Arizona Senator Sinema Hits Top Dems Over Border Funds Allocations

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., blasted Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., over their state receiving more federal funds to help alleviate overwhelmed migrant shelters.

The $800 million in funding from the Shelter Services Program allotted more than $100 million to New York City, far more than Arizona received.

In an interview with Politico, Sinema blasted the Biden administration over the difference in funds, considering the location of each state compared to the U.S. southern border.

Sinema directly called out Schumer and Jeffries over a joint press release first announcing the new humanitarian funds.

"It's fairly obvious," she said. "I don’t know if you noticed, but the announcement about that $104 million came out first, in a joint press release from Schumer and Jeffries — not from the White House or from FEMA. The first news of it broke by their press release. Now, how did that happen?"

Congress needs to approve additional funding, the Department of Justice said in response to Sinema.

The senator, who left the Democratic Party last year, said there is a "lack of understanding" about the struggles of border states compared to others.

"[There's a] lack of understanding of what the experience is like in border communities, and a willingness to shortchange the work that is happening in those communities without realizing the impact it has on the entire system," she said. "That's very frustrating."