Vice President Kamala Harris will visit the U.S.-Mexico border near Douglas, Arizona, on Friday, and a local sheriff who will greet her at the airport has revealed a message he will give her.
Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels, who has served in his role as border city attorney since 2012, told DailyMail.com that his home has been destroyed by the border policies of President Joe Biden and VP Harris.
He described how rural areas are being overrun with deaths, tragedies and crime related to the border, and that the Biden-Harris agenda has caused irreparable damage.
And new data from US Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE), obtained by DailyMail.com, showed on Friday that more than 600,000 migrants with criminal histories are at large in the country.
But Dannels hopes to bridge the gap between the Republican-leaning area and the Democratic VP, saying he plans to give her a gift at the airport when she arrives.
Democratic presidential candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris waves after being greeted by Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., as she departs DC for the U.S.-Mexico border
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“If we’re not involved, we’re not talking and we can’t solve it,” Dannels said of the problems facing the border. “So that’s why it’s good that she’s coming, really.”
And the Republican fully understands the optics and timing behind the expected trip.
“I get the politics of it, ’tis the season,” he joked.
Last month, Dannels also accompanied former President Donald Trump on a trip to the border wall.
The ex-president gave a campaign speech and talked about his plans to resume construction of the barrier – something the Biden-Harris administration halted in its first days in power – and how the US has moved away from ‘migrant crime’ , his term for violations. carried out by recently arrived immigrants.
Dannels then spoke about Trump’s robust plan for the border and returning security to Southern Arizona.
He appeared to agree with the former president’s complaints that more than 10 million illegal immigrants have been found entering the US under the current administration.
The trip comes on the same day that shocking new data was released by Immigration and Customs Enforcement showing that hordes of illegal immigrants convicted of crimes have been released into the US interior.
“As of July 21, 2024, there were 662,566 non-citizens with criminal histories on ICE’s national docket – 13,099 criminally convicted MURDERS!” Rep. Tony Gonzalez, R-Texas, posted on social media after obtaining the data.
Of the more than 425,000 migrants convicted of crimes, they are wandering without detention, the data shows.
ICE could hardly ignore the scary statistic.
“ICE recognizes that some jurisdictions are concerned that cooperation with federal immigration officials will erode trust in immigrant communities and make it more difficult for local law enforcement to serve those populations. However, “sanctuary” policies may end up protecting dangerous criminals who often victimize the same communities,” the report said in a statement to Fox News.
Trump has highlighted the dangers of sanctuary cities during his campaign, while Harris has previously embraced policies that ICE now blames for allowing illegal immigrant criminals to roam free.
With Harris coming to town, Dannels is hedging his bets and hoping she can help.
Cochise County Sheriff’s Office Facebook Photos – Mark J. Dannels Sheriff.
Trump speaks at a campaign event in Cochise County, Arizona, in August. Sheriff Dannels is seen in the photo above, standing at right wearing a hat
The sheriff was also pictured with 2022 U.S. Senate candidate for Arizona’s Kari Lake as she entered the state’s gubernatorial contest
“Number one, she’s still our sitting vice president. Secondly, if she is elected president, hopefully this will be a foundation that she will remember, because I want to share our tragedies, I want to share our reality with her,” he said.
“I have a letter that I’m going to give her when I meet her, she’s coming off the plane today,” the sheriff told DailyMail.com.
“But the reality is that you put all that aside to meet her. [If] she gets elected, and then she does nothing to solve the problem. She can’t say she didn’t know about it.’
However, he did say that the damage caused by her policies cannot be repaired.
Nothing within his power or the vice president’s power can undo the effects of border policies in recent years between Biden and Harris, he said.
“Where we’ve been, she can’t fix it. I can’t fix it. What’s happened already, it’s some sad tragedies and stories and my heart goes out to all of that.”
“But where do we go from here? What’s our plan? That’s the question.’
‘I’ll meet her at the airport. Spend some time with her, welcome her, but also discuss our concerns.”
The sheriff confirmed that there has been an explosion of encounters with illegal immigrants in his area, which is in Border Patrol’s Tucson sector.
Migrants who have entered Arizona illegally are waiting in line awaiting processing by Border Patrol
Migrants come to Arizona from all over the world, including Africa and Asia
“We have almost 150,000 more encounters than any other sector on the border,” he revealed, noting that the figures have not yet been released and are still being finalized.
Now that Harris has come to Arizona amid the surge in illegal crossings, some local law enforcement officials are divided.
‘Opinions are mixed. There’s no doubt about it.’
“When I see people dying in my country, I see people dying across the country because fentanyl is coming through Arizona in record numbers, US sheriffs and the White House and hopefully Congress has to come together to solve the problem.”
Although not all law enforcement officers are so optimistic about the trip.
Some Border Patrol officials believe Harris’ trip is “too little, too late” and shared that they believe the “problems we’ve had at our borders have been caused by this administration,” a source revealed to DailyMail.com.
Similarly, Art Del Cueto, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council, told DailyMail.com that he too was not enthusiastic about Harris’ election year trip.
Cartel smugglers in camouflage wait for the perfect moment to sneak their human cargo across the US-Mexico border in Arizona last month
A human trafficker is seen here spying on DailyMail.com with binoculars during a trip to report on the holes in the border wall
National Border Patrol Council board member Art Del Cueto walks with U.S. Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump along the U.S.-Mexico border south of Sierra Vista, Arizona, on August 22, 2024. Del Cueto told DailyMail.com that Harris had caused the trouble at the Arizona border
“After years of not only ignoring the problem but helping to create it, Vice President Kamala Harris is finally heading to the border,” he said in a statement.
Del Cueto similarly attended Trump’s border wall visit in Arizona last month. He was a Border Patrol agent in the Tucson sector for many years and still lives there.
“This is nothing more than her checking the box, but what it really is is a slap in the face to the men and women who put their lives on the line every day, and also a slap in the face to the American. audience.’
“Where has she been?”