A dispute at an LD14 GOP meeting Monday night involving Hendrix and another House candidate required police mediation after a person allegedly headbutted LD14 GOP Chairman Andrew Adams. Cook shared what happened in a post on X this morning and said Hendrix was almost assaulted while Adams was assaulted. “It should be clear after the incident involving President Trump and the victims this past week that in no cases should violence be tolerated regarding political events of any kind,” Cook wrote. Adams said the dispute involved LD14 GOP candidate Lalani Hunsaker, her husband Nate Hunsaker and Lalani Hunsaker’s brother, who were asked to leave the precinct committee meeting when they became upset after Hendrix said he wasn’t interested in pursuing a rumor that Hunsaker’s child was part of the Gilbert Goons. Hendrix was campaigning to the committeemen and Adams said Hendrix expressed his disappointment that some of his opponents engaged in negative campaigns against him and he referenced the rumor, which is something both he and Adams don’t believe. From there, Adams said Hunsaker’s group approached the stage where Hendrix was speaking and became disruptive. He asked them to leave when they wouldn’t stop. Video footage of the dispute outside the meeting obtained by ABC15 shows a small group of about 10 people with some people arguing. A part of the building obstructs the view of the alleged headbutt but a man does approach Adams and makes a sudden movement to either say something in Adams’ face or make physical contact, and bystanders quickly intervene to separate the two. Adams said the man was Nate Hunsaker and he got in Adams’ face, said “F you,” and headbutted Adams. The person in the video resembles Nate Hunsaker. Gilbert police have opened an investigation due to the video, Adams said, and he is seeking to press charges. “It’s just a shame that people like this who pretend to be conservative Republicans infiltrate, try to run, and ultimately cause these kinds of problems,” Adams said. “The reality is these people are not Republicans. They do not represent us.” Lalani Hunsaker called Adams a “political tyrant” that forcefully removed her husband and a number of her supporters at the precinct committee meeting. “Andrew is a henchman for the political establishment and is understandably upset that our outside campaign has taken the community by storm,” Hunsaker said. “He, like many other RINOs in our party, hides behind the Republican name while consistently enacting the tactics of the left. The party has worked very hard to silence my supporters and me; however, the voters have seen right through it.” Hendrix also provided a statement to our reporter that echoed Cook’s X post. “We are all human and have strong emotions, but debate must not evolve into violence. I hope that attendees at local political meetings remain active in their precincts and continue to provide input. They must be able to do this knowing they are physically safe,” Hendrix said.

Hunsaker is leading the way with campaign cash in her race, according to campaign finance reports from LD14 GOP candidates. She raised $47,000 during the second quarter and still has $73,000 in total cash. Republican Joel Coen also raised $46,000 during the quarter and has almost $34,000 in cash. Petersen and Hendrix’s running mate Khyl Powell raised $33,000 and Andrew Jackson raised $11,000. Hendrix raised $23,000 and spent another $35,000, leaving him with $7,000 in cash.

Arizona for Abortion Access raised over $10 million in the second quarter, while their opposition, It Goes Too Far, raised $291,430. Arizona for Abortion Access spent $3,358,834 this quarter, and finished June with $9,563,358 on hand. Their counter-campaign, It Goes Too Far, said the proposal goes too far by making safety precautions in abortion procedures “unenforceable” and removing the requirement that they are done by “medical doctors.” It Goes Too Far finished the second quarter with $407,880 on hand, which is about 5% of what their counterparts raised in the period, which covered through the end of June. It Goes Too Far spokeswoman Cindy Dahlgren – who is also the communications director for Center for Arizona Policy – said the disparity in money raised is in part because their organization takes fewer donations from out of state. “Almost all of our money is from Arizonans,” Dahlgren said. Arizona for Abortion Access spent most of their money this quarter on signature gathering and on digital consulting and legal fees. As part of its awareness efforts, Arizona for Abortion Access filed a lawsuit against the Legislative Council for their proposal’s portrayal in the publicity pamphlet that will be sent out to voters ahead of the general election. The evidentiary hearing for the case is scheduled for July 26. On the other hand, It Goes Too Far spent most of their money on consultants, polling and flyers.

In the three-way Republican primary race for Bennett’s LD1 senate seat, Steve Zipperman finished the second quarter with the most cash on hand, but former lawmaker Mark Finchem spent the most. Zipperman finished June with $85,408 on hand, while Bennett ended with $66,392 on hand and Finchem had the least with $32,537. Finchem raised $100,345 this period and spent over double that, $212,735. Most of his heavy spending went to Go Right Strategies, a Florida-based consulting company owned by Roger’s nephew, Spence Rogers. Finchem spent over $150,000 on consulting from Go Right Strategies during the second quarter, but his biggest one-time charge was $39,424 at the Mar-a-Lago Club in Florida. Zipperman raked in $24,267 during the second quarter but spent $53,754. His largest one-time expense was $17,055 on mailers, and most of his costs went to mailers, signs and radio ads. Bennett raised $35,275 this quarter but spent the least, at $29,630. His biggest one-time expense was $12,000 on digital advertisements, but he also spent a decent amount on radio ads.

Senators Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) applauded the inclusion of language based on the Fighter Force Preservation and Recapitalization Act in the Senate version of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) . The Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) announced the Committee voted 22-3 to advance the FY 2025 NDAA.    Kelly secured the language in SASC’s FY 2025 NDAA. Crapo and Senator John Hickenlooper (D-Colorado) introduced the Fighter Force Preservation and Recapitalization Act in July 2023.     The language requires the Secretary of the Air Force, in consultation with the Director of the Air National Guard (ANG), to develop and implement a plan to sustain and recapitalize the 25 fighter squadrons of the ANG. This language is mirrored after the Fighter Force Preservation and Recapitalization Act , which prevents the closure of ANG fighter squadrons at a time when pilot and maintenance manning are at critically low levels.      “As we modernize our Air Force to meet the growing threats we face, we also need to modernize our Air National Guard. This will give us the roadmap we need to support the Air National Guard’s continued role in providing tactical airlift, air refueling, natural disaster, and other reserve and support capabilities in Arizona and across the country,” said Kelly.      “Inclusion of this language protects squadrons–such as the Idaho Air National Guard’s 190th Fighter Squadron–from force reductions,” said Crapo.  “Preserving our National Guard fighter squadrons means our nation will continue to be well-prepared amid increasing national security threats.”    “The National Guard is the first choice, proven choice, and enduring choice for both the war fight and homeland defense,” said Maj Gen Kerry Muehlenbeck, Arizona National Guard Adjutant General. “Concurrent and proportionate investment in and modernization of our ANG fighter force is critical to the preservation of national security.”     Since 1987, the Air Force fighter fleet has been reduced by 60 percent. The ANG represents 27 percent of the Air Force fighter force and is responsible for 94 percent of homeland defense missions. Unfortunately, the Air Force is moving to divest many of the ANG legacy equipment, including A-10s, F-15Cs, and older F-16s, without a plan to recapitalize them with advanced aircraft. The Fighter Force Preservation and Recapitalization Act will ensure the Air Force maintains 25 ANG fighter squadrons across 22 states, ready to protect Americans at home and abroad. On average, the pilots and maintainers in the ANG are twice as experienced as their active duty counterparts.       The Senate may consider its version of the FY 2025 NDAA as soon as this month. 

PIMA COUNTY, July 15, 2024 – The Pima County Housing First program, administered by the Justice Services Department, has been recognized with a 2024 Best in Category award for Criminal Justice and Public Safety, from the National Association of Counties (NACo). The awards , presented July 14 at NACo’s Annual Conference and Exposition in Hillsborough County, Fla., honor innovative, effective county government programs that strengthen services for residents. Pima County began its Housing First program in 2019, designed to address chronic homelessness for individuals who are impacted by the justice system and living with co-occurring disorders. The goals of the program include providing safe and stable housing with wrap-around support for individuals (and their families) exiting the jail, integrating mental health and substance use treatment services, and ultimately breaking the cycle of incarceration for participants, which simultaneously improves community safety and reduces costs. “It has taken a cohort of community partners to make this successful,” said Kate Vesely, director of the Justice Services department . “We knew that there was an issue, but it took a high level of collaboration and innovation to create this type of programming. The Housing First model is a national best practice standard that we were thrilled to apply through a criminal justice lens.” Program partners include the City of Tucson and Old Pueblo Community Services , whose staff “have been in the trenches working with individuals who now have employment, custody of their children, and are making a meaningful impact in the community,” Vesely said. The County has had about 500 people enrolled in the program since it started in 2019. In addition to other programs that provide transitional housing and a pathway to permanent housing, the Pima County Housing First program includes criminal justice case managers who work with the individual to comply with any court standards and resolve any outstanding cases. As of July 1, 2024, the program became fully funded by grants and community partners. “I think NACo recognized us not only for the program’s exceptional results, but for our innovation in finding a more diversified funding portfolio, making it more sustainable,” Vesely said. Each year, NACo’s Achievement Awards recognize outstanding programming in 18 categories aligned with the vast, comprehensive services counties provide. The categories include children and youth, criminal justice and public safety, libraries, management, information technology, health, civic engagement and more. Launched in 1970, the program is designed to celebrate innovation in county government. Each nominated program is judged on its own merits and not against other applications.

The city of Scottsdale is deceiving voters about a proposed sales tax hike—falsely claiming that the tax increase is actually a tax cut so that residents will approve it in November.  On Thursday, 7/18, at 9:00 am at the Northeast Regional Center, the Maricopa County Superior Court will hear the Goldwater Institute’s lawsuit on behalf of three Scottsdale taxpayers to stop the measure from being placed on the 2024 general election ballot. Please contact me at [email protected] or by phone at 917-685-4530 to arrange an interview.  Scottsdale has referred to the ballot a 0.15% sales tax that would start on July 1, 2025. Meanwhile, an old sales tax of 0.20% ends on June 30, 2025. Scottsdale is using the expiration of the old tax to pitch the new one to voters as a tax cut. But voters will actually pay a lower sales tax rate if they vote “no” on the new sales tax than if they vote “yes.” “Arizona law prohibits ballot measures from communicating objectively false or misleading information,” says Goldwater Institute Senior Attorney Scott Freeman. “A ballot measure may not engage in a ‘bait and switch,’ but that is what this referral does.” You can learn more here , read our complaint here , and check out our case page here .