Political endorsements are flying off the shelves in Phoenix, where voters will elect a new mayor and five City Council members on August 30.Among the latest is the Sonoran Citizens Improvement Association’s expected endorsement of Bryan Jeffries, the Mesa firefighter appointed to fill the City Council seat vacated by former…
District 6 Congressional candidate Matt Salmon must have coughed up $2,000 really impressed Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio — the sheriff has penned a glowing endorsement for the former Republican congressman in his attempt to become a congressman once again.Salmon’s campaign today announced Arpaio’s endorsement. The theme of the political…
Starting tomorrow, photo-enforcement-violation notices must finally state the truth about what’s going on — namely, that you don’t need to respond or identify the driver in the picture.Cities and, for a while, the state of Arizona, have for years employed something of a ruse to help get speeders and red-light…
State Senator Scott Bundgaard was supposed to be in Phoenix Municipal Court this morning to answer for his alleged scuffle with ex-girlfriend Aubry Ballard, but he wasn’t, and now his hearing’s been rescheduled.Bundgaard’s attorneys reportedly are asking for a change of venue and say they need time to interview additional witnesses.Bundgaard’s been…
State Senator Lori Klein has an interesting yarn about how her loaded gun ended up pointed at the chest of Arizona Republic reporter Richard Ruelas.Amongst heavy criticism, Klein issued a statement, in which she claims that Ruelas moved in front of her gun sight as she was showing him the gun.Ruelas…
A poll conducted commissioned by Phoenix mayoral candidate Greg Stanton reveals that he leads the pack among decided voters.Of the 400 likely Phoenix voters asked how they would cast their ballots in the August 30 mayor’s race, 20 percent went with Stanton and 11 percent selected former Phoenix Councilwoman Peggy Neely.But…
As state Senator Lori Klein refuses to discuss why she pointed a loaded gun at a reporter during an interview last week, she might learn a thing or two from a Tempe man who found out the hard/deadly way what can happen when you ignore basic firearm-safety rules.The senator might…
Don’t bother asking state Senator Lori Klein about why she pointed a loaded gun at a reporter — she’s apparently done talking about it. “It makes little sense to contribute to a media feeding frenzy that is driven by a few individuals who never miss the opportunity to advance an…
Yesterday was the memorial service for Shannon Stone, a Texas father who died last week after falling from the stands at a Texas Rangers game while trying to catch a ball thrown into the crowd.Yesterday was also the Home-Run Derby portion of Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game, and a Kingman…
A Buckeye trailer manufacturing firm and its owner were ordered by a federal judge to pay $30,000 in fines and received two years’ probation for hiring undocumented workers. Richard Taylor and his company, Arizona Trailer Manufacturing, was convicted in U.S. District Court and sentenced on Wednesday. Dennis Burke, Arizona U.S. Attorney and Matt Allen, special agent in…
Former Councilwoman Peggy Neely created a video blasting her union-lovin’ opponents in the Phoenix mayor’s race. Wes Gullett, one of her challengers, fires back with his own video. Check it out…
Phoenix Councilman Claude Mattox won’t disclose how many Super Bowl games he attended, but New Times has been able to piece together that he may have attended at least three games.We posed the question as part of our ongoing examination of elected officials’ in jetting off to sporting events –…
Governor Jan Brewer held a ceremonial signing in her office on Thursday for a new law that strikes the “R-word” from state statutes.When it takes affect on September 30, the law will replace “mentally retarded,” “retardation” and “crippled” in state code with gentler phrases like “children with intellectual disabilities,” “physically…
Collin DeWitt, Gilbert Town Manager, stands behind his city’s decision to create a shorter work week and says the “four-10” schedule will save money and help customers.DeWitt returned our phone message from yesterday, (which we left after an assistant town manager failed to get back to us), to answer questions…
A Gilbert town official recently sent us an e-mail with a “signature” at the bottom that read: “Beginning July 11, 2011, Gilbert will offer extended customer service hours for most Town services, of 7 a.m. – 6 p.m. Monday – Thursday…” In government-speak, though, “extended” hours also means a lot…
The Fiesta Bowl fiasco has raised questions about elected officials’ judgement in accepting tickets and travel to football games, especially when the sports organizations inevitably wind up before the same officials asking for financial support. Now, as Arizona prepares its bid to host the Super Bowl in 2015, we asked…
To former Phoenix Mayor Skip Rimsza, union is a four-letter word.Rimsza, mayor from 1994 to 2004, wrote a letter for one mayoral candidate that blasts three others who he claims are preferred by “out of control” union bosses. Rimsza believes that “Greg Stanton, Claude Mattox, and Wes Gullett all have…
Phoenix Councilman Claude Mattox has shifted his message of support for CityNorth — flip flopping in that he voted for it, said at one debate that he wouldn’t have voted for it given today’s public reaction and later told 12 News that he would vote for it again.Wes Gullett, one…
The Arizona Legislature’s not in session, but the State Capitol is still swarming with rats. Not the usual elected rats, but actual rodents that are apparently “invading” the building.According to the Arizona Republic, “The House of Representatives, the Senate and the executive tower where the governor works have been magnets…
Greg Stanton, a leading candidate for Phoenix mayor, pulled in more campaign contributions in the past five months than his political challengers.A first glance at campaign finance reports reveals that he raised more than $250,000 between January 1 and May 31. During the same period, former Councilwoman Peggy Neely raised…
A Democrat, Phoenix mayor wanna-be and Republican walk into a campaign fundraiser … Now here’s a trio of politicos you wouldn’t expect to see hanging out together. But political campaigns make for strange bedfellows.Standing on the left is Phoenix Councilman Tom Simplot, an openly gay elected official, a longtime Republican…
