National Politics

TOMORROW: Senate Judiciary Committee To Question Mike Liburdi For Judgeship; Trump Nomination Bypassed Arizona Senators

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Mike Liburdi will have his hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee tomorrow morning. Liburdi was nominated last month by Presdient Donald Trump to fill one of the two judicial vacancies on Arizona’s U.S. District Court bench.

Liburdi was Governor Doug Ducey’s General Counsel between 2015-2018. He applied for the lifetime appointment in August of last year by going directly to the Department of Justice. In 2016-17, he had not been considered by a judicial selection committee that had been set up by Arizona’s two Senators.

Typically, the Senators recommend individuals to the Administration for such nominations in their home states – particularly when the Senators and the President are of the same party. For example, the other pending judicial nomination from Arizona was vetted and recommended by McCain and Flake in early 2017.

Hon. Bridget Bade’s nomination for a position on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee last week on a remarkably bipartisan vote of 17-5. Her nomination is now ready to be voted on by the entire Senate.

The differing pathways for the Bade and Liburdi nominations was set forth in their written submissions to the Committee, and lays bare some of the tension that existed between Trump, McCain and Flake.

Bade is an uncontroversial pick both because of her judicial experience as a U.S. Magistrate

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10 Great Reasons to Support Mark Kelly’s Run for AZ Senate

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Let’s face it, there is no such thing as a “good” politician. But those who come to the dark art of politics later in life – those who are forced into the immoral world of politics out of a genuine, and often desperate necessity for change – are our best hope. Those who spend most … Read more

The Conservative Majority on the United States Supreme Court stomped on the Freedom of Religion so a man can be Executed On Time

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The conservative majority on the United States Supreme Court thought executing a man on time was more important than safeguarding his religious liberties before he passed on.

The conservative majority on the United States Supreme Court thought to execute a man on time was more important than safeguarding his religious liberties before he passed on.

Dominque Ray is a person who does not deserve tears to be shed. He was executed in Alabama on February 7 for the rape and murder of 15-year-old Tiffany Harville in 1995.

The subject of capital punishment is one of profound debate in this country with regards to if it should be allowed, if so when it should be administered, what method should be employed to execute the prisoner, and whether this ultimate penalty is equally and fairly distributed according to demographics?

Those issues are not the subject of this piece.

What is the subject of this article is that Ray was denied his religious rights and freedoms days before his execution when the warden and officials at the prison he was incarcerated at denied his request, on January 23, 2019, to have his Moslem Imam present for security reasons.

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Regina Romero has been the Ward 1 councilwoman for 11 years, graduated from the UofA and the Harvard School of Government and is the only clean elections candidate.

Regina Romero Outlines 7-Point Platform in Campaign for Mayor of Tucson

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Declaring, “I am the progressive choice to continue moving Tucson forward,” City Councilwoman Regina Romero outlined a 7-point platform in her campaign for Mayor of Tucson, vowing to improve environmental sustainability, create economic opportunity, fund city schools and build affordable workforce housing. She opposed the initiative to make Tucson a sanctuary city and instead called … Read more

White House jeopardizes US national security with security clearances

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Earlier this week, Democrats opened an investigation of the White House security clearance process:

House Democrats are opening an investigation of the Trump White House’s security clearance practices and what they are calling “grave breaches” of procedure that allowed potentially compromised people to access the country’s most sensitive secrets.

The investigation, announced Wednesday by House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), seeks both to expose why the White House allowed certain people with security clearance issues to continue to access sensitive information and to close those loopholes.

The panel also plans to challenge administration officials on why they have not been more responsive to congressional requests regarding the security clearance process, as required by law.

Among the people whose cases the panel plans to scrutinize are former national security adviser Michael T. Flynn, who recently pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russian officials; Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, who did not disclose several contacts with foreign officials on his security clearance forms; and former White House staff secretary Rob Porter, who was accused of spousal abuse.

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