Blake Masters: Katie Hobbs is “a complete disaster” already

PHOENIX — Arizona businessman Blake Masters said Sunday that Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs has already been “a complete disaster” and that it’s only going to get “worse.”

Masters, a former candidate for the U.S. Senate, made the comments during a Twitter Spaces conversation with Dr. Andrew Jackson.

“I understand some people are trying to recall Hobbs and I’m not sure that would work, but if it did, man, that’d be great,” he said. “I’m telling you: However bad you think she is, she’s going to be a lot worse. I think her first two weeks in office have been a complete disaster already.”

Masters was particularly critical of a provision in the Democrat’s recent budget proposal that attempts to defund Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) program. The governor claimed during her first State of the State address that the school choice program will “bankrupt our state” if allowed to continue.

The businessman said that “it’ll be up to guys like [Representative] Austin [Smith] on this call in the state house to block” the Democrat’s dangerous proposals, adding, “Thank goodness we have a Republican-controlled legislature.”

Hobbs established an antagonistic relationship with the state legislature even before taking office. The Arizona Freedom Caucus announced days earlier that it will be challenging the constitutionality of the Democrat’s recent executive order in court, and it is anticipated that lawmakers will be looking into the dark-money apparatus that funded her inaugural events.

Katie Hobbs budget will defund Border Strike Force, despite campaign pledge to expand it

PHOENIX — The executive budget released Friday by Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs will defund the Border Strike Force, despite her campaign pledge to expand it.

The Border Strike Force is a law enforcement initiative established by Governor Doug Ducey in 2015 to stop dangerous crime at the border.

A provision within the executive summary for Hobbs’s budget — quietly released as a late-Friday news dump ahead of the holiday weekend — claims that the initiative “does not appear to have accomplished its intended purpose.” The summary acknowledges that her proposal therefore “eliminates the Border Strike Task Force Ongoing special line item (SLI) and its associated $17.1 million in funding” and “eliminates the Border Strike Task Force Local Support SLI and its associated $12.2 million in funding.”

However, the Democrat promised voters on the campaign trail that she would do the opposite.

During a June 2022 interview on 12 News, Hobbs told anchor Brahm Resnik that Governor Ducey “created the Border Strike Task Force that really, in reality, is a drug-interdiction unit” and pledged that one of her priorities would be “continuing to provide the support so that they’re able to carry out that job.”

Hobbs’s other border proposals include lifting Title 42, removing the shipping containers at the U.S.-Mexico border, and providing “resources” to help guide illegal immigrants “to their final destination.”

Katie Hobbs admits she ‘signed off’ on dark-money inauguration

PHOENIX — Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs admitted on television this week that she did, in fact, “sign off” on the dark-money apparatus that secretly funded her inaugural events.

During an interview on “Sunday Square Off,” 12 News anchor Brahm Resnik wondered whether it was “a mistake to pay for the ceremonies using a dark money fund that does not disclose how much each donor paid” and asked for clarity about her role: “Did you sign off on this?”

“Yes,” Hobbs answered, prompting a surprised response from the anchor: “You did?”

Realizing her admission, Hobbs insisted that “this is — this is totally a different — it’s a different issue. You’re talking about apples and oranges” before asking Resnik to change the subject: “I’d really love to talk with you about the priorities of administration” instead of this.

StopKatieHobbs.com revealed the existence of two 501(c) entities connected to the Democrat’s campaign and inauguration a few days before her 12 News interview. Later that week, a panel of local journalists slammed Hobbs for her lack of transparency around who is “buying influence with the governor.”

Republican Senator T.J. Shope then announced on Friday that the Arizona state legislature may “look into” the inauguration scandal: “We should have the right to know as a citizen what … kind of contributions they’re getting.”

Katie Hobbs hands the reins to teachers union in first State of the State address

PHOENIX — Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs delivered her first State of the State address Monday amid growing tensions with the Arizona state legislature.

The Democrat’s 40-minute address contained a wish-list of public policy items favored by the teachers union, including a clamp-down on Arizona’s popular school-choice program known as Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESAs).

“[T]he previous legislature passed a massive expansion of school vouchers that lacks accountability and will likely bankrupt this state,” Hobbs said.

She claimed that “shady corporations” are “taking advantage of the system and our students” and said “any school that accepts taxpayer dollars should have to abide by the same accountability standards that all district schools do.” The Democrat also called for a repeal of the Aggregate Expenditure Limit (AEL); a reversal of the process that ties education funding to “school letter-grades” and “assessment results”; and a “historic” increase in government spending, such as $40 million “to cover all students regardless of immigration status.”

In December, according to audio/video obtained by StopKatieHobbs.com, Arizona Education Association lobbyist Marisol Garcia acknowledged during a private event that Hobbs had struck a “deal” with the teachers union during her gubernatorial race and that “so far she is living up to that deal.” Garcia and Stephanie Parra, another longtime lobbyist for the teachers union, are both members of the governor’s transition team.

Immediately prior to Monday’s address, the Arizona Freedom Caucus announced the filing of a new lawsuit challenging the governor’s recent executive order, with a pledge of more accountability to come.

Arizona Freedom Caucus sues Katie Hobbs over “woke agenda” executive order

PHOENIX — The Arizona Freedom Caucus announced Monday afternoon the filing of a new lawsuit challenging Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs’s recent executive order.

Hobbs signed Executive Order 2023-01 on January 2. The order attempts to expand so-called ‘LGBT discrimination protections’ for state government employees, but a press release from the Arizona Freedom Caucus calls it an “unconstitutional” attempt to “illegally legislate via executive fiat in order to advance her woke agenda.”

“It’s become a modern phenomenon for executive branches all across the country to try to legislative via executive order,” Senator Jake Hoffman said at a press conference announcing the lawsuit. “We saw it with Barack Obama, we see it now with Joe Biden, and now seemingly Katie Hobbs — she also believes that she has the ability to legislate with the power of the pen, attempting to create law that simply does not exist.”

Hobbs — who admitted in December that she is seeking to implement her policy agenda “without legislative approval” — recently hired a Human Resources manager to promote a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) agenda throughout her administration.

Katie Hobbs tells NPR she supports guiding illegal immigrants “to their final destination”

PHOENIX — Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs said on the radio Saturday that Title 42 is “not an issue” and that she supports guiding illegal immigrants “to their final destination.”

During a “Weekend Edition” segment on border security, the Democrat criticized efforts to bus illegal immigrants out of Arizona as a “political stunt” and suggesting providing the migrants with “resources” instead.

“[T]hey are getting on buses with resources, going to Washington, D.C.,” Hobbs said. “I think that a better solution is giving them resources and getting them to their final destination, and that would eliminate a lot of headache.”

NPR host Scott Simon then asked for clarification about the Democrat’s position on Title 42 expulsions: “Are you talking about lifting Title 42, or are you in favor of expanding it in a sense as President Biden did this week?”

“Um,” Hobbs responded, followed by a period of awkward silence. “Oh … well, I mean … right now, it’s not an issue and looks like it’s going to be in place, but that these conversations were in preparation for the possibility that that was going to happen.”

Hobbs has repeatedly changed her position on Title 42 over the past year, with Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels recently slamming her for rubber-stamping the Biden administration’s dangerous open-border policies, which have left the border crisis “the worst I’ve ever seen it.”

You can listen to part of the NPR segment below:

Arizona Horizon panel slams Katie Hobbs over dark-money inauguration

PHOENIX — A panel of local journalists slammed Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs on television Thursday for dismissing serious concerns over the dark-money apparatus that funded her inaugural events.

Earlier this week, StopKatieHobbs.com exclusively revealed the existence of two 501(c) entities connected to Hobbs’s campaign and inauguration, but the Democrat is refusing to disclose the donors behind them.

Arizona PBS host Ted Simons asked his panelists about the brewing “controversy” and noted that “this doesn’t sound like” it syncs up with her “campaign pledges for transparency.” Arizona Republic reporter Mary Jo Pitzl responded that the Democrat was caught having “opened … a dark-money organization” but is now “defending” it.

“That piqued a lot of interest, like, ‘Well, whose money is coming into this?” Pitzl said. “Who’s buying influence with the governor? … Was it $2? Was it $2 million?”

Arizona Agenda reporter Rachel Leingang agreed.

“It just very simply is not transparent,” Leingang said. “I’ve just been really curious, too: How much money did come in? How much are we talking? … These companies are not — out of the goodness of their hearts — helping someone. They’re trying to get their name on something with the governor and get time with her.”

KJZZ host Mark Brodie added that many special-interest groups are seeking to get “off on a good foot” with the new administration.

On Friday, Republican Senator T.J. Shope announced that Arizona lawmakers may “look into” the Hobbs inauguration scandal: “We should have the right to know as a citizen what … kind of contributions they’re getting.”

T.J. Shope: Legislature should “look into” Katie Hobbs dark-money inauguration

PHOENIX — A Republican state senator said Friday that Arizona lawmakers should “look into” the dark-money apparatus that secretly funded Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs’s inaugural events.

Hobbs and her campaign were caught “asking donors for as much as $250,000-a-pop” to fund the events surrounding her inauguration, according to 3TV political editor Dennis Welch, which has led to growing calls for an investigation into “how much dark money she raised from special interest groups to pay for her inaugural events.”

The Democrat so far has refused to disclose the donors secretly funding those events.

Senator T.J. Shope, who serves as president pro tempore, explained to Welch that all other elected officials across Arizona, including himself, are required to publicly report political contributions “and that’s the way it should be.”

“I would think that it would be something we might look into,” Shope said of Hobbs’s opaque operation. “We should have the right to know as a citizen what … kind of contributions they’re getting.”

One day earlier, StopKatieHobbs.com exclusively revealed the existence of incorporation filings that might hold the answer, noting that the revelations might “serve as helpful guidance for oversight activities by legislators.”

Hobbs repeatedly threatened to veto Republican bills and implement her agenda “without legislative approval” in recent weeks, increasing tensions with lawmakers and leaving her even further marginalized ahead of the upcoming legislative session.

You can see part of the 3TV segment below:

Katie Hobbs marginalizes herself after failed power play against Arizona Chamber

PHOENIX — Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs became the subject of ridicule this week after a failed power play against the state’s largest business association left her alone and marginalized ahead of the upcoming legislative session.

The Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry is scheduled to host its annual Legislative Forecast Luncheon this morning at Chase Field. Speakers at the high-profile event include statewide elected officials from both political parties, including Democratic Secretary of State Adrian Fontes and Republican Treasurer Kimberly Yee.

But Hobbs, whose skittish public persona has left some uncomfortable, won’t be showing up.

Rumors had been circulating for weeks that the Democrat was threatening to skip the event as leverage against an organization that she views as too close to Republicans, with anonymous sources — who could that be? — suggesting in December that “the Chamber needs to do something to show” Hobbs more respect before she’d accept the invitation.

The governor’s team has now formally declined the invitation, citing scheduling conflicts, two days before the event — and it’s not going how she planned. On Thursday, a railbird told the Yellow Sheet Report that the failed power play has left Hobbs looking “incredibly weak” at the Arizona Capitol and that she has “basically given up a huge leadership opportunity and handed it over to Adrian [Fontes] to be the guy.”

In fact, the Arizona Chamber announced after Hobbs’s decision that Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes will be speaking at the luncheon, too.

Hobbs’s most recent public event was a private inauguration ceremony, where she banned reporters and was “unable to take the oath of office without stammering and laughing.” Prior to that, the Democrat attended the Western Governors’ Association’s annual winter meeting, where she accidentally fell asleep on stage.

James T. Harris on Katie Hobbs’s dark-money inauguration: “Man, we’re about to have a crazy four years here”

PHOENIX — Popular radio host James T. Harris spoke Thursday morning about the secret donors funding Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs’s inauguration.

Harris, host of “The Conservative Circus,” highlighted the revelation of new public records that suggest two 501(c)(4) entities could be the key to unlocking the secret funding behind Hobbs’s inauguration.

“Man, we’re about to have a crazy four years here,” he said on the air. “Why can’t we know these lobbyists? Why can’t we know these campaign donors?”

Harris was kind enough to add in the following hour that listeners “can go to StopKatieHobbs.com and read about all that’s going on with this new administration” — and, on that note, readers of this blog can listen to “The Conservative Circus” on News Talk 550 KFYI!