Staff Reports
The US Department of Justice sued Arizona's Republican governor, Doug Ducey, and his administration for using shipping containers to construct a wall along the state's border with Mexico.
The lawsuit was filed on Wednesday in the US District Court for Arizona. The Justice Department claimed that the project violated federal property rights.
According to the lawsuit, Arizona was not authorized to remove shipping containers from public lands. It damaged the US by allowing the containers to remain on lands that belonged to the government.
The lawsuit was filed in response to an executive order issued by the governor in August. He directed the state's Department of Military Affairs to start a project in Yuma County. In just 11 days, 130 shipping containers were used to close a portion of the border.
By November, 6,680 feet of containers had been stacked two-high along the Cochise County border. It's estimated that almost 2,700 shipping containers would be needed to fill the gap between the border and the southern portion of the state.
Cochise County Border Barrier update 💪
6,680 feet
334 shipping containers
2 weeksAnd we’re not slowing down yet! pic.twitter.com/vzxGj1xsGN
— Doug Ducey (@DougDucey) November 7, 2022
In response to the lawsuit, the state filed a countersuit to defend its right to use the containers to prevent illegal activities.
In a statement, the governor of Arizona said that the state's border communities were being overwhelmed by the illegal activities that were happening along the border.
The state is taking action to protest against the actions of the federal government. It is doing so to prevent the bureaucrats from undermining the progress that the state has made in addressing the border issue. “We will continue to do whatever it takes to secure the border in a way that is both safe and effective.
The lawsuit was filed after the state refused to remove the shipping containers in Yuma County. The Biden administration had asked the state to remove them, but the state officials said they would not do so until a permanent barrier was built.
According to the Biden administration, the containers have been interfering with the land around the Morelos dam and the West Reservation of the Cocopah Indians. They also claimed that the barriers could interfere with the US Customs and Border Patrol's project to replace the existing border wall.
Environmental activists have also targeted the shipping container project of Governor Doug Ducey. According to the Washington Post, climate activists have been using their bodies to block the border wall by sitting on top of the containers and blocking the machinery.
After the governor leaves office in January, the incoming governor of Arizona, Katie Hobbs, is expected to stop the construction of the shipping containers along the border.
According to Hobbs, the containers aren't working and that the people who are blocking the border are using the containers as a political stunt. She also claims that the barriers aren't making any difference and that they are a waste of taxpayer money.
The preceding is a summary of an article that originally appeared on Daily Wire.
