by Matthew Holloway | Apr 2, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Founder and former CEO of the Phoenix-based Nikola Motor Company, Trevor Milton, was granted a full-unconditional pardon by President Donald Trump on Friday as confirmed by the White House. Milton was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office – Southern District of New York (SDNY), the same office which led the infamous pre-election prosecution of the President.
In a press release issued Friday, Milton, who was convicted of fraud and sentenced to four years in prison in December 2023, referenced a vow from Trump during his second inaugural address to “end the political weaponization of the Justice Department.”
Milton said in an Instagram post, “Today I was issued a full and unconditional pardon by Donald Trump himself. He called me personally to tell me.”
He also said in a statement, “This pardon is not just about me—it’s about every American who has been railroaded by the government, and unfortunately, that’s a lot of people.
“It is no wonder why trust and confidence in the Justice Department has eroded to nothing. I wish judges would stop believing whatever the prosecutors feed them so Americans could trust the justice system again. Until that happens, our justice system will continue to erode until there is nothing left.
“The 90+% conviction rate in New York is appalling and is a result of prosecutors getting whatever they want and putting innocent people in prison. I saw firsthand the tactics they use to achieve those guaranteed convictions. I am incredibly grateful to President Trump for his courage in standing up for what is right and for granting me this sacred pardon of innocence.”
Milton also shared the news in a video post to X calling it “the best day I’ve had in five years.”
He said in the video, in part, “It’s pretty hard for me to talk about, but probably the best day I’ve had in five years. I just got a call from the President of the United States on my phone, and he signed my full and unconditional pardon of innocence. I am free. The prosecutors can no longer hurt me. They can’t destroy my family. They can’t rip everything away from me. They can’t ruin my life. I get to be with my wife now. I get to be with my family. It is done. It’s over. I am now officially pardoned by the President of the United States 45, 47, an amazing man that cared enough to call me personally to tell me how much of an injustice this all was, done by the same offices that harassed and prosecuted him. And I’m now officially 100% pardoned.”
When questioned on the pardon by reporters at the White House, President Trump replied that the pardon of Milton was “highly recommended, highly recommended by many people,” according to Fox News. The president characterized Milton’s prosecution by the SDNY as politically motivated due to the billionaire’s high profile and early support of Trump’s campaign.
“Again I don’t know him, they say it was very unfair, and they say the thing that he did wrong was he was one of the first people that supported a gentleman named Donald Trump for president.
“He supported Trump. He liked Trump. I didn’t know him, but he liked him. It was in Utah, and they went after him. They went after his family. They went after his businesses, and he was, I believe, exonerated, and then they went after him again, and they brought him this time into Manhattan, and he had nothing to do with Manhattan, and they got him. And I said that’s unfair. There are many people like that. They support Trump, and they went after him.”
He continued, “You don’t realize, this is a vicious group of people that were in this office before us. This is a vicious group. They’re violent. What they would… what they were doing to people, and you could go story after hundreds and even thousands of stories. And they went after this man. And when I heard about it I said, ‘Nope, not gonna happen.’ They persecuted. They destroyed five years of his life. He fought for five years of his life, and he did nothing wrong, and he’s a good person. And basically, I had these fantastic recommendations about him from people that you know very well. All top of the line people. They thought it was a horrible thing. There were… there were many such cases by the way many such cases.”
As reported by Reuters, federal prosecutors alleged that Milton misled Nikola investors claiming that the firm had constructed a truck from the “ground up,” and had developed its own batteries, despite buying them and allegedly misled them about the capabilities of the company’s “Nikola One” EV Semi-truck.
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 | Apr 1, 2025 | Economy, News
By Matthew Holloway |
Arizona State Senator JD Mesnard (R-LD13) is looking to reduce the size of government and the state income tax burden on Arizonans with dual bills: SB1318 and SCR1014. Both bills, which are moving through the House after passing the Senate in February, would require the Arizona Department of Revenue (ADOR) to reduce the individual income tax rate by 50% of the structural surplus for each Taxable Year (TY). If SB1318 passes the legisalture and is vetoed by Democrat Governor Katie Hobbs, SCR104 would put the issue on the Arizona ballot.
Both bills would require the Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) to determine the surplus for each Fiscal Year (FY), which would then be used to pro-actively reduce the income tax rate by 50% of the surplus amount, passing the tax savings onto the taxpayer more immediately than the issuance of a tax dividend.
Mesnard has a history of pursuing tax cuts. He was one of the lawmakers responsible for the historic 2021 tax reform that brought a flat income tax rate of 2.5% to individual taxpayers in Arizona. He also authored SB1783 the same year which lowered taxes on small businesses.
As reported by the AZ Capitol Times, Democrat Gov. Katie Hobbs expressed her opposition to SB1318, however should she veto it, the legislature would send SCR1014 to the Secretary of State, who would submit this proposition to the voters at the next election. Comparing the bill to the 1992 ‘TABOR’ or the Taxpayers Bill of Rights instituted by Colorado, Hobbs said, “I’m not interested in tying our hands like that. No. Not like TABOR. No. That’s not tax relief. That is tying the hands of future administrations.”
During hearings in February, Mesnard explained, “This is a proposal to essentially strike a balance. When you have a surplus, let’s split it between giving money to taxpayers and the other half allocating towards whatever you want.”
Democrat Sen. Brian Fernandez described the bill as an effort to “handcuff us so we can’t make decisions during a budget (negotiation).”
Mesnard responded, “So, ‘handcuff’; is an interesting choice of words. We can put parameters on ourselves. The voters put parameters on increasing taxes back in the 90s and also, more recently, when they’re on the ballot.”
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 | Apr 1, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Democrat Pima County Supervisor Adelita Grijalva, daughter of late-Congressman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ-07) has announced that she will resign from her County Office effective April 4th and enter the primary race for her father’s seat. Declining to run for the 7th District seat herself, Tucson Mayor Regina Romero will chair Grijalva’s campaign.
In a press release issued Monday, the Pima County Supervisor indicated that her decision largely comes from a desire to oppose the agenda of President Donald Trump, maligning X owner Elon Musk in his capacity as a special government employee as leading a “gang of billionaires […] destroying our nation.”
Grijalva said in her full statement:
“I am running for Congress because Southern Arizona deserves bold leadership that will fight for working families and stand up to Donald Trump.
“Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and their gang of billionaires are destroying our nation. They’re destroying our schools. They’re attacking our most sacred rights. They’re poisoning our environment. But together, we will stop them. This fight starts right here, right now, in southern Arizona.
“I’ve spent my life as an advocate, fighting for the brighter future we all deserve – from 20 years on the Tucson Unified School District Governing Board where I strengthened public education for all children, to the Pima County Board of Supervisors where I spearheaded investments in affordable housing and childcare, and protected our beautiful Sonoran desert. In Congress, I will work to create opportunities to help all our families achieve their American Dream – no matter who you are, where you come from, or where you live.”
Speaking with AZ Luminaria, Grijalva said, “We’re not living in normal times,” and accused the Trump administration of “dismantling our entire democracy.” The outlet reported that Grijalva will be launching a listening tour later this week with a stop in Yuma and a focus on talking “to people who have lived experience that I don’t have.”
As noted by the outlet, Grijalva will face off in the Democratic primary against former AZ State Representative Daniel Hernandez, in addition to a dozen other candidates.
Ten Republicans have reportedly filed statements of interest in the Congressional seat with Daniel Butierez, Rep. Grijalva’s 2024 opponent considered the leading GOP Primary contender. According to The Cook Political Report, District 7 is well-established as Democrat held with a rating of D+15. The late Congressman Grijalva was elected to the House of Representatives in 2003 and held his seat for over twenty years despite redistricting in 2013. In the 2024 election, Grijalva defeated Butierez by a 26.8% margin.
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 | Mar 31, 2025 | Economy, News
By Matthew Holloway |
Arizona’s Republican lawmakers are looking to take on the cost of groceries by sending a referendum to the voters that would cap the transaction privilege taxes in municipalities on the sale of food items for home consumption at 2 percent.
The effort has been led by Republican State Representative Leo Biasiucci. It initially began as an outright ban, which proved to be a non-starter with State House Democrats and Governor Katie Hobbs. A bill to accomplish this was already dead on the table with the prospect of a veto from Hobbs, but this has been sidestepped through a compromise, HCR 2021.
“These are things that families need to survive,” Biasiucci told AZ Capitol Times. “This is the right thing to do. The fact that we are taxing people on eggs and milk and bread is insane.”
In a post to X Biasiucci wrote, “My bill to remove taxes from all essential food items like milk, eggs, butter, vegetables, fruit, baby food, beef and chicken passed committee 4-2. My bill also removes taxes from diapers. Taxing our food is regressive and it needs to end.”
A previous version of the measure passed both chambers of the legislature in 2023 only to suffer a prompt veto from Hobbs after the leaders of several municipalities claimed city services, including police and fire departments, would need to be reduced without tax revenue from food sales. In her veto letter, Hobbs claimed, “It’s clear that this bill doesn’t actually eliminate costs for our residents. It simply moves those costs around.”
Rep. Neal Carter, a Republican from San Tan Valley told the Times that there have been significant increases in municipal sales tax revenue from online sales after the SCOTUS ruling in South Dakota v. Wayfair. The outlet reported that from 2019-2024, cities and towns have enjoyed a 60% increase in sales tax revenue, but city expenses have also increased in that time period as well, leaving the local governments reticent to cut spending.
“This is a terribly regressive tax. This is the most regressive tax I could possibly dream up,” Carter told the outlet. “If I was going to dream up a regressive tax, I would tax the one thing that you literally have to have to live. You don’t even, in a sense, have to have a home to live, but you have to have food.”
“I don’t know a single person in Arizona, a voter or a constituent, who’s going to say, ‘Yes, continue to tax me on these things that I have to put on the table for my family,’” Biasiucci told his colleagues. “At a time when inflation is through the roof, these taxes are going higher. You’re paying more.”
Under the compromise passed in the House, a city or town with a tax rate below 2% could elect to increase it up to the limit with voter approval. However, with approximately 70 of the 91 municipalities charging taxes on groceries ranging from 1.5% to 4%, some municipalities would be required to reduce their taxes and either reduce spending or increase taxes in other areas such as property tax.
After passing the House with limited Democrat votes and near total Republican support, the resolution was read in the Senate on March 10th and 11th and is pending review by both caucuses and a final vote.
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 | Mar 30, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes announced in a social media post on Wednesday that he will not be running to replace the late Democrat Congressman Raúl Grijalva in the 7th Congressional District. Instead Fontes will seek to defend his seat as Arizona’s top election official in the 2026 mid-term election.
In his remarks, posted to X, Fontes referred to a “rising tide of fascism sweeping this nation,” as his primary motivation for the decision. Fontes cited President Donald Trump’s Executive Order “Preserving And Protecting The Integrity Of American Elections,” and claimed that through this action the “president is laying the groundwork to cancel elections in 2026.”
Fontes gave no explanation or description of how requiring voter identification, preventing non-citizens from voting, cooperation between the state and federal governments to maintain voter roll integrity, requiring states only count ballots received on or by election day, and improving the security of voting systems could possibly accomplish this end.
Fontes wrote:
“I have considered the pros and cons of running for congress. It is clear to me that our party must fight harder and stand up to the rising tide of fascism sweeping this nation.
“With this week’s executive order from the Trump Administration, I firmly believe the president is laying the groundwork to cancel elections in 2026.
“After careful thought and reflection, I have decided that for family, for country, and for democracy, I will continue to defend America as Arizona’s secretary of state.”
As reported by KJZZ, Fontes claimed that the Executive Order, “is in my view an attempt to erode confidence so much that he [Trump] will be able to declare some kind of emergency or something and potentially just cancel the elections in 2026. I don’t think that is beyond what this administration is capable of.”
In a subsequent interview with Scripps, Fontes proceeded to double-down, telling Elizabeth Landers that were DOGE to come for any of Arizona’s voter rolls or information, as required under the Executive Order, he “would tell them to go to hell.”
He also announced that a formal campaign announcement for Secretary of State will be forthcoming.
Several commenters to Fontes’ post on X disagreed with his characterization of his decision, instead positing that the late-Rep. Grijalva’s daughter Adelita Grijalva is the likely frontrunner.
Former Arizona State Representative Daniel Hernandez Jr. has already announced his candidacy for the seat as well with at least seven statements of interest filed for the race so far.
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.
