The Gaggle: An Arizona politics podcast

Summer is here. The temperature is consistently in the triple digits, and the state Legislature is out on break. The first six months of the year are nearly in the books.While it may seem like the pages of the calendar flipped a little too quickly, Arizona was awash with political news in the first half of the year.A new Democratic governor was sworn in. Bills were passed, but a record number of bills were vetoed. Candidates announced their campaigns for 2024. And water became the hottest topic. This week on The Gaggle, a podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl are joined by Arizona Republic reporters covering some of the most pressing topics in Arizona politics.Ray Stern analyzes the number of departures in the state Legislature. Stacey Barchenger talks about Gov. Katie Hobbs' struggle to fill her cabinet. Taylor Seely discusses the confluence of development and water in Maricopa County. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s been a year since the U.S. Supreme Court erased federal abortion rights in a ruling that divided Americans and injected the issue into the 2022 midterm elections. The ruling upended abortion laws across the country and created confusion in Arizona over whether a 19th-century near-total ban on abortions was the law, or a 2021 law limiting most abortions to within 15 weeks of conception.Arizona’s legal landscape on this issue remains less than clear, and many candidates appear eager to test the political potency of abortion as an issue in 2024.In this episode of The Gaggle, we’re speaking with two guests about how Dobbs has affected Arizonans and what it could mean for those running in 2024. First, you’ll hear from Stephanie Innes, who covers healthcare issues for The Arizona Republic. Then you’ll hear from Amy Walter of the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, which tracks political races across the country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On June 19th, 2022, President Joe Biden, by executive order, made this day a federal holiday. Juneteenth, as it’s commonly called, marks the day when U.S. troops entered Galveston, Texas in 1865 to free people who were still suffering enslavement. This is despite the fact that slavery had officially ended two and a half years prior.The army announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state, were free by executive decree. Juneteenth is considered America's second independence day. In honor of that, we here on The Gaggle present to you a reading of the 14th Amendment. This amendment grants citizenship to all persons either born or naturalized in the United States, including formerly enslaved people. The amendment also provides equal protection under law. Here to read the Amendment are staff and reporters of The Arizona Republic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy struck a deal to stave off a default by the federal government.It passed on a bipartisan basis, with more Democrats voting for it than Republicans, and now some of the most conservative Republicans in the House, many of them in the House Freedom Caucus, are making McCarthy pay for it.These conservative hardliners, including Representative Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., upset Republican plans to pass bills intended to prevent Biden from outlawing gas stoves. Then they forced the chamber to cancel any votes the next day, leading Republican leadership to cancel more days of votes.The battle isn't across the aisle, rather between the right and the far right.This week on The Gaggle, a podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, host Ron Hansen is joined by Matthew Green to discuss where this stalemate could lead and why the Freedom Caucus is disproportionately Arizonan.Green is a professor of politics at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. He is the author of “Legislative Hardball: The House Freedom Caucus and the Power of Threat-Making in Congress.”What political topics would you like to hear on The Gaggle? We want to hear from you! Send us a note via email here or leave us a voicemail at 602-444-0804. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Congress narrowly averted an unprecedented federal default after House Republicans and President Joe Biden reached a deal on trimming government spending over the next two years.To make it stick, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy received more votes from House Democrats than from his fellow Republicans on a deal few on either side really liked. It was all part of the reality of a nine-seat GOP majority in the House with a party that has deep divisions.Voters will reassess that majority next year. With two Arizona seats expected to be among the more competitive races in the country, voters here could play a role in deciding which party controls the House of Representatives.In this episode, we'll hear about the candidates who have so far tossed their hats into the ring. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Redistricting is the most important story in America that no one cares about. These political maps shape the power of your vote. Today, The Gaggle sits down the three independent commissioners who have overseen the redrawing of district lines. We hear how it's done and what they would change.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Throughout 2021, Arizona's dubious review of Maricopa County's 2020 ballots, all 2.1 million of them, was a national spectacle.Long before that effort concluded that President Joe Biden won by slightly more votes than the certified results showed, it was obvious that Doug Logan and his Cyber Ninjas team were partisans with no experience conducting what Republicans billed as a forensic audit.Over the nearly two years since then, litigation from the Arizona Republic and others have led to the public release of 39,000 messages involving Logan, the one-time CEO of the now defunct Cyber Ninjas.Yet despite the immense volume of now public information, we're still missing 3,000 documents from Logan. This in spite of a court order to release them. It's not clear why Logan continues to hold on to these documents. But one thing is certain the state Senate's "audit" was anything but professional or fair.In this episode of The Gaggle, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl unpack what information Arizonans do have from Dough Logan's documents, what is still missing, and why it matters for voters moving forward. Republic reporter Ryan Randazzo examined documents along with Larry Moore, the founder of the Boston-based election technology company Clear Ballot Group. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Title 42, the pandemic-era law that authorized the quick expulsion of migrants, has expired. In its place, the U.S. government is implementing enforcement policies meant to reduce the number of people reaching the U.S.-Mexico border while also creating opportunities for asylum seekers to gain protection within the country.The transition to the new policies is expected to create significant challenges as border communities, the federal agencies and the non-governmental organizations that cater to the migrant population adapt to the changes that went into effect May 12.What is next for migrants seeking shelter in the U.S.? And how will Congress handle this political hot potato moving forward? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gov. Katie Hobbs signed Arizona's $17.8 billion state budget into law in record time. Among the winners are Republican pet projects such as money for the Prescott Frontier Days Rodeo, funding to repair a bridge in Lake Havasu City, and Democratic wins such as more reliable funding for public schools and investment in more services for the unhoused.But not everyone is happy with the budget or how much of it was constructed behind closed doors.In this bonus episode of The Gaggle, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl are joined by reporters Ray Stern and Stacey Barchenger to hash out the wins and losses in this year's state budget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Arizona Legislature is considering a plan to allow Maricopa County to hold an election on a transportation tax, but it has been a bumpy ride.Supporters say extending a half-cent tax for transportation for another 20 years will help the county’s transportation network keep pace with continued economic and population growth.The plan would build out Phoenix's freeway network, improve miles of major streets and expand public transit services.But the transit provisions of what is called the Proposition 400 extension have Republican lawmakers tapping the brakes, complicating efforts to get the necessary votes to put the issue on the ballot in November 2024.This week on The Gaggle, a podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl are joined by Arizona State University's Mark Roseland.He’s a professor at the School of Community Resources and Development at ASU and is a senior sustainability scientist with the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability at ASU. Roseland explains why good transportation makes a good city.In the second half of the podcast, the hosts break down the politics of Proposition 400. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices