by Matthew Holloway | Aug 8, 2025 | Education, News
By Matthew Holloway |
In a post to X earlier this week, Chaya Raichik’s ‘Libs of TikTok’ revealed a now-deleted video allegedly created by an educator at the PPEP TEC High School’s Cesar Chavez Learning Center in San Luis, Arizona. The video urged teachers to “teach as hard as you can[.] So your students don’t grow up to be… Trump supporters.”
In a screenshot of the post, a man believed to be PPEP TEC High School teacher Edson Delgado, posting under the now-deleted profile ‘mrfacts5x’ wrote, in full, “This school year… Teach as hard as you can[.] So your students don’t grow up to be… Trump supporters. Make America Smart Again.”
In the caption of the post, he added, “If we don’t teach them critical thinking… someone else will teach them conspiracy theories. Let’s make America smart again.”
Libs of TikTok commented on the post, “Teacher at PPEP Cesar Chavez Learning Center in AZ wants to ‘teach’ students so they don’t grow up to be Trump supporters. Any comment @ppeptechs?? Do you condone teachers indoctrinating kids???”
The individual depicted in the post as ‘mrfacts5x’ bears a notable resemblance to Delgado, an educator who was honored by the office of Yuma County Superintendent Tom Hurt as doing “Great things at PPEP Tech!” In a March 25th post to Facebook and is identifiable through the certifications shown hanging behind him in the post to TikTok.
Several commenters on social media expressed reactions, ranging from concern to outrage. Political commentator Paul Szypula wrote, “Our schools are compromised.”
Columnist Emilia Henderson replied on X, “That teacher is PROGRAMMING kids with hatred for their own country. If PPEP allows this, they’re no school at all.. they’re a political FACTORY pushing Democrat obedience.”
Some critics of the TikTok post called for federal funding for PPEP TEC High School to be terminated, while others called for the teacher’s termination. At least one Arizona commenter, ‘JustADudeAZ,’ stated that he reported the incident to Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne. He wrote, “Credit to Tom Horne for listening and getting back to me. He provided where to go to keep people like this teacher honest. If you see teaching like this you can report them directly using this site,” and provided a link to the Empower Hotline.
The hotline is “the forum to report about inappropriate lessons that detract from teaching academic standards such as those that focus on race or ethnicity, rather than individuals and merit, promoting gender ideology, social emotional learning, or inappropriate sexual content,” according to the Arizona Department of Education.
AZ Free News has reached out to PPEP TEC High School for comment but received no response by the filing of this article.
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Aug 7, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
The ongoing recall of Mesa City Councilwoman Julie Spilsbury has taken on a new dimension. Late last month, Dorean Taylor announced that she is now challenging the Democrat-endorsing councilwoman for her seat.
While the Mesa City Council and Mayor are elected on a non-partisan basis, Spilsbury, despite being a self-identified Republican, has made no mystery of her political alignment with vocal endorsements of Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 Presidential Election and endorsements of prominent Arizona Democrats U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton, Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, and U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego.
Spilsbury told Axios that she has been contacted by Stanton, Gallego, and Fontes who have offered her their support.
Mesa resident JoAnne Robbins, who filed the recall petition in January, told AZ Central that Spilsbury’s endorsement of Harris over President Donald Trump contributed to her decision to lead the fight.
“To use her position and to then come out and stump for those who are against our values, that’s a total bait and switch and a very big disappointment,” Robbins explained. She added that she and other Spilsbury critics feel that her positions on the council failed to represent the values of her voters.
Turning Point Action has taken a prominent role in the recall effort, leading signature gathering events and posting regularly on social media with Republican figures, including former State Representative Anthony Kern and former State Senator Justine Wadsack.
Tyler Bowyer, Turning Point Action Chief Operating Officer, told 12News, “Julie Spilsbury was recalled because she chose to support Kamala Harris for president—as a Republican—in a district that went for President Trump by double digits.”
“It is proof that when you betray voters, there are consequences,” Bowyer added.
While Turning Point Action has not officially endorsed any candidates against Spilsbury, Bowyer told Axios, “It’s safe to say we’ll educate people on Julie.”
In comments to AZ Central, Taylor said she’s running for the city council because she doesn’t believe Spilsbury “cares about her constituents based on her talk (versus) her actions.” She added that those actions are “not representative non-partisan leadership.”
In a statement announcing her candidacy, Taylor said:
“I’m running to provide authentic representation to all residents of District 2 and to base my votes on constituent needs rather than personal opinions.
“District 2 deserves a council member who is transparent, accountable, and consistently shows up for the residents who elected them. This is a non-partisan position—a role that listens to both sides of the aisle and puts people first.
“My opponent has repeatedly voted against the will of her constituents on key decisions—including hiking utility bills, building homeless shelters in the middle of District 2 neighborhoods, and allowing men in women’s restrooms in the guise of equity.
“By not representing the values and principles that have made our country and community exceptional, Spilsbury has put us all at risk of losing the safe, happy, healthy, and vibrant Mesa we have all come to love.
“My goal is to reverse that trend.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Aug 6, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Three of Arizona’s Republican Congressional delegation have called for accountability from the FBI over the rapidly evolving scandal around the ‘Durham Annex,’ a cache of recently released records exposed by FBI Director Kash Patel and Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard.
Following the initial release, Congressmen Abe Hamadeh, Eli Crane, and Andy Biggs all offered comments via X, along with media interviews uniformly calling for accountability from the Department of Justice for the monumental scandal, which President Donald Trump described as “a FAILED coup.”
Gabbard started the proverbial ball rolling with a post to X, saying, “Whistleblower reveals how they were threatened by a supervisor to go along with the Obama-directed Russia hoax ‘intelligence’ assessment, even though they knew it was not credible or accurate. The Whistleblower refused.
“Yesterday we released the Whistleblower’s firsthand account of what happened in the crafting of the January 2017 ICA, their yearslong efforts to expose the egregious manipulation and manufacturing of intelligence carried out at the highest levels of government and the IC (detailed in our previous releases) and how they were repeatedly ignored.”
The releases by DNI Gabbard and FBI Director Patel indicated that the Hillary Clinton campaign allegedly approved a plan to falsely link President Donald Trump to Russia as a distraction from her email scandal, with the FBI failing to adequately investigate or disclose key information, including misleading the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. The document highlights U.S. intelligence assessments of Russian intercepts suggesting Clinton’s involvement in stirring up a scandal. Later email releases showed clear ties from the Clinton Campaign to Leonard Benardo, Senior Vice President of billionaire George Soros’ Open Society Foundations.
Congressman Crane made several posts to X over the course of the day, calling for accountability. He quoted Leading Report’s note that said, “Declassified files show Hillary Clinton personally signed off on plan to link Trump to Russia in 2016, ” and he wrote, “And the swamp went along with it. We the People expect ACCOUNTABILITY.”
Sharing the whistleblower account Crane added, “This is a MASSIVE scandal. There has to be accountability.”
Responding to a report from John Solomon, Crane commented, “A historic scandal. And it’ll likely be ignored by the very mainstream media figures that perpetuated the hoax in the first place.”
In response to additional subsequent releases from FBI Director Patel, he wrote “Keep releasing. Then we have to hold them accountable.”
Congressman and Arizona Gubernatorial candidate Andy Biggs similarly demanded “consequences for everyone who conspired against the American people.”
He wrote, “It was planned from the start. Americans were manipulated by the Left and the media for years. Those of us who called out the stench from the start were painted as conspiracy theorists. There must be severe consequences for everyone who conspired against the American people.”
In an interview with Garret Lewis of The Afternoon Addiction on 550 KFYI, Rep. Abe Hamadeh was clear: “There has to be justice. There has to be accountability. People need to be locked up.”
“It is the biggest scandal in American history, and that’s why President Trump won back in November,” Hamadeh added. “Because this is a repudiation of the corrupt cabal that has held a chokehold on our country for so long.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Aug 5, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Arizona State Representative John Gillette (R-LD30) issued a strong condemnation of Texas Democrats who have fled their state in an effort to deny the legislature a quorum over upcoming redistricting proposals. In fleeing the state, the leftist lawmakers have ground progress on not only the redistricting, but bills addressing the devastating Hill Country flood as well, earning them wide criticism, arrest warrants, and potential expulsion.
Texas State Representative Ann Johnson (D-HD134) defended the ongoing abdication of duty in a post to X saying, “Breaking Quorum is an exceptional and extraordinary act of last resort.” Johnson’s post ingored the fact that Democrat lawmakers did similar as recently as 2021 to delay mail-in ballot reform and before that in 2003 to also oppose redistricting.
Gillette’s response to Johnson was scathing. “Breaking quorum is a cowardly act,” he wrote. “You swore an oath, not only to the Constitution but your State as well as its people. Now you hide in leftist states. What a disgrace. You can try to church this up all you want….not working[.] Cowardice and criminal, sum up the democrat party.”
The Republican lawmaker’s response to a video post from Texas State Representative Ron Reynolds (D-HD27) made on an airliner was even more direct. Answering Reynolds’ claim to be “breaking quorum today to stop Texas Republicans from passing racially gerrymandered maps,” Gillette replied, “Cowardly P”ssy said what? Go back and do your job.”
As of this report, the Texas legislature has voted to empower its Sergeant-at-Arms to locate and arrest the more than 50 Democrat legislators who have abandoned the Special Session called by Governor Greg Abbott to respond to the flooding emergency on the Guadalupe River, and which has also taken on redistricting.
As reported by the Texas Tribune, House Speaker Dustin Burrows slammed the Democrats from the House on Monday saying they had “shirked their responsibilities,” and thanking those present. “You understand that the issues before us, disaster recovery, fighting for the families who lost loved ones in the floods, human trafficking and more, are not abstract policy debates,” Burrows said with a rebuke toward the Democrats. “Instead of confronting those challenges, some of our colleagues have fled the state and their duty.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
by Matthew Holloway | Aug 4, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Arizona’s Democrat Secretary of State Adrian Fontes fueled a new wave of condemnation during a Wednesday War Room segment of ‘Outspoken with Bruce and Gaydos’ on KTAR with Republican Arizona Senator John Kavanaugh. During the segment, Fontes brazenly described law enforcement as “hooded thugs.” Fontes then went on to deny his words minutes later when called Kavanaugh, a former police officer, called him out for it.
Saguaro Group and Arizona Capitol Oversight founder Brian Anderson drew attention to the moment in a post to X writing, “Democrat @Adrian_Fontes just went on the radio and smeared Arizona law enforcement officers as “HOODED THUGS” for enforcing border laws … and then nervously claimed “I didn’t say the word thug” after Senator @JohnKavanagh_AZ called him out for it[.]”
Republican Congressman and gubernatorial candidate Andy Biggs also called out Fontes on X, saying, “Arizona is less safe today because Democrats like Katie Hobbs and Adrian Fontes think our law enforcement agents are ‘thugs.’ Our safety is at risk. We cannot afford four more years of them in charge.”
In full context, Fontes began the exchange by responding to a question from co-host Bruce St. James, who asked how illegal immigrants are being selected for arrest and deportation. St. James asked, “How are these people [illegal immigrants] then being chosen picking picked out of a group then? What are the parameters people are using?”
Fontes answered, “Uh, whatever they are, they are un-Christian. I can’t see how anybody can say they’re a Christian and treat someone from another land in their own land this way. It’s mean is what it is. It’s mean-spirited. Uh, a lot of these folks are being picked up by, you know, hooded thugs in the street in the most un-American way. So, I just think the spirit behind this, whether or not the poll numbers are up or down, I mean, that’s kind of the window dressing here. At the end of the day, what we’re looking at is uh scaring the hell out of people on purpose because we don’t like them. And it’s an un-Christian-based way of not liking people because just cuz they’re from somewhere else.”
Defending the use of masks to protect officers from the dangerous leftist tactic of ‘doxxing’ law enforcement officers and their families, making them vulnerable to targeted violence, Kavanaugh called out the Democrat Secretary of State for his comment: “I’m proud to have been a cop for 20 years. I’m proud to have helped immigration when I was a cop.” Kavanaugh said.
To which Fontes replied, “I appreciate what law enforcement agents do when they do it to protect or to…”
But Kavanaugh, having none of it, cut him off, “But you call them thugs!”
Fontes immediately denied the words he had spoken just over four minutes before, claiming, “I didn’t say the word thug. Now you’re lying.”
Kavanaugh then challenged him, “Play the tape. What? What? Mask thugs, or did you use a similar derogatory term? You didn’t say law enforcement officers.”
Fontes avoided the question and continued to attack the enforcement of immigration laws, saying, “You remove humanity, dignity, mercy, and decency from governance. What you’re doing is saying the most powerful will rule over the least without mercy.”
However, Kavanaugh wouldn’t let the comment pass unanswered, “So when I was a cop and I locked up somebody who committed a crime, I was a thug? I was not being humane because I enforced the law?”
Fontes answered conditionally, “When the law is amnesty, and people are fleeing places where they might get killed if they stay there?” He continued, claiming, “This home of freedom is now turning into a place of fear because of these ridiculous policies.”
Kavanaugh replied tersely, “People being removed do not have claims of asylum. If they did, they’d be on hold.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
