Texas Border Crackdown Making Arizona 'Epicenter' of Crisis: Kari Lake

Kari Lake has claimed Arizona is the "epicenter of the border crisis" following the release of figures showing the U.S. Border Patrol's Tucson Sector detained 13,800 suspected illegal migrants in the last week of January, up from 5,900 during the same week the previous year.

The Republican Senate hopeful, and close Donald Trump ally, made the remark on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday.

"Tucson Border Patrol apprehended an average of 2,000 illegal immigrants a day last week, Lake wrote.

"With Texas taking bold action, Arizona is officially epicenter of the border crisis.

"While [Representative] Ruben Gallego & [Senator] Kyrsten Sinema dither away in DC, doing everything in their power NOT to secure our border, the #Bideninvasion continues unabated."

Lake linked to a Breitbart News report showing the latest figures from the Border Patrol's Tucson Sector published by Chief Patrol Agent John R. Modlin on February 2.

Modlin posted a list on X showing 13,800 migrant apprehensions in the Tucson Sector in the last week of January, up from 11,300 the week before and a dramatic rise on the 5,900 recorded over the same time a year ago. However, the figure was lower than the first and second weeks of December, when 19,400 and 16,800 migrants were detained respectively.

The number of migrant crossings in Texas, the scene of a standoff between Governor Greg Abbott and federal authorities, has sharply decreased in the past week while crossings in Arizona and California have increased, CBS News reported.

Citing internal federal government figures, CBS News said Arizona and California now account for 60 percent of all illegal border crossings, with migrants targeting remote areas like Lukeville in Arizona and Jacumba Hot Springs in California. Across the U.S., Border Patrol recorded 125,000 migrant apprehensions in January, down from just under 250,000 during the final week of December.

Newsweek has reached out to Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs for comment by email.

Hobbs narrowly defeated Lake to win the Arizona gubernatorial election in November 2022, though the Republican refused to concede, insisting the contest was rigged against her. Lake's claims were repeatedly rejected in the courts.

In October 2023, Lake announced she is running for the Arizona Senate seat held by Sinema, an independent who was elected as a Democrat. Should Lake be selected as the Republican candidate, she could be involved in a three-way contest with Sinema and a Democratic, possibly Gallego.

Tensions over illegal migration have surged since January 22, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that federal agents can remove razor wire placed along the Texas-Mexico border by Texas National Guard troops on Abbott's orders.

The ruling sparked a furious response from Abbott, who claimed to be facing an "invasion" and invoked "Texas' constitutional authority to defend and protect itself."

A joint statement was released by 25 Republican governors backing Abbott's position and insisting "Texas has a constitutional right to defend itself and the nation."

Trump, the clear front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, urged Republican governors to send National Guard troops to Texas in support of Abbott's efforts to secure the border.