PHOENIX — Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema said Wednesday the Biden administration needs to take action to stem the flow of migrants attempting to come over the U.S.-Mexico border.
After holding a roundtable with local officials on the border situation, Sinema told reporters more work needs to be done to provide humanitarian resources for the many individuals traveling over the border into Arizona.
"The current flow is unsustainable," Sinema said Wednesday.
The number of migrant encounters on the U.S.-Mexico border totaled nearly 154,000 in January, a 15% decline from December, following three months of increases, according to court records in a suit filed by the state of Texas. Just over half of the people encountered were quickly expelled under public health orders.
Sinema said she's hoping to secure $150 million in extra emergency relief for non-governmental organizations providing supplies and humanitarian aid to migrants. But she indicated much more work needs to be done to resolve the crisis.
Many migrants are ending up at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport without plane tickets or a destination to go to, Sinema added, putting a strain on airport staff to provide humanitarian relief.
Officials in Washington D.C. have shown "little regard" for border issues, the senator said, and need to do more to manage the influx of people coming across the border.
Sinema additionally steered some blame at the last White House administration for failing to address immigration issues.
The senator has recently introduced legislation that aims to find jobs for asylum-seekers with verified identities and who have no flags in federal databases.
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