by Matthew Holloway | May 19, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Tom George, a Republican Committeeman for Legislative District 29, lost his El Mirage home in a devastating house fire on May 10th, according to friends and colleagues, leaving the single-father and his young son without a home.
AZ Free News was alerted to the tragedy on Tuesday by LD29 GOP Chair Lisa Everett, who said via email, “He’s a great man. He is a precinct committeeman in my LD. He’s one of the hardest working men I’ve ever seen.”
A GoFundMe has been created to benefit George and his son managed by his colleague Eric Miller who wrote in a post to Facebook:
“Please help Tom George rebuild after a devastating house fire. Tom lost everything when his home burned down on May 10th. A dedicated father and selfless community volunteer in El Mirage, AZ, and numerous West Valley communities, Tom has always given his time to help others. Now he needs our help. He has no renter’s insurance, the inflation and economy depleted his finances, and he is starting from scratch. Please donate or share to support a man who’s always shown up for his community. He now needs his community. Tom is a strong, independent man, and he won’t ask for help … so I am asking for him.”
According to the crowd-funding site managed by Miller, “Every donation, no matter how small, will help Tom get back on his feet—providing him with clothes, basic essentials, temporary housing, and the resources needed to rebuild his and his son’s lives. Please consider supporting Tom as he begins this difficult journey forward.”
Miller added, “Tom has volunteered throughout the West Valley to help improve the lives of others. He serves/volunteers as an elected precinct committeeman, where he advocates for his neighbors and the greater community with passion and selflessness. Tom is the kind of person who always puts others first. He’s overcome many struggles in life and continues to lead with strength, generosity, and a heart for service. Now, in his time of greatest need, we have the opportunity to return that generosity.”
In her email to AZ Free News, Chairwoman Everett said the LD29 GOP Committee is organizing a fundraiser and “doing what we can to keep his spirits up.”
The tragic fire at George’s home isn’t the first one in recent memory to bring together West Valley Republicans. As previously reported by AZ Free News, the West Valley Republican & Independent Coalition, a non-profit PAC, suffered an office fire at West Grand Ave. in Sun City in June 2024 that left the office “almost a total loss.” But the tragedy is far keener, when it involves a home, and a family.
As of this report the GoFundMe has raised over $3,000 toward its $10,000 goal.
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 18, 2025 | News
By Matthew Holloway |
Demonstrators supporting the Trump administration, Elon Musk, and Congressman Abe Hamadeh have lined the busy thoroughfare of Bell Road to peacefully counter-protest the “Indivisible” group, who have been holding an anti-Hamadeh, anti-Trump protest for the past two weeks.
The demonstrators, from several local Republican legislative districts, have turned out in growing numbers to support Hamadeh, Musk, and Trump. In a post to X, one user wrote, “Today’s support for Congressman Abe Hamadeh! We love the Happy Warrior!!!”
One of the demonstrators, Peggy Jacobs, sat for an interview with AZ Free News to explain her motivation to support the freshman Congressman.
“Well, we became aware of what was going on with the ‘indivisible’ group and there being a dislike of everything conservative, especially with Abe and Elon Musk. And we felt the need to share our feelings, which are much in the opposite realm of the protest group. So, we felt we should get out and counter that protest and share our beliefs that we appreciate Hamadeh, we appreciate Elon Musk, we appreciate what’s going on in Washington, D.C.”
Jacobs stated that the demonstration saw as many as 35 supporters from Legislative District 28 as well as a number from neighboring LD29 on Monday. She said they also saw as many as 40 from LD28 and several more from LD29 on Tuesday.
When asked if the demonstrations will continue, Jacobs replied, “If they’re going to be there, then we plan to be there.”
One of the organizers of the demonstration, Republican LD29 Chairwoman Lisa Everett, told AZ Free News that the demonstrations came about when she and others saw the protests against Hamadeh. “I said, ‘Oh no we can’t let that stand.’ And I organized some folks and yes we are out there every Monday. We get there a little before the other guys do, so we can get some prime real estate, and we hold our signs, and we have a great attitude. And… well I do my best to make sure that the two groups don’t mix because we don’t want anything ugly happening,” Everett said.
She continued, “And you know, when you get in large groups, you know things can happen. And so the leader of their side and I actually have spoken so everybody has agreed to try to keep the groups separate, but we both believe in the First Amendment so that’s why we are demonstrating.”
Everett added, “We support what is going on in our government now. You know, I made some signs for folks to carry that say ‘We voted for this,’ because we did! It’s very funny to me that the left walks around saying ‘No one voted for Elon Musk,’ and you know I can’t help myself. My response is, ‘No one voted for Anthony Fauci,’ so that’s my comeback to them because it’s a true statement.”
On support for Rep. Hamadeh in the district, Everett told AZ Free News, “The reality is Congressman Hamadeh supports President Trump, and President Trump ran on the whole concept of DOGE. We’re going to look at everything. And if you objectively look, many presidents, including Democrats, have talked about government waste and that we need to get to the bottom of it. And we need to clear things out. Sadly, there’s a lot of misinformation out there. I mean there are, bless their hearts, there are people that genuinely think that because of Elon Musk, they’re not going to get their Social Security anymore. And that’s just not the case. The reality is, the 200-year-old people are not going to get Social Security anymore. We support Abe Hamadeh because he’s a true patriot. He served our country well. Great, honest man, and he is truly living the American Dream which is amazing.”
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 Staff Reporter | Dec 18, 2024 | News
By Staff Reporter |
The Democrat who formerly represented Arizona’s 29th legislative district, Martín Quezada, is now the lawyer for the major Muslim activist group, Council on American-Islamic Relations of Arizona (CAIR-AZ).
Quezada joined up with the chapter of the nation’s largest Muslim advocacy nonprofit over the weekend during their annual banquet. This career move follows his 2022 loss in the race to become Arizona’s treasurer against incumbent Kimberly Yee, and failure to achieve confirmation on a nomination from Governor Katie Hobbs.
Quezada has a long history of sympathizing with Muslim causes.
In 2016, Quezada voted against the state’s first law prohibiting the state from initiating any Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) against Israel.
In a 2021 speech for CAIR-AZ, Quezada accused the Israel government of being a “Zionist state” enacting terrorism. Quezada also called for President Joe Biden to cease funding to the Israeli military.
“All of those billions of dollars, that is directing military aid that is going to occupation forces that are committing terrorism against the people of Palestine right now,” said Quezada at the time. “This — what we are witnessing — is oppression and occupation in action right now. This is murder in action right now.”
Last year, Quezada failed to be confirmed as the Arizona Registrar of Contractors (AROC) director due to his extensive support for the BSD movement. Quezada had purged a number of anti-Israel posts from his timeline in preparation for confirmation, notably one post in which he urged followers to listen to a speech from Michigan Rashida Tlaib demanding the freeing of Palestine.
His timeline has recommenced its criticisms against Israel, last week retweeting a viral post which read “‘Violence isn’t the answer’ unless you’re Israel, the American government, the police, military-trained vigilantes, or a for-profit healthcare system.”
In 2022, Quezada screened a documentary, “Boycott,” detailing various states’ efforts to overturn laws prohibiting BDS actions by the state.
That same year, during his campaign for the state treasurer’s seat, Quezada rejected claims that he was antisemitic.
“First of all, the antisemitism charge, flat-out wrong, and it’s ridiculous to even suggest that,” said Quezada. “I am not antisemitic, hard stop, full period right there.”
CAIR-AZ’s executive director, Azza Abuseif, was the state director for NextGen America in Arizona. Abuseif and her family came to the U.S. as refugees from Sudan. Abuseif also serves as a lead organizer for Women’s March Phoenix, and formerly served as board president for the Arizona Democracy Resource Center.
CAIR-AZ provides free legal services to those who believe they have been discriminated against for being Muslim, and they advocate for the inclusion and acceptance of the Islamic religion.
The nonprofit maintains a running list of Islamophoic individuals and organizations, including: Ann Coulter, ACT For America, the Anti-Defamation League, Bill Maher, Fox News, Glenn Beck, National Review, and Steven Crowder.
The national affiliate, CAIR, is an entity of the Muslim Brotherhood linked to activities engaged in by Hamas, the terrorist organization behind last year’s terrorist attack on Israel.
CAIR leaders celebrated the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
by Staff Reporter | Apr 20, 2024 | News
By Staff Reporter |
GOP State Representative Austin Smith (LD29) dropped out of his reelection race abruptly on Thursday, days after allegations surfaced that he had forged petition signatures to qualify for the ballot.
In a lengthy press release announcing his resignation, Smith downplayed the allegations — outlined in a lawsuit against him — as an unsubstantiated, coordinated attack by Democrats.
Smith is member of the Arizona Freedom Caucus, and the senior director of Turning Point Action. Smith said that the plaintiffs — Democratic Party officials — were falsely accusing him of forging the signatures of Democrats on his petition sheets. Such an act of forgery would be pointless, given that signatures from Democratic voters wouldn’t count for a Republican primary.
Some questioned whether the two Democrats leading the lawsuit had signed the petition themselves with the intent of accusing Smith of election fraud.
Rather than pay to fight the lawsuit and any criminal investigations that may arise, Smith said that he would protect his family financially and drop out of the race.
Smith pledged to run for office again in the future, but would rely on the online signature system rather than paper ballots.
“I feel terrible for those who are disappointed in this outcome or in me for not fighting it until the end,” said Smith. “I hope you’ll understand that my decisions are about more than just me.”
Those found guilty of petition forgery are disqualified immediately and may not run for public office for five years.
Smith also announced that another man had agreed to run in his stead as a write-in candidate for the Republican primary: James Taylor.
Taylor lives in Litchfield Park and has been heavily involved in the LD29 GOP.
One Democratic official behind the lawsuit, James “Jim” Ashurst, serves on the LD29 Democrats board as the sergeant at arms.
The Arizona Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (ADLCC), a project of the Arizona Democratic Party, first announced the lawsuit against Smith on Monday, the day the lawsuit was filed.
The ADLCC — co-founded by Governor Katie Hobbs in 2012 when she was in the state legislature and Republicans held a supermajority — then fundraised off of the lawsuit announcement.
The Republican Party of Arizona (AZGOP) issued a statement lamenting Smith’s resignation, but expressing confidence in Taylor’s abilities to take over. The AZGOP didn’t address Smith’s alleged election fraud.
“We hate to lose an effective legislator like Austin Smith, but I’m glad James Taylor is on the team,” said the AZGOP. “He will be an excellent candidate for LD29 and the local, county, and state parties will do all we can to help. Austin will continue to do great things for Arizona.”
State Representative Rachel Jones defended Smith as a victim of Democratic “target[ing] and sabotag[e].” Jones cautioned against Republicans speaking ill of Smith.
“So before you self-righteous Republicans join the left to crucify him, maybe try to remember that those of us who fight the hardest for you have the biggest targets on our backs,” said Jones.
Not all Republican leaders were as supportive of Smith.
Maricopa County Supervisor Clint Hickman called for Smith to resign.
“This is a man who has lied to the people of Legislative District 29 and the entire state about our election operations for at least three years,” said Hickman. “He is now accused of lying about the signatures he personally collected to get on the ballot again.”
Turning Point Action has yet to release a statement on the allegations against Smith or his dropping out of the race.
Instead, the organization has focused on its hire of “ballot chasers” in Arizona and other states. These “ballot chasers” go door-to-door in battleground states contacting Republican voters who have received their mail-in ballots, and encouraging those voters to mark their ballots and make a plan to vote.
AZ Free News is your #1 source for Arizona news and politics. You can send us news tips using this link.
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