SIERRA VISTA, Arizona — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will become the first presidential candidate to travel to the southern border on Wednesday, throwing himself into the increasingly volatile immigration debate as Republicans gain ground in the 2024 election.
DeSantis will meet with Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dunnells and other law enforcement officials in Sierra Vista, according to governor’s press secretary Jeremy Redfern. Like Mr. DeSantis, Mr. Donnells has been an outspoken critic of President Joe Biden’s border policies.
Mr. DeSantis is visiting as the immigration struggle heats up as the Republican primary campaign begins. He has secured right-wing status in former President Donald Trump, who focused on immigration in his first campaign in 2016 and was endeared by conservatives during his presidency.
DeSantis has repeatedly praised President Trump’s border policies. In 2021 Tweet — But he recently tried to contrast himself with Trump, arguing that the former president didn’t do enough to strengthen border security during his four-year presidency.
Florida officials confirmed Tuesday that the state last week arranged for immigrants to fly to Sacramento, Calif., following days of accusations by California leaders. A spokesperson for the Florida Emergency Management Agency said in a written statement that the immigrants had all done so voluntarily, and that “these volunteers indicated through verbal and written consent that they wanted to go to California.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday on NBC’s Today program that he believes Florida officials committed a crime in bringing immigrants into the state and will investigate the matter.
DeSantis has not commented on the recent flight, but amidst his campaign, the controversial Florida state last year helped make arrangements from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard, a wealthy vacation destination in Massachusetts. It also advertised other immigration migrations that were brewing. Last month, he signed a crackdown on illegal immigration passed by the Republican-led Florida legislature that included paying $12 million for a similar immigration ticket.
After stops in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, DeSantis made a surprise trip to Arizona, a key battleground state. Later this week, he’ll attend fundraising events in several Texas cities, stop in Oklahoma, speak at the North Carolina Republican convention, and then head to Nevada next Saturday.
The Biden administration has also faced pushback from Democratic mayors of major cities, most notably New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who say the recent influx of immigrants has squeezed shelter spaces across the country.
The number of border patrols in the past year has hit a record high. But the latest figures from Customs and Border Protection show that fears have dropped by more than 70% since the end of “Title 42,” a coronavirus-era health care policy that made it easier for the federal government to expel asylum seekers.
Critics of the Biden administration have warned that the opposite would happen after the policy ended: a new mass influx of immigrants to the border. There was an increase shortly after Title 42 ended his May 11th, but the numbers soon leveled off and then dropped significantly.
Cochise County — a historic mining region in the Old West that includes the site of Wyatt Earp’s infamous shootout at the OK Ranch — is currently erupting in a new battle over immigration. It has become a welcome place for conservative politicians to denounce what they consider weak border policy.
Recently, Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-California) and unsuccessful Arizona Republican gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake posed for a photo shoot in the area. DeSantis has never been to Arizona before, but has sent law enforcement personnel to Arizona in 2021 at the governor’s request, his office said.
Separately, DeSantis sent more than 1,100 Florida National Guard and law enforcement personnel to Texas last month to support the border operation, Operation Lone Star, led by Governor Greg Abbott.
