Primary day 2014 was a beautiful day for moderation in Arizona politics. A perfect day? Hardly, but disappointments in the Republican field offer opportunities for Arizona Democrats in the general election. Former Mesa Mayor Scott Smith’s second-place finish to state Treasurer Doug Ducey was anticipated, though the severity of the…
Phoenix Police Chief Daniel Garcia waxed eloquent during an unusual Saturday press conference, where he announced that the Arizona Department of Public Safety would be tasked with the criminal investigation of the shooting death of Michelle Cusseaux. Four police officers responded to Cusseaux’s West Phoenix apartment on August 14, ostensibly…
Please see updates and Horne’s concession statement at the end of this post. Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne stubbornly refused to concede as his Republican primary foil, former state gaming director Mark Brnovich, did a victory lap Tuesday night at the Hyatt in downtown Phoenix, where GOPers gathered to watch…
It’s “Candidates Day” at North Scottsdale Christian, a conservative, non-denominational place of worship just north of Pima Road and Dynamite Boulevard, where about 60 Democratic, Libertarian, and Republican candidates have assembled on a recent Sunday to introduce themselves. The politicians are allowed to set up tables with campaign literature in…
I’m on deadline at the moment, but I would be remiss if I did not alert New Times’ readers to an e-book by Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s ex-Deputy Chief Brian Sands, titled Arpaio De Facto Lawman. Sands left the MCSO last year after 30 years with the agency, following on the…
Leslie Lara figures Tio Sam Taxes, owned by local Republican bigwig wannabe Erik Ketelaar, owes her about $1,267, the combined amount of her federal tax refunds for 2012 and 2013. The company, which at one time had six locations in Phoenix and Mesa, heavily marketed its services to Hispanics, advertising…
The noose around Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne’s neck just tightened a little. On Monday, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Mark Brain rejected Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne’s bid for a temporary restraining order against County Attorney Bill Montgomery, whose office is investigating, among other things, allegations that Horne has…
I have a confession to make: I love “dark money.” When it’s used to blast someone I don’t like, that is. In the hands of Tyler Montague, president of the Arizona Public Integrity Alliance, dark money is truly a beautiful thing. Montague is one of the folks in Mesa instrumental…
Two of recalled former state Senator Russell Pearce’s favorite people are getting skewered in some tasty TV attack ads: Pearce’s revenge candidate for state Senate in Legislative District 25, Ralph Heap, and Pearce’s longtime ally, current state House Representative and wannabe-state Senator John Kavanagh in LD 23. Heap, an orthopedic…
Why is Sheriff Joe Arpaio endorsing Arizona’s sleazy Attorney General Tom Horne in the GOP primary? I’ll tell you why: because Arpaio always likes to have a prosecutor or two in his hip pocket. Should Horne lose the Republican primary to former Arizona gaming director Mark Brnovich, you can bet…
In Arizona, you’ve got to get the justice you can when you can get it. That’s because in this state, particularly when it comes to public corruption or the abuse of power, you might as well wait for Godot if you think the wicked will be punished as part of…
Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne has a fierce following among certain women. In fact, the guy’s got a whole cadre of gals willing to do his bidding, a veritable Praetorian Guard of political hatchet-ladies. Kathleen Winn, Horne’s outreach director and co-defendant in his campaign finance case, comes to mind. A…
Fortunately, I’ve not had to get too close to Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne lately, as the stench of desperation coming off the guy is practically visible, like the cloud of dirt that followed around Charlie Brown’s pal Pig Pen in the old Peanuts comic strip. Horne clearly hopes a…
GOP gubernatorial hopeful Christine Jones held a tele-town hall Monday night to address criticisms being leveled at her campaign from fellow Republicans. She deserves points for the effort, though with National Review Online digging up an old Facebook post of hers from 2012, encouraging people to “get excited” about Obama’s…
It’s like 2010 all over again, in more ways than one, when it comes to the self-described “conservative ice cream guy,” Republican state treasurer and wannabe governor Doug Ducey. Back in 2010, Democrat Andrei Cherny opposed Ducey in the treasurer’s race, and took aim at Ducey’s leadership of Cold Stone…
Christine Jones and firearms? Sounds like a fine way to spend a Saturday. Such was my thought when I found out Jones, a contender for the GOP nod for governor, would be at Shooter’s Vault, a gun shop in North Phoenix, for a campaign meet-and-greet. See, I had a few…
Do I really want to write one more word about recalled ex-state Senator Russell Pearce? Not really. But despite being rejected twice in his own district by a margin of 12 points, first in a historic 2011 recall election and then in the Republican primary for state Senate in 2012,…
Historians, psychologists, sociologists will all have a field day with the mass hysteria prompted by the child refugees from Central America, who came to this country fleeing poverty and violence. Stoked by irresponsible politicians and a too-compliant press corps, the widespread panic, fear, and animosity has been shameful to witness…
Danny Hendon, owner of the embattled Danny’s Family Car Wash chain and a longtime supporter of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, pleaded guilty today in federal court to identity fraud, the Associated Press is reporting. Several business entities under the DFC umbrella are scheduled for change of plea hearings today…
Tall with a buzz cut and a toothy grin, Dr. Ralph Heap is a banjo-pickin’ orthopedic surgeon with a handsome family and enough charisma to worry incumbent Bob Worsley in the GOP primary for state senator from deeply red Legislative District 25. Heap also is a colossal hypocrite — and…
You gotta love one thing about Republicans: With them, there’s always blood in the water. With erstwhile Go Daddy exec Christine Jones hard on his heels in the GOP primary for governor, and an awesome anti-Ducey ad by a pro-Jones I.E. in circulation, Ducey has fired back beginning today with…
Christine Jones puts the goober into gubernatorial. Indeed, the former GoDaddy pimp-ess and GOP candidate for governor’s rhetoric on the issue of “border security” is proving increasingly delusional. Jones has zero experience in politics, and it shows. Anyone proud to have the endorsement of Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu, aka,…
