Recent Articles from Arren Kimbel-Sannit
Q&A with House Minority Leader Charlene Fernandez
House Minority Leader Charlene Fernandez led a wartime caucus. Besieged by a majority that alternated between hostility and indifference, a public health crisis and a state in general disarray, the... […]
Plans for plentiful spending turn to ‘skinny budget’ nearly overnight
The Second Regular Session of the 54th Legislature is a tale of riches to rags. What began six months ago with optimism – about a strong economy, the possibility for... […]
Progressive organizers continue winning streak in truncated session
Six months ago – or an eternity, depending on how you count – before the coronavirus, before the most recent wave of public demonstration against police violence, before the David... […]
Q&A with House Speaker Rusty Bowers
In a legislative body where long-winded speechification, highly visible interpersonal disputes and general cacophony is the norm, House Speaker Rusty Bowers is remarkably difficult to nail down. His penchant for... […]
Finchem to challenge Bowers for House Speaker
Oro Valley Republcian Rep. Mark Finchem confirmed his intent to unseat House Speaker Rusty Bowers from leadership next year, the opening salvo in what could prove to be a bruising contest between two ideological wings of the GOP.
Protests against police violence fly in face of advice to prevent spread of virus
Public health experts and government officials have for months told Americans living under the thumb of a global pandemic to follow a simple edict: stay home. Stay home to steer... […]
Activist group pushes lawmakers to stop accepting cop cash
Efforts by activists to pressure policymakers into defunding or otherwise disassociating from police have manifested in calls for legislators to return campaign contributions from the political arms of police unions.... […]
House set to begin votes on bills Tuesday
The Arizona House of Representatives is set to hear potentially dozens of bills this week -- including a measure to shield businesses from legal liability if a patron or employee gets COVID-19 -- even as the Senate sits recessed, poised to finalize last week’s adjournment motion and end the session.
Passage of resolution to overturn Ducey’s order a very long shot
The plan hatched by some of the Legislature’s most vocal conservatives to reopen the state’s economy hinges on a concurrent resolution that would overturn the governor’s emergency declaration.
Police educate, not coerce, enforcing stay-at-home order
Some of the state’s largest police departments have received hundreds of calls relating to potential violations of the state’s now-extended stay-at-home order in the past month, but all have taken a hands-off approach to enforcement, according to a review of records from several departments and interviews with their representatives.
Cook: Ethics probe now a ‘public prosecution’
A Gila County lawmaker at the center of a House Ethics investigation wrote a letter to his colleagues Tuesday excoriating the practices of the committee leading the probe into his alleged misconduct.
Lawmaker: Virus makes need for change to sentencing laws greater than ever
This is all frustrating for Rep. Walt Blackman,R-Snowflake, one of many Arizona lawmakers who over the years have sought to amend the state’s sentencing laws -- some of the strictest in the country -- and improve prison conditions, mostly to no avail.