Washington GOP Congressional Delegation Calls for Border Assistance from Gov. Inslee

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Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-Battle Ground, has joined two fellow Washington state congressional representatives in sending a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee to request he send Washington National Guard troops to the southern border.

Herrera Beutler, R-Battle Ground, Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Yakima, and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Kettle Falls, sent a letter this week to Gov. Inslee requesting he respond to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey’s joint request for Washington state to assist in their response to the crisis at America’s southern border.

Abbot and Ducey sent a joint letter to the governors of the 48 other states on June 10 requesting they send “all available law-enforcement resources” to the U.S. border with Mexico “in defense of our sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

In the letter, the governors claim the situation meets the criteria for assistance under the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which allows states to help one another in times of disaster and emergency.



“An open southern border threatens our national security and the safety of all Americans. Hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals are entering our country each month with no documentation and unknown motives,” Washington lawmakers wrote to Inslee.

“American families in all 50 states are harmed by the influx of illegal immigrants crossing our southern border. On behalf of our constituents in Washington, we're requesting that you approve Texas and Arizona’s requests for assistance and follow the lead of your fellow governors by deploying National Guard troops to help secure the southern border. State and federal officials have a duty to respond.”

Last week, Arkansas and South Dakota's governors both authorized deployment of their respective state’s national guard troops to be deployed to the U.S. border with Mexico, but have been the only states so far to do so.

Inslee has yet to issue a public response.