Do not be fooled when Arizona Legislative MAGA-Project 2025-ALEC Republicans have media sessions in the Capitol Rose Garden falsely condemning Governor Katie Hobbs for poor management when they try to deflect from their sole role in conducting a cruel war on vulnerable children this legislative session, be it those who are disabled or need free school meals or are deaf or even attend a public school.
In the latest salvo against Arizona’s children, Senate MAGA-Project 2025-ALEC Republicans blocked a measure, designed to be referred to the ballot, that would have allowed voters to consider a clean extension of Proposition 123, a major funding source for state public schools that first passed as a result of the Red for Ed Movement in 2018.
Senator Eva Diaz, the ranking member of the Senate Education Committee, issued a press release condemning the MAGA Republican blocking of the measure she introduced, stating:
“As someone who has been a teacher in the classroom, I know from personal experience how desperately our teachers need a pay increase and how critical this moment is for the future of public education in Arizona.
If we raise teacher pay but force those teachers into outdated buildings with overflowing classroom sizes, we will have failed our teachers, our students, and support staff. It is beyond me to try and understand why we wouldn’t move now to ensure our students and educational professionals can succeed.
Republicans have been unresponsive to Democrats’ attempts to discuss a bipartisan compromise on this extension and as the days pass, it has become apparent that they are set on tying this funding to the universal voucher program pulling even more money away from public schools.
Democrats want to find compromise for our students, not at the expense of our students. That is why I introduced this clean Prop 123 referral to the ballot to provide a pathway forward and I am beyond disappointed that Republicans blocked this vote. This plan was vetted by voters once – and we can’t continue to hold this funding hostage for Republicans to attempt to mislead the public into believing they actually care about teacher pay for the sake of gaining political points.”
Senate Democratic Leader Priya Sundareshan also voiced her strong objections to the MAGA-Project 2025-ALEC Republican cruelty, commenting to Blog for Arizona:
“In this moment, it is unconscionable that Republicans would continue to delay action on Prop123. What could be more important than ensuring our students and educational professionals have everything they need to succeed?
We know that Republicans are eyeing the Prop123 extension to cement the funding drain from the unaccountable voucher program, which is nothing more than a long con to under-fund public education.”
Senator Sundareshan also posted this critique of MAGA Republican actions on social media.
Arizona Senate Democrats also issued the below post on their readiness to solve this issue facing the state’s public schools.
In reporting by KJZZ, Governor Hobbs’s office indicated that negotiations, going on for about a year between her office and MAGA Republicans at the State Legislature on a renewed version of Proposition 123 that puts more emphasis on funding teacher salary increases, is moving forward and “is close to a deal.”
Hopefully, that is true, but given MAGA Republican obstructionism in the past and their evident agenda to promote policies catering to the wealthy at the expense of everyone else, including vulnerable children, it is understandable to question whether they will actually conclude a deal with the Governor that helps students who attend public schools.
Stay Tuned.
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Simple. Hobbs should line item veto every penny in vouchers. Move it all to real public schools. Cap charters now. No new ones. Done. Why do Repubs lie about everything?