by Terri Jo Neff | Jun 24, 2022 | News
By Terri Jo Neff |
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Friday that there is no federal constitutional right to have an abortion despite the 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade. And the reaction was swift across Arizona’s political sphere.
Many of the comments focused on what most saw as a faulty ruling issued by the SCOTUS nearly 50 years ago to carve out a right to an abortion under the U.S. Constitution. Among them was Gov. Doug Ducey, who used Twitter to express his thoughts on that aspect of the SCOTUS opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito.
Another elected official who took to Twitter was State Rep. Jacqueline Parker (R-Mesa) who retweeted an official statement released by U.S. Representative Andy Biggs.
State Rep. Walt Blackman (R-Snowflake) gave thanks to the six Justices who provided “victory for the unborn and states rights.”
Also reacting to the decision was U.S. Senator Kyrsten Sinema who expressed concern that government will stand between healthcare decisions she said are best made between a woman, her family, and her doctors.
Sinema added that she will “continue working with anyone to protect women’s ability to make decisions about their futures.”
Others, like Maricopa County Attorney candidate Julie Gunnigle, immediately turned the ruling into a political battle cry.
Similarly, current Arizona Secretary of State and presumptive Democratic nominee for Governor, Katie Hobbs used the ruling as fodder for her campaign.
However, Matt Salmon, a Republican candidate for Governor, took a moment to somberly reflect on what he called “a historic moment for the millions of Americans who believe in the sanctity of life.” Salmon,
Meanwhile, the question now for Arizonans is what impact Friday’s ruling with have here. Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich issued a statement advising that he expects the state’s newest abortion law to take effect in about 90 days. It bans the medical procedure 15 weeks after conception.
by Corinne Murdock | May 28, 2022 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
Attorney General Mark Brnovich won’t challenge or appeal the pending ruling in the Arizona Republican Party’s (AZGOP) lawsuit to declare no-excuse, mail-in voting as unconstitutional.
Solicitor General Brunn (Beau) Roysden pledged in a court filing to honor the ruling, whatever that may be. The AZGOP filed with the Mohave County Superior Court last Tuesday after the Arizona Supreme Court denied jurisdiction to the AZGOP. The AZGOP then refiled their case with the Superior Court earlier this month.
“[The State of Arizona] agrees to be bound by the outcome of this litigation, including any appeals, with respect to the declaratory and injunctive relief requested,” stated Roysden.
17 defendants were named in the lawsuit: all 15 county recorders, the State of Arizona, Secretary of State Katie Hobbs.
In their initial complaint totaling nearly 60 pages, the AZGOP claimed that Hobbs prevented enforcement mechanisms for valid signature verification by not adding those procedures to the Election Procedures Manual (EPM). Additionally, the party claimed that Hobbs lacked legal authority to implement drop box voting.
The AZGOP insisted that Hobbs’ actions were only possible due to a “longstanding deviation” from election procedures outlined in the Arizona Constitution. According to the party, Arizona’s no-excuse, mail-in voting system violates the constitution because several provisions direct voting to take place at the polls.
“Stated simply, Arizona’s ‘early voting’ statutes — which provide for the ‘absentee’ or ‘no-excuse mail-in’ voting — violate the Arizona Constitution, in whole or in part,” claimed the lawsuit. “[I]n-person voting at the polls on a fixed date is the only constitutionally permissible manner of voting.”
The AZGOP requested that the judge compel Hobbs to include the signature verification guide in the EPM, remove mentions of the drop box in the EPM, and cease enforcement of absentee voting laws.
However, should the courts decide that no-excuse, mail-in voting doesn’t violate the state constitution, the AZGOP requested a definitive explanation as to how the constitution permits absentee voting.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Corinne Murdock | May 22, 2022 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
Secretary of State and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs declared it was “ridiculous” that the border crisis was a core issue for the governor’s race. Hobbs made the remarks during an interview with the Arizona Republic.
Hobbs asserted that it wouldn’t matter how she talked about the border because Republicans would only twist her words. It is unclear whether her observation came from recent controversy over her apparent reversal on the Biden administration’s plan to rescind Title 42.
“It’s ridiculous that we are talking about this as a core issue in the governor’s race,” said Hobbs. “I could stand here and say ‘Build the wall,’ and they’re gonna call me open borders. It doesn’t really matter what I say for the Republicans, they’re going to just misconstrue everything.”
Hobbs’ latest statement appears to be a pivot from her remarks issued last October, when she insisted that alleviating border crisis pressures would be one of her primary focuses as governor.
“The situation at our border puts pressure on all our communities. We have to reduce illegal border crossings in a way that promotes security and safety for everyone and most efficiently uses taxpayers’ dollars,” said Hobbs. “Arizonans need a leader who is learning from the officials who are on the front lines and understand this important issue best. I’m committed to listening, learning, and working on the ground to ensure our borders are secure.”
Hobbs also changed her perspective on the revocation of Title 42 recently. Within one month, Hobbs shifted her public message from supporting Title 42’s immediate end because it “isn’t working” to declaring that doing so would be a “rash decision” that would result in a “disaster.”
Hobbs hasn’t been the only Democratic candidate for a state-level office to dismiss border concerns this week. Democratic congressional candidate and former state senator Kirsten Engel went one step further, arguing that the current state of the border doesn’t constitute a crisis.
Engel issued that assessment during a Wednesday night debate hosted on “Arizona Horizon” by PBS. Engel’s Democratic opponent, State Representative Daniel Hernández Jr. (D-Tucson), contended with her denial of the border crisis.
Hobbs and Engel represent a greater division within their party on the significance and reality of the border crisis. Hobbs’ opponents, Aaron Lieberman and Marco Lopez, have each offered their own takes. Lieberman has said he will defer to federal actors to work out the border crisis.
Lopez has insisted that rhetoric painting the border situation as dangerous was misleading.
“There is no invasion,” said Lopez.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Corinne Murdock | May 4, 2022 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
Secretary of State and gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs cursed out the country after the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion circulated on Monday night. She capitalized on the incident with a plug to fundraise for her campaign.
“F**k the patriarchy,” said Hobbs. “If you agree, help us defend the right to choose in Arizona.”
State Representative and congressional candidate Walt Blackman (R-Snowflake) criticized Hobbs as not being a serious individual in response.
Politico published the leaked opinion on Monday night. Justice Samuel Alito authored the 98-page draft majority opinion, which dated back to February. Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett signed onto the opinion.
Tuesday morning, Chief Justice John Roberts confirmed the authenticity of the draft. He ordered an investigation into the leak. Although much speculation abounded following the Politico report, no official suspects have been named.
Roberts assured the country that the leak wouldn’t influence the final ruling.
“To the extent this betrayal of the confidences of the Court was intended to undermine the integrity of our operations, it will not succeed. The work of the Court will not be affected in any way,” said Roberts.
While Arizona’s Republican elected officials acknowledged the draft opinion’s content, their greater focus was on the individual responsible for the leak. Arizona’s Democratic elected officials, however, focused on their disagreement with the opinion. They didn’t address the alleged impropriety of the leak — some appeared to even justify it.
Congressman Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) said that while he agreed with the ruling, he disapproved of the leak and speculated that someone with pro-abortion views was responsible. Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ-04) concurred.
Congressman Ruben Gallego (D-AZ-07) argued that the bigger issue at hand wasn’t the fact that someone compromised the process of the highest court in the land by leaking sensitive documents unintended for public consumption. Rather, he argued that the bigger issue was how SCOTUSblog, the independent media blog offering Supreme Court reporting, engaged in “inside ball bulls**t.”
Like his Democratic peers, Congressman Greg Stanton (D-AZ-09) called for the Senate to codify abortion on demand.
Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick (D-AZ-02) argued that the draft opinion didn’t reflect the American people’s will. One of the first arguments in the majority draft opinion asserted that both Roe v. Wade and Casey v. Planned Parenthood weren’t based on legal rationale. Rather, Alito wrote that both rulings contained arbitrary, legislation-like rules.
Both of Arizona’s Democratic Senators Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly didn’t address the leak, just their disagreement with the draft majority opinion.
Vice President Kamala Harris accused the Supreme Court justices of “want[ing] to punish women” by “tak[ing] away their rights to make decisions about their own bodies.” Harris claimed that the ruling threatened the “right to privacy” — a concept not enumerated within the Constitution but contrived in the 1890s by Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis.
President Joe Biden pledged to push for legalized abortion on demand legislation, should the draft opinion become the final ruling.
The leak inspired pro-abortion and pro-life activists to turn up at the courthouse.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
by Corinne Murdock | Apr 17, 2022 | News
By Corinne Murdock |
Arizona Secretary of State and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs offered a more definitive stance on abortion limitations last week. In short — none. Hobbs rejected the notion that the law must determine at what point abortions should be restricted. Rather, Hobbs insisted that such a decision should be left between the mother and doctor.
When pressed by AZFamily Political Editor Dennis Welch on where she drew the line, Hobbs reiterated that the decision wasn’t up to her but to each individual. That could mean up until the point of birth. Hobbs later tweeted that the right to unfettered abortion access was a mark of equality for women in society.
“Women deserve action to abortion care. Abortion is health care,” said Hobbs. “Abortion is a personal decision between a woman and her family and doctor. That’s something that needs to be discussed in the medical exam room, not by politicians.”
Hobbs called the latest law banning abortions after 15 weeks a danger to women. Her arguments reflected her exact sentiments from when Governor Doug Ducey signed the abortion ban into law. Hobbs declared that limiting abortion was depriving women of their constitutional freedom.
“Today marks a giant step backward in the fight for equality for women across Arizona and across the country,” said Hobbs. “With Governor Ducey’s signature, our elected leaders have chosen to turn their backs on the overwhelming majority of Arizonans who support the constitutional right to choose. Make no mistake — stripping away women’s constitutional rights won’t stop women from seeking access to reproductive health care. But the passage of this misogynistic law clarifies the very real and dangerous consequences of electing leaders who are willing to throw away our rights and set us back a generation.”
Abortion up until birth would be consistent with Hobbs’ longstanding views on the subject of abortion. During her time as a state senator, Hobbs said that abortion didn’t equal infanticide and that “abortion” wasn’t a bad word.
According to Hobbs’ cumulative 2021 campaign finance report, she received hundreds from Planned Parenthood of Arizona leaders: $250 from lobbyist Jodi Liggett, $500 from president Bryan Howard, and $75 from their external affairs. Planned Parenthood of Arizona also endorsed Hobbs for her races in the state legislature and for secretary of state.
In a 2012 interview with Planned Parenthood for Arizona, Hobbs claimed that pregnancy was just as dangerous as abortion. She also advocated for the controversial curriculum of comprehensive sex education for K-12 schools.
If elected, Hobbs wouldn’t be the only official to oppose the law. The Democratic candidate for Maricopa County Attorney, Julie Gunnigle, pledged to not enforce Arizona’s ban on abortions after 15 weeks.
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
