(UPDATED) The Arizona Supreme Court goes Against the Will of the People Again.

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Score another defeat for the people of Arizona courtesy of the State Supreme Court.

Today, that Ducey packed judicial body ruled that Proposition 307, the measure that voters wanted to  have the final say on whether the Republican pipe dream-flat tax passed in 2021 could go into effect, would not go on the November ballot.

This is the second time in two months the Arizona State Supreme Court has issued a ruling contrary to the will of the people.

In March, the Court ruled the voter approved Proposition 208-Invest in Ed was unconstitutional.

Reaction to the ruling from progressive and education activist groups has been immediate.

The Arizona Democratic Party issued several postings on social media:

Arizona House Democrats also issued several reactions including:

Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Kathy Hoffman posted:

David Lujan, the head of the Arizona Center of Economic Progress and former Democratic Legislative Leader issued several posts on social media including:

To AZ Central, Mr. Lujan commented:

“The Supreme Court strikes again!” He also said that the flat tax “will devastate Arizona’s future” with its one billion in cuts and “The voters have once again have had their voices silenced by the Supreme Court. So now it’s time for voters to take their anger to the ballot box.”

 

Joe Thomas of the Arizona Education Association wrote:

“Last summer hundreds of teachers, parents, school employees, and community members worked to collect signatures to give voters the chance to reject a massive tax cut for the rich because they know we cannot afford another tax cut when our schools are already struggling with funding levels. Today’s ruling is as disgraceful as Arizona’s ranking near the bottom in per-pupil spending. It erases Arizona voters and it sends a message to educators and students that the state prioritizes wealthy special interests over public education funding.”

Save Our Schools Arizona issued an evening statement, commenting:

Hoffman, Salman, Bolding, Lujan, and Thomas are right.

This ruling, like last months Invest in Ed one, is a slap in the face to the people of Arizona.

It will also, to use Lujan’s words, devastate the Arizona economy in the long run and stifle investments in public education and other measures that could better help the people (like expanding KidsCare) and move the state forward.

Informed minds know how this failed flat tax experiment worked in Kansas. It was wrong there and it is wrong here.

Voters need to choose candidates from the Governor to dog catcher this November that will work to put right all the damage Republicans have done these last 13 years and finally promote an agenda that will serve the people. They also need people that will put justices on the State Supreme Court that will rule for the majority and not their plutocratic buddies.

 

 

 

8 thoughts on “(UPDATED) The Arizona Supreme Court goes Against the Will of the People Again.”

  1. Gov. Doug Ducey, the ice cream man hired by Koch Industries to run their Southwest subsidiary formerly known as the state of Arizona, actually said this about his packed AZ Supreme Court’s decision: “This ruling is another big win for our state’s taxpayers and it couldn’t have come at a better time. With inflation hitting Arizonans hard, this decision ultimately means more of their hard-earned dollars can stay in their wallets.”

    KJZZ reporter Ben Giles accurately points out why this fool governor is a tool for the plutocracy. https://twitter.com/ben_giles/status/1517288417129771009?cxt=HHwWgsCtzdjxvo4qAAAA

    Inflation disproportionately hurts the poor. This GOP-approved tax cuts that voters won’t have a chance to reject at the ballot disproportionately benefits the wealthy.

    For reference, Arizonans earning between $50K and $75K will save $96 a year in taxes.

    Anyone earning between $1M and $5m will save an average just shy of $47,000.

  2. John, is that the Victor Orban, Vlad Putin, Burmese generals, form of democracy you are citing? Stiffle dissent, rig the voting rolls, accept only “patriotic candidates”, control the media, pack the courts, throw 100 roadblocks in the way of voters overturning your gang’s legislation? You sure as heck can’t deny your role in THIS court packing. Montgomery and Bollick, terrible.

  3. Utter tosh. The AZSC just spit on the will of the citizens and the solid reasoning of the lower court to reach a predetermined political result. They didn’t even have the courage to issue an opinion. When they do, it will surely be a total travesty of legal reasoning. The AZGOP is just a gang of legally sanctioned thugs doing the bidding of oligarchs, fascists, and bigots at this point.

  4. The job of the Arizona Supreme Court it’s not to rule the way some people may think the people want but to interpret the Constitution. If you have a problem with that, then have the people change the Constitution. It’s really quite simple.

    • Hi John

      Or elect a Democratic Governor that will select justices that have a different interpretation of the State Constitution than the current Supreme Court roster.

        • Your invocation of ‘democracy’ rings hollow when you still don’t accept the results of a legal and valid election in 2020. So you can piss right off with that hypocrisy, John.

          • In case any of you blog readers missed what Michael just did, it’s called a dodge. It is a tactic frequently used on this blog by people who do not have answers for the points that I raise.

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