Latest news with #KrisMayes
Yahoo
19-07-2025
- Yahoo
Arizona AG demands action after Phoenix apartments go without AC in heat
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has demanded immediate action after a person died and another was hospitalized while living at a Phoenix apartment complex that lacked proper air conditioning for multiple units.
Fox News
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Cartel drones pose 'dangerous' drug trafficking risk in border state, official warns
As reported crossings have dropped dramatically at the border, there is still work to be done on matters of stopping drugs from making their way into the United States, especially in the border state of Arizona, a top state official says. One of the ways that cartels transport drugs is by using drones, a tactic that gained attention after bipartisan legislation signed in the Grand Canyon State gave law enforcement the power to shoot down the small aircraft. "I think what has changed is that we have gotten more control over people crossing over the border, but unfortunately what has not changed is we still have a huge amount of fentanyl that is coming across our border here in Arizona, and that is being flown over the by the Mexican drug cartels with drones," Democratic Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said. "So, one of the things as the attorney general of Arizona that I've done is we got a law passed that allows local law enforcement and our office to shoot those drones out of the sky or to disable them with drone jammers. And that's something that's long overdue. There's a huge number of these drone incursions inside the United States, sometimes as far as 50 miles inside of Arizona, and that is unacceptable," she continued. "It is shocking, the number of drones that are coming inside Arizona. It's very, very dangerous. Obviously, right now, they are delivering payloads of fentanyl. But drones are capable of delivering almost anything, as we have seen in Ukraine," she said. Mayes has disagreed with various elements of the Trump administration's border and immigration policies. For example, she does not support the masking of ICE agents "except under extreme circumstances," as it causes distrust. On matters of drug enforcement, she asked for 50 or more Drug Enforcement Agency personnel and criticized a proposed 35% cut at the federal level to the High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program. "I need the federal government to step up to the plate and to bring us more resources to deal with these cartels as they evolve," she said. In response to Mayes' request for more DEA agents, the agency referred to Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget's comments on "America Reports" in February. "We are committed to putting more people there. We are adding more people as we speak, so Phoenix has always been one of the top DEA domestic offices and regions that we're focused on. We see it in the numbers," he said at the time. While there are political disagreements on the Trump administration's border policies, some Republicans have expressed that the overall situation has significantly improved. "What I can tell you is that looking at the [beginning of] 2025 through June, we're seeing a reduction of fentanyl cases coming to our office," Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell, a Republican, said. Maricopa County is a highly populated county that includes Phoenix in the suburbs. "We know that in 2022 to 2023, over half of the fentanyl seized — and this is according to DEA — was seized in Arizona. So this is the main distribution point for the entire country," Mitchell said, adding that the lethality of the pills has increased in recent years. "So those border efforts by President Trump and his administration to get control over that border are vital to keeping Americans safe and alive, frankly," she continued. When it comes to crossings, Yuma Mayor Douglas Nicholls explained that things are now more "peaceful" in the region. Yuma is just minutes from the border, and the city faced a strain on resources during the border crisis, including at its hospital, and they're still hoping to see reimbursement at some point. "The cartel activity has remained pretty much south of the border, and it pretty much always has. There's no real incursion into our community, and we did not see an increase in crime over the last five years. We've actually seen a decrease in the last couple of years," Nicholls noted. "So there's no direct impact here. But what has happened is, in Mexico, there's been a big shift in the cartels' organization as there's been arrests... The leadership levels have been competed for by people within the cartel organizations," he continued. "That's caused a lot of violence right across the border, so there are those concerns which have an impact on us. From the perspective of people coming here to access the border, if they're not crossing anymore, that impacts a lot our local economy, so from that perspective, that's really been the only big impact." "But the interdiction of drugs that come through our community — fentanyl, and all of them, cocaine and everything — to me, that's a bigger issue countrywide because it doesn't just stop here, it continues to move through our community," the mayor added. "Under President Trump, the southern border is more secure than it has ever been," said White House spokesperson Liz Huston. "The Trump Administration is restoring law and order, and dangerous cartel criminals are being removed from our streets. Protecting the American people is our top priority — and criminals now know if they cross our border, they will face the full force of the United States Justice System."
Daily Mail
12-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Spooked Americans terrorized by texts from shadowy 'Ministry of Communications'
Arizona residents have been terrorized by a sketchy new text message scam that uses a fake government agency to convince people into handing over their personal information. Spooked residents across Arizona and several other states have been hit with alarming texts this week claiming to be from the non-existent 'Arizona Ministry of Communications.' The chilling messages warn recipients they have outstanding traffic tickets and threaten to suspend their vehicle registration. The scam has become so widespread that even Good Morning Arizona anchors Scott Pasmore and Tess Rafols both received the identical threatening messages at exactly the same time on Wednesday, they shared on AZ Family. 'We got hit with the SAME SCAM at the same time this morning!!! Don't fall for it!' Rafols warned her Instagram followers alongside a photo of the sketchy text. 'Scott and I literally got this text around 9am saying we had an outstanding traffic ticket and to pay up or else….' she continued in the Instagram post. Hundreds of users commented on the warning admitting they had also received the same text that week. Scammers behind the fake texts are attempting to trick Americans into clicking dangerous links and sharing sensitive personal information. The chilling messages warn recipients they have outstanding traffic tickets and threaten to suspend their vehicle registration Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has confirmed that the messages are an elaborate scam designed to steal personal data and potentially drain bank accounts. Mayes issued an urgent warning to residents: 'If you get a text from the 'Arizona Ministry of Communications' ignore and delete it.' 'And you can always report text scams to my office or to the FTC,' Mayes warned. In March, the FBI warned that a texting scam targeting Americans for months is now spreading to even more states. The ongoing scheme has been trying to trick people into thinking they have unpaid road tolls and that they have to pay them off immediately to avoid expensive late fees. Federal officials said smartphone users need to delete these messages immediately and alert the actual toll service the scammers are claiming to represent. According to the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), they've already received over 2,000 complaints about this smishing scam. 'Smishing' is an attack by cybercriminals using fake text messages to get people to share private information, send money, or download malware onto their smartphone. In spring 2024, IC3 warned that the scam was targeting smartphone users in at least three states. A year later, the criminals appear to be targeting most of the US, from New York to Washington state. And in March, FBI agents in Seattle said locals need to be on the lookout for more fake messages about unpaid tolls, mounting debt by drivers, and threats of stiff fines.
The Independent
29-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Court blocks Trump's tariffs and says president ‘exceeded his authority'
A three-judge panel of the U.S. court of International Trade ruled that President Trump"exceeded his authority" by imposing tariffs on imports from Mexico, Canada, and China, as well as his "Liberation Day" tariffs. The court found that Trump 's tariffs exceeded the authority granted to presidents under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and that they did not address a specific national emergency as required by law. The judges ruled the tariffs would be "vacated" and permanently blocked the government from enforcing them, granting summary judgment to the plaintiffs, which included attorneys general from twelve states and several small American companies. Kris Mayes, the attorney general of Arizona, celebrated the ruling, stating that the President does not have the authority to implement tariffs unilaterally. A White House spokesperson criticized the ruling, claiming the court had not disputed that foreign countries' nonreciprocal treatment fueled America's trade deficits, which created a national emergency, and that the administration is committed to using every lever of executive power to address the crisis.
The Independent
28-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
US trade court rules Trump exceeded his authority with ‘Liberation Day' tariffs
A three-judge panel on a U.S. trade court has ruled that President Donald Trump exceeded his authority when he put in place his widespread tariffs on April 2, which he dubbed 'Liberation Day.' The panel stated that Congress didn't delegate to the president the authority to set tariffs. Twelve states urged the court to strike down Trump's taxes on imports, arguing that he exceeded his authority. The attorney general of one of those states, Kris Mayes of Arizona, took to X on Wednesday night to celebrate the news. 'Big news! The US Court of International Trade just struck down Trump's illegal tariff scheme as invalid under [the International Emergency Economic Powers Act],' Mayes wrote. 'The president does not have the authority to implement tariffs unilaterally. Glad to have co-led this case with Oregon to protect Arizona families and small biz.' The court order states that the Constitution hands Congress the exclusive power to 'lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises.'
