#Arizona House of Representatives

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Jaclyn Lee, Libby Cathey, Isabella Murray, Mike Pappano, and Gina Sunseri at ABC News:

Three Republicans on Wednesday joined Democrats in the Arizona House to vote to repeal the state's controversial 1864 ban on nearly all abortions, which was revived by a court ruling earlier this month and which only includes exceptions to save the life of the pregnant woman.

The final vote was 32-28. "I've known for a while that the votes were there, it just takes a lot of fortitude, a lot of spine," Democratic state Rep. Stephanie Stahl Hamilton, who sponsored the bill, told ABC News' Jaclyn Lee. Hamilton said she had several phone conversations with Republicans the night before the vote and while she would not divulge the details of those conversations, she said it made her cautiously optimistic. "The eyes of the world were watching Arizona, and that's not hyperbole, and so these are decisions that we need to make for people and if you were able to talk to folks in these districts, you would find that this is an issue where they are showing up and representing the people in their district, which is what they were elected to do," Hamilton said. The bill now heads to the state Senate where it could be taken up next week.

[...] The Senate on Wednesday separately conducted a second read of its own abortion ban repeal bill, without objection, setting up a parallel vote -- though that is likely moot now because the House bill has been approved. Two Republican senators have already said they will support the repeal effort, signaling the House bill should pass that chamber and then go to Gov. Katie Hobbs' desk to be signed into law. The repeal of the abortion ban would then take effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session, which must be before June 30.

[...] But leading conservatives like Trump, former Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey and Senate candidate Kari Lake have touted their general support for abortion restrictions while saying they don't back the 1864 ban.

On Wednesday, the Arizona House of Representatives voted 32-28 to repeal the 1864 near-total abortion ban. 3 Republicans crossed over to vote to repeal, along with all Democrats.

Next stop: the State Senate and then Gov. Katie Hobbs (D)'s desk.

See Also:

The Guardian: Arizona house votes to repeal state’s near-total ban on abortion

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

On the same day that the Arizona House of Representatives voted to repeal an abortion ban from the 19th Century, a trio of anti-abortion Republicans launched an ethics complaint against top Democratic lawmakers who angrily protested an earlier move to block that vote, accusing them of intimidating GOP lawmakers and inciting a riot.

On April 9, the Arizona Supreme Court revived a near-total ban on abortions from 1864, ruling that it trumps a 15-week gestational ban passed in 2022.

The decision left GOP lawmakers scrambling, with some fearful of the political repercussions in November but most unwilling to move against the party’s pro-life stance. On Wednesday, Democrats were finally able to peel away three Republican lawmakers to narrowly repeal the law by a vote of 32 to 28, but that success followed several high profile failures, including one that culminated in a vehement reaction on the House floor just a day after the state Supreme Court’s ruling.

When the GOP majority voted to pause the floor session instead of allowing a bill to repeal the 1864 near-total ban to be heard on April 10, Democrats erupted into loud shouts of protest, yelling “Shame!,” “Hold the vote!” and “Blood on your hands!” and pointing accusingly at Republican lawmakers across the chamber.

That display has been repeatedly denounced by Arizona Republicans, who have compared it to “insurrectionist behavior” and cited it as part of their reasoning for delaying a vote on the repeal for two weeks. And on April 24, the same day the House repealed the 1864 law, Republican Reps. Jacqueline Parker, Barbara Parker and David Marshall reiterated that criticism in an ethics complaint filed against Democratic Reps. Oscar De Los Santos and Analise Ortiz. The two led their party in excoriating Republicans that day.

In their letters to House Ethics Committee Chairman Joseph Chaplik, the trio call for an investigation into De Los Santos and Ortiz, accusing them both of “disorderly, inappropriate, and disruptive behavior unbecoming of an elected official and embarrassing to the House of Representatives on a national stage.” While Ortiz is only accused of violating the legislature’s definition of disorderly conduct, De Los Santos, the No. 2 Democrat in the House, is accused of three separate violations, including meeting the legislature’s threshold for disorderly conduct and breaking procedural rules and decorum standards governing debate in the chamber.

While disorderly conduct isn’t a crime under Arizona law, the complaint lodged against De Los Santos and Ortiz defines it based on a legal definition from 1910 which describes it as an act that “scandalizes” people, is “offensive to the public sense of morality,” conflicts with the rules around “good order and decorum” or is “contrary” to law. De Los Santos, write the trio, violated all three of those qualifications when he “incited a riot on the House Floor” and shouted and insulted lawmakers. Because De Los Santos began protesting before the chamber could vote on a motion to recess rather than allow the repeal bill to be considered, the complaint alleges that he sought to interfere with the legislative process.

“Given his actions were intended to threaten members and force the House to act in accordance with his will, they could even be characterized as an attempted insurrection,” reads the complaint against De Los Santos.

The complaint against Ortiz includes similar allegations and accuses her of disrespecting Republican lawmakers and exhibiting behavior “unbecoming of an elected representative.”

Also included as evidence of disorderly conduct in the complaint is the duo’s disruption of an impromptu press conference held by Republican Rep. Matt Gress shortly after the House failed to support his bid to repeal the 1864 near-total ban. Gress, who is seeking reelection in a swing district, pushed for the House to consider the repeal bill on April 10 but later voted with the rest of the majority party to table the matter instead.

While Gress spoke to reporters about his commitment to continue advocating for the repeal on the House floor shortly after the rest of the Republican Party had dispersed in the face of criticism from Democrats, Ortiz and De Los Santos, along with other Democrats, approached and accused him of lying and not caring if women died. Gress, Ortiz told reporters, has previously supported bills that have the potential to codify fetal personhood and his vote to recess the floor session instead of forcing a vote on the repeal bill showcased his insincerity.

A picture of Democrats shouting at Gress is included in the complaint, and a reference is made to a recording Ortiz made of the encounter, in which she stated an intent to disrupt Gress’ remarks to reporters.

“As the riot continued, Representative Ortiz participated in the disruption of a press conference by shouting at members from across the floor and charging the personal desks of Republican members,” reads the complaint. “Her own recording of the encounter captures her statement, ‘I think we need to disrupt his conference over here,’ and depicts her charging across the House Floor to Representative Gress and engaging in name-calling in front of the press.”

Gress did not respond to requests for comment on the complaint, or about whether he would be willing to testify to support it in an ethics hearing.

The complaint added that the angry yelling from Democrats, movement towards Republican lawmakers and De Los Santos’ “hovering” near Republican desks and “invading the personal space” of some lawmakers amounted to intimidation.

“Several members felt that their personal safety could be at risk and the sergeant at arms was approached to ask him what he could do. This outburst completely shattered the decorum and civility of the chamber and disgraced every one of its members,” reads the complaint.

De Los Santos and Ortiz have until May 1 to file written responses. While it’s under the purview of the House Ethics committee whether to take up the investigation, the options for punishing the duo are limited as final actions against them must be voted on by the entire House.

The committee can recommend that the two be censured, which Republicans, who hold a one-vote majority, can follow up on. But expelling Ortiz or De Los Santos requires a two-thirds supermajority vote, and Democratic support for such a motion will not happen, especially given that De Los Santos has already been the recipient of Republican retaliation after the repeal of the 1864 law. On Wednesday, shortly after the law was successfully struck down by the House, GOP leadership stripped the Laveen Democrat of his committee assignments.

In an emailed statement, Minority Leader Lupe Contreras denounced the complaints as just another attempt to punish Democrats for spearheading the vote to repeal the 1864 ban and voicing their disapproval of the GOP push to block it.

“These complaints are nothing more than retaliation against our members who reacted to a clear abuse of the process by a Republican Speaker pro tem who refused to recognize one of our members and instead went forward with a substitute motion to recess the chamber to avoid a vote on the 1864 total abortion ban repeal,” Contreras said. “In spite of the over-top rhetoric in the complaints, that’s all this was. The fact that the Speaker has already punished Assistant Leader De Los Santos by stripping him of his committees before an ethics hearing has even taken place only underscores and accentuates the abuse of process.”

Progressive organizations defended the free speech rights of the two Democrats and highlighted the accusations of insurrection as ironic.

“Utilizing your First Amendment right to speak out against a Civil War era abortion ban is democracy in action,” Alejandra Gomez, executive director of LUCHA, said in a written statement. “This baseless complaint from Arizona Republicans is full of irony, as they themselves have ties to the January 6th insurrection. This is nothing but a desperate attempt to silence dissent and a waste of time and resources.”

For Ortiz and De Los Santos, the complaints led to a fundraising opportunity. In posts on social media site X, the two criticized the complaints as groundless and asked for help covering their legal costs and bolstering their reelection campaigns.

“@RepAnaliseOrtiz & I held the line against the extreme 1864 total ban on abortion. Now, MAGA Republicans are retaliating by filing meritless ethics complaints against us. Please donate to cover our legal fees & ensure we are both re-elected,” wrote De Los Santos.

“When we said ‘shame on you’, we spoke for millions. We won’t be silenced. Help us fight this,” added Ortiz.

[harriswalz4usabybr]

Campaign Videos from Tonight's Down Ballot Strategy Dinner!

Indiana Gubernatorial Candidate - Jennifer McCormick

Montana Gubernatorial Candidate - Ryan Busse

US Congressional Candidate for AZ-6 - Kirsten Engel

US Congressional Candidate for CA-41 - Will Rollins

US Congressional Candidate for MI-8 - Kristen McDonald Rivet

US Senatorial Candidate for Arizona - Ruben Gallego

US Senatorial Candidate for West Virginia - Glenn Elliott

[whenweallvote]

Arizona 🏜️ is one the most tightly-divided swing states in the 2024 elections. Between elected officials and ballot measures, there’s a lot at stake for Arizona voters.

Swipe 👉🏽 to learn more about what Arizona voters may see on their ballots this November.

Don’t let anyone tell you your vote doesn’t count. Voters in Arizona will help determine the future of their state and the country. Make sure you are ready to make your voice heard at weall.vote/register!

[marvelsmostwanted]

Some snippets of good news (sorry for no sources, grabbing things from Twitter here)

• New York and Maryland have passed measures to protect abortion

• Ruben Gallego is projected to defeat Kari Lake for a much-needed Democratic Senate gain in Arizona (replacing Kysten Sinema, who had become an independent)

• Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester will become the first woman and first black person to represent Delaware in the Senate.

• Angela Alsobrooks will become the first black woman to represent Maryland in the Senate.

• ^This is the first time 2 black women have been elected to the US Senate at the same time. Only 3 black women have served in the Senate before them: Carol Moseley Braun, Kamala Harris, and Laphonza Butler, who is a current Senator (D-CA).

*Update:

• Sarah McBride (D-DE) will become the first transgender person to serve in the US House of Representatives.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Tim Murphy at Mother Jones:

Arizona’s fourth legislative district, located in the suburban heart of Maricopa County, might be the ultimate bellwether in the ultimate bellwether state. And this fall, the stakes are impossibly high, not just at the presidential level—where polls show Donald Trump and Kamala Harris in a dead heat—but all the way down the ballot. Republicans control both chambers of the legislature by just one vote. In Arizona, where each legislative district elects two representatives, control of the state house could come down to Democrats’ efforts to flip one seat and hold another in this district that includes parts of Phoenix and Scottsdale.

In their quest to hold onto the legislature, Republicans have turned to a member of a famous Arizona family—Pamela Carter, older sister of the original Wonder Woman, Lynda Carter. On the campaign trail, the candidate Carter has talked up her work as a successful entrepreneur and a record of academic accomplishment, and boasts of having “my family’s full support” for her state house run. But a review of her record and past statements tells a much different story: In contrast to the fourth district’s moderate profile, Carter is a fervently anti-abortion minister who has been “blessed with end-time revelation” and who has made confusing claims about her past. And one notable member of her family is not on board—her famous sister, an advocate for reproductive rights. “On her website, Pam claims to have her ‘family’s full support,'” Lynda Carter said in a statement to Mother Jones. “I have known Pam my entire life, which is why I sadly cannot endorse her for this or any public office.” 

Pamela Carter has offered an inconsistent accounting of her educational background. Her page at Ballotpedia states that she “earned a master’s degree in Communications and Biblical studies and attended Arizona State University,” which a spokesperson for the elections site confirmed was based on an informational survey that was “verified by the candidate.” “I was raised in Scottsdale, went right here to Arcadia High, ASU, and I just love our city,” she said on a podcast in 2022. This is technically true. Carter did attend ASU, and she does also have a master’s degree. But the reality of her resume is a bit more complicated. According to an ASU spokesperson, Carter was at one point enrolled at the university, but did not graduate. Instead, according to her LinkedIn page and other interviews, she attended an unspecified bible college in Kansas City, Missouri, and later received a master’s degree in “communications and media studies” from the Primus University of Theology, a Phoenix-based institution that affirms in its mission statement that “life begins at conception.” (One of the prerequisites for admission is that you order a copy of the founder’s book.) Primus, which aims to prepare its students “for their Ministry calling,” is not accredited by any agency recognized by the Department of Education. Instead, it cites the approval of the University Accreditation Association, which evaluates institutions on their adherence to “biblical truths.” Its degree programs are “designed for the specific and singular purpose of qualifying individuals for Christian Ministry.” But Carter has also described that degree differently in different contexts. Her campaign website during her unsuccessful 2022 campaign for Scottsdale city council said she held a “Master’s Degree in Business and Communications,” a claim she also repeated that year in an interview on a local podcast. In another video that year, she boasted of having a “master’s degree in theology, as well as in mass communications.” A current campaign biography states that “I received my master’s degree in Communications and Biblical studies.”

Carter, who did not respond to requests for comment, has leaned into her biography during her run for office, arguing that her business experiences give her an advantage in the political realm. Foremost among those ventures was Jon Cole Systems, a gym she once owned with her ex-husband, the powerlifter Jon Cole. Newspaper ads for the fitness center sometimes featured Lynda Carter, touting the benefits of Cole’s “TOTAL WOMAN” workout program. 

“It was the largest [gym] in the nation at the time,” Pamela Carter boasted in a 2022 interview, in which she suggested that working people struggling to find housing in Scottsdale needed to hustle as hard as she had when she owned two homes and was helping to run the business in the 1970s.

For a few years, the gym was a major success, with clients such as the Green Bay Packers and members of the Phoenix Suns. But it soon went downhill. The company pursued Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1982, and was sold for $60,000 the next year, according to an Arizona Republic report in 1983. The couple divorced around the same time. After the gym business fell through, Carter went on to a long career as a Christian wellness influencer, pitching the gospel alongside weight-loss and nutrition tips. She moved to California and hosted a fitness show called “Get in Shape with Pamela Carter” (on the Trinity Broadcasting Network) and another program on CBN called “Fit for Life.”

[...]

Carter was not just pitching products, though. She was selling a very particular kind of theology, rooted in a desire to see the United States “united for Jesus,” and a belief that modern-day prophets—like herself—were transmitting revelations from God. A biography at the ministry stated that Carter “is very passionate about her love for the Lord and has been blessed with end-time revelation of His desire for His bride.” (The full revelation was available for purchase for $25.) She talked frequently about building influence on the “Media mountain” and said in 2011 that she was part of “God’s media army…to be raised up for such a time as this, to take possession of the arts, the entertainment media, the internet.” The term is often used by proponents of a Christian nationalist movement sometimes called the New Apostolic Reformation and a belief its adherents subscribe to known as Seven Mountains Dominionism, which aims to take gain influence over the seven spheres (or “mountains”) of government, education, media, family, entertainment, religion, and business.

In response to a candidate questionnaire from the city of Scottsdale two years ago, Carter said she had “been involved…as a volunteer” with three churches or organizations, all of which had ties to the NAR. They included Intercessors for America, a national prayer organization that warns that “there is an Enemy of our souls and our nation who orchestrates a coordinated battle plan that is discernible and beatable with spiritual weapons.”  Another group she touted her work with was the Kansas City-based International House of Prayer, whose founding pastor, Mike Bickle, was dismissed last year amid allegations of sexual abuse. The church, where worship services have run 24/7 since 1999, has “been criticized by some pastors for what they describe as unorthodox theology and a cultish atmosphere, charges that Mr. Bickle rejects,” the New York Times reported in 2011. (In response to a Kansas City Star investigation into Bickle earlier this year, the organization emphasized that his alleged abuse predated the church’s creation, while Bickle has admitted to “inappropriate behavior” but not “the more intense sexual activities that some are suggesting.”) Long before he was forced out, Bickle had courted controversy with his assertions from the pulpit that Oprah was a forerunner of the Antichrist and that God sent Hitler to kill Jewish people because they wouldn’t accept Christianity.

[...] In that interview, Carter, who served that year as an advisor to the Trump campaign in the state, said she had acted as a prayer “intercessor” while working as a paid poll worker in Arizona. “I was dancing around, I had so much joy in just praying over every person that came in, you know, it was so fun,” she said. “But there’s also a lot of corruption I saw—not at the poll where I was working but at the election facility—and we just have to really watch and pray, watch and pray, and then you can cut that off in the spirit and then report it.”

[...] The district offers a glimpse of how reproductive rights is playing at the ballot box in a highly competitive area. Christine Marsh, the district’s Democratic state senator, won her election in 2022 by a little more than 1,000 votes by relentlessly linking a Republican incumbent to the state legislature’s 15-week abortion ban. The current Republican state representative, Matt Gress, was one of three members of his party to break ranks and vote to repeal Arizona’s 1864 abortion ban, which offered no exceptions even for cases of rape. A recent Fox News survey found that supporters of an abortion-rights ballot initiative in Arizona outnumber opponents by roughly three-to-one—and 50-percent of Republicans said they approved. Carter, though, has sung a different tune. 

Pamela Carter, the sister of Lynda Carter (who played Wonder Woman on the Wonder Woman show), is running for a State House seat in Arizona. Lynda is not backing her, citing Pamela’s anti-abortion views.

Read the full story at Mother Jones.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Molly Sprayregen at LGBTQ Nation:

The Arizona House’s speaker, Ben Toma (R), has punished Democrats for hosting a Drag Story Hour by banning the entire party from using House meeting rooms. The story hour took place on April 30 in the House basement and was hosted by nonbinary Rep. Lorena Austin (D) in partnership with Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona.

On X, Toma claimed that Austin “deliberately misled House leadership to reserve a conference room to host a drag story hour with Planned Parenthood” and that “use of House facilities for radical activism to promote dangerously perverse ideology will not be tolerated while I am Speaker.” “As a result,” he concluded, “I’ve ordered that Democrats have lost the privilege of accessing House meeting rooms until trust can be restored.” The Arizona Senate Republicans posted video of the event, along with a warning that it may not be suitable for children, despite the fact that nothing in the video is inappropriate. The post claimed the event was meant to “encourage parents to transition their kids.” “Your taxpayer dollars are hard at work to push child indoctrination and woke ideology onto our citizens. The madness must stop.” The video, however, merely shows a person in drag reading about trans activism and telling adults to listen to their children when they tell them who they are.

Arizona House Speaker Ben Toma (R) let his dragphobia out by punishing the entire House Democratic caucus, such as barring them from using House meeting rooms.

This is all because of a Drag Queen Story Hour hosted by State Rep. Lorena Austin (D).

See Also:

PinkNews: Arizona House Democrats blocked from using meeting rooms after Drag Story Hour held: ‘Disgusting abuse of power’

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Arit John and Cheri Mossburg at CNN:

CNN — 

The Republican-controlled Arizona House of Representatives once again failed to advance a repeal of the state’s 160-year-old abortion ban Wednesday, days after the state Supreme Court roiled state politics by reviving the law. The vote is a blow to reproductive rights as well as GOP candidates in competitive races, who have been scrambling to distance themselves from the court’s decision. Republicans facing competitive races in the state, including former President Donald Trump and US Senate candidate Kari Lake, called on the GOP-controlled legislature to work with Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs to take a more moderate path. On Wednesday, following two attempts to discuss a bill that would repeal Arizona’s 1864 ban on abortions, lawmakers voted not to discuss the measure on the House floor. The representatives’ votes were evenly split, with the chair making the tie-breaking decision. The bill itself was not brought up for a vote. “The last thing we should be doing today is rushing a bill through the legislative process to repeal a law that has been enacted and affirmed by the legislature several times,” House Speaker Ben Toma said during debate.

If the 1864 law were repealed, Arizona would revert back to a 15-week abortion restriction signed into law in 2022 by then-Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican. The state court delayed enforcement of the ban for at least 14 days to allow plaintiffs to challenge it, meaning abortions are still allowed in the state. The ban prohibits the procedure except to save the life of the pregnant person and threatens providers with prison sentences between two and five years. If the 1864 law goes into effect, Arizona would join 14 states that have passed near total abortion bans, some with no exceptions for victims of rape or incest. State lawmakers last week ended a House session early to block an effort to repeal the abortion ban. And on Monday, House Republicans’ general counsel laid out a strategy to defeat or dilute the impact of a potential abortion rights ballot initiative in a leaked memo.

Shame on the Arizona GOP lawmakers for voting against a bill that would repeal its draconian 1864 anti-abortion law.

[easyearl]

[easyearl]