With the Bills He Signed Today, Doug Ducey has Probably Guaranteed He Will Never Be President of the United States

Like all Governors (especially those in large or growing states,) Doug Ducey probably has ambitions for higher office.

Readers could probably hear the Ducey chartered planes making trips to Iowa and New Hampshire following the 2022 elections.

With todays actions, the Arizona Governor has probably guaranteed he will never be President of the United States.

He may become a nominee or even be selected to be someone’s running mate. However, that ticket would never see the Oval Office, especially after the four hateful, hurtful, and ignorant bills the Grand Canyon State Chief Executive signed today.

Mr. Ducey, in an apparent bid to solidify his base (not happening with the Trump crowd forever annoyed with him doing the right thing after the 2020 elections,) signed bills that:

• Limit the ability for women to exercise their freedom of choice for the first 15 weeks of a pregnancy. Women who have been raped or are victims of incest will not be exempt from this new law when it goes into effect.
• Require some voters to prove their citizenship prior to voting. A version of this law was already ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2013.
• Discriminate against members of the LGBTQ Community, including children that want to play on school sports teams.

So in the course of less than a day, Mr. Ducey has signed legislation that would alienate women voters, (especially in the suburbs,) galvanized the Democratic base, and turned off Independents.

From a Democratic Party consultants perspective, this would be a dream come true if it were not for the fact that people will probably be harmed because of what Mr. Ducey did today.

Most readers can probably envision the political ads that will spring from what the Arizona Governor did today.

They write themselves and the American People is not going to elect a person who denies women the right to choose, discriminates against children, and puts unconstitutional restrictions on voting.

Reaction to the Ducey Bill Signings. 

Arizona State Superintendent of Public Instruction Kathy Hoffman quickly reacted to Mr. Ducey’s signing of the bills discriminating against members of the LGBTQ Community, posting on social media:

How many kids will be harmed because of this legislation? How many kids will suffer until a future, more tolerant Legislature rights these wrongs?

I am deeply disappointed in this decision, and my heart breaks for the families and kids who will suffer because of these laws.

— Kathy Hoffman (@Supt_Hoffman) March 30, 2022

Arizona Secretary of State and Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Katie Hobbs commented to the abortion ban, posting:

Gov. Ducey's signing of the extreme & misogynistic abortion ban clarifies the very real & dangerous consequences of electing leaders who are willing to throw away our rights.

This is a giant step backward for reproductive freedom & women’s equality here in Arizona & nationwide.

— Katie Hobbs (@katiehobbs) March 30, 2022

Former Legislative District 28 State Representative and Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Aaron Lieberman posted on all the bills, stating:

Instead of wasting time and resources making life harder for people, the governor should be focusing his attention on improving life for ALL Arizonans.
We must elect leaders who will advocate for what the majority of us support.
Your vote has never been more consequential.

— Aaron Lieberman (@aaron4ev) March 30, 2022

Arizona House Democratic Leader Reginald Bolding relayed:

“This is a dark day for Arizona. With the stroke of his pen, Governor Ducey has hurled Arizona backwards to its ugliest past. Today he put the lives of pregnant people and transgender youth in danger, curtailed voting rights for communities of color, and rolled up the welcome mat and painted the state we love as intolerant and hateful.

Governor Ducey has no right to insert himself into private medical decisions and to force a person to be pregnant against their will. This extreme abortion ban all but ends a right that is supported by the vast majority of Arizonans and Americans. Criminalizing healthcare is not ‘pro-life.’

The attacks on transgender youth and their families are right-wing bullying and government overreach at their worst. Trans rights are human rights. Once Governor Ducey and Republicans have moved on to other culture war issues to rile up their right-wing base, the damage to the lives of real people will continue. 

And finally, Arizona’s protections to keep non-citizens from voting are robust, and they work. For the Governor to embrace the Big Lie – the conspiracy that the 2020 election was not free and fair – is incredibly disappointing. This unconstitutional bill violates the National Voter Registration Act and recent Supreme Court case law, according to House Rules attorneys, and will surely end up in court at taxpayer expense.”

Arizona Democratic Party Chair and Arizona State Senator Raquel Teran issued two statements.

On the bill (HB2492) that put restrictions on voting, State Senator Teran wrote:

“Let us be extremely clear – it is no mistake that instead of negotiating with Democrats on issues that matter most to Arizonans, Republicans continue to propose solutions to problems that do not exist. Legislative Democrats are ready to address the affordable housing crisis, find ways to ensure every child has an opportunity to succeed at their public school and secure Arizona’s water future — but Republicans refuse to meet us on these ideas. Instead, Governor Ducey and his colleagues in the legislature continue to prioritize unconstitutional bills undermining the freedoms they claim to hold so dear.” 

On the bills that restrict abortion (SB1164)  and discriminate against members (including children) of the LGBTQ Community (SB1138 and SB1165,) Ms Teran stated:

“These unconstitutional attacks on abortion and inhuman attacks on trans kids are not what Arizona needs and they are not what Arizonans want. Doug Ducey and Republicans in the legislature are making desperate attempts to claim they are protecting children, while with the same stroke of the pen they are actively harming Arizona’s most vulnerable children.”

“Democrats have a vision of an Arizona with a strong public education system, one that works for all of Arizona’s students. This must include LGBTQ students who we know feel the impacts of these bills that send the message that this already vulnerable group of students are unwelcome in our communities.” 

“While GOP politicians like Doug Ducey continue to push their personal anti-choice and transphobic agenda on Arizonans, Democrats will continue to defend the constitutional rights of all Arizonans. And importantly, Arizona voters will remember today in November, and they will remember exactly who fought for their freedoms and who worked to rip them away.”