Arizona veterans: apply for your PACT Act benefits before Aug. 9
I never had asthma during my entire life until I volunteered to serve my country. Thanks to President Joe Biden and military veteran leaders in Congress like Rep. Ruben Gallego and Sen. Mark Kelly, I’m now covered because of the PACT Act.
Our ‘justice’ system: a paradox of errors and innocence
The release of Barry Jones after nearly 30 years on Arizona's death row, wrongfully convicted for a crime he did not commit, forces us to confront the unsettling of our justice system. Despite being a nation that upholds values of fairness and justice, we've seen these principles denied to too many individuals, especially those of color. As a Black woman, I am deeply disturbed by this pattern.
Gallego holds first events of Arizona Senate campaign
Democrat Ruben Gallego held the first public events of his U.S. Senate campaign Saturday, taking aim at independent incumbent Kyrsten Sinema and casting his candidacy in a patriotic appeal to the American dream.
U.S. closing doors on persecuted Christians
How can we boldly say we stand for religious liberty, but then cower and close our doors when it comes time to act on our values? “Dear children, let us not love with words or speech, but with actions and in truth” (1 John 3:18). Let us act on faith, not fear, and hold our leaders accountable to “not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in [our] power to act” (Proverbs 3:[...]
Official: Southwest border focus is on immigrant children, not ISIS
The head of Customs and Border Protection said there is no evidence of ISIS attempts to infiltrate the Southwest border and his agency is more focused on trying to prevent more unaccompanied minor immigrants.
Arizonans in ‘Old Guard’ say honoring the fallen is the greatest service
Former Phoenix residents Tyler O’Connor and Enrique Garcia took different paths to the Army.
O’Connor knew at age 7 that he wanted to be a soldier and spent four years in Army ROTC at Arizona State University to earn a commission in the infantry. Garcia decided much later to enlist, about a year after high school. O’Connor wound up serving in Afghanistan, Garcia was deployed twice to [...]
Horne: ‘No excuse’ for Air Guard members accused of expense fraud
Twenty-one Tucson-based Arizona Air National Guard members have been indicted for fraud after using fake addresses to collect federal stipends meant for those who are traveling or on short-term orders, Attorney General Tom Horne said on Monday.
Business leaders leave Washington with dim hopes of avoiding sequester, job cuts
A delegation from the Arizona Technology Council came to Washington this week hoping to persuade Congress to stop automatic spending cuts that would hurt state defense contractors and could lead to layoffs.
Lawmakers form veterans caucus focused on education, jobs, more
Seven state lawmakers have created a veterans caucus focused on improving education, job opportunities and mental health services for former military.
Thousands of Arizona veterans face backlog on disability claims with VA
Peering through the new prescription glasses he just got from the veterans hospital, Korean War veteran Gilbert Torres sifted through a stack of papers detailing claims he’d had pending with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs since July 2011.
Arizona joins national effort to address homelessness among veterans
Arizona has a higher number of homeless veterans than most other states, in part because of the draw of its mild winters. More than 2,200 veterans are homeless in Arizona on any given night, making up one of every five people on the street, according to estimates from the state Department of Veterans Services.
Alarmed by the scale of the problem and the lack of resources available, stat[...]
Arizona National Guard unit told of possible Afghanistan mission
Hawaii's 29th Infantry Brigade, which includes infantry units from Arizona and Guam, says it's received notice that more than 2,000 of its soldiers may deploy to Afghanistan in 2013.