Entries by Cole Lauterbach

ASU Investigating Pro-Palestinian Protesters Disrupting A Meeting On Campus

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Editors’ Note:  We are pretty much free speech purists, even if that speech is repugnant. However, if groups break the rules pertaining to on-campus meetings or intimidate and interfere with other university functions using force and coercion, they should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.  After the BLM riots, it seems the […]

Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s Planned Speech at ASU Canceled

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

A planned speech from recently-censured U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., on Arizona State University’s Tempe campus has been canceled by the school. An ASU spokesperson told The Center Square Friday morning that Tlaib’s speech would not happen on school grounds, saying the groups organizing the event didn’t follow proper channels. “Organizers of events using ASU facilities […]

Over 100 Behavioral Treatment Centers, Sober Living Homes Accused of Medicaid Fraud

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona State officials say dozens of behavioral health and sober living homes have perpetrated a years-long Medicaid fraud scheme. Gov. Katie Hobbs, Attorney General Kris Mayes, Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System Director Carmen Heredia, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community President Martin Harvier, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Stone announced the findings Tuesday morning in […]

Half of Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account Students Left Public Schools, Latest Data Show

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

The portion of students taking advantage of Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Account program after previously attending a public school has dramatically shifted. According to the latest information from the Arizona Department of Education, the ESA program now has 47,200 students participating. The data, released Monday, is a marked increase from the roughly 30,000 students participating in […]

Freshman Arizona Congressman Tapped to Give State of Union Response in Spanish

Estimated Reading Time: < 1 minute

Photo credit: Alex Brandon/AP Arizona U.S. Rep. Juan Ciscomani will give America’s Spanish-speaking residents the Republican response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced Thursday that the first-term congressman from Tucson would give the Republican Address to the Nation in Spanish. “His story is nothing short of inspirational: […]

Former Senate Staffer Under Hobbs Awarded $2.75 million in Race Discrimination Firing

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Editors’ Note: Although this article was published almost a year ago, it is illustrative of progressives’ hypocrisy on race and discrimination. Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, currently running for Governor, demonstrates this with her discriminatory actions and the legal judgement against her while serving in the Arizona Senate as Minority Leader. It is very […]

Arizona PBS Angers State Officials After Granting Hobbs One-on-one, Dodging Debate

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Editors’ Note: If Republicans can take both Houses of Congress, and do similar things at the state level, they really need to follow through on a proposal that has been floating out there for some time, and that is to defund PBS. There is no good reason for state-run media in this country when there […]

Trump in Arizona to Push for Lake, Masters

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Former President Donald Trump plans to visit Arizona for the second time in three months. Trump, who lost Arizona’s electoral votes in his re-election bid, plans to headline a rally on Sunday, Oct. 9, at Legacy Sports Park in Mesa. In Trump’s announcement, he said the rally will be in support of “Kari Lake, Republican […]

Poll: Arizona Democrats Riding on Abortion Rights to Make Up for Poor Biden Approval

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Democrats in Arizona say they’re more interested in November’s election, with abortion laws becoming their battle cry. But, they will have to outwork President Joe Biden’s mid-term approval ratings. A recent Arizona Public Opinion Pulse poll from OH Predictive Insights found that 59% of Arizona voters think there should be limits on which abortions should […]

Hobbs Becomes First Gubernatorial Candidate In Decades to Refuse State-Sanctioned Debate Offer

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Katie Hobbs will be the first candidate for Arizona governor in decades to refuse an invitation to debate her opponent in a state commission-organized event. Hobbs, the current Democratic secretary of state, announced Sunday that she would “respectfully decline” the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission invitation to reach terms on debating her Republican opponent, former Fox 10 […]

Phoenix Sees Nation’s Worst Inflation

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Phoenix metropolitan area residents are experiencing America’s most severe inflationary pressures. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its latest Consumer Price Index Tuesday morning. The Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale urban area saw a 13% increase in CPI compared to the same month in 2021. The only metropolitan area to come close in terms of inflationary pressure compared […]

Arizona Lawmaker Defends Early Voter List Overhaul From National Criticism

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

ArizonaThe architect of most of Arizona’s voter reforms over the last decade says a claim that her reforms to the state’s early voter list will restrict ballot access for minorities makes some irresponsible assumptions.  The nonprofit Brennan Center for Justice at New York University’s School of Law released a study saying minorities are most likely to be […]

Abortion Protest Locks Down Lawmakers Inside Arizona Capitol, Tear Gas Deployed

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Protesters angry about Friday morning’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling released some frustration at the state Capitol building in Phoenix later that evening. Several hundred protesters gathered at the doors of the Capitol as the Legislature was finishing up its legislative session. A short time later, protesters could be seen on a video taken by Sen. […]

Maricopa ‘threshold’ Program Offers Rent for Homeless

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Maricopa County officials say efforts to help the homeless have fallen short at a critical step in their process of getting off the streets, and a new program aims to help. The county announced Tuesday the approval to spend $5 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to help formerly-homeless residents afford their first rental. […]

Americans Flocked to Arizona Cities Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Whether it was following new opportunities or taking advantage of the untethering of remote work, Arizona’s cities saw significant population growth in 15 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. Census released its annual population estimates for cities and counties Thursday, reflecting changes in municipal populations as of July 1, 2021. Four Arizona cities – […]

Fractured Arizona Lawmakers Vote Down Stopgap Budget

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

With Arizona lawmakers unable to come to terms on a regular budget and the end of the fiscal year approaching, legislators tried and failed to get a “skinny budget” out of committee. GOP leadership sponsored a dozen budget bills heard in the House Appropriations Committee Wednesday. The package of legislation is seen as a fail-safe […]

State Supreme Court Reaffirms Arizona’s Nation-Lowest Flat Income Tax

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona’s high court has pulled a ballot question from the November election that could have erased the state’s largest-ever income tax cut. The Arizona Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a veto initiative to repeal a gradual change from Arizona’s progressive income tax to a flat 2.5% wasn’t appropriate for the ballot process. The court didn’t […]

Feds Could Limit Water Flow to Arizona, Other Western States

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

(The Center Square) – The federal agency that regulates water in Lake Powell warns that it may have to limit downstream water flow, affecting drinking water in Arizona and other western states. Tanya Trujillo, Assistant Secretary for Water and Science for the U.S. Department of the Interior, wrote governors’ offices of seven states about the […]

Arizona Bans Public Workers From Union Political Work On Taxpayer Dime

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey has signed a first-in-the-nation law banning public entities from paying workers to conduct union politicking. Ducey signed the Release Time Reform Act. The new law bans any unit of government in the state from entering into a contract that allows “paid release time” or union workers advocating for the election or […]

Arizona Lawmakers Vote to Increase School Funding While Limiting Local Property Tax Hikes

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona taxpayers could see a significant line on their property tax bill limited in a proposed overhaul of the state’s school funding formula. The House Appropriations Committee voted along party lines Monday for an amended Senate Bill 1269. If enacted, it would spend an additional $215 million in the coming state budget and send about […]

Arizona Legislature Approves Bill Vetting All Voters for Citizenship Before They Can Cast a Ballot

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona lawmakers approved new voter safeguards that supporters said will ensure only U.S. citizens can cast ballots. A unanimous Republican caucus approved House Bill 2492 in the Senate, sending the legislation to Gov. Doug Ducey for consideration. While Arizona is one of the few states that already require proof of citizenship before registering to vote, […]

Maricopa County, Phoenix Area, Lead Nation in Population Growth Amid Pandemic

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona’s valley region was one of the few major metropolitan areas in the country to grow amid the COVID-19 pandemic’s business closures, remote work, at-home school, and other disruptions. On Thursday, the U.S. Census released more detailed data from its annual population estimates recording changes in headcount from July 1, 2020, to July 1, 2021. […]

Arizona Senate Censures Member Over Controversial Comments, Threats

Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes

Editors’ Note:  We know Senator Rogers is quite passionate about election integrity, a project we support. We also know that the terms racist, white nationalist, and domestic terrorist are also thrown about with abandon. It seems that anyone who opposes the Left is a racist/white nationalist.  The lopsided vote in favor of censure itself is […]

Arizona GOP Vote to Cut Maricopa Into 4 Counties

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona Republicans, stressing the value of local representation and denying retaliation over the 2020 general election controversy, have given early approval to legislation that would split Maricopa County into four counties. Should Gov. Doug Ducey sign House Bill 2787, it would take the nation’s fourth-largest county and split it into four counties by June 15, […]

Arizona Lawmakers Move to Return to Paper Ballots, Hand Counts

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Legislators have given early approval to a bill that would ban the use of voting machines and require the millions of Arizona’s electoral ballots to be counted by hand. The Senate Government Committee voted along party lines Monday to move forward Senate Bill 1338. Sponsored by Sen. Wendy Rogers, R-Flagstaff, the measure would ban the […]

Arizona Lawmakers Hear Dire Warning About Exploding Home Prices

Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes

Arizona’s housing market is at the edge of a cliff of affordability that a local economist said could lead to more homeless and stifle the state’s booming economy. Elliot Pollack, CEO of the Scottsdale-based economic and real estate consulting firm Elliott D. Pollack and Company, spoke to lawmakers this week in the respective chambers’ commerce […]

Arizona Lawmakers Resurrect Bill Allowing Them to Overturn Elections

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona Republicans are backing a bill that would make sweeping changes to the way the state conducts its elections, including giving the Legislature the final say on whether the results are valid. House Bill 2596 would remove much of the state’s processes allowing for early or absentee voting. It also would require the Legislature to […]

Biden Admin Threatens COVID Funds over Arizona’s School Mask Mandate Ban

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona has two months to let schools force mask mandates or risk losing its share of COVID-19 aid from the federal government. In a letter from the U.S. Treasury Department sent to Gov. Doug Ducey’s office Friday, the Treasury reiterated its position stated in October 2021, warning that the state is using federal COVID-19 relief […]

Arizona Supreme Court Explains Voids of State Vaccination, Mask Ban Laws

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona’s high court has elaborated on their decision to void additions to the most-recent state budget, saying lawmakers ran afoul of provisions in the state constitution meant to simplify legislation. Justices released their unanimous opinion Thursday [January 6] in Arizona School Boards Association et al. v. State of Arizona. The ruling, initially announced in September, […]

‘We Will Cut Taxes.’ Ducey Lays Out His Final Arizona Budget Priorities

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey is reaffirming his commitment to lowering the state’s tax burden. In his final budget address, the Republican governor took the podium in the joint session of the state Legislature on Monday to give special attention to his seven-year record of shrinking and streamlining government. “We will cut taxes,” Ducey said. “It’s […]

After Massive Bust, Arizona Lawmaker Wants To Beef Up Fentanyl-Dealing Punishment

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

An Arizona lawmaker wants to strengthen the penalty for drug dealers whose narcotics kill someone. State Rep. Quang Nguyen, R-Prescott, has introduced House Bill 2021, which, he said, would greatly strengthen penalties for individuals proven to have knowingly sold fentanyl-tainted drugs that lead to a person’s death. The legislation would classify drug trafficking homicide as […]

Ducey Quietly Bans All Public Worker Vaccination Mandates

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

In an unannounced executive order regarding enhanced monitoring of COVID-19 metrics, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey banned public employers from requiring a COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of employment. The order, signed Wednesday, primarily reactivates the state’s “enhanced surveillance advisory,” which requires most hospitals to provide consistent updates on ventilators, ICU beds, inpatient beds, ED beds, […]

Woman Fired by Hobbs Rejects Apology, Demands She Abandon Governor’s Race

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The woman who twice represented herself in successful discrimination lawsuits against now-Secretary of State Katie Hobbs is not only refusing an apology but demanding Hobbs give up her bid for Arizona governor. Hobbs posted a three-minute-long video Wednesday expressing remorse for her involvement in former Arizona Senate staffer Talonya Adams’ termination. “Please allow me to […]

Court Rules Arizona Can Scrap Unsigned Ballots After Polls Close

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

(The Center Square) – A federal appellate court has flipped a lower court’s ruling, saying Arizona poll workers aren’t required to let a voter sign their ballot days after polls have closed. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a lower court ruling that said it’s unconstitutional to allow voters to fix problematic signatures […]

Ducey’s News Conference Interrupted by Migrants Seeking Asylum

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Amid an announcement that Arizona is beefing up border security because of a surge in immigrants, Gov. Doug Ducey’s news conference along the U.S. border wall had some surprise visitors. Ducey, local law enforcement, and county and municipal officials were gathered in front of a gap in the U.S. southern border wall near Yuma to […]

CATO: Arizona Is The Ninth Freest State in U.S.

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Only eight states in the country have more freedom than Arizona. That’s according to the nonprofit CATO Institute’s annual Freedom in the 50 States report, which compares states based on several different aspects of autonomy and choice in respective states. The CATO Institute is a libertarian public policy think tank that promotes limited government, free […]

Phoenix Home Prices Experience Nation’s Biggest Price Spike in September

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

(The Center Square) – Even though they already are at historic highs, home prices in the Valley are increasing faster than in any other market in America. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Schiller Home Price Index from September showed Phoenix home sale prices increased more than 33% from September 2020. Of the 20 major metropolitan markets the […]

Phoenix City Council Could Shoot Down COVID Vaccination Mandate

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Members of the Phoenix City Council are demanding a vote on a previous decision to adhere to President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate. In response to City Manager Jeff Barton’s decision the city is considered a federal contractor and must adhere to Biden’s mandate, Councilwoman Ann O’Brien wrote Mayor Kate Gallego to demand the council […]

More Arizona Officials Lean on Ben and Jerry’s Over Anti-Israel Stance

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Another Arizona official is using his office to voice opposition to ice cream maker Ben and Jerry’s over its boycott of Israel’s occupation of territories occupied by Palestinians. Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced said he’s joined 11 other states in urging Unilever and its subsidiary, Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Inc., to reverse their decision to […]

Arizona Legislation Would Require Schools Teach ‘anti-communist’ Civics Curriculum

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Editors’ Note: The exchange between two Arizona legislators at the end of the following article encapsulates the major divide in America today. The (Democrat) left’s Marxist socialist ideology currently being forced without a mandate through Congress and the Executive branch, trumpeted by a corrupted and state-acting media and enabled by public school and higher education indoctrination throughout […]

Study: Arizona School-Choice Measures Saved Taxpayers $1.2B

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Account program has saved taxpayers more than $1 billion and as much as $3.2 billion, according to a national study on school-choice programs. EdChoice, a nonprofit that advocates for parental choice in where they send their kids to be students, estimated in its new study that educational choice programs have generated between $12.4 billion […]

Poll: Independent Arizonans Shifting Toward GOP Side on COVID-19 Issues

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Monthly polling of Arizonans shows Independents have shifted to align more with Republicans in terms of handling the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the pandemic-related mitigations began in early 2020, registered Independent voters in Arizona have treaded evenly between Republican opinions on how to mitigate the spread of the virus and those of Democrats. That began to […]

Scottsdale School Board Chair Under Investigation For Parent Dossier

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Calls for Jann-Michael Greenburg to resign are growing as the district and local police department look into allegations the school board chair was involved with an online dossier on district parents. Officials with the Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) announced Friday they would find an independent investigator to look into whether Greenburg or his father, […]

Arizona School Boards Accused of Stalking Activist Parents

Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes

Editors’ Note: As we see the spread of “tiny tyrants” and the abuse of liberty by local officials, it is worth exploring where this attitude originated. Besides coming from the universities that have become bastions of intolerance, the attitude of the Federal Government cannot be dismissed. The constant rhetoric coming from the Biden administration and […]

Teacher Union Effort Fails

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

A teacher union-backed ballot initiative to strike a state law protecting small business owners from a new 3.5% income tax increase failed to get the voter support needed to make the ballot. An attorney for Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs disclosed the update Friday in a court hearing challenging tax-related citizen ballot initiatives brought […]

Arizona Republicans Continue To Hammer Biden On Border Crisis

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Republicans in Arizona are repeatedly calling on President Joe Biden to address the record surge of migrants illegally crossing the nation’s southern border. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released its September border crossing data last week, showing 192,001 total encounters along the southwest border; a 9% decrease compared with August. More than one-quarter of […]

Biden Administration May Take Over Arizona Business Safety Enforcement

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona soon could lose its authority over safety in the workplace. The Biden administration has warned the state, along with South Carolina and Utah, its occupational and safety plan for businesses could be set aside and taken over by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Tuesday’s warning comes as the OSHA prepares to […]

Judge Rules Against Arizona In Minimum Wage Lawsuit

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

A county judge says Arizona cannot extract the additional cost of doing state business in a city that increased its minimum wage, making it more expensive to operate there. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge James Smith sided with the city of Flagstaff about whether a provision in the 2019 Arizona budget allowed the state to […]

Arizona Education Advocates Submit Signatures To Erase Tax Cuts

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona’s teacher union and education advocates have submitted enough signatures, if they survive scrutiny, to put a repeal of tax cuts on the 2022 election ballot. The Arizona Education Association, along with other public education advocates, submitted more than 340,000 signatures to the Secretary of State’s office hours before Tuesday’s 5 p.m. deadline. “Today’s filing […]

Arizona Could Be Ground Zero in U.S. Microchip Self-Reliance

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

Arizona’s technology sector will play a prominent role in American manufacturing’s latest plan to reclaim its title as the world’s leader in semiconductors from Asia. One of the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic was the need for U.S. manufacturing companies to diversify their supply chains. Semiconductor production slowed to a crawl in 2020, causing […]

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