Latest news with #SB1234
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kris Mayes must drop her case against Arizona's bumbling fake electors
The judge has sent the fake electors' case back to the grand jury. Now, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes needs to call it quits. The case never should have been brought in the first place. The 'alternate' slate of electors was a dumb Republican stunt that didn't fool anyone. It's doubtful that the so-called fake electors even thought their plot would work. Were they nuttier than we think? It's been four years since the original sin. Nobody got hurt, and I'm pretty darn sure I wasn't deprived of my right to vote and to have my vote counted. Jim McManus, Phoenix It is graduation time. As a retired teacher with 17 years of experience in Arizona public schools, I worry. I've witnessed firsthand how unprepared many students are when it comes to managing money. They leave high school knowing how to dissect a frog but not how to make good investments, read a credit-card statement, create a budget or understand interest rates. That has to change. We are ill serving our young people and ourselves by failing to provide basic financial education as early as elementary school. Personal finance — budgeting, saving, credit, loans and taxes — should be required before graduation. Arizona's entire economy will benefit from it. The Legislature should act to make financial literacy a high school graduation requirement. Let's stop sending students into the world financially illiterate. Why should the children of the wealthy be the only one to know the secret to financial success? Mary Patton, Tucson House Speaker Steve Montenegro is blocking the bipartisan Senate Bill 1234 that would define basic standards of care for animals in Arizona. It passed the Senate 22-4 and cleared a House committee, yet Montenegro won't allow a floor vote. This is not leadership. It's sabotage. This bill addresses a serious gap in Arizona law exposed by the Chandler 55 case, where dogs endured suffering because food, water and shelter weren't clearly defined. SB 1234 protects companion animals while explicitly exempting agricultural, working and unhoused individuals' animals. It defines water as suitable for drinking, food as appropriate for the species and fit for consumption, and shelter as natural or artificial that keeps the dog from injury or disease. By refusing to move this forward, Speaker Montenegro is siding with cruelty over compassion. Is that really the Arizona we want? The people of Arizona — and their pets — deserve better. Douglas Abramowitz, Scottsdale Last week I took a road trip to Manzanar in the Owens Valley of California. It was the site of an internment camp that held more than 120,000 Japanese-American prisoners. It's a beautiful setting for such a sad chapter in our nation's past. More letters: Republicans are turning Arizona into a Christian nanny state Touring the museum brought tears to my eyes, seeing what the inhabitants endured, and how they made the best of the situation. Some appealed their cases all the way to the Supreme Court, and several won. There's also a short auto tour, passing various sites (gardens, barracks, cemetery). It was a worthwhile trip, and a very relevant history. Bekke Hess, Bullhead City Ashli Babbitt was the only person to die during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Which was tragic. But now there are reports that the Trump Justice Department will pay her family $5 million to settle a lawsuit. That is completely wrong. If we recall, she was at the door of a hallway that leads to the House floor. The door's window was shattered, and the Capitol police officer stationed there repeatedly warned the rioters — including Babbitt — not to enter. She ignored those warnings, and the officer shot her. She is not the 'martyr' that Trump claims her to be; she was a criminal who ignored the law and multiple warnings. Giving her family any kind of settlement, let alone $5 million, is another attempt by Trump and his minions to rewrite the history of that horrible day, a day instigated by Trump himself, a day designed to overturn a free and fair election. It was not the 'beautiful day' that Trump calls it. It was an American tragedy saved by Mike Pence's heroic stand against Trump's unconstitutional desires. Mike McClellan, Gilbert What's on your mind? Send us a letter to the editor online or via email at opinions@ This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Fake electors pulled a dumb stunt. Arizona should let it go | Letters
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Arizona Senate passes bill that will crackdown on domestic animal cruelty
The Brief The Arizona Senate is working to protect domesticated animals from abuse. SB 1234 is looking to get tougher on people who mistreat animals by expanding the rules for charging someone with animal cruelty. PHOENIX - Arizona's Senate passed SB 1234, a bill that aims to crackdown on animal cruelty, on March 17. "Senate Republicans are working to protect the health and well-being of Arizona's furry, four-legged friends with legislation broadening the conditions under which animal cruelty can be charged. This legislation, aimed at strengthening protections for innocent pets from harm, moves to the House of Representatives for consideration after passing the Senate with bipartisan support today," said a news release from Arizona State Senate Republican Caucus spokesperson Kim Quintero. Senator Shawnna Bolick sponsored the bill, and says it'll help protect domestic animals from neglect and abuse. If the bill becomes law, it'll add penalties for anyone who intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly fails to prevent the suffering of domestic animals. Anyone convicted of animal cruelty could face a penalty ranging from a class 1 misdemeanor to a class 5 felony. What they're saying "This legislation sends a strong message that animal cruelty and neglect will not be tolerated in any form in the State of Arizona," Senator Bolick said. "These innocent animals are voiceless, but when they suffer, it speaks volumes of the type of individuals we're dealing with who are causing this despicable harm. I am strongly committed to reinforcing the importance of maintaining healthy environments for our pets. By expanding the definition of cruelty and neglect, we are making it clear that having a pet is a responsibility, and these animals should not experience any unnecessary suffering or cruelty. Individuals who refuse to provide basic care for these living, breathing, loving creatures should not have access to them. As people, we have a moral obligation to care for all living beings and to hold those accountable who choose to commit heinous acts of abuse. I applaud both my Republican and Democrat colleagues for their support in passing this bill out of the Senate, and I call on the House to do the same, for the sake of the millions of animal lovers, and vulnerable pets, in Arizona." The Arizona Humane Society backs this bill, too. "The Arizona Humane Society strongly endorses SB 1234 and is working in partnership with Senator Bolick, the Arizona Police Association and the Maricopa County Attorney's Office to advance this important legislation," Arizona Humane's website says. Not all animals are protected What about farm animals? Well, farmers took issue with a previous similar bill, so they're not included in this bill. "In response to concerns raised by the agricultural community on a similar bill last year, Senator Bolick sponsored SB 1234, which applies only to domestic animals," Quintero said. What we don't know The news release didn't go into detail about why the agricultural community took issue with the 2024 bill. FOX 10 reached out to learn more about why farm animals wouldn't be protected under this bill. What's next The bill now heads to the Arizona House. If it's passed there, it'll head to Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs' desk for approval or rejection.
