Salmon Declares He Will Secure The Border In First 100 Days

Phoenix – Former Congressman and Republican gubernatorial candidate Matt Salmon this morning traveled to Yuma, Arizona, where he announced a new initiative that will serve as the centerpiece of his Arizona border security plan.

Under the bold new initiative – ‘Operation Copper Shield’ – the Salmon administration will deploy 1,200 armed National Guard troops to the Arizona-Mexico border; provide $60 million in funding for county sheriffs, county attorneys, and the state attorney general to aggressively prosecute border-related crimes; and authorize a $140 million annual cost for Arizona’s National Guard armed mobilization.

“The situation is dire. Our border is more wide-open today than it was when Barack Obama was president, and it has caused an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have repeatedly dismissed the severity of this problem while weapons, fentanyl, and illegal immigrants flow into our country. This will end when I am governor – and, thanks to Operation Copper Shield, I plan to gain much greater operational control of the border in my first 100 days in office,” said Salmon.

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A Strategy For The Future Based On The Success Of The Past

Salmon was advised on the initiative by former U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) Deputy Chief Ron Colburn and former Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu. Colburn previously served as USBP’s Chief Patrol Agent in Yuma, Arizona, and Babeu previously served as the Army Commander of Task Force Yuma. The duo’s elements coordinated the law enforcement and military efforts under Operation Jump Start (2006-2008), which aimed to reduce illegal immigration and drug smuggling in the Yuma Sector by 92 percent.

Babeu said, “Matt Salmon’s creation of a Copper Shield exemplifies the fearless leadership that he will bring to the governor’s office. I saw firsthand the success that was possible under Operation Jump Start. Force and consequences matter, and a thundering show of armed military force will allow us to secure the border and protect the people of Arizona.”

Colburn said, “While serving as chief agent of the Yuma Sector, we enacted real solutions to shut illegal activity and increased operational control of the border. It absolutely can be done, and Operation Copper Shield – with armed soldiers and a visible show of force – is how to do it.”

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How ‘Operation Copper Shield’ Will Combat the Cartels, Stop Drug and Human Trafficking, and Secure Arizona’s Border With Mexico

Salmon plans to take the following steps in order to implement Operation Copper Shield and gain much greater operation control of the border in his first 100 days in office:

• Deploy 1,200 armed National Guard troops to the Arizona-Mexico border, specifically at highly visible locations and established smuggling routes. These troops will be armed with 120 rounds of ammunition and authorized to operate under tactical and operational guidelines similar to those established under Operation Jump Start.
• Declare a State of Emergency, triggering emergency funding for the mission and granting additional powers to the military under his command.
• Invest $60 million in county sheriffs, county attorneys, and the state attorney general to better enforce our state laws, empowering law enforcement to seal the porous border and prevent a pathway that terrorists could otherwise exploit.
• Request $200 million in emergency funding from the state legislature to ensure that the border security mission is fully funded.
• Provide $50 million in annual Gang and Immigration Intelligence Team Enforcement Mission (GIITEM) funds directly to county sheriffs and county attorneys to allow for the creation or expansion of Anti-Smuggling Units and for the hiring of additional prosecutors and legal support staff to prosecute border-related crimes.
• Provide $10 million in annual funding to the Arizona Attorney General for the hiring of staff to aggressively prosecute border-related crimes.
• Make an initial down payment for the military deployment and increased law enforcement, and then take concrete, proactive steps to demand reimbursement from the federal government.
• Grant ‘Rules of Force’ to soldiers and airmen, whom will be given direct authority under the declaration of emergency to detain illegal immigrants and turn them over to the Arizona Department of Public Safety, county sheriffs’ offices, and/or USBP.
• Invoke authorities under Article I Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution to immediately escort illegal immigrants back across the border. Notify illegal immigrants during the escort process that they will be apprehended, aggressively prosecuted, and incarcerated if they attempt re-entry.
• Construct state-financed and locally-run makeshift jails and Tent City facilities on an as-needed basis (as determined by county sheriffs) for temporary holding until law enforcement is able to deport or escort illegal immigrants back to their country of origin.

The constant and visible presence of military forces will immediately restrict border access in Arizona and will result in criminals halting their drug- and human-smuggling crimes within our state.

Salmon’s Arizona border security plan will rely on cooperation between military units, USBP, county sheriffs’ offices, and the Arizona Department of Public Safety, all of whom will served as a Copper Shield protecting Arizona. The success of the shield will be further enhanced by the aggressive prosecution of illegal border-crossers and drug smugglers by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Arizona Attorney General, and county attorneys.

You can read Salmon’s initial policy paper on border security here.

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