PHOENIX — Sharp differences between Governor Katie Hobbs and her Republican opponent, U.S. Representative Andy Biggs were apparent at a public-safety forum in Phoenix on Tuesday night.
Hobbs accused Biggs of supporting Jan. 6, 2021, rioters, saying he waited outside a Washington, D.C., jail with their supporters as the defendants were being released after President Donald Trump pardoned them.
“I will never stand with folks who assault officers,” she said. “I will stand with officers every single day.”
Speaking with reporters after the event, Biggs called Hobbs’ remarks “an absolute lie.”
“It is a fabrication,” he said. “It's about as nutty as I've heard from her this campaign.”
With Hobbs bowing out of the October gubernatorial debate, Tuesday's forum could be the only time she and Biggs will attend the same event.
The candidates answered six questions ranging from the border to law enforcement retention, appearing on stage separately before law-enforcement leaders, elected officials and corporate leaders.
Hobbs said her administration had made progress on securing the border, saying it's not a partisan issue.
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“When I took office, the border was chaos, and the Biden administration had failed Arizonans on border security,” she said.
Hobbs said local law enforcement has gotten more than $200 million for technology, equipment and additional staffing. She touted the seizure of more than 18 million fentanyl pills, thousands of pounds of other illegal narcotics and over 15 million illegal weapons.
The governor promised to continue to work with the Trump administration on border issues.
“I know there’s more to do," she said. "We can’t take our foot off the gas."
Biggs said he wanted to revitalize the Border Strike Force, a program created by former Gov. Doug Ducey.
“First thing that I think we need to do is to make sure the Border Security Strike Force is fully funded,” he said.
But most of the drug seizures attributed to the strike force were actually made by other state troopers, the Arizona Republic reported in 2022. And most of the group’s work did not take place in Arizona’s border counties.
“To make the Border Security Strike Force work, you actually have to have a leader who's involved,” Biggs told ABC15 after the forum. “I will appoint a border czar who can help coordinate and work on the border with sheriffs, local law enforcement, working with federal law enforcement, working with state troopers.”
Both candidates said Arizona needs to do more to address the state’s fentanyl crisis.
Arizona’s drug overdose rate is now double the national average, despite deaths declining across the country, the New York Times recently reported.
Biggs said a new Border Strike Force would be able and also called for tougher sentencing for people who sell fentanyl to people who later die.
"We know where they’re coming across on our southern border,” he said.
Hobbs said the state is seeing more fentanyl in powder form, which can be more deadly.
"Our extreme heat is also a huge contributor, something that other states don’t necessarily have to deal with on the same level ,” she said.
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