TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Reaction is pouring in from local, state and national leaders after Governor Katie Hobbs ordered the National Guard to the border last Friday.
In the past few days Reps. Juan Ciscomani (R-6) and Greg Stanton (D-7) both announced their support for Hobbs' decision.
Today, Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-7) tells KGUN 9 he does not support that decision.
"I don't support that action. But the fact of the matter is that this is, I think, one way in which the governor, whose comments have been very logical and very solution-based, is to bring attention to the fact that something needs to be done," said Grijalva.
The decision comes after border funding has been tied up on Capitol Hill with aid to Ukraine and Israel.
Grijalva says that if a package were to come together, he would consider voting for it.
“As long as it's rational, as long as it's humane, and as long as it's a step towards a solution. Absolutely,” said Grijalva.
Elsewhere in Tucson, the Border Action Network says the recent surge at the border is just another chapter in a longstanding crisis.
"I think that we're rushing a situation that has been a problem for many years, for decades, really, because we haven't really acknowledged the fundamental changes that have happened in migration and around the world," says Juanita Molina, Executive Director of BAN.
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Blake Phillips is a reporter for KGUN 9. Originally from St. Louis, Mo., Blake grew up in Sierra Vista. During his college tenure at the Missouri School of Journalism, Blake worked for the NBC affiliate KOMU-TV in Columbia. He is excited to return to a place he calls home and give back to the community in which he grew up. Share your story ideas and important issues with Blake by emailing blake.phillips@kgun9.com.