Jordan scolds Democrats for missing hearing on Arizona border crisis and condemns Biden’s ‘reckless’ policies

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan on Thursday lashed out at Democrats for failing to attend an in-person hearing on the border crisis in Yuma, Arizona, as Republicans heard from witnesses about the devastating impact the crisis is having on their communities.

“It’s a pity that no Democratic member of Congress joined us on this trip, despite the fact that we had several weeks’ advance notice,” Jordan said in Yuma. “It’s disappointing, but it’s not surprising.”

Republicans held hearings in the besieged area with local officials and the CEO of a local hospital that has spent millions treating migrants, as part of a GOP promise to hold hearings at the border.

But when the hearing was announced last week, Democrats called the move a “stunt” and said they had not been consulted.

AT THE BORDER IN ARIZONA, LEGAL COMMITTEE HEARS FROM OFFICERS ABOUT MASSIVE MIGRANTS’ ARRIVALS

“Instead of focusing on real solutions to a complex problem, Judicial Republicans will once again not hear a single federal government witness in their hearing, further cementing this hearing as a brazen act of political reputation,” Senior Member Jerrold Nadler, DN.Y. , and Rep. Pramila Jayapal, of Washington, said in a statement. “As a result, Democrats, who have been on the border regularly over the past few years, will not be attending next week’s performative hearings.”

February 23, 2023: Rep. Jim Jordan speaks at a border hearing in Yuma, Arizona. (Screenshot)

Jordan denied this, stating that they were given weeks’ notice. He also rejected the claim that the hearing is a “gimmick”.

“I would say it’s not a gimmick. I don’t think our witnesses would call it a stunt. What we learned from them today, what we saw last night at the border,” he said.

Rep. Andy Biggs, D-Arizona, told Fox News in Arizona that the decision not to attend was a “message of disrespect” to the American people.

HOUSE DEMS BOYCOTT ARIZONA COURT CRISIS HEARING

Republicans toured the unfinished border wall, construction of which was largely halted under the Biden administration, and visited the Yuma Regional Medical Center. Officials there said they provided more than $26 million in gratuitous aid to migrants in 12 months, enough to support the salaries and benefits of 212 night nurses.

“It is an unsustainable model when a hospital like ours takes on the entire burden of paying for medical care for migrants. No business or service can sustain large-scale current spending without any compensatory income,” said Dr. Robert Trenschel.

Other witnesses included Yuma County Sheriff Leon Wilmot and Jonathan Lines, the county superintendent. Wilmot testified that the number of detentions of illegal migrants by the border patrol in the area increased from 40 to more than 1,000 per day within two years, and that the county had to shell out tens of thousands of dollars to rent port jones. stop migrants defecating in crops.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler, DN.Y., dismissed the GOP hearing as a “stunt.” (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, file) (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, file)

His county spent $323,000 in fiscal year 2022 on booking expenses for illegal immigrants who committed state crimes, including sexual exploitation of minors, drug charges, assault, kidnapping, burglary, and theft.

“Our southern border, contrary to all public statements from Washington, D.C., is in the worst condition I have ever seen in my career,” he said in an affidavit. “When you look at public safety, national security and humanitarian aid, our southern border can only be described as the largest crime scene in the country.”

There were over 1.7 million encounters at the border in FY 2021 and over 2.3 million in FY 2022. In fiscal year 2023, the numbers could exceed those figures, although the Biden administration pointed to a sharp drop between December and January as evidence that the border measures announced at the beginning of the year, including a humanitarian parole program allowing 30,000 migrants to be admitted into month, they are working now.

MCCARTHY IN ARIZONA SAYS ‘NOBODY BELIEVE’ THAT ADMIN’S BIDEN BORDER IS SAFE, CONTROL IS BY CARTELS

The Biden administration has blamed Republicans for failing to fund border security and disagreeing with the immigration reform bill the administration introduced on its first day in office. Biden reiterated those calls for immigration reform, including the possibility of citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants, in his State of the Union statement.

Jordan on Thursday dismissed the offer as a “massive amnesty package” and blamed the crisis on President Biden’s “reckless” policies.

YUMA, ARIZONA – AUG 06: Immigrants wait to be processed by US Border Patrol after crossing the border from Mexico against the backdrop of the US-Mexico border barrier, on August 06, 2022 in Yuma, Arizona. ((Photo by Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images))

“On the first day, on the first day, January 20, 2021. Joe Biden said: “We’re not going to build a wall anymore. illegal migrants arriving for an immigration violation,” he said.

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Rep. Tom McClintock, a California Republican, echoed Republican accusations that Secretary Alejandro Majorcas was not enforcing existing laws, which some Republicans, including Biggs, called grounds for impeachment.

“If this administration refuses to enforce existing laws, why should anyone trust it to enforce future laws?” he asked. “But that won’t stop us from trying. That is why we are here today. But I fear the situation will only get worse until the American people demand that this policy be rescinded.”

“History screams this warning at us – countries that cannot or will not enforce their borders simply do not exist for long,” he said.

Bill Melugin of Fox News contributed to this report.