WASHINGTON – Arizona Republican Sen. Martha McSally officially kicked off the campaign to retain her seat this week, entering a race already awash in cash and which one national analyst calls the “marquee Senate race of the cycle.”

McSally currently trails likely Democratic challenger Mark Kelly in fundraising, bringing in $12.6 million by the end of last year to his $20.2 million. Together, they have outraised all but one Senate race in the country, and are already closing in on the $38 million raised for the entire 2018 Senate campaign in Arizona.

“Arizona’s days of small-dollar Senate races are over,” said Mike Noble, chief of research at OH Predictive Insights. “We saw the amount of money spent last time and Arizona’s implications in the national tug of war … in Washington.”

Analysts said that while McSally “certainly has a challenge,” she should have more than enough money to get her message out before Election Day.

The Federal Election Commission reported that Kelly had raised more than any other Senate candidate in the country in 2019 and McSally was in sixth place on that list. Only the Senate race in Kentucky brought in more total money last year, with Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Democratic challenger Amy McGrath raising $18 million and $16.9 million, respectively.

The Arizona race pits two well-known candidates with atypical political backgrounds against each other.

McSally is an Air Force veteran who was the first woman to fly a fighter jet in combat. She served two terms in the House from Tucson before deciding to run for Senate in 2018.

Kelly is a former Navy pilot and former astronaut who is married former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, the Democrat who was representing Tucson in the House when she was severely wounded in a 2011 assassination attempt. He has not held elective office but has had a high-profile role working with Giffords’ national gun-safety group.

A December poll by OH Predictive Insights showed 47% of Arizona voters supporting Kelly, who had strong backing among women, and 44% of voters supporting McSally, who did well among male voters. The poll, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1%, was closer than previous polls and was called a statistical dead heat by the firm.

Nathan Gonzales, an editor and publisher at Inside Elections, said it should come as no surprise that Arizona has become a battleground state, because of Republican struggles in the suburbs and Arizona Democrat Kyrsten Sinema’s defeat of McSally in the 2018 race for Senate.

After Sinema won that race to replace outgoing Republican Sen. Jeff Flake, Gov. Doug Ducey appointed McSally to fill the remaining term of the late Sen. John McCain, who died in 2018. McCain’s term expires in 2020.

It was no surprise that McSally would run again, and she made it official Tuesday with the release of a campaign video announcing her bid. That video highlighted her key messages of improving mental health care for veterans, tackling sexual assault and the opioid epidemic, and lowering prescription drug prices.

While McSally enters the race trailing Kelly in fundraising, Noble said she is “no slouch” in terms of fundraising, noting that she is “off to an even faster start than two years ago.”

Other analysts agreed, but said Kelly’s fundraising is still impressive, if not surprising.

“Mark Kelly is one of the best Senate fundraisers I’ve ever seen and he is building up a sizable cash-on-hand advantage,” said Kyle Kondik, managing editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics.

Kelly reported having $13.6 million in cash on hand in his Dec. 31 FEC report, while McSally reported finishing 2019 with $7.7 million on hand.

While Kelly could have more money to spend in the general election, Kondik said McSally is raising money at an “impressive clip” and that spending by outside groups in the high-profile race could help “blunt that edge” that Kelly has.

McSally’s campaign manager Dylan Lefler said in a statement Wednesday while “more is always better,” the campaign is pleased with the amount that the senator has been able to raise for the race. He criticized the amount of out-of-state money going to Kelly’s campaign.

But Kelly had also raised $9.2 million in unitemized individual contributions, donations of $200 or less, while McSally raised $4.2 million, according to their FEC filings.

Kelly campaign manager Jen Cox said in a statement that the campaign “took off like a rocket at the beginning of last year and hasn’t slowed down.”

Mark Schmitt, director of a political reform program at New America, called Kelly’s fundraising an “impressive show of strength,” but not surprising given his well-known marriage to Giffords.

He said McSally might be in more trouble if she did not have access to President Donald Trump’s fundraising machine. But ultimately, he said, the fundraising numbers should not make much of a difference in the election.

“In high-profile races like this, both candidates are going to have enough money to be competitive,” Schmitt said. “Even if Kelly spends 10 million more than McSally does, that’s not what’s going to make the difference.”

Gonzales said in an email that money will continue to flow in to the race because the Senate majority is in play. While Kentucky may end up as the most expensive Senate race, it will not be as competitive as Arizona, he said.

It’s too early to write McSally off, Gonzales said, but she “certainly has a challenge.”

“The governor’s victory in 2018 was evidence that voters are willing to make a distinction between races, and that should concern McSally,” he said. “Even another Trump victory in Arizona doesn’t guarantee a win for her.”

The intersection of North La Cañada Drive and West River Road is switching to a leading left arrow beginning Thursday, Feb. 13.

Pima County Signals and Lighting will perform the change for all left turn arrows beginning at 6 a.m. Work is expected to last until 7 a.m.

According to the county, the change “allows more flexibility to better distribute the signal timing for all directions with leading left turn arrows.”

Advanced traffic control signs with flags will be in place in all directions, and motorists should expect a slight delay.

WASHINGTON – Arizona officials said they will fight to make sure that Davis-Monthan Air Force Base does not take a hit as a result of the Pentagon’s decision to retire 44 A-10 fighter jets, a mainstay at the Tucson base.

The reduction was included in the fiscal 2021 budget unveiled Monday by the Trump administration, which said it plans to retire 44 “of the oldest and least ready” A-10s as the Air Force shifts to newer-generation aircraft.

The Pentagon said in a statement Tuesday that even with the retirements, the Air Force plans to have more than 200 upgraded A-10s in the mix as part of a “completely modernized” fleet.

“The Air Force sustains our commitment to the Air Force’s most effective close air support platform, the A-10, with $161M (million) to continue the re-winging and avionics upgrades of the aircraft,” the statement said.

The Pentagon said last year that it planned to retire “the oldest and least ready aircraft en route to a completely modernized and combat-capable fleet of 218 A-10s – in seven squadrons – that will continue to fly through the 2030s.”

It did not say where those squadrons would be based, however, which raised eyebrows among some Arizona lawmakers.

“I am actively engaging with the Air Force to ensure that there is no negative impact to our squadrons at DM (Davis-Monthan),” said Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, D-Tucson, in a statement released by her office Tuesday.

Kirkpatrick plans to introduce a resolution asking Congress to continue funding the A-10, which her resolution says “is imperative to national security” and “the least expensive combat plane” for the Air Force to keep.

The A-10 has a long connection with Davis-Monthan, where its pilots are trained and deployed, according to the resolution, which said that there were 84 A-10s based at Davis-Monthan as of January.

State lawmakers have fought this fight before.

The Air Force said in 2014 that it planned to retire the A-10 by 2016 as a budget-cutting move, replacing it with F-16s in the short term and the newer F-35s that were then coming on line.

That plan was blasted at the time by then-Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, as “absolutely ridiculous.”

The Pentagon eventually backtracked on the A-10, a decades-old fighter nicknamed the “warthog.” Slow, ungainly and heavily armored, the jet excels in ground support roles and was heralded for its effectiveness in ground battles like those waged against ISIS.

Sen. Martha McSally, R-Arizona, a retired Air Force colonel and former A-10 pilot, at the time emphasized the aircraft’s “irreplaceable capabilities” and “the importance of A-10s to our troops’ lives and national security.”

McSally – the first U.S. woman to fly a jet in combat and the first to command a fighter squadron in combat – did not respond to requests for comment on the Pentagon’s latest A-10 moves.

Officials at Davis-Monthan declined to comment, referring calls to the Pentagon. But Kirkpatrick said the A-10 still has a future in the Air Force.

“The A-10 has been the backbone of the close air support mission for more than 40 years,” her resolution says. “The close air support as provided by the A-10 has proven invaluable on the battlefield.”

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The Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner recently released the post-mortem examination of the remains of a 66-year-old man found in a wilderness area adjacent to Pima Canyon Trail on Dec. 30, 2019. The remains were discovered with damage from scavengers and environmental conditions.

The post-mortem included examination of the human remains as well as the stomach contents of three mountain lions, which were found nearby and killed. 
Because a police investigation of the death remains active, the Medical Examiner’s office will not reveal the suspected cause of death, however, a toxicology report tested positive for oxycodone and opioids. Only one of the slain mountain lions' stomachs contained discernible human remains.

According to the report, predation and environmental elements can be attributed to the "observed taphonomic damage."

With fingerprint and dental comparisons, the remains are believed to belong to Steven Mark Brashear.

The Office of the Medical Examiner will not provide additional comments at this time.

On Monday, Feb. 10, a federal judge overturned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s approval of the Rosemont Copper Mine in the Santa Rita Mountains, citing that the mine's plans didn't properly protect multiple endangered and threatened species, such as the jaguar.

U.S. District Judge James Soto issued his second ruling against the mine since June 2019, and ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to redo sections of their 2016 biological opinion, calling parts of the agency's actions "flawed" and stating: "the [Fish and Wildlife Service] improperly used a heightened standard of review in determining that the Rosemont Mine was not likely to result in the destruction or adverse modification of the jaguar critical habitat." 

Hudbay Minerals, the multi-national mining corporation behind the Rosemont Mine 30 miles south of Tucson, says they remain determined to continue the open-pit mine's development.

"While we respect the court's authority to remand the analysis and findings back to the agencies for further review, Hudbay believes this is unnecessary," the company said in a statement following Soto's ruling.

Hudbay argues that their $1.9 billion mine, which would disturb thousands of acres of public land, would have an "insignificant" impact on the endangered species' habitat.

According to the Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity, the court also previously ruled in favor of three Native American tribes ― the Tohono O’odham, Pascua Yaqui and Hopi ― that filed a lawsuit challenging the Forest Service’s approval of the mine.

KXCI Community Radio will participate alongside more than 150 radio stations across the globe in International Clash Day this Friday with a day of programming dedicated to addressing climate change.

Since 2013, radio stations have paid tribute to influential punk band The Clash and their legacy as advocates every Feb. 7. International Clash Day has since evolved into a wider celebration of the issues the band stood for, with a specific theme each year.

This year's theme is Clash For Climate, which emphasizes empowering people to take action on a local level to combat climate change within their communities.

From 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. tomorrow, KXCI DJs will broadcast special programming with climate change in mind from their studio inside Hotel Congress.

The station will also host an interactive, educational exhibit called See the Bees at the Hotel Congress Plaza from 4 to 6 p.m.

This free community event was designed by master beekeeper and honeybee researcher Mona Chambers and will feature a fully contained observation hive complete with live bees. There will be a honey tasting along with a dynamic look at the art of beekeeping and education on the importance of bees as pollinators.

KXCI's International Clash Day will wrap up with an afterparty at Che's Lounge for those 21 and older with DJs from Wooden Tooth Records spinning Clash inspired sets on the patio.

The afterparty starts at 7 p.m. 

Tucson chef, Jeronimo "Mo" Madril, owner of Geronimo's Revenge food truck, wins the top prize on last night's Guy's Grocery Games, hosted by Guy Fieri. Madril and his team partner will be taking home $16,000.

The episode's theme was World Fusion, where contestants were teamed up with another chef representing a different country. The match ups were China and India, Philippines and France, Mexico and Singapore -Madril represented Mexico.

Madril's team easily got through to the second round, sending home the China/India team.

"I felt India and China had it. It's a winning combination that has been going together since the dawn of time," Madril said in regards to his feelings starting the first round. "We felt privileged to be in that position."

Madril and his partner went head to head against the Philippines/French team in the second round, where the challenge was to have a creative take on a traditional dish. Since Mo's team won the first round they got to choose their dish - fish and chips.

Mo's team created a Sapporo-battered fish, marinated in green curry and tamarindo, with yucca tots on the side. With less than 10 minutes to go, disaster struck for Mo's team - the tot's turned to mush in the fryer.

"Everything shattered, and I knew taking on those tots would be a big challenge," said Madril. "We just looked at each other can came up with our next best option of yucca chips."

Madril said he and his partner had discussed making yucca chips from the start, but opted to do something a bit more challenging to WOW the judges.

"Taking on fish and chips, we wanted to present something that was a challenge and not do basic stuff," Madril said. "But yucca chips was the way to go at the last minute."

The judges agreed and Mo's team beat out Philippines/France to win the show and $16,000.

You can congratulate Madril at his food truck usually parked at Che's Lounge on any given weekend night. Jim Vancza, co-owner of Che's Lounge, said the whole staff and the bar's regular patrons are very proud of Madril. Madril, who was a barback for many years at Che's, got his start hosting pop-up dinners on Thursday nights at the bar.

"He was a very dedicated employee and we saw his potential in the culinary arts," Vancza said. "We've been proud to support him through all of his ventures and very proud of his accomplishments."

Today the Pima County Board of Supervisors voted to reject more than $1.8 million in federal Operation Stonegarden funds. This money would have gone toward Pima County sheriff’s deputies overtime, mileage and equipment related to federal immigration missions.

Democratic Supervisors Sharon Bronson, Ramón Valadez and Richard Elías voted against the funds, while Republican Supervisors Steve Christy and Ally Miller voted in favor.

Last May, the supervisors voted 3-2 to accept Stonegarden funding on the condition that more than $200,000 of those funds go toward reimbursement for the county’s cost of housing and providing services to the large influx of asylum seekers experienced during that time.

District 3 Supervisor Bronson was the swing vote in favor of that decision. Supervisors Miller and Christy also voted in favor, while Supervisors Elías and Valadez voted to reject the money.

In December, it was revealed that federal and state officials denied the supervisors’ request to use the money for that purpose. Officials from US Border Patrol and the Federal Emergency Management Agency claimed “there is no border security operational benefit derived from this reallocation request.”

As a result, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department received no Stonegarden funds last year.

Before September 2018, Operation Stonegarden had been accepted by the Pima County Board of Supervisors for 12 consecutive years. In response to mounting opposition from community members, the supervisors rejected it for the first time at a 3-1 vote that year.

Sheriff Mark Napier was an avid supporter of the federal program, saying the funds were instrumental to their operations and maintaining public safety in the region.

But critics of Operation Stonegarden say the program does the opposite. They believe it promotes collaboration between local law enforcement and federal immigration agents, which targets immigrant communities within Southern Arizona.

At the Feb. 4 meeting, Napier said the department needs the proper tools to address cross-border crimes. He said they are actively interdicting large amounts of fentanyl, opioids, heroin and methamphetamine coming into Pima County through the border, as well as cases of human trafficking.

He said they are dependent on this funding from the federal government, but he wants to get to a point in the budget where they are no longer in that position.

Napier said he recognized some of the “collateral damage” caused by these grants, and made an offer to the supervisors to limit the overtime participation by deputies to eight hours per pay period, in order to minimize the fiscal impact of long-term pension obligations.

Napier rejected the notion of racial bias in the sheriff’s department as a result of taking the federal grant and called it “offensive.”

Elías said the criticism about Stonegarden leading to racial profiling is not an attack on officers, but rather an indicator of the federal government not fixing a broken immigration system.

Despite Napier’s comments in favor of the funding, Elías said the Stonegarden grant is still problematic and has a lack of transparency surrounding the “true cost” behind it, regarding the sheriff’s deputies pension liability and lack of humanitarian aid granted.

Elías added that he believes the Department of Homeland Security is a “rogue agency” that doesn't serve the interests of citizens.

Bronson said it's clear the grant hasn't changed or adapted to today’s border conditions. But she said it's still compelling because of a new federal policy, the Migrant Protection Plan. She commented that most migrants who die in the rural desert land of Pima County are in District 3, her district. She believes law enforcement needs to be present in those rural areas to rescue and save lives, which they currently are not doing due to a lack of staffing.

She supported County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry’s continued effort to receive reimbursement for humanitarian aid costs incurred by the county. But since those aren’t included in the current grant, she said she couldn’t support it.

“I think everyone loses no matter how this vote goes down today,” Bronson said.

A new Harkins Theatre will be coming to the Tucson Mall, located at Oracle and Wetmore Roads, in the near future.

On Jan. 30, Harkins announced plans to build its third theater in Tucson and 37th location overall.

“We are proud to be a local Arizona company and love it when we have the opportunity to bring a new theatre to our home state,” wrote Dan Harkins, Owner of Harkins Theatres, in a press release. “The Tucson Mall theatre will include our latest and greatest amenities and programs that we are excited to share with our friends in Tucson.”  

The new theater will be a 14-screen luxury cinema featuring some of Harkins most luxurious and advanced features.

It will include the CINÉ1® XL auditorium, made up of the largest screen in the state, ultimate lounger seats, 3D object-based sound across 150 plus speakers and gold drapes.

Some of the other highlights of the new theater include reserved seating, state-of-the-art projectors, in-lobby bar with wine and beer, gourmet concessions and mobile ticketing.

Groundbreaking and grand opening dates will be announced soon.

Less than a year after work was completed at the Ina Road Interchange, construction is underway at Ruthrauff Road and Interstate 10.

The $79 million project, when completed, will allow drivers to pass over the interstate and Union Pacific railroad track, similar to the Ina interchange. Sundt Construction is handling the project.

The project includes widening I-10 to four lanes in each direction and reconstruction of the traffic interchange. Other improvements include widening Ruthrauff Road and El Camino del Cerro to two lanes in each direction near I-10, reconstructing the I-10 frontage roads to connect to the new interchange and other miscellaneous work including constructing concrete barriers, storm drain, guardrail, granite mulch, landform graphics, signing and pavement marking.

Construction is expected to finish by the end of next year, with the Ruthrauff Road overpass opening to traffic by fall 2021 and interchange ramps opening later in the year.