February 24, 2017 / Modified feb 27, 2017 9:34 a.m.

Episode 304: From Naco to the Nation, a View from the Border

Amid a new immigration enforcement plans, viewpoints of politicians, lawmen, rancher and more.


This week President Donald Trump and the Department of Homeland Security released a new set of plans regarding immigration and border enforcement.

Among the details that were revealed are steps to increase security on the border, including the hiring of thousands of more officers, a more aggressive approach to the detention and deportation of immigrants, and and attempt to deal with the influx of Central American teens and children.

One question mark since the transition to the new administration has been the status of “Dreamers,” or immigrants brought to the United States as children, who were protected by an executive order from former President Barack Obama.

President Trump is honoring the order, for now, which would affect the more than 660,000 Dreamers who were approved between 2012 and 2015. According to the National Immigration Law Center, another 240,000 renewed two years ago under the program, called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).

But some continue to be cautious about the fate of the Dreamers. Gloria Valadez, 28, works with Dreamers and their families. A Dreamer herself, Valadez sat down to talk with Arizona Week about the future of DACA recipients under Trump.

Also on the program

  • An immigration roundtable with U.S. Congressman Raúl Grijalva
  • U.S. Rep. Martha McSally holds an in-person town hall in Southern Arizona.
  • Arizona shares 370 miles of border with Mexico. Today, more than 200 miles of some kind of barrier, according to Customs and Border Protection, and the style of fence or wall varies widely. Contractors are making repairs to border fence in Naco, Arizona.
  • Rancher John Ladd has been running cattle for generations. For him, and other members of his border community, immigration and border enforcement has long been more than a talking point.
  • Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels talks about how activity on the border directly impacts the residents of his county.
  • Mexican Senator Juan Carlos Romero Hicks addresses a joint session of legislators at the Arizona Capitol.
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