The Gaggle: An Arizona politics podcast

Tempe votes on May 16 to either welcome or boot out the Coyotes hockey team and accompanying entertainment complex.Proponents of the development claim that the sport and entertainment district will be a huge win for Tempe including generating nearly 7000 jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue.Opponents claim that the city should put its energy into fixing present issues like creating more affordable housing and tackling the opioid crisis. If the back and forth between critics and proponents isn’t enough, there’s the ongoing legal battle after Phoenix sued Tempe, alleging the apartments proposed for the project would create a safety hazard with low-flying aircraft at Sky Harbor International Airport. Today, host Mary Jo Pitzl is joined by The Republic’s Sam Kmack, who covers Tempe and Scottsdale, and Taylor Seely, who covers Phoenix but is a resident of Tempe and recently moderated a debate between the Vote Yes and Vote No groups on the Coyotes area issue.You can see the full video of the debate here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On March 21, the Apache Stronghold’s case against the proposed Resolution Copper mine was reopened. The battle is over a proposed copper mine in Oak Flat, just southeast of metro Phoenix. The land sits on top of one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper reserves in the world. The mine, if allowed to go forward, would produce an estimated 40 billion pounds of copper over the next four decades. This is according to Rio Tinto, a global mining corporation of which Resolution Copper is a subsidiary. But the land is sacred to the San Carlos Apache tribe. Tribal members say that Oak Flat is a physical cornerstone of their religious beliefs. In this episode of The Gaggle, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl sit down with indigenous affairs and environmental reporter Debra Krol to discuss the fate of Oak Flat and Resolution Copper, and how this could end up being one of the biggest religious cases in recent decades.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two Democratic representatives in Tennessee were expelled this month over their involvement in gun control protests in the House of Representatives chamber after a deadly school shooting in Nashville. Another was allowed to remain by a one-vote margin.Rep. Justin Jones, D-Nashville, and Rep. Justin Pearson, D-Memphis, accused the GOP-led House in Tennessee of racism and oppression after their expulsion.House Republicans said it was the representatives' leadership during the protests that took place on the House floor that led to their removal, not race. A few days later, local officials voted Jones and Pearson back in.A representative in Arizona also was expelled, but in a vastly different situation. Rep. Liz Harris, R-Chandler, was expelled from the House of Representatives for disorderly behavior after allowing her guest on an election review panel to falsely accuse lawmakers and other officials of taking bribes from a drug cartel.Expulsion is the strictest form of discipline a member of a legislature can face, and it hadn’t happened in Arizona since 2018.Harris was one of three people whose names were submitted to the county Board of Supervisors, the body that will appoint a replacement. And the two lawmakers from Tennessee swiftly rejoined their colleagues.It all begs the question: Is there a better way to put guardrails on ethical behavior by elected officials?This week on The Gaggle, a podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, host Mary Jo Pitzl is joined by two guests to sort through the happenings and differences in the two cases.Arizona Republic state politics reporter Ray Stern discusses the Rep. Liz Harris case. Later, ethics scholar Dr. John Pelissero analyzes the similarities and differences between what happened with the representatives in Tennessee and what happened in Arizona. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Katie Hobbs won the governor’s race in 2022, she became the first Democrat in 14 years to hold the seat. It also made her the first governor in 14 years to have to deal with a Legislature controlled by the opposite party.As she marks her 100th day in office this week, her achievements and pushbacks are equally noteworthy.At the time of recording, the governor had vetoed 38 bills, and it's expected more vetoes are to come.Hobbs is in familiar company. Nearly two decades ago, when Democrat Janet Napolitano arrived on the Ninth Floor, she was met with similar opposition.When Napolitano won the governor's race in 2002, it had been a dozen years since a Democrat had been in the Arizona governor’s seat. She tangled with a Republican Legislature that wasn’t willing to embrace her agenda, leading to what became a record-setting number of vetoes from an Arizona governor, a record that Hobbs seems intent on shattering.This week on The Gaggle, a podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, host Mary Jo Pitzl and guest host Stacey Barchenger, are joined by Dennis Burke, Napolitano's former co-chief of staff. He examined the challenges of presiding over a divided government and how to navigate it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On March 28th, a Maricopa county Superior Court judge, ordered the city of Phoenix to clear out a large homeless camp. This is an area of tents, tarps, sleeping bags and other makeshift housing that lies within view of the state capital. The city hasn't made clear whether it intends to carry out that order or appeal it.What is clear is that Phoenix, and the greater Valley, have an enormous homelessness problem. It's only been exacerbated by rising rents and lack of affordable housing.In this episode of The Gaggle, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl sit down with The Republic's housing team Catherine Reagor and Juliette Rihl to examine the how and why behind the Valley's housing and homelessness crisis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

While you won’t be filling in the bubbles on your ballot in November, the upcoming U.S. Senate race is lurking in the shadows.So far, only one prominent candidate — a Democrat —has announced he's running: U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz.As Arizona continues to be one of the most watched swing states in the country, all eyes are on who will be on the Senate ballot in 2024.Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., announced in December that she quit the Democratic party and is now an independent.And the Republicans are looking to regain the seat. Although no candidates have formally announced, plenty of names are circulating.Kari Lake, former gubernatorial candidate, is one. And others, such as Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, have indicated their interest.This week on The Gaggle, a podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl are joined by Erin Covey. She’s a political reporter and analyst for Inside Elections, which provides nonpartisan analysis of presidential, congressional and gubernatorial races. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Arizona is one of the nation’s newest swing states — and one of the most competitive.President Joe Biden’s 2020 win in Arizona had the smallest margin of any state in the country. Arizona is working on its fourth straight cycle with a competitive Senate race, which could be a three-way contest next year.U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema left the Democratic Party to register as an independent earlier this year, and the No Labels and Forward parties are raising their profiles across the state.Tech entrepreneur and former presidential candidate Andrew Yang was in Phoenix last weekend to promote his Forward Party, just days after the No Labels Party qualified as a new political party in this state.Third parties are nothing new to Arizona or U.S. politics. But they are often viewed as spoilers by both Democrats and Republicans. This week on The Gaggle, a podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl are joined by AJ Simmons. He is the research director at the Center for State Policy and Leadership at the University of Illinois, Springfield, and an Arizona native.He joined the show to discuss the effects of third parties and different voting processes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It didn’t take freshman Congressman Juan Ciscomani long to draw attention in Washington D.C. The Republican who took over a Tucson-based seat from retired Democratic Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, prominently threw his backing for the House speakership to Kevin McCarthy, when three of his fellow Arizona Republicans had misgivings.McCarthy rewarded Ciscomani’s loyalty with a coveted seat on the House Appropriations Committee. It was only last year that Ciscomani made his first run for office, narrowly defeating former state Sen. Kirsten Engel to win a seat in the House of Representatives.Today on The Gaggle, Congressman Juan Ciscomani joins hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl on Zoom to talk about the work he's doing in Congress.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s 2023, but if you listened to some of the events around the annual Conservative Political Action Conference or a hearing at the Arizona Legislature in recent days, it could feel like we’re stuck in 2022 or even 2020.Arizona’s lawmakers need to reach an accord with the governor on an annual budget, and there is no shortage of issues to deal with in Washington, D.C. But prominent Republicans remain fixated on election denialism.In this episode of The Gaggle, the political podcast of The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, hosts Ron Hansen and Mary Jo Pitzl talk about how the Republican Party looks to move ahead with governing in Arizona and how it will talk to voters about the issues that matter to them before they go to the polls in 2024.Joining them are John Thomas, a Republican strategist who is helping amplify the message of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is all but declared as a GOP presidential candidate, and Ray Stern, who covers the Arizona Legislature for The Republic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

City Council candidates Sam Stone and Kevin Robinson are running to replace longtime seat holder Sal DiCiccio. The NAACP, the National Coalition of 100 Black Voters and the League of Women Voters hosted the District 6 candidates in a public debate. Here it is in full.For analysis on the Phoenix runoff election, be sure to listen to our episode with Republic reporter Taylor Seely. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices