The Mexican government is keeping immigrants safer than it used to on its side of the border, a top official says. Cecilia Romero Castillo, commissioner of Mexico’s National Institute of Migration, told the Los Angeles Times recently that “new controls” begun by the government have reduced the number of extortion attempts…
The Democratic Party is mixing things up a bit. At a press conference this afternoon, state Senator Meg Burton-Cahill announced she was retiring from the Senate, Representative David Schapira announced he will begin “exploring” a run for her Senate seat, and, straight out of left field, Tempe City Councilman Ben Arredondo,…
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s criminal investigation into potential misdeeds by county leaders includes Governor Jan Brewer, a source close to the investigation tells New Times.The source, who did not want to want to be identified, did not want to elaborate on the subject of the inquiry, saying only that…
Here’s one from the rumor mill: Russell Pearce (above), the state senator from Mesa who’s led the charge against illegal immigration in Arizona, could be appointed head of the state Department of Public Safety. The Phoenix Business Journal and KTAR (92.3 FM) quote anonymous insiders at the state Capitol who…
Here we are more than a year away from gubernatorial elections, and pollsters are already hard at work.According to a poll released today by Public Policy Polling, Attorney General Terry Goddard would crush any likely opponent in next year’s election.The poll matched Goddard against sitting Governor Jan Brewer, former-Governor Fife Symington,…
Three unidentified sources “from different parts of the political spectrum” hint that a state investigation of Governor Janice Brewer may be coming down the pike, says the Phoenix Business Journal.A September 5 article by Mike Sunnucks says that questions have arisen about the way Brewer uses her power and how,…
You’re the city’s chief spokesman, home on administrative leave for allegations your bosses won’t specify to the public. A reporter calls, and you tell him you don’t want to say why you were put on leave. And then you say, out of the blue, “In my career, I have never touched…
A pair of Phoenix business owners claim the city screwed them in a railroad deal and ruined their livelihood. Now the husband-and-wife entrepreneurs have locked themselves inside their small compound, threatening to stay until they’re forced out.This plot could have been pulled from the Westerns section at the DVD store,…
A Border Patrol agent is suing the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, claiming he was traumatized after being stopped by ICE agents on a dark, rural road in southern Arizona and held at gunpoint. Jess Cabe, who works out of the Border Patrol’s Nogales Station, filed the lawsuit on September 4 in the U.S. District…
A decision expected today in the case of an alleged theft of a campaign sign by longtime Chandler politician John Huppenthal has been put off until Thursday. Huppenthal’s case is another leftover of the messy 2008 election season. If you’ll recall, Chandler police recommended charges of theft and tampering with…
President Obama popped into a meeting today between government officials and immigrant advocates, saying he wants local 287(g)-authorized agencies “held accountable,” a pro-immigrant group said today. Reform Immigration for America stated in a news release that the president wasn’t expected at the meeting in Washington D.C. on immigration reform, which was…
Veteran Arizona Capitol Times reporter Phil Riske has been fired from the Yellow Sheet, a paid-subscription politics rag, says an Arizona Republic blog post by Matthew Benson. Riske had been with the Cap Times for seven years and planned to retire at the end of August, but he got in…
The state’s having a bit of a yard sale right now, and what’s on the lawn? How about a hospital, a state park, and, oh yeah, the state capitol.We reported on this a few weeks ago, and believe us, we can’t believe this is actually happening either.In the last few…
Captain Joel Fox had to ‘fess up and spill the names of the cagey SCA donors behind a Republican Party smear campaign, but he still hasn’t turned over the contribution checks. Today’s the big day, according to Jeffrey Messing, the lawyer hired by the Maricopa County Elections Department to hold fire to the feet…
As we reported Tuesday, when you’re the Arizona State Senate majority leader, and your state is in the midst of heated budget negotiations, taking a Caribbean cruise is probably not your best course of action. Apparently some members of the Republican caucus agree. In a closed door meeting of Senate…
A California congressman has asked White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel to answer to allegations that he attempted to bully our very own Governor Jan Brewer. In a scathing letter today, Congressman Darrell Issa accused Emanuel of “resorting to the playbook of the Chicago political machine” when he directed…
When we read the headline to the latest news release from the Department of Public Safety, “Officer makes a traffic stop and discovers 97 undocumented aliens inside of a refrigerated commercial trailer,” our first thought was — good thing it was refrigerated, cause it’s dang hot out. Reading further though,…
Arizona lawmakers are considering “racinos” — maybe they should figure out a way to tax a new video-game-betting Web site that’s already legal in 39 states. The Associated Press reports that BringIt.com, founded by 30-year-old Woody Levin, is preparing to end its months-long “beta” phase sometime in the next few…
Valley developer Steve Ellman must feel a bit of deja vu. Years before we broke the story about his big contribution to the SCA, Ellman knew what it was like to be under suspicion of using the Republican Party to funnel money toward a specific political candidate. “The recent revelation is…
Deputies with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office busted two undocumented workers today after a cafe owner let the employees’ secret slip. The owner of Peppersauce Cafe, Denise Kimball, “blurted out” to a table full of lawmen — including a deputy — that “her cooks and dishwashers working in the back…
We can’t tell you much more than what’s in the headline. Local PR whiz Jason Rose put an interesting, though cryptic, tweet on his Twitter account yesterday about one of his clients, Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas: Major announcement from maricopa county andrew thomas quite possible in next 45 days…
With the current state of the United States economy being, well, horrifying, Mexican immigrants here are running for the border. A study released Wednesday by the Pew Hispanic Center shows that the number of Mexican’s entering the United States illegally has dropped nearly 40 percent in 2009, and found that nearly…
