Briefs
Biden administration to create new gun violence prevention office
WASHINGTON — The White House Thursday announced the formation of an Office of Gun Violence Prevention that will help states and local governments as they implement a gun safety legislative package President Joe Biden signed into law last year. Lacking additional action in Congress to curb gun violence, “the Office of Gun Violence Prevention along […]
SAG-AFTRA Arizona members rally as part of national strike for TV, film worker protections, higher wages
PHOENIX – Members of the Arizona-Utah chapter of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists rallied in Phoenix on Sunday to demand increased benefits and residuals, prohibition of artificial intelligence content and protections against unauthorized use of their likeness. SAG-AFTRA local leaders and members were joined at the U.A. Local 469 union hall by leaders of […]
Hospitals plead with Congress to avert $8 billion in cuts in Medicaid funding
WASHINGTON — Health care representatives from across the United States are urging Congress to halt cuts to funding that helps hospitals care for uninsured or low-income patients who rely on Medicaid. More than 250 hospitals and health systems appealed to House and Senate leadership in a letter Thursday asking the lawmakers to avert or delay […]
‘Inevitable they’ll go broke’: The AZGOP’s financial situation gets worse
When Jeff DeWit took the reins of the Arizona Republican Party in January, the party had more than $152,000 in its federal campaign account. Seven months later, the AZGOP has burned through more than 90% of those cash reserves and doesn’t have enough money to pay its bills. The party’s most recent federal campaign finance […]
White House slams ‘baseless’ House GOP impeachment inquiry as ‘political stunt’
WASHINGTON — The White House is lambasting the House GOP’s decision to open an impeachment inquiry into unproven allegations that President Joe Biden profited from his son’s international business scheme during his time as vice president in the Obama administration. Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy announced Tuesday that he directed several of the chamber’s […]
AZGOP’s senator of the year: 9/11 ‘never added up’ and was an ‘inside job’
On the 22nd anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Tucson Republican state Sen. Justine Wadsack shared a fake transcript from United Flight 93 and liked multiple posts on social media alluding to the events of the day being a “false flag” and an “inside job.” “It was an inside job, a false flag, to […]
Food and Drug Administration approves COVID boosters for upcoming season
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday approved the latest round of COVID-19 boosters, as public health officials brace for another cold and flu season. An advisory panel at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is scheduled to vote on recommendations Tuesday, the final step in the process before people will […]
Arizona Senate plans to sue Biden to block the Grand Canyon national monument
Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen announced Friday that he is giving the “greenlight” to the Arizona Senate to file a lawsuit against the Biden administration for last month’s designation of a national monument near the Grand Canyon, which he said was an unconstitutional “land grab.” “President Biden’s attempt to cloak his unconstitutional land grab in […]
Congress and nonprofit working to put women’s suffrage monument on National Mall
As Congress considers a bill to place a women’s suffrage monument on the National Mall, a nonprofit is working to raise the estimated $50 million needed to build it. The Women’s Suffrage National Monument Foundation, the nonprofit backing the effort, launched a donation campaign Tuesday in an effort to raise funds for a memorial honoring […]
Effort to recall GOP lawmaker Justine Wadsack fails
A controversial freshman Republican state senator won’t face a recall election, as an effort to force Justine Wadsack to stand for another election before her term ends in 2024 failed to gather enough signatures, backers said Tuesday. “I applaud every one of our volunteers for the extraordinary work done during the hottest summer on record,” […]
First-year students jump at NAU, including a record number of Indigenous students
As Arizona’s three universities welcomed students back for the school year last month, Northern Arizona University saw the largest number of first-year Arizona resident students in its history, including an influx of first-time Indigenous students. NAU had a 47% increase in new Indigenous students this fall semester, bringing NAU’s total Indigenous student enrollment to an […]
Biden launches AZ ad highlighting high-tech jobs as part of national blitz
Joe Biden launched his first Arizona-specific ad for his 2024 re-election campaign on Monday focusing on how his economic agenda has brought high-paying and manufacturing jobs to the Grand Canyon State. Arizona was key to Joe Biden’s victory in 2020, and his 10,000-vote victory over Donald Trump was the second-closest battleground state Biden won that […]