In case you missed it, here is the recent interview of Attorney General Tom Horne on the BBC discussing Tucson Unified School District’s “Ethnic Studies” program: http://www.azag.gov/press_releases/jan/2012/world%20service.mp3
Attorney General Tom Horne Interview on BBC regarding TUSD’s Ethnic Indoctrination Program
January 24, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne Finds Quartzsite Open Meeting Law Violations
December 13, 2011 By 1 Comment
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 13, 2011
CONTACT: Amy Rezzonico
PHOENIX (Tuesday, December 13, 2011) — Attorney General Tom Horne has found evidence that the Quartzsite Town Council has violated Arizona’s Open Meeting Laws (A.R.S. §§ 38-431 et. seq.) in connection with the conduct of Town Council meetings and dealings with a member of the public.
In a letter to the Quartzsite Town Attorney, Horne notes that on June 28, 2011, while addressing the Council, Quartzsite resident Jennifer Jones was removed from the meeting by a vote of the council. She had turned her back on the council and was addressing the audience, which the council reasonably could object to. Public bodies can eject members of the public for disruptive conduct, but they must first give a warning, which the council failed to do.
The second violation occurred on July 10, 2011 in which the Council convened an emergency meeting on at the Town Hall to discuss disruptions during previous meetings. The Council locked the doors to the meeting room and did not allow any member of the public to attend its meeting. Excluding the public from this meeting violated the Open Meeting Law.
In the third and related violation, the Attorney General notes that the Council did not fully comply with the posting requirements for emergency meetings. As of December 9, 2011, the minutes of the emergency meeting were not posted on the Town website.
The final violation involves the failure to comply with posting requirements for Notices and Minutes.
The Council did not post minutes for the July 10, 2011 emergency meeting. In addition, the Council failed to post minutes for a number of its meetings labeled as “work sessions.”
As a remedy, Horne is recommending that:
- The Council will discuss the concerns listed in this letter with its legal counsel in open session during a properly noticed public meeting.
- Each member of the Council and staff will participate in a training session with counsel from the League of Arizona Cities and Towns regarding the requirements of the Open Meeting Laws.
- The Council will be subject to oversight by the Attorney General’s Office for a period of twelve months.
View a copy of the letter to the Town here.
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AG Horne to Defend State Elections Law Before Arizona Supreme Court
December 5, 2011 By 4 Comments
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 5, 2011
PHOENIX (Monday, December 5, 2011) — Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne will argue Tucson v. Arizona before the Arizona Supreme Court at 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, December 6, at the Thunderbird School of Global Management in Glendale. You can watch live at http://azcourts.gov/AZSupremeCourt/LiveArchivedVideo.aspx (see instructions below)
The case centers on a 2009 state law, A.R.S. 9-821.01, a law requiring cities to have non-partisan elections and prohibit some at-large elections.
The prohibited system, now used in Tucson (but this statute would also prevent other cities from adopting that system) tends to disenfranchise voters in districts where the majority is different than the overall majority in that city. In a number of districts, the voters have been represented by someone who lost in their district.
Earlier, the state Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Tucson’s argument that this was purely a local matter and the Legislature had no right to pass laws on the subject. The Arizona Supreme Court granted review, and Horne will argue that the State does have a legitimate interest and that the statute is valid.
Note: When you access the page, scroll down and you will see under “Upcoming Events” the Tucson v. Arizonacase. Next to the case you will see “case summary.” Once the argument goes live at 2:00p.m. “oral argument” will appear next to “case summary.” Select the “oral argument” text and the feed will appear.
WHO: AG TOM HORNE TO ARGUE TUCSON V. ARIZONA CASE
WHERE: THUNDERBIRD SCHOOL OF GLOBAL MANAGEMENT
1 GLOBAL PLACE
GLENDALE, AZ 85306
DATE: TUESDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2011
TIME: 2:00 P.M.
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Attorney General Tom Horne Goes to Court to Compel AIRC Members to End Stonewalling
September 7, 2011 By 1 Comment
Arizona Attorney General, Tom Horne released the following statement and documents regarding the investigation of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 7, 2011
CONTACT: Amy Rezzonico
AG HORNE GOES TO COURT TO COMPEL THREE ARIZONA INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSION MEMBERS TO END STONEWALLING OF POSSIBLE OPEN MEETING LAW VIOLATIONS PROBE
PHOENIX (Wednesday, September 7, 2011) — A copy of the action and exhibits filed by Attorney General Tom Horne is attached.
Petition for Enforcement of Written Investigative Demands and Application for Order to Show Cause
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Attorney General Tom Horne: Stonewalling Will Not Be Tolerated
August 4, 2011 By 3 Comments
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 4, 2011
CONTACT: Doug Nick
HORNE RESPONDS TO REDISTRICTERING COMMISSIONER’S STATEMENT OF NONCOOPERATION; SAYS STONEWALLING WILL NOT BE TOLERATED
PHOENIX (Thursday, August 4, 2011) — Attorney General Tom Horne today responded to a statement by Redistricting Commissioner Jose Herrera, who stated in public that he would not cooperate with the Attorney General’s investigation and that he would not answer questions from the Attorney General’s Office.
Horne stated: “It is not my job to become involved with political disputes regarding the commission’s decisions. It is my job to determine whether the law has been broken. Serious allegations have been made about possible violations of the law concerning open meetings law and procurement. If there have been no violations, we will indicate that, which will remove the cloud currently over the commission, and greatly benefit the commission in its work. If we find, on the other hand, that there are violations, it is my duty to pursue them. The public expects this of the Attorney General’s Office. The public also expects, in view of the importance of the commission’s work, that my investigation will proceed quickly, and that delaying tactics will not be tolerated.”
“I have no preconceptions as to whether or not the law has been broken, but stonewalling on the part of any commissioner will not work. It did not work in the Watergate scandal and it will not work here. My office will be relentless in pursuing the facts, and no commissioner will succeed in attempting to hide relevant facts.”
The Attorney General’s Office has been attempting to pursue this investigation in a cooperative manner, but will also pursue the investigation using other tools, as appropriate, including A.R.S. §38-431.06 which states, relevant to alleged violations of the open meeting law:
A.R.S. §38-431.06
B. “… the Attorney General… may;
1. Issue written investigative demands to any person.
2. Administer an oath or affirmation to any person…
C. The written investigative demand shall:…
4. Specify a place for taking the testimony… “
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Arizona GOP Chairman Morrissey Applauds AG Horne Investigation into IRC Process
July 21, 2011 By 3 Comments
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 21, 2011
CONTACT: Thayer Verschoor
Phoenix, AZ – Chairman Tom Morrissey speaks on the investigation into the IRC by the Attorney General Phoenix – “I applaud the action taken today by Attorney General Horne to investigate the actions of the Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC) for their outlandish action to award a contract to Strategic Telemetry for mapping consultant services. The unprecedented action by the IRC flies in the face of our state laws on many counts.
History clearly demonstrates the undeniable fact that this company is neither independent nor non-partisan. Since this process will determine the electoral lines for the next ten years, the voters of this state MUST be assured that the redistricting process is fair and balanced. In addition, there are two other firms that submitted proposals to provide the expertise for the mapping services – including the company that provided that service ten years ago with no missteps and an Arizona company with a wide-ranging expertise in Arizona communities of interest. The price tag for the proposals from these two companies, COMBINED was about the same as the proposal inappropriately approved by the IRC. Arizona taxpayers expect – no, DEMAND, better judgment from this commission.
If the Independent Redistricting Commission cannot take the first step in this process in a legal and ethical manner, Arizonans across the political spectrum will have no faith in the final redistricting plan. Republicans, Independents, Democrats and Libertarians deserve better, and I strongly support the actions of the Attorney General to protect all the citizens of our great state.”
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Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne Authorizes Probe into Independent Redistricting Commission
July 21, 2011 By 3 Comments
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 21, 2011
CONTACT: Amy Rezzonico
PHOENIX (Thursday, July 21, 2011) — Attorney General Tom Horne has authorized his office to conduct an initial investigation of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission based on reports that raise questions about the Commission’s compliance with Arizona’s Open Meeting Law and procurement laws when it recently entered into a contract with Strategic Telemetry to provide mapping consultant services.
“I need to emphasize very clearly that this is an initial investigation that will attempt to determine if any violations actually occurred,” Horne said. “I am concerned about reports that have raised questions about some of the procedural actions taken by the commission, and I am committed to finding out whether those concerns warrant any further investigation. If this initial investigation finds that laws have been violated, we will proceed accordingly.”
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Pachyderms to Meet in Chino Valley
July 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, July 13, 2011
CONTACT: Sue
Pachyderm meeting is Thursday, July 21 @ 6 p.m. @ Bonn Fire Restaurant, Chino Valley.
Speaker will be Gary Pierce from the Arizona Corporation Commission
Upcoming Speakers:
August: Ana Waylan Trujillo, Yavapai County Elections Department
September: Dr. Goldberg speaking on Islam religion
October: Congressman Paul Gosar
November: Attorney General Tom Horne
Please RSVP to Sue.
In the Mind of an Anti-American Activist
April 15, 2011 By 11 Comments
The latest video by Three Sonorans loaded today on their “WhatABCs” YouTube channel. One of the Three Sonorans is David A. Morales a Hispanic activist who promotes his anti-American agenda through these cute little videos. Mr. Morales is a Ph.D. candidate in Applied Mathematics at the University of Arizona.
In this latest video, Morales lists Russell Pearce, Tom Horne, John Huppenthal, Jon Justice, Rich Kronberg, Doug MacEachern, Mark Stegeman and John Pedicone in “The 8-Fold Wheel of Hate.”
When Mr. Morales is not practicing applied mathematics, he is producing and writing independent films about sex, drugs and crime in addition to filming the harassment of elected officials.
FYI – Tea Party at the Capitol on Vets’ Day
October 30, 2009 By 14 Comments
United We Stand Tea Party (www.unitedwestandteaparty.org) is taking place right at the Arizona Capital from 12:30 – 2:30 PM. It is located at 1700 W. Washington in Phoenix. It is on Veteran’s Day, Wednesday, November 11, 2009.
Because it is NON-PARTISAN, the organizers have invited Democrats, Republicans, and Independents. Sadly, they have not received any response from any Democrats.
Please, bring canned food for St. Mary’s Food Bank Alliance. Please, help others by bringing food for the needy. We need to help our neighbors.
All speakers will be addressing the Constitution and Bill Of Rights.
Current Speakers:
12:30-12:50 – Paul Porter – www.PaulPorterShow.com
12:50-1:00 – State Rep. Debbie Lesko (LD 9) – www.DebbieLesko.org
1:00-1:10 – Debbie Lee – America’s Mighty Warriors – www.americasmightywarriors.org
1:10-1:20 – John Paul Mitchell, Indep. gubernatorial candidate – www.aznextgov.org
1:20-1:30 – TBD
1:30-1:40 – Clint Bolick – www.goldwaterinstitute.org
1:40-1:50 – Tom Horne – Arizona State Superintendent of Public Instruction, exploring a run for AG – www.TomHorneExploratory.com
2:00-2:10 – Bradley Beauchamp, candidate in CD -1, running against incumbent Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D) – www.beauchampforcongress.com
2:10-2:15 – TBD
2:15-2:30 – Dean Martin – Arizona State Treasurer – www.votedeanmartin.com