Wednesday, September 15, 2021
Tuesday, September 14, 2021
Nestled against the foothills of Estrella Mountain Regional Park, a nearly 3,000-square-foot house sits on an allegedly vacant lot.
According to a report issued by conservative activists who have spent much of the past year since the election knocking on doors across Maricopa County and asking people about their voting history, the address in Goodyear is a vacant lot where two people nonetheless cast ballots by mail in the November election.
The Arizona Mirror visited the address in Goodyear and found a house that is clearly visible from the street. A low-slung wall surrounds the lot, and the house number can be seen from the dirt road that leads to the gate at the front of the property. The house is also visible on satellite images on Google Maps that can be easily found with a few simple keystrokes.
A few more keystrokes is all it takes to access property records from the Maricopa County Recorder’s Office that show two owners who took possession of the property in 2018. The house itself was built in 2005, those records show. The Maricopa County Elections Department says those two owners, along with a third person who is registered to vote there, voted by mail in the 2020 general election.
After months of hype among adherents of false conspiracy theories that the 2020 election was rigged, a long-awaited report on a volunteer “canvassing” effort of Maricopa County voters landed with a dull thud on Wednesday when the activists behind it made a series of breathless allegations without any evidence to back them up — highlighted by two specific claims that were almost immediately proven false.
Monday, September 13, 2021
Friday, September 10, 2021
PHOENIX – The surprise announcement of a partnership between the Arizona Bowl and Barstool Sports sheds light on the divisiveness triggered by the media company, but also its increasing attempts to change its image.
On July 27, Barstool Sports and the Arizona Bowl, based in Tucson, announced a partnership that includes naming rights for the bowl game. The company has a controversial past, much of it stirred by Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, who has been accused of misogyny and racism for some of his past posts and comments. Although Portnoy sold 51% of the company in 2016, he remains its “Chief of Content.”
The backlash that followed on social media was quick and predictable. And Victoria Jackson, a sports historian at Arizona State University who studies the intersection of sport and society, questions the decision.
“Giving an organization a chance before they’ve proved themselves isn’t good business. It’s very risky,” she said.
And there was also a tangible cost.
The Pima County Board of Supervisors, in a 4-1 decision, voted to withdraw nearly $40,000 in funding from the game, which is played at Arizona Stadium on the campus of the University of Arizona. And the board requested that the county’s name be removed from the Arizona Bowl’s website.
Supervisor Rex Scott, who voted in favor of pulling the funding, explained that his priority was to represent the people of Pima County and he fulfilled that responsibility by voting to withdraw financial support to the bowl game.
“There’s a distinction between the business decision that (the Arizona Bowl) made and the public role that (the Pima County Board of Supervisors) have,” Scott said. “They’re interested in getting the greatest amount of exposure for the game and to promote the game, not only this year, but in subsequent years. But we have a different calculus as public officials.”
Supervisor Steve Christy was the lone representative to vote against the motion to withdraw the county’s funding.
Thursday, September 9, 2021
Health officials urged people to get the flu vaccine in response to unexpectedly high cases of seasonal illness.
Pima County has two "mu variant" COVID cases and 150 influenza cases, said County Public Health Director Dr. Theresa Cullen at a press conference on Wednesday.
Cullen said "mu" has been deemed a “variant of interest” by the Centers for Disease Control. The Delta variant is the most prolific variant in the United States and is labeled a “variant of concern” by the CDC.
Cullen qualified the number flu cases, saying the number is probably higher because most people won’t get tested and will get treatment before a case can be reported.
“As we enter this flu season, we remain concerned that we will see an acceleration of the cases compared with last year, it's important for people to remember that you could get COVID and influenza at the same time,” Cullen said.
She recommended that Pima County residents get COVID and flu vaccines in the next two months to prepare for winter viruses. Flu vaccines are readily available throughout Tucson at local pharmacies and grocery stores.
Parents should also be aware of the respiratory syncytial virus. Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Marjorie Bessel at Banner Health said RSV hospitalizations and ER visits have increased rapidly in the past four days.
“As a reminder, this is an unseasonable spike. Typically, RSV is not a big concern during summer months,” Bessel said.
Wednesday, September 8, 2021
The Pima County Board of Supervisors passed multiple policies meant to curb the spread of COVID in Pima County on Tuesday, Sept. 7.
Supervisor Heinz withdrew his proposal to require all healthcare workers in Pima County to be vaccinated against COVID. The Board received multiple letters and public comments in opposition to the proposed mandate.
But the Board of Supervisors voted 4-1, with Supervisor Steve Christy opposed, to pass disincentives for unvaccinated employees.
Disincentives will include mandatory weekly COVID testing, taking away healthy lifestyle discounts for employees’ healthcare plans, and an additional $25.51 pay period surcharge to employee healthcare plans.
“I’m against any type of disincentives for employees. I really think this is opening up liability to no end,” said Supervisor Christy, who warned disincentives could lead to a hostile work environment.
Supervisor Adelita Grijalva quickly responded to Christy’s concerns by saying disincentives and vaccinations foster a safe work environment. Grijalva said there are some employees who can’t receive the vaccine and they need to be protected as well. County employees can submit a vaccine exemption form for medical and religious purposes.
At its Aug. 16 meeting, supervisors passed incentives for employees to get vaccinated, including a $300 bonus and three paid days off.
Huckelberry said there has been an increase in county employee vaccinations since the incentives passed. Only 43% of county employees were vaccinated before the incentives were enacted and employee vaccinations have now risen to 66% since Aug. 16.
Supervisor Grijalva said she was worried only 30% of the Sheriff’s Department is vaccinated.
Supervisor Rex Scott asked Pima County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry to create an anonymous survey of the remaining employees who may be vaccine-hesitant or resistant.
“This board voted not to mandate vaccines, but if we are going to put incentives and disincentives in place and neither of those are having the desired effect on the vaccine-hesitant or resistance, we as a board need to know the reasons why,” Scott said.
Board provides funding to domestic violence prevention
The Board unanimously passed a resolution to provide the Emerge! Center Against Domestic Abuse emergency shelter with $1 million to double their shelter capacity.
The Emerge! Center Against Domestic Abuse combats domestic violence in Pima County by providing services and shelters to individuals who live in abusive environments.
State Sen. Kirsten Engel, a Democrat who represents midtown and east Tucson, announced today that she was resigning her Legislative District 10 seat in the Arizona Legislature to focus on her congressional campaign.
“After much consideration, I have decided to step down from the State Senate to fully commit my time, energy, and focus to my campaign to continue to serve the people of Southern Arizona in the US Congress. Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District is an open seat that will be key to maintaining our Democratic House majority in 2022, and this is not an endeavor to be taken lightly. I know how much work it will take to win this district, and I’m ready to take on that challenge whole-heartedly."
Engel is seeking to replace the retiring U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, a Democrat who announced earlier this year she would not seek reelection.
Two other Democrats, state Rep. Daniel Hernandez and political rookie Marco Urrea, are also seeking the seat.
Republican Juan Ciscomani recently has announced he would run for the office.
State Rep. Randy Friese said last week that he was dropping out of the congressional race.
While CD2 now includes Tucson, the Catalina Foothills, the Casas Adobes area and Cochise County, the district's boundaries is scheduled to be redrawn by the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission before the 2022 election.
Engel's resignation is effective today. LD10 precinct committee members will vote on a slate of three candidates and then the Pima County Board of Supervisors will select her replacement.
LD10 Rep. Stephanie Stahl-Hamilton has already announced her plans to seek Engel's seat in 2022. The other LD10 House member, Rep. Domingo DeGrazia, recently announced he would not seek reelection next year, setting up two open House seats in the district—which will also be redrawn by the Independent Redistricting Commission.
Engel's full statement is below the jump.
Tuesday, September 7, 2021
MESA — Kelsey Shaw and her two children pick up large yellow and green caterpillars just off the Bush Highway near Saguaro Lake. The children have no hesitation handling these nearly 2- to 3-inch-long caterpillars, letting them crawl all over their clothes.
Shaw and her children were preparing to spend the morning picking up litter along the Salt River when they spotted the dozens of caterpillars in one of the parking lots in recreational areas of the Tonto National Forest. Although some people cringe at the sight of crawly things, Shaw and her children do not.
“We love the caterpillars,” Shaw said, “it’s just been stressful when we’re driving because they (her kids) get really upset about running them over. We don’t want to hurt them.
“I know some people are absolutely freaking out.”
Drive along the Bush Highway and you can’t miss tens of thousands of these caterpillars frantically wriggling to cross as vehicles fly by. They don’t all make it to the other side – many become yellow splotches on the black asphalt.
The caterpillars are on a mission to eat as much as they can before becoming white-lined sphinx moths (Hyles lineata), which are found across most of North America. They are hawk moths, which are among the largest in the world, and they’re “fast flyers and often highly aerobatic,” according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Not only are the caterpillars abundant on roadways, they’re showing up in swimming pools and gardens, and on walls and hiking trails.
