Hamas.

He also touched on the economy.

“Inflation is destroying the middle class,” he said. “Inflation is called a country buster.”

Trump then shifted back to the border crisis, claiming American cities are being overrun by violent migrant crime.

“The world is laughing at us. The world is taking advantage of us,” Trump said. “We’re a third-world country at our borders.”