by Matthew Holloway | Apr 28, 2025 | Education, News
By Matthew Holloway |
In a joint interview with boxing legend “Iron Mike” Mike Tyson, Congressman Abraham Hamadeh (R-AZ08) told Fox News earlier this month that the retired World Heavyweight Champion is working with House Republicans to roll out Rep. Hamadeh’s bill establishing the Congressional Fitness Challenge in his schools.
The new Congressional Fitness Challenge will include five core fitness tests: the 1-Mile Run/Walk, Pull-Ups/Flexed Arm Hang, Curl-Ups or Sit-Ups, Shuttle Run, and Sit-and-Reach. Students who participate can earn gold, silver, or bronze level recognition based upon attainment of “clear, age-appropriate standards.”
Students who successfully complete the challenge will receive a signed certificate from the Speaker of the House, President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and the student’s senator and congressman.
Hamadeh and Tyson described the impetus behind the resolution as an effort to combat a threat to national security presented by studies showing that 77% of fighting aged Americans from 17 to 24 would require a medical wavier in order to serve in the military.
Tyson told Hamadeh that the program, also supported by NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre, gives him hope for the future of our nation.
With both Tyson and Favre, the congressman hearkened back to the creation of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness by President John F. Kennedy, who said at the time, “We do not want in the United States a nation of spectators. We want a nation of participants in the vigorous life.”
Hamadeh and Favre warned then, “As a Hall of Fame professional quarterback and a United States Congressman, we come from different arenas – but we stand united by a common concern. America’s youth are facing a silent crisis of physical fitness. Childhood obesity has tripled since the 1970s. Physical activity is down. Strength and stamina are declining.”
“I think this is going to improve, and people are going to get better, and people want to get healthier,” Tyson said. “I just believe that. It can be helped.”
Hamadeh answered, “I agree with ‘Iron Mike,’ and am grateful for his powerful support for the program and shared dedication to improving the health of our kids. Youth are facing a silent crisis with childhood obesity having tripled since the 1970s, so it is imperative that we do all we can to revive physical excellence among America’s youth to build a stronger nation.”
Hamadeh wrote for Outkick that the nationwide initiative is now open to all kids, ages 6 through 17, whether in public, private, or homeschool settings and that the Congressional Fitness Challenge must become part of the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, and not merely be reduced to another federal program.
“It’s voluntary, but it taps into something deep in the American spirit – the drive to push harder, to be better, and to set and conquer goals.”
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 28, 2025 | Education, News
By Matthew Holloway |
Grand Canyon University, despite a tumultuous period which saw unprecedented fines and targeting by the Biden administration, reported the largest number of graduates in the Christian university’s history for its 75th Anniversary.
According to the university, the GCU Class of 2025 will graduate 31,104 students, 5,669 of them in person at the university’s Phoenix campus and another 25,435 online. Commencement ceremonies for in-person students are already underway as of this report and will take place between April 29th and May 2nd for online students.
“This year’s record-breaking graduating class reflects the dedication of our exceptional students, the unwavering support of our faculty and staff, and our commitment to offering innovative educational opportunities across multiple delivery platforms,” said GCU President Brian Mueller.
“Whether through in-person classes, online learning, hybrid models or accelerated pathways, our flexible approach allows us to connect with students no matter their life circumstances. Increasingly, more and more families are seeking these opportunities, especially when taught from a Christian worldview perspective,” he added.
“Our focus remains on partnering directly with employers to help them address their workforce shortages, especially in critical sectors like education, healthcare, technology, engineering, social work, counseling and the military,” Mueller said. “While many universities have scaled back programs amid declining enrollments since the pandemic, GCU has introduced 148 new academic programs, emphases and certificates across our 10 colleges, all aligned with current labor market demands.”
As previously reported by AZ Free News, the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), under the Biden-Harris administration, imposed a staggering $37 million fine against Grand Canyon University despite the DOE failing to reveal any meaningful complaint against the university. In response, the Goldwater Institute launched a lawsuit against the agency demanding an explanation.
In 2024, Arizona’s Republican Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne called upon the Biden administration to come to the table with GCU after Richard Cordray, the Chief Operating Officer of the Department’s Office of Federal Student Aid, claimed the university had lied to, “more than 7,500 former and current students about the cost of its doctoral programs over several years.” The claim was made despite a complete lack of legal proceedings to adjudicate it.
Horne wrote, “In the U.S., anyone accused of wrongdoing is presumed innocent and entitled to their day in court. For a Cabinet-level official, one who is sworn to uphold the U.S. Constitution, your threat against GCU is contrary to those constitutional guarantees and unworthy of your position. It is unwarranted, unjust and the latest episode of harassment against this school by the federal government.”
At the time, GCU responded to then-U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, stating, “GCU has been asked repeatedly why it believes it is being targeted by federal agencies of the Biden administration. Here’s what we can tell you: Mr. Cardona’s inflammatory comments make very clear the Department of Education’s intentions and their disdain for institutions that do not fit their ideological agenda. What’s also clear is that ED has no lawful grounds to carry out those intentions based on their disingenuous and factually unsupportable allegations.”
Despite the controversy with the DOE, the Christian university celebrated its 75th Anniversary through a Week of Service in the fall that featured over 1,000 opportunities to serve across 40 different ministries. In addition, it also held its first-ever Amethyst Gala, which raised approximately $1.5 million to benefit the university’s ambitious Five-Point Plan to transform the west Phoenix community it calls home.
GCU boasts an enrollment of almost 25,000 students taking traditional classes in Phoenix with another 98,000 or more students online around the world.
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 27, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
During the Arizona Corporation Commission’s annual Summer Preparedness Workshop, Chair Kevin Thompson and Vice Chair Nick Myers essentially echoed the talking points of Arizona Public Service Company (APS) and Tucson Electric Power (TEP). Both utility companies implicitly refused to reactivate the Cholla and Springerville Coal-Fired Power Plants in defiance of President Trump’s Executive Order earlier this month. Thompson claimed doing so would “jeopardize the grid and burden ratepayers with millions of dollars in short-sighted costs.”
In early April, President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order (EO) using emergency authority to keep APS’ Cholla Power Plant in operation. In a statement issued with the EO, Trump said, “I am instructing Secretary Wright to save the Cholla coal plant in Arizona, which has been slated for destruction. We’re going to keep those coal miners on the job. We’re going to have that plant opening and burning beautiful, clean coal in a very short period of time.”
According to an emailed release from the ACC, the APS representative at the workshop “stated that the process that culminated in closing the plant began ten years ago because of new regulations from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) making the operation of the plant uneconomic for their customers.” The utility added, per the ACC that “because of the ongoing EPA regulations requiring new equipment for pollution control and significant deferred capital and maintenance investments that would have to be made, the re-opening and continued operation of the Cholla plant would come at a significantly high cost for customers.”
APS reiterated that it intends to preserve the infrastructure of the power plant and offered that it could be used as a potential site for nuclear or natural gas power later, implicitly refusing to bring the coal-fired plant back online.
Similarly, TEP confirmed that it still intends to move forward with the scheduled retirement of Units 1 and 2 at the coal-fired Springerville Generating Station after the summer of 2027 and after the summer of 2032. The utility is also exploring the possibility of repurposing the power station for an alternative fuel source.
Vice Chair Myers commented, “We’re all aware of the detrimental loss of electric capacity with the closure of Arizona coal plants, and in part because of ongoing EPA regulations. It is a day late and a dollar short when it comes to re-opening the Cholla plant. Trying to re-open Cholla at this point would result in significantly higher rates for customers,” repeating the APS talking point.
He added, “The utilities have already been planning for this retirement and replacement costs are already being born by the utility customers. Re-opening Cholla would also require significant capital and maintenance investments that have been deferred. Further, the EPA requirements that made the continued operation of Cholla not cost-effective are still in effect. The damage has already been done. Arizona utilities are prepared for that and already planning to repurpose those plants for future generation, such as nuclear or natural gas-fired power.”
“Bringing the Cholla plant into compliance with Obama era EPA requirements will require the installation of costly scrubbers on the coal-fired units that would cost ratepayers hundreds of millions of dollars,” said Chair Kevin Thompson.
Thompson added a subtle critique of the President’s movement to reactivate the Cholla Generating Station saying, “The Commission must hold utilities accountable and ensure that we have reliable and dispatchable generation to meet the load demands of the future. We also have to make sure we accomplish that goal in a manner that doesn’t jeopardize the grid and burden ratepayers with millions of dollars in short-sighted costs that fail to meaningfully address our long-term energy needs.”
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 27, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Maricopa County Supervisor Mark Stewart is hoping the latest Shared Services Agreement (SSA) approved unanimously this week by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors wins approval by Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap.
In a statement, Stewart wrote, “Yesterday, the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to send a new draft of the Shared Services Agreement (SSA) concerning election responsibilities to Maricopa County Recorder, Justin Heap. This updated draft incorporates feedback from the Recorder’s Office. To be clear, this is not the final version of the SSA. The Recorder will now have the opportunity to review the document, propose additional revisions, and return it to the Board for further consideration.
He added, “Based on my discussions with Recorder Heap and members of the Board, we are 95% of the way towards finalizing the SSA. I am more optimistic about this process than at any point previously and am confident that we will reach a signed agreement in the near future.”
Board Chairman Thomas Galvin wrote in a statement Thursday, “For months, the Board and its staff have been negotiating details of a new SSA in good faith. It’s time the public knows the full story, and this latest agreement includes many concessions from our Board.”
In a statement released the same day, and later retracted, shared by several outlets, Heap wrote, “The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors presentation today was one side of an ongoing negotiation. Recorder Heap disagrees with some statements that were made; however, his focus remains on getting an elections agreement in place that best serves the voters of Maricopa County. The agreement put forth by the Board today represents the framework of a deal, but the devil is in the details, and those details still need to be ironed out. Recent delays in the negotiation stem from the Recorder’s need to secure more adequate counsel.
“With the appointment of former Arizona Supreme Court Justice Andrew Gould to assist in the negotiations, Recorder Heap anticipates and looks forward to a successful resolution and agreement in the near future.”
Under Arizona law, the responsibility for the management of elections falls between the County Boards of Supervisors and County Recorders. Ostensibly Shared Service Agreements delineate the responsibilities of each body to increase efficiency and prevent unnecessary spending.
Supervisor Debbie Lesko expressed herself as being “beyond frustrated,” with the process saying, “After the April 11th meeting between Recorder Heap and Supervisors Galvin and Brophy-McGee, Justin texted me saying the meeting ‘went very well, we seem to be in agreement on 95% and are only discussing minor details on how to effectively split the IT team.’ Our lawyer writes up the agreement based on the meeting and then, next thing I know, Justin fires his attorney and we seem to be back to square one.”
Supervisor Kate Brophy McGee laid the difficulties directly at the feat of the County Recorder saying, “Recorder Heap has not been a trustworthy partner in these negotiations. He doesn’t seem to know what he wants. He doesn’t seem to understand his statutory responsibilities. The only thing he seems to be really good at is threatening lawsuits. But there’s time for him to change. He can come back to the table and sign this agreement. I hope he does. Successful elections in Maricopa County depend on it.”
As of this report Recorder Heap has not released a revised statement, nor explained why the initial statement was taken down.
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 Jonathan Eberle | Apr 27, 2025 | News
By Jonathan Eberle |
Governor Katie Hobbs has signed SB 1585 into law, a measure that strengthens Arizona’s legal tools for prosecuting child sexual predators. The legislation, introduced by Senate Majority Leader Janae Shamp (R-LD29), received unanimous support in the legislature and directly addresses a legal loophole that had hindered prosecutions in recent undercover sting operations.
The new law modifies the definition of a Dangerous Crime Against Children (DCAC) to include crimes committed against someone posing as a minor—specifically when the defendant knew or had reason to believe that the individual was under the age of 15. Previously, a 2023 Arizona Court of Appeals ruling created ambiguity around whether offenders caught in stings targeting fictional victims could be prosecuted under the DCAC statute.
The change comes in response to two recent undercover operations led by the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office, during which 20 adults were arrested over a four-week period for allegedly attempting to lure minors for sexual activity. However, due to the appeals court’s interpretation of existing statutes, several cases could not be charged as DCACs, limiting the penalties available to prosecutors.
“This legislation closes a dangerous loophole,” said Shamp in a statement. “If a pervert is caught trying to solicit sex from a child by an undercover police officer, the offender deserves to be thrown behind bars—regardless of whether or not an actual child was present.”
Shamp credited Pinal County Attorney Brad Miller for bringing the issue to her attention. Miller emphasized the importance of equipping prosecutors with clear, enforceable laws to hold predators accountable. Under current DCAC guidelines, offenders face harsher penalties, including longer mandatory minimum prison sentences.
SB 1585 passed with bipartisan support, signaling widespread agreement among lawmakers that the legal ambiguity identified in the appellate court ruling needed to be addressed. While sting operations remain a key strategy in identifying potential abusers before they can harm actual children, legal experts had cautioned that unclear language in the law could undermine these efforts.
Now, with the signing of SB 1585, Arizona prosecutors will be empowered to charge offenders caught in these operations with DCAC-level offenses, provided that the defendant reasonably believed the victim to be underage.
The legislation reflects a broader trend in Arizona and across the country toward strengthening criminal penalties for child exploitation and digital predation. States have increasingly looked to clarify statutes around internet-based luring and sting operations to stay aligned with evolving law enforcement practices.
Senator Shamp framed the passage of the bill as a clear statement: “Arizona has zero tolerance for this evil against our kids.”
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
by Jonathan Eberle | Apr 26, 2025 | Economy, News
By Jonathan Eberle |
California is poised to lose a significant portion of its oil refining capacity by the end of 2026, as Valero announced the closure of its Benicia refinery—its second largest in the state—just months after Phillips 66 declared plans to shut down its Los Angeles facility. Together, the closures will eliminate roughly 17.4% of California’s total refining output, a shift expected to ripple beyond state borders, potentially triggering gasoline price spikes and supply disruptions in neighboring Arizona and Nevada.
These developments come on the heels of new state regulations introduced under Governor Gavin Newsom, which impose strict oversight on refinery operations. The rules limit when refineries can conduct maintenance, mandate increased inventory storage, and aim to curb perceived “price manipulation.” However, the energy industry and regional leaders argue these measures are accelerating refinery shutdowns and undermining fuel stability across the Southwest.
California operates as an “energy island,” with limited ability to import refined fuel from other U.S. regions due to the federal Jones Act, which restricts domestic shipping to U.S.-built and -crewed vessels. With U.S. shipbuilding capacity far behind that of countries like China, domestic maritime transport remains scarce and costly. As a result, California will increasingly rely on foreign tanker ships for fuel imports—an emissions-intensive, volatile, and expensive solution.
Governor Newsom claims California’s high gas prices are due to refinery “price gouging,” despite his own administration’s lack of evidence. His regulatory push has faced bipartisan opposition, including a joint letter from Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs and Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo warning that new refinery laws could lead to “higher costs for consumers” in all three states. Chevron echoed this concern, stating that the regulations would increase both the likelihood and duration of fuel shortages, while permanently raising consumer prices.
Refineries in California are already operating at or near full capacity. With no new facilities planned—especially as the state pushes to ban new gas-powered car sales by 2035—any closure tightens supply margins. The upcoming shutdowns will reduce daily refining capacity to 1.34 million barrels, well below the state’s consumption level of 1.8 million barrels per day, necessitating a shortfall of over 140 million barrels per year.
Due to California’s requirement for a specialized gasoline blend, few out-of-state refiners can meet demand, further narrowing supply options. These vulnerabilities were recently exposed when the temporary shutdown of the Martinez refinery sent gas prices soaring across the region, including in Arizona and Nevada.
With California gas prices already the nation’s highest—averaging $4.86 per gallon—experts warn that future supply shocks could bring about even more dramatic volatility and potential fuel shortages across the Southwest.
Jonathan Eberle is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
