Scott Bourque

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Scott Bourque / KJZZ
The crowd at a Veterans For Trump rally in Litchfield Park, Sep. 18, 2020. Vice President Mike Pence spoke at the rally.
KJZZ •

Vice President Mike Pence Touts Defense Spending, VA Approval At Arizona Veterans For Trump Rally

Vice President Mike Pence spoke at a Veterans For Trump rally in Litchfield Park on Friday. Pence praised President Donald Trump and the administration’s increases in military spending and reforms to the Department of Veterans Affairs, before devoting much of his speech to standard campaign issues, including the administration’s support for law enforcement, appointment of conservative judges and the protests for racial justice. Pence addressed issues important to the veteran community before c
Howard Fischer/Capitol Media
Arizona Governor Doug Ducey speaks at a COVID-19 press conference.
KJZZ •

Group Launches Recall Initiative Against Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey

Accountable Arizona, a nonpartisan political action committee, is launching a petition to recall Gov. Doug Ducey. The group says it will formally file the petition with Secretary of State Katie Hobbs on Friday. This petition is the second recall effort launched against the governor over his handling of the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the first by a nonpartisan group.
Rick Romley
Former Republican Maricopa County Attorney Rick Romley, a Vietnam veteran, endorsed Biden over Trump.
KJZZ •

Military Times Poll: Support For Trump Among Military, Veteran Community Declining

More than 10% of adults in Arizona served in the armed forces, and they might not be the reliable Republican voting bloc they had been in previous years. Among active duty troops, President Trump’s disapproval rating is now higher than his approval rating ever was with that group. Trump’s approval rating in the military community peaked at 46.1% in 2016. As of August 2020, his approval rating among active-duty troops dropped to 37.8%, while his disapproval rating climbed to 49.9%.
COVID 19 Consortium
Approval for Arizona Governor Doug Ducey's handling of COVID-19.
KJZZ •

Poll: Arizona Gov. Ducey Has Worst Approval Rating For COVID-19 Response Nationwide, Lower Than Trump

With just 32% of Arizonans approving of his response to the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Doug Ducey ranks dead last among governors nationwide in a recent online poll commissioned by the COVID-19 Consortium, a collaboration of several universities to collect data on the pandemic. President Donald Trump earned a 34% approval rating among Arizonans, making Ducey the only governor to earn an approval rating lower than Trump among voters in the governor's respective state. → No New Stay-At-Home Orde
Bret Jaspers/KJZZ
Arizona GOP Chair Kelli Ward
KJZZ •

Arizona Republican Party Doubles Down On 'Liberal Hacks' And Anti-Journalist Rhetoric

Less than two weeks after Sen. Martha McSally (R-Arizona) called CNN reporter Manu Raju a “liberal hack” when asked a question about impeachment, the state Republican Party Committee is seizing on the phrase and using it as a rallying cry. At the 2020 meeting of the State Committee for the Arizona Republican Party, speakers including McSally, Rep. Debbie Lesko, and party chairwoman Kelli Ward each repeated anti-media and anti-journalist messages that label the press the “liberal hacks.”
Bret Jaspers/KJZZ
Arizona GOP Chair Kelli Ward
KJZZ •

AZ GOP Committee Meeting: Impeachment, Trump Economy And Future Of Arizona GOP

The crowd of nearly 900 precinct committee members and GOP officials gathered to vote on state committee leadership positions and hear from elected Republican officials. The theme of the meeting was #KeepArizonaGreat, and the atmosphere was decidedly pro-Trump. Most attendees wore some sort of Trump-themed apparel. Much of the discussion surrounded the ongoing Senate impeachment hearings against President Trump. Speakers also addressed the future of the Republican Party, and foretold a bleak future if conservatives didn’t get out and vote.
KJZZ •

Ducey Says Arizona Sex Ed Law 'Seems To Be Working' Ahead Of Allen's Bill

Currently, Arizona law allows — but doesn’t require — schools to offer age-appropriate sex education courses to any grade level. State Sen. Sylvia Allen wanted to outlaw those programs for students younger than the seventh grade. In order for her bill to pass, she needs Gov. Doug Ducey’s signature — but he says he’s OK with the current law. “Whatever age we're doing it right now seems to be working," Ducey said. Allen's bill is in line with a poll written by the Center for Arizona Policy, an
KJZZ •

Federal Judge Dismisses Former Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s Defamation Suit

A federal judge has dismissed former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s defamation lawsuit against three media corporations. Arpaio had sued CNN, the Huffington Post and Rolling Stone magazine claiming they published inaccurate and defamatory information that caused him to lose the 2018 Senate race. CNN’s Chris Cuomo and Rolling Stone Magazine both referred to Arpaio as a felon, while the Huffington Post claimed he was sentenced to prison for his misdemeanor contempt conviction. None of the
KJZZ •

Phoenix Police Union Calls Off No-Confidence Vote Against Chief Williams

The union representing Phoenix police officers is no longer calling for a vote of no confidence against Police Chief Jeri Williams. After Williams fired two officers last week over two high-profile incidents — one for racist social media posts, and another for threatening to shoot a family accused of shoplifting — the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association, or PLEA, announced they’d hold a no-confidence vote. PLEA’s President Michael Britt-London now said the union’s members no longer support a v