Rep. Crane Applauds Court Victory Against Biden Admin’s Attempt To Sell Border Wall Materials

Rep. Crane Applauds Court Victory Against Biden Admin’s Attempt To Sell Border Wall Materials

By Daniel Stefanski |

An Arizona Congressman is cheering on a recent court decision involving the sale of border wall material by the outgoing presidential administration.

U.S. Representative Eli Crane marked a judicial opinion from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas in The General Land Office of the State of Texas v. Biden. The case involves a challenge to the Biden administration’s efforts to sell unused border wall materials ahead of President-Elect Donald J. Trump taking office on January 20, 2025. The ruling from Judge Drew B. Tipton granted the plaintiffs’ Motion for Preliminary Injunction.

Crane responded to the legal outcome, writing, “Solid victory. Thanks to President Trump, our border will be secure again. Arizonans can’t wait.”

President-Elect Trump, who had desired the courts to weigh in against the Biden administration’s actions, said, “BREAKING: In a major, crucial WIN for America, and our National Security, a Federal Judge in Texas, based on papers we filed just a few days ago, has PROHIBITED the Biden Administration from selling any materials designated for the Border Wall, that has been wrecked by Biden and his cronies, and which I am going to rebuild in order to protect our Country from violent migrant crime, fentanyl smuggling, sex trafficking, terror attacks, and other heinous, Nation ending disasters.”

Trump added, “The Judge has also ordered an investigation into the illegal selling of the materials, which will expose just how corrupt and anti-American Radical Democrats are. I am honored to be joined in this vital case by the Great States of Texas and Missouri, and applaud Judge Drew Tipton for doing the right thing for our Country. We have to protect our Borders, and Save America. MAGA!”

“We have successfully blocked the Biden Administration from disposing of any further border wall materials before President Trump takes office,” said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. “This follows our major victory forcing Biden to build the wall, and we will hold his Administration accountable for illegally subverting our Nation’s border security until their very last day in power, especially where their actions are clearly motivated by a desire to thwart President-elect Trump’s immigration agenda.”

Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen, who has been eyeing a potential run for state Attorney General in 2026, noted the District Court opinion, saying, “Conservative AGs matter.”

The court ruling followed a shocking report by The Daily Wire, which revealed that “Biden is racing to auction off unused border wall materials weeks before Trump takes office.” These materials were left over from the first Trump administration, when President Biden halted construction on the wall spanning parts of the southern border in various border states as one of his earliest actions in the White House in early 2021.

Trump said at the time, “The (Biden) administration is trying to sell it for five cents on the dollar – knowing that we’re getting ready to put it up.” Trump added that “what they’re doing is really an act – it’s almost a criminal act.”

Former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey responded to the news, saying, “Right here in AZ, Joe Biden is attempting a last-ditch effort to keep America’s borders open by selling off materials the Trump Admin will use to finish the wall. This decision from President Biden is reckless, will make Arizonans less safe, and should be reversed – immediately.”

Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.

Arizona Republicans Respond To Biden Admin’s Efforts To Offload Border Materials

Arizona Republicans Respond To Biden Admin’s Efforts To Offload Border Materials

By Daniel Stefanski |

Arizona Republicans are weighing in against an ongoing effort from the outgoing presidential administration to offload materials at the border ahead of the transfer of power in January.

Last week, The Daily Wire revealed that “Biden is racing to auction off unused border wall materials weeks before Trump takes office.” These materials were left over from the first Trump administration, when President Biden halted construction on the wall spanning parts of the southern border in various border states as one of his earliest actions in the White House in early 2021.

According to President-elect Donald Trump at a recent press conference, “The (Biden) administration is trying to sell it for five cents on the dollar – knowing that we’re getting ready to put it up.” Trump added that “what they’re doing is really an act – it’s almost a criminal act.”

Former Arizona Governor Doug Ducey responded to the news, saying, “Right here in AZ, Joe Biden is attempting a last-ditch effort to keep America’s borders open by selling off materials the Trump Admin will use to finish the wall. This decision from President Biden is reckless, will make Arizonans less safe, and should be reversed – immediately.”

In an interview with The Daily Wire, U.S. Congressman Eli Crane said, “The Biden Administration is well aware they shouldn’t have reversed construction of the border wall. If it’s true, they’re purposefully hamstringing an incoming president, it wouldn’t be shocking. Why would they want to see President Trump succeed with policies they aggressively sabotaged?”

Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen told AZ Free News, “This brazen behavior from Biden is a slap in the face to the law-abiding citizens who voted for a secure border. It’s because of his reckless policies and his administration’s evasion of the law that countless Americans have suffered the dire consequences of criminals pouring across the border into our communities. I’m hopeful the courts will take action against this sale.”

As Petersen mentioned, Republicans around the country are searching for a legal theory to try to stop the Biden administration from continuing with these actions. President Donald Trump takes the oath of office one month from this week on January 20.

Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.

Arizona Republicans Respond To Biden Admin’s Efforts To Offload Border Materials

Biden Administration Sells Off Border Wall Parts Secretively, Preventing Its Completion

By Corinne Murdock |  

The Biden administration has been secretively selling the parts necessary to complete the border wall, with most of the materials originating around Red Rock, Arizona.

As reported first by Power Corridor (part of The Daily Upside), the Pentagon told the auction site GovPlanet to “aggressively market” about 12,000 border wall items without disclosing their origins with former President Donald Trump and their original purpose: to complete the southern border wall. 

Instead, the Pentagon instructed the auctioneer to obscure their activity from the public by using vague language when describing the border wall materials: “steel tubing and sticks for industrial construction.” GovPlanet later deleted an Instagram reel advertising the border wall materials after social media users recognized the listing for what it was, though the auction site listing remains.   

Power Corridor also reported that the Pentagon has never passed an audit, most recently unable to account for 61 percent, or $2.135 billion, of its $3.5 trillion in assets.  

The administration auctioned off 81 lots of steel border wall bollard panels for $2 million. These sales date back to April. This week, the government received $154,200 for 729 bollard panels. Another 13 will be auctioned off on Wednesday and Friday. The Pentagon takes the profits. 

The administration continues to sell off the critical border security components despite Congress’ apparent desire to complete the border wall.   

Last month, the Democrat-led Senate approved the Republican-led “Finish It Act” as part of its annual defense appropriations package. The Finish It Act was introduced independently in May by Republican Sens. Roger Wicker (MS), Ted Cruz (TX), and Joni Ernst (IA) before being folded into defense appropriations. The act would require the Department of Defense (DOD) to either use the unused border security materials to complete the border wall itself, or give the materials to the states so that they may finish the wall.   

According to GovPlanet data, the auction of the border wall materials picked up twice: first following the introduction of the Finish It Act, and second following the passage of the defense appropriations act. 

It appears that the Biden administration is attempting to get ahead of the anticipated House approval of the Senate’s defense appropriations package. While the president was criticizing Republicans publicly for cutting back on spending and, effectively, reducing the number of Border Patrol agents, his administration was busy getting rid of the infrastructure necessary for agents to ensure border security. 

Wicker introduced the Finish It Act approximately two months after asking the Biden administration to transfer the unused border wall materials to the southern states, citing the expense of $330 million to store and maintain the unused panels. The DOD gave over 1,700 unused bollard panels to Texas last February.  

The current rate of illegal immigrant crossings along the southwest border is on pace to overshadow the total for the 2022 fiscal year of 2.4 million. This time last year, there were over 1.94 million encounters. As of July, there were over 1.97 million encounters.   

Since Biden took office, there have been over 5.8 million illegal immigrant encounters at the southern border.

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

Arizona Finishes Yuma Border Wall Without Biden’s Help

Arizona Finishes Yuma Border Wall Without Biden’s Help

By Corinne Murdock |

On Tuesday, Arizona finished the border wall gaps in Yuma. The state began closing the wall 11 days ago, on Friday, August 13. 

Governor Doug Ducey celebrated the state’s rapid securement of the border the following day, the conclusion of an executive order which he dubbed the “Border Barrier Mission.”

“We did it,” wrote Ducey. “Yuma is safer today.”

In a press release, Ducey declared that his action didn’t mean the federal government was off the hook for border security. Ducey insinuated that Arizona’s quick action proved that the Biden administration didn’t really want the border closed. 

“In just 11 days, Arizona did the job the federal government has failed to do — and we showed them just how quickly and efficiently the border can be made more secure – if you want to,” declared Ducey.

The state closed five gaps amounting to over 3,800 feet in the border wall. Securing the wall took 130 shipping containers and 48 workers, coming in at a cost of over $6 million. By comparison, the Biden administration spent an estimated $3 million every day — around $2 billion total — to not complete the border wall, per President Joe Biden’s proclamation.

The governor’s office secured the funding through border security legislation passed in the most recent legislative session: HB2317 from State Representative John Kavanagh (R-Fountain Hills) codified June 30. 

Ducey relayed that the Biden administration promised Arizona last December that it would close the Yuma border wall gaps. No construction has taken place. Ducey noted that Yuma communities and their resources, such as nonprofits, food banks, and shelters, were overburdened by the illegal immigrant crisis. The area’s agriculture, the lifeblood of their economy, also suffered due to the travel of illegal immigrants. 

In the press release, Yuma Mayor Douglas Nicholls expressed gratitude for Ducey’s action. 

“Every day hundreds of people come across the border into the Yuma area,” said Nicholls. “By closing the border wall gaps, Governor Ducey is helping to protect our city from the dangerous drugs and bad actors that come through on a daily basis. Yuma is grateful for the effective process of getting these containers in place quickly and secured. Governor Ducey showed the nation how to secure the border and keep illegal activity at the border at bay.”

Yuma County Supervisor Jonathan Lines also commended Ducey and excoriated the Biden administration for its inaction. 

“The open border left behind by the Biden administration has left Yuma County residents exhausted and our resources depleted,” said Lines. “We’re tired of the lethal drugs and human smuggling entering our county. These containers are making a huge difference and will disrupt the cartels’ trafficking operations. Thank you, Governor Ducey, for prioritizing our county and protecting our families.”

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.

Governor Ducey Finishes Yuma Border Wall Following Massive Surge in Cartel Violence

Governor Ducey Finishes Yuma Border Wall Following Massive Surge in Cartel Violence

By Corinne Murdock |

On Monday, Governor Doug Ducey announced that the border wall gap near Yuma, Arizona was closed. That section of the wall resembles more of a wall than the border fencing elsewhere: rather than slats, the state installed double-stacked cargo shipping containers welded together and lined at the top with razor wire standing 4 feet tall.

Each double-stacked shipping container block weighs 17,600 pounds and stands 44 feet tall without the razor wire. The new Yuma border wall section spans 1,000 feet. The state plans on filling three gaps totaling 3,000 feet in the coming weeks.

As AZ Free News reported, Ducey signed an Executive Order on Friday to finish the border wall. Ducey’s action occurred several hours before the U.S. Consulate issued a “shelter in place” advisory for Americans residing in Tijuana, Mexico. On Thursday, at least 11 people were killed amid a fight between factions of the Sinaloa Cartel. 

On Sunday, the Consulate lifted the advisory.

The Friday advisory followed another, similar advisory from several days prior, marking another week of cartel violence in Mexico.

In his original announcement, Ducey declared that the Biden administration’s lack of urgency was a “dereliction of duty.”

Ducey said that the Tijuana violence prompted the immediate action to finish the border wall.

Ducey’s action far outpaced that of the Biden administration.

At the end of last month, the White House promised to finish the border wall. However, agency rules concerning environmentalism protocols, or “environmental stewardship reviews,” will likely delay that project by well over a year.

That could prove to be a snag for Ducey, who undertook construction without federal permission. 

Earlier this month, Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) data revealed that hard drugs topped marijuana for drug busts along the border for the first time ever.

Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels shared with radio host James T. Harris of “Conservative Circus” that the fentanyl crisis is a direct result of Biden’s border crisis. Dannels said that Arizona had over 5 million fentanyl dosage seizures in 2021, beating out all other states including California.

“They know exactly what’s going on. These are intelligent people. They just don’t care. This is intellectual avoidance at its worst. It’s almost like ‘American Second’ on our southern borders,” said Dannels.

Dannels added that the county has taken back some control, noting that the county jailed 617 individuals associated with border crimes from January to July. Dannels noted that so far, they’ve handled nearly 300 recognized victims of border-related crimes. 

Dannels also lamented the number of illegal immigrant deaths that occurred. Since January, 126 illegal immigrants have died attempting to cross the border.

In similar remarks, Ducey blamed the Biden administration for giving cartels more power. 

The governor’s remarks were part of a series of statements deriding the Biden administration for its inaction. Ducey declared that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has a “defeatist attitude” that worsens the border crisis.

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.