TUCSON— Today, Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf is visiting Nogales, Arizona for a tour of border wall construction in the surrounding area. In response, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva issued the following statement:

“Instead of focusing on the public health emergency raging across the country, the Trump Administration remains hellbent on constructing the President’s useless vanity wall. This shameful publicity stunt it nothing more than a pathetic attempt to deflect from Trump’s failure to adequately address the COVID-19 pandemic and keep Americans safe.

“With Arizona testing capabilities lagging behind the rest of the nation and the number of cases increasing; Arizona is in need of more funding for hospitals, testing, and contact tracing capabilities. This is particularly concerning in small border communities where construction crews continue work on the wall with little regard to social distancing guidance. While Trump and Republicans resist calls for more money to address the pandemic, there seems to be endless amounts of money to construct the border wall—including a $569 million contract to a Trump donor.

“As the Trump Administration is rumored to announce more waivers to further endanger the public health and well-being of border community residents, it’s important that we call it for what it is: a monument to Trump’s failed leadership, nonexistent morals, and his own ego. These waivers must end, construction must stop, and the Administration should start listening to the voices of border residents whose lives are impacted by his reckless policies.”

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