Author: Rachel Alexander

Former Trump DOJ Official Jeff Clark’s Warning on Auction Improprieties Likely Influenced Judge to Pause Sale of Alex Jones’ InfoWars

Rachel Alexander
Jeffery Clark WarRoom appearance on Alex Jones

A bankruptcy sale of the media giant InfoWars site owned by Alex Jones to satire site The Onion was halted Friday after a judge paused the proceedings. Donald Trump’s former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark may have been the catalyst, due to his appearance on Steve Bannon’s War Room show on Friday where he strongly denounced corruption in how the sale was handled, and warned of ramifications for those involved after Trump becomes president and assumes control of the DOJ. 

Jones filed for bankruptcy in 2022 after losing a defamation lawsuit for $1.5 billion over his statements that the children shot in the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting were crisis actors who weren’t actually killed. In June, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez ordered the sale of Jones’ assets.

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MAGA, America First Steve Montenegro Elected as First Latino Speaker of the House

Rachel Alexander

The incoming 2025 Arizona Legislature is choosing leadership and committee positions, and selected State Rep. Steve Montenegro (R-Goodyear) as speaker of the house on Tuesday. The longtime legislator, who was born in El Salvador and describes himself as MAGA and America First, will be Arizona’s first Latino speaker of the house. 

The Arizona Sun Times spoke to Montenegro shortly after he won the three-way race with 18 votes from 33 Republican voting members. He defeated Rep. Joseph Chaplike (R-Scottsdale), a member of the Freedom Caucus, and current House Majority Leader Leo Biasiucci (R-Lake Havasu). 

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Judicial Panel Recommends Suspending Law License of Montana Attorney General over Support for Appointments of Conservative Judges

Rachel Alexander
Attorney General Austin Knudsen

A Montana state judicial panel recommended suspending Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s license to practice law for 90 days over his actions related to the appointment of conservative judges. Knudsen defended a law allowing Montana’s Republican Governor Greg Gianforte to fill judicial vacancies without the input of the state’s judicial commission, which had been passed due to concerns about the commission’s bias. 

The charges arose out of Knudsen’s tangling with the Montana Supreme Court over the matter; Knudsen believed that the state supreme court was overstepping its constitutional power and usurping the authority of his client, the state legislature. 

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Pinal County Attorney Exonerates Former Maricopa County Prosecutor of Criminal Charges Who Prosecuted Antifa, Along with Police Officers

Rachel Alexander
April Sponsel

The Pinal County Attorney’s Office (PCAO) declined to prosecute former Maricopa County prosecutor April Sponsel, whose license was suspended by the State Bar of Arizona for bringing charges against Antifa. PCAO also rejected charges against several Phoenix Police officers involved in quelling a riot by the gang in 2020. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) had recommended to PCAO to charge the six after the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office (MCAO) suggested there was wrongdoing.

Initially, MCAO fully supported prosecuting Antifa, but after ABC-15 issued a series of videos critical of how law enforcement handled the incident, the office reversed its position. In February 2021, then-Maricopa County Attorney Allister Adel made a decision to dismiss all the charges against Antifa. Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell testified against Sponsel at her bar disciplinary trial. 

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President-Elect Donald Trump Chooses Matt Gaetz as Nominee for Attorney General

Rachel Alexander
Matt Gaetz

President-elect Donald Trump selected Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL-01) on Wednesday as his nominee for attorney general. The 42-year-old attorney has been one of Trump’s loudest and fiercest defenders, especially in stopping the lawfare against Trump.

Jeffrey Clark, a former DOJ official who briefly served as acting attorney general in the Trump administration and assisted Trump with investigating 2020 election irregularities, told The Arizona Sun Times he agreed with the selection. “Matt Gaetz is an outstanding lawyer and constitutionalist!” Clark said. ”I think he is an amazing pick by President Trump.”

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Concerns Increase of Election Fraud in Kari Lake’s Race, Massive Ballot Curing Effort Ongoing as Lake Warns Pima County

Rachel Alexander
Sorting Ballots

While the mainstream media has called every other state in the country for Donald Trump and almost all other candidates, Maricopa County and some other Arizona counties are still tabulating ballots several days after the election, leaving the results of the U.S. Senate race between Kari Lake and Ruben Gallego up in the air. In response, Turning Point USA and Lake supporters launched a massive ballot curing effort, and Lake sent a stern letter to Pima County about anomalies. 

Arizona has not announced its presidential results even though Trump is leading by 6 points over Kamala Harris with 99 percent of precincts reporting. When Joe Biden ostensibly won the state in 2020 by 10,457 votes, or 49.4 percent to 49.1 percent, Fox News called the election for Biden on election night. 

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Trump’s Former DOJ Official Jeffrey Clark Files Appeal of Recommendation to Suspend His Law License with Disciplinary Board

Rachel Alexander
Jeffrey Clark

Donald Trump’s former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark is appealing a recommendation to suspend his law license over his work for Trump addressing 2020 election irregularities. A three-member committee of the District of Columbia Board on Professional Responsibility found on August 1 that he breached broad and vague attorneys ethics rules by drafting a letter that was never sent to Georgia officials advising them of their options for handling the 2020 election problems.

Clark first filed a Petition for Review with the District of Columbia Court of Appeals on August 7, requesting consideration of his interlocutory appeals. Interlocutory appeals are appeals conducted while other proceedings are still ongoing.

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Arizona’s Election Results Mostly Favor Republicans, Trump Wins with over 100,000-Vote Lead

Rachel Alexander
Donald Trump and Kari Lake

With 95 percent of precincts in Arizona reporting results the day after the election, Donald Trump appeared headed to a decisive victory over Kamala Harris. As more ballots came in, from Tuesday evening through Wednesday afternoon, his lead increased to 108,521 votes, about 5 points. At the same time, in the other high-profile race in the state, Kari Lake appeared to be losing her bid to replace outgoing U.S. Senator Kyrsten Sinema to Democrat U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego.  As of press time, Gallego’s lead stood at 59,656 – less than 3 points ahead.

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Trump Leading on Election Night in Arizona, Kari Lake Lagging Behind Ruben Gallego in First 10 Percent of Results

Rachel Alexander
Donald Trump

The results from Arizona’s election began trickling in Tuesday at 8 p.m., and within a couple of hours it became clear Trump was leading by a few thousand votes, with his lead steadily increasing to 9,316 votes. Kari Lake lagged behind Ruben Gallego in the U.S. Senate race by a little over 100,000 votes. However, the preliminary results were based on early ballots, and ABC-15’s “Data Guru” Garrett Archer acknowledged on X that Election Day ballots had not been counted yet, but when they did they would favor Republicans. 

By late evening, 10 percent of precincts across the state had reported their numbers. Archer observed that independents surged in Election Day voting. While they trailed Republicans in early voting, by late afternoon 83,000 independents had voted on Tuesday, compared to 79,100 Republicans and 43,800 Democrats.

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Court Forces Secretary of State Adrian Fontes to Turn Over Voter Registration Information on 218,000 Voters Lacking Proof of Citizenship

Rachel Alexander
AZ Sec State Adrian Fontes

Secretary of State Adrian Fontes was ordered on Thursday to turn over by Monday the voter registration information on 218,000 voters in Arizona who are registered to vote but who failed to provide proof of citizenship. He appealed the decision immediately afterwards, with two organizations submitting amicus curiae briefs supporting him, but the Arizona Court of Appeals issued an order Monday morning affirming the lower court’s decision to require the list in response to a public records request from America First Legal (AFL). 

James Rogers, America First Legal Senior Counsel, said in a statement regarding the case, “When Secretary Fontes discovered the glitch that allowed 218,000 individuals to register without providing proof of citizenship, he should have immediately shared the list of affected individuals with Arizona’s county recorders, who are in charge of verifying the citizenship of voters. Instead, he has jealously guarded the list, refusing to share it with anyone.”

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Ruben Gallego Raising Money for Senate Race Against Kari Lake from Far-Left Sources, Questionable ‘Smurfing’ Donors

Rachel Alexander
Ruben Gallego

Ruben Gallego has been able to outraise Kari Lake by about three to one, but some are questioning the sources. In addition to large amounts of money from out-of-state donors, a significant amount of his contributions come from “Smurfing,” donations from elderly unemployed Democrats who are unaware their names are being used to donate to Democratic candidates.

According to Arizona Capitol Media, Lake has raised over $19 million throughout the race, while Gallego has raised almost $54 million. Gallego currently has $7.2 million on hand, while Lake has $4.5 million in the bank.

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Progressive Knight Foundation Holds Election Law Seminar for Journalists on Dismissing Election Fraud Concerns as ‘Myths’

Rachel Alexander
Heather Gerkin, Bob Bauer, Ben Ginsberg

The progressive Knight Foundation held a seminar for journalists on Wednesday going over election law in preparation for the upcoming election. It was one of several virtual conferences the organization has held recently, focusing this time on “debunking common election law myths.” 

Speakers included Bob Bauer, who served as general counsel to the Democratic National Committee and in various positions for Barack Obama, and David Becker of The Center for Election Innovation & Research, who co-authored a book with journalist Major Garrett titled The Big Truth, arguing that the 2020 election was the most secure in American history.

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Ruben Gallego Sends Panicky Text Message After New Poll Shows Kari Lake Leading Him in U.S. Senate Race

Rachel Alexander
Ruben Gallego, Kari Lake with Rich Grenell

Ruben Gallego sent a panicky text message to supporters this week, after a new poll showed Kari Lake pulling ahead in the U.S. Senate race just days before the election. A survey released on Tuesday from Data Orbital showed Lake ahead by about a point, 45.2 percent to 44.5 percent. Data Orbital is ranked the eighth highest accurate pollster out of hundreds of polling companies by the polling aggregator site 538.

AtlasIntel, which is ranked 22nd for accuracy by 538 and considered very reputable by the left-leaning site MediaBias/FactCheck, released a poll about the same time which showed Gallego just one point ahead of Lake. However, that survey was heavily weighted with women responding, who trend more Democratic than men, surveying about 53 percent women to 46 percent men. It also failed to survey Democrats and Republicans relative to their numbers in the state; oversampling Democrats. 

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‘Bring it On:’ Arizona Supreme Court Justice Responds to Progressive Group’s Ethics Complaint

Rachel Alexander
Justice Clint Bolick

The progressive group Save our Schools Arizona (SOSAZ) filed an ethics complaint with the Arizona Commission on Judicial Conduct against Arizona Supreme Court Justice Clint Bolick, alleging some remarks he made during a speech crossed into politics. Bolick and another conservative Arizona Supreme Court Justice, Kathryn King, are up for reelection this election and progressives are heavily targeting them for defeat due to their vote upholding Arizona’s strict old abortion law, which has since been repealed.

SOSAZ cited an article in Politico which quoted Bolick’s remarks to the Sun City West Republican Club in early October. He said their ruling on abortion was only “a convenient excuse to try to get people on the left riled up and replace us with judges who will rubber stamp their ideological agenda.” He said he would continue “fighting for conservative principles,” and brought up his work for the Goldwater Institute and the Reagan Justice Department, and mentioned that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is a mentor and his child’s godfather.

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Elon Musk Ignores Unprecedented DOJ Threat of Prosecution over His $1 Million Giveaway for Signing Petition Supporting the Constitution

Rachel Alexander
Elon Musk

X owner and world’s richest man Elon Musk is defying an unusual threatening letter from the Department of Justice, which warned his America PAC that its giveaway may violate federal law. Musk is giving away a million dollars a day to registered voters in battleground states who sign his petition to support the First and Second Amendments. Those who refer other voters in the battleground states of Georgia, Nevada, Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin and North Carolina to sign receive $47 per signature, and $100 in the key battleground state of Pennsylvania. 

According to 24sightNews, which broke the news about the letter, the DOJ told Musk’s Super PAC that offering anything of value to influence voting was in violation of 52 U.S.C. 10307(c). That law makes it a federal crime to pay someone to register to vote or to vote, punishable by a fine of $10,000, five years in prison, or both. Musk continued to issue the $1 million checks after receiving the letter.

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Trump Fills Arizona State University Stadium for Rally, Says the U.S. is a ‘Garbage Can for the World’ Due to Criminal Illegal Immigrants

Rachel Alexander
Donald Trump

Donald Trump was back in Arizona Thursday afternoon for another packed rally, filling up Mullett Arena at Arizona State University, a stadium that seats 5,000. Several speakers gave brief speeches first, including Kari Lake, Vivek Ramaswamy, Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), and local congressmen Andy Biggs and Eli Crane. 

Lake said during her talk that she heard Bill Clinton said she was “attractive” while he was in town stumping for her opponent for the U.S. Senate, Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ-03). She said, “I thought I was too old for him, doesn’t he like interns? … Nobody in their right mind wants to cross Hillary Clinton. It’s just dangerous.” 

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Donald Trump Jr. Visits Trump Campaign Volunteers in Arizona, Criticizes Biden and Harris

Rachel Alexander

Donald Trump Jr. gave a speech at the West Valley Trump campaign headquarters on Wednesday in Sun City to a small room of volunteers who make phone calls for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.

He began his speech by discussing how hectic the campaign trail was. “I almost feel like Joe Biden where I wake up,” he said. “I don’t even know where I am. It’s just, it’s because I’m traveling a lot, not because of the dementia. So it’s a little different.”

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Progressives Threaten Conservative Election Attorneys in Advance of 2024 Election

Rachel Alexander
Kate Shaw, Donald Trump

Progressive activists are warning conservative election attorneys to avoid getting involved in litigation over the 2024 election or they will have their jobs threatened, will be targeted for disbarment, and even prosecuted. Many attorneys who assisted with litigation over the disputed 2020 presidential election, such as Donald Trump’s former attorney and constitutional legal scholar John Eastman, underwent disciplinary proceedings and prosecution.

The New York Times published an op-ed a few days ago by law professor Kate Shaw warning attorneys not to represent Trump in election litigation. She said, “Lawyers cannot, consistent with their ethical obligations, participate in devising litigation that is retrofitted to support the position Mr. Trump seems to hold — that the only ‘real’ Americans are those who cast their ballots for him and that those who vote against him are by definition engaging in fraud.” 

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‘No Significant History’ of Domestic Violence: Insights from Unsealed Gallego Divorce Records

Rachel Alexander
Ruben and Kate Gallego

After a 10-month long legal battle, The Washington Free Beacon finally prevailed this week in its lawsuit to obtain divorce records from Ruben Gallego and his ex-wife, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego. The Gallegos, who had the records sealed when they began the divorce in late 2016, fought the media outlet’s request to open their file, claiming there was personal financial information and information regarding their yet-unborn child in them. However, due to persistent rumors of domestic violence, great interest developed in releasing the file. 

The records revealed that the couple avoided a trial by agreeing to terms of a Consent Decree. It stated, “The parties acknowledge and agree that there was no domestic violence during the marriage or that significant domestic violence did not occur.” The judge added to that portion, “The Parenting Plan shall include ‘A statement that there has been no significant history of domestic violence between the parties.’”

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Mainstream Media, Democrats Discouraged About Ruben Gallego’s Poor Debate Performance Against Kari Lake

Rachel Alexander
Ruben Gallego and Kari Lake debate Oct, 2024

The debate between U.S. Senate candidates Kari Lake and Ruben Gallego last Wednesday left many pundits and political operatives in agreement that Lake outperformed Gallego, who currently serves in the U.S. House of Representatives in Arizona’s 3rd congressional district.

While the debate received little mainstream media coverage, some of the few outlets that did address it, as well as Democrats, expressed their disappointment in Gallego’s performance.

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Ruben Gallego Voted with Democrats in Party Line Vote to Bring Unvetted Afghans to America, FBI Caught One Planning Terrorist Attack in U.S.

Rachel Alexander
Ruben Gallego

Democrats in Congress, including Ruben Gallego, voted to bring Afghans to the U.S. through Operation Allies Refuge (OAR) in 2021-2022 whose backgrounds were not thoroughly investigated first. One of them, Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, was arrested on Monday and charged with “conspiring to conduct an Election Day terrorist attack in the United States on behalf of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), a designated foreign terrorist organization (FTO),” according to the Department of Justice.

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Seminar Unpacks Democrats’ Role in Undermining Democracy: Experts Weigh In on 14th Amendment, Presidential Eligibility

Rachel Alexander
Kamala Harris

Davos in the Desert, a civic organization in Arizona, held a daylong virtual seminar last Friday addressing how Democrats are destroying democracy. The event, titled Defending Democracy, featured numerous national experts, including Donald Trump’s former attorney and constitutional legal scholar John Eastman. Eastman spoke about whether Kamala Harris is ineligible to be president due to the natural-born citizen requirement of the 14th Amendment, whether that amendment applies to illegal immigrants, and how the Democrats are scheming to invoke its Section 3 to prevent Trump from taking office if he wins the presidential election. 

Shawn Smith, who served more than 25 years in active duty for the United States Air Force, including as a colonel and now leads Cause of America, a nonpartisan nonprofit establishment to help grassroots American citizens restore integrity and trust in our elections, spoke about election laws the Democrats are violating.

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Kari Lake Blasts ‘Extreme Makeover Version’ of Ruben Gallego During Their Only Senate Debate

Rachel Alexander
Arizona Senate Debate

Kari Lake and Ruben Gallego participated in their only U.S. Senate debate Wednesday evening, hosted by the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission. Lake hit the issue of border security repeatedly, referencing Gallego’s “dumb stupid border wall” comment, while Gallego, who referred to “illegals” when discussing the border, tried to pick apart previous statements she’d made based on technicalities.

Gallego provided his opening statement first. He criticized Lake for saying she is the authentic governor since there was fraud in the 2022 election, and complained about election officials receiving threats. However, Lake herself and many election integrity investigators regularly receive death threats, but these threats are not reported in the media.

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Pushing Prop. 139, Misleading Ads by Planned Parenthood and Unions Claim There Is a ‘Ban’ on Abortion in Arizona

Rachel Alexander
Abortion Ad

The Planned Parenthood Action Fund and unions are running ads in Arizona promoting Proposition 139, the Right to Abortion Initiative. Funded also by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West, the ads contain misleading language about Arizona’s current law, such as stating abortion is illegal. 

An ad titled “Waiting” states twice that there is a ban on abortion in Arizona. However, state law currently permits abortions up until the 15th week. Abortion hasn’t been illegal in the state for many years. After the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade in 2022, a judge suspended Arizona’s old law prohibiting most abortions. The Arizona Legislature then passed a law permanently rescinding the law, leaving in place the new 15-week law enacted in 2022.

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State Sen. Jake Hoffman Launches Investigation Into Whether Arizona’s State Universities Gave Kamala Harris Campaign Students’ Phone Numbers

Rachel Alexander
Arizona State Senator Jake Hoffman

State Senator Jake Hoffman (R-Queen Creek) announced Sunday evening that he was launching an investigation into how students from Arizona State University, the University of Arizona, and Northern Arizona University received text messages from the Kamala Harris presidential campaign on the last day before voter registration ends in the state. Hoffman, who chairs the Senate Committee on Government, expressed concern that it might violate FERPA, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy act that protects students. Hoffman told The Arizona Sun Times on Sunday, “I was made aware of this breach of security by dozens of students today, and intend to throw the full weight of the Arizona Senate into ascertaining how the Harris campaign acquired these students’ legally protected personally identifiable information.” The College Republicans at ASU broke the story on X on Sunday. They posted, “150,000 students from ALL Arizona universities including ASU and UofA have received a text from Kamala Harris’ campaign telling the students to vote for her. If Kamala Harris has access to all of Arizona college students’ phone numbers, what ELSE do they have?” 🚨MAJOR BREAKING: 150,000 students from ALL Arizona universities including ASU and UofA have received a text from Kamala Harris' campaign telling…

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Transgender Arizona State University Student Allegedly Assaults Kari Lake’s Daughter over Her Discussion of Donald Trump

Rachel Alexander
Ruby Halperin

A transgender student at Arizona State University (ASU) allegedly assaulted Kari Lake’s daughter, Ruby Halperin, last week while she was registering voters on campus. According to the police report, Rebecca Kimpel threw his entire drink at her, hitting Halperin and her paperwork, and told ASU Police that she was upset about the students talking about GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump.

Kimpel was charged with assault and released.

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Attorney Issues Videos with Evidence Refuting DOJ’s Report Alleging Wrongdoing by Phoenix Police Department

Rachel Alexander
Police Badge

An attorney for the Arizona Conference of Police and Sheriffs (AZCOPS) is releasing videos refuting the Department of Justice’s June report, which claimed that the Phoenix Police Department violated the rights of suspects during various incidents. Steve Serbalik has issued five videos so far, revealing key details about the incidents that the DOJ selectively left out of its report.

One of the incidents involved an arrest for domestic violence, labeled U10. Serbalik explained in the video how the DOJ left out facts that exonerated the police officers. They were addressed in police reports, videos, and other data released by PPD to refute the report.

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Conservative State Senator Suing City of Tucson for Prosecuting Her over Alleged Criminal Speeding

Rachel Alexander

State Senator Justine Wadsack (R-Tucson) is filing a lawsuit against Tucson after its police department after city prosecutors pursued criminal charges against her relating to a traffic stop in March.

Wadsack did not receive a speeding ticket during the stop and denied to the police officer that she was traveling 71 on Speedway Blvd in the city. Although the officer told her he caught her on the radar driving that fast, the Tucson Police Department (TPD) admitted later there was no radar evidence.

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Multiple Recent Polls Show U.S. Senate Race Between Kari Lake and Ruben Gallego Is Neck and Neck

Rachel Alexander
Ruben Gallego, Kari Lake

The Kari Lake campaign highlighted some new polls on Friday showing her race against Ruben Gallego for the U.S. Senate is neck and neck. There are 20 independent polls which show that the race is averaging less than two points apart, with Gallego barely in the lead. 

The campaign noted that the results correlate to a new poll Rasmussen Reports issued last Wednesday, “the pollster that called Donald Trump’s 2016 victory when no one else said he could win.” In 2023, after the election problems began so Rasmussen’s polls were “wrong” in 2020 and 2022, the political poll aggregator site 538 site still rated the pollster a respectable “B” for accuracy. 

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Conservative Roxana Holzapfel Spars with Democrat Lauren Kuby During Debate for Legislative District 8 State Senate Race

Rachel Alexander
Arizona debate

One of the most contentious races in the Arizona Legislature is for the open state senate seat in Legislative District 8. The Arizona Clean Elections Commission sponsored a debate between the two candidates earlier this month. Rozana Holzapfel, a Hispanic small business owner and former police officer new to politics, is running against Democrat Lauren Kuby. Kuby, who Holzapfel described as a “perennial candidate,” is running on a far left progressive platform in the Tempe-based district touting union endorsements and championing the abortion up until birth Proposition 139.

Kuby described herself in her opening statement as a “proven advocate for environmental consumer and worker protections. I spearheaded Tempe’s Climate Action Plan, as well as innovations in … solar energy adoption. … My values and vision … embrace social, environmental, racial and economic justice … I’m running to be a champion for climate solutions, for abortion access…”

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Local Mainstream Media Holds Panel Discussion Addressing Why the Public Doesn’t Trust Them

Rachel Alexander
Arizona Talks event

The civic organization Arizona Talks put on a panel discussion Tuesday evening addressing the topic, “Can we restore public confidence in the media?” The participants were mostly local mainstream media, with the exception of KTAR talk show host Jim Sharpe, a libertarian. The Arizona Republic’s executive editor told people to get off social media, and the general manager for PBS said unlike people who believe in “conspiracy theories,” the media looks at facts before coming to a conclusion. 

The discussion was moderated by former state legislator Heather Carter, who was considered a liberal Republican while in the legislature and who has since re-registered as an independent. She said a recent poll from the Center for the Future of Arizona found that 85 percent believe that news media coverage of political parties and candidates running for office has created more division.

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Prominent Conservative Sues the State Bar of Arizona over ‘Politicized Star-Chamber-Like Weaponization’ Targeting Conservative Attorneys

Rachel Alexander
Lawyers

David Mast, a former government contractor, founder and former chair of Citizen Taxpayers of Utah, and president of AZ Voters Rights, filed a lawsuit against the State Bar of Arizona last week alleging it targets conservative attorneys. Mast said due to creating fear among attorneys, he is unable to find any to represent him in lawsuits related to conservative causes, violating his “constitutional rights to freedom of expression, association, and petition,” which is “viewpoint discrimination.”

He filed the lawsuit pro se, without an attorney, since he “is unable to find an attorney either within or without Arizona who is willing to file this suit due to likely retaliation by Defendants.” Kari Lake often jokes that eventually she will have to represent herself in her election lawsuits since she will be unable to find any attorneys left who dare to assist her. One of her key attorneys, Bryan Blehm, is currently suspended. 

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Signs of Controversy: Arizona Landscape Dotted Roadside Displays Featuring Gallego’s Crude Commentary

Rachel Alexander
Ruben Gallego

The Arizona landscape is becoming dotted with black and yellow signs featuring offensive statements made by Representative Ruben Gallego (D-AZ-03). Gallego, who has a history of making crude remarks to constituents and political opponents, is running for U.S. Senate against Republican Kari Lake.

On Sunday, Lake posted a photo on X of a sign by the side of the road that said, “Gallego forced COVID-19 shots,” quoting him saying, “Suck it up, deal with it.” Gallego posted the crude remark on X in response to a Marine who objected to being required to get the jab. He also said to the soldier in the apparently now-deleted post, “Shut the f*** up.” 

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Ruben Gallego Runs for Senate on Open Borders Record as Violent Crime Soars in Arizona

Rachel Alexander
Ruben Gallego

Representative Ruben Gallego (D-AZ-03) is running against Republican Kari Lake for U.S. Senate in Arizona on a record of opposing border security measures. Even though the state is facing staggering increases in violent crime, breaking records, Gallego hasn’t appeared to flip-flop back on most of those positions. 

On his campaign website, Gallego declares, “our border communities are not the war zones that news stations often portray them as … Ruben has been on the forefront of sensible, comprehensive immigration reform in Congress … [and has] spoken out against extremist right-wing policies.” Gallego lists 13 issues his website, including LGBTQ+ and abortion, but nothing specifically about crime. 

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Behind the Bench: Insights into Arizona Judges Up for Retention

Rachel Alexander

Arizona voters will choose whether to retain 69 judges up for retention election this fall, the bulk from the Maricopa County Superior Court.

The Arizona Sun Times worked with a team of researchers and insiders to produce a report informing voters on the partisan leanings and contentious decisions from 48 of those judges. Voters angry with judges who found ways to dismiss election lawsuits challenging corruption in the 2020 and 2022 elections have vowed to boot those judges out of office. County officials begin mailing early ballots on October 9.

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John Eastman Appeals California Disbarment over His 2020 Election Legal Work, Calls the Prosecution Orwellian

Rachel Alexander

Donald Trump’s former attorney and constitutional legal scholar, John Eastman, filed an opening brief with the California State Bar Court last week appealing his disbarment for assisting Donald Trump with legal representation regarding the 2020 election illegalities. California Disciplinary Judge Yvette Roland formed her opinion by determining that Eastman’s legal opinions were wrong and that there was no election wrongdoing.

The brief said, “[T]his prosecution should never have taken place. It is, rather, a manifestation of George Orwell’s dystopic depiction of authoritarianism — statements by the Government, no matter how demonstrably false or suspect, must be accepted as truth.”

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Hobbs’ Donor Accused of Abusing Marijuana Dispensary ‘Social Equity’ System to Bully Competitors

Rachel Alexander
Moe Asani, D2 Dispensary

Mohit “Moe” Asnani, a wealthy marijuana entrepreneur who contributed to Governor Katie Hobbs and other Democrats, is coming under fire for allegedly abusing the controversial Social Equity Ownership Program that was set up to award marijuana dispensary licenses to business owners affected negatively by previous laws restricting marijuana. Asnani is accused of preying on these disadvantaged dispensary owners, convincing them to give up their special licenses to him. 

The Social Equity Ownership Program, which was established when Arizona voters passed Proposition 207 in 2020 legalizing recreational marijuana, granted 26 dispensary licenses to prospective owners who have had run-ins with the law related to marijuana, or are related to someone who has. 

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Texas Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments on Texas Bar’s Lawfare Against Attorney General Ken Paxton’s Top Deputy over 2020 Election Lawsuit

Rachel Alexander
Texas A.G. Ken Paxton and Fist Asst A.G. Brent Webster

The Texas Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Thursday appealing the State Bar of Texas’s discipline of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s top deputy for bringing the election lawsuit Texas v. Pennsylvania with Paxton over the election irregularities in four states in 2020, which was joined by 21 other states. The bar’s Commission for Lawyer Discipline filed lawsuits against Paxton and First Assistant Attorney General Brent Webster in 2022 asking for sanctions over allegedly violating several broad, vague ethical rules increasingly used to target conservative attorneys. 

The bar claimed that Paxton and Webster violated the ethical rule against making “false statements of material fact or law to a tribunal” when they alleged there were unregistered voters and other types of illegal votes, and that tabulators from Dominion Voting Systems switched votes from Donald Trump to Joe Biden. They were also accused of violating an ethical rule that prohibits conduct “involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation” and a third rule that prohibits bringing frivolous claims.

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Conservative Florida Attorney Appeals License Suspension, Denounces Political Censorship over Calling His Opponent ‘Corrupt’ and ‘Swampy’

Rachel Alexander
Chris Crowley

Chris Crowley, a conservative attorney in Florida, filed an appeal with the Florida Supreme Court last month contesting 60-day suspension of his law license for exercising free speech during his political campaign for Office of the State Attorney in Florida’s 20th Judicial Circuit. His attorney said this is the first time an attorney has been disciplined for partisan political speech in Florida, and likely anywhere in the U.S.

Crowley, a decorated Gulf War veteran, said the Florida Bar should be subject to the state’s anti-SLAPP law, which prohibits the use of the courts to suppress free speech. SLAPP stands for Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation. 

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During Seminar for Journalists on Election Law, Progressive Knight Foundation Dismisses Anticipated Claims of Election Fraud

Rachel Alexander
Stop the Steal Rally

The progressive Knight Foundation conducted a seminar on September 5 to educate journalists about election law for the upcoming 2024 general election. Co-sponsored with the American Bar Association’s Task Force for American Democracy, the speakers consisted of election fraud deniers, including activists like David Becker of The Center for Election Innovation & Research.

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AZGOP Sues Governor Hobbs Over ‘Unconstitutional’ Executive Orders Setting up Ballot Drop Boxes, Voter Registration at Prisons

Rachel Alexander
Katie Hobbs with 'Mobile Voter Outreach' van, 2019

The Arizona Republican Party (AZGOP) filed a lawsuit last month against Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs over her “unconstitutional” executive orders relaxing election laws. The Petition for Special Action challenged Hobbs placing voter registration forms at prisons and designating the prisons as ballot drop-off locations, which the AZGOP stated was taking “ultra vires” actions, meaning beyond her legal power and authority.

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J.D. Vance Deflects Numerous Gotcha Questions from Mainstream Media at Phoenix Rally

Rachel Alexander
JD Vance

Donald Trump’s vice presidential running mate J.D. Vance spent more than half of his time at the rally in Phoenix at the Arizona Biltmore on Thursday answering questions from the media. Unlike Vice President Kamala Harris, who does not answer even off-the-cuff softball questions from sympathetic mainstream media reporters, Vance does not shy away from antagonistic reporters.

Balin Overstolz of KTAR News, a Phoenix radio station known for its attacks on MAGA candidates, which refused to run an ad in 2022 critical of then-Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, asked why the polls were so close between the Trump and Harris campaigns, “even with high frustration regarding the border?”

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JD Vance Focuses on Border Security at Thursday Rally in Phoenix, Says Democrats of ‘Want Illegal Aliens to Steal Everybody’s Vote’

Rachel Alexander

Donald Trump’s vice presidential running mate, JD Vance, concluded his visit to Phoenix Thursday with several stops, including a large rally at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel. 

His speech focused mainly on border security and Vice President Kamala Harris’s poor record as border czar. Arizona Republican Party Chair Gina Swoboda and former GOP gubernatorial candidate Karrin Taylor Robson also spoke at the event.

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Kari Lake, Kelly Cooper Headline Ballot Chasing Rally with J.D. Vance and TPUSA’s Charlie Kirk in Mesa

Rachel Alexander
Kari Lake

Kari Lake and congressional candidate Kelly Cooper spoke at a Turning Point USA rally with J.D. Vance and TPUSA CEO Charlie Kirk at Generation Church in east Mesa on Wednesday. The theme throughout the evening was ballot chasing — knocking on doors and urging large numbers of low propensity voters to cast ballots. Senior Pastor Ryan Visconti said the church was so full there was an overflow room, estimating almost 2,000 in attendance.

Visconti said he received pushback about hosting the political event, with others questioning his judgment. He said he responded to the critics and said it was too imperative to stand up for what’s right. The crowd roared with applause. 

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Arizona Clean Elections Refuses to Let Green Party Candidate Participate in U.S. Senate Debate

Rachel Alexander
Eduardo Heredia Quintana Fernandez

The Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission (ACCEC) is refusing to allow Arizona Green Party (AZGP) candidate Eduardo Quintana to participate in the U.S. Senate debate scheduled for October 9 with Republican Kari Lake and Democrat Ruben Gallego, even though Libertarian Party candidate Marc Victor was allowed to participate in the 2022 U.S. Senate debate with Republican Blake Masters and Democrat Mark Kelly. Since Libertarians tend to take away more support from Republicans than Democrats, and Green Party candidates take away support mainly from Democrats, the ACCEC is coming under fire for skewing the debate to favor Gallego. 

Turning Point USA CEO Charlie Kirk pointed out the discrepancy in a thread on X. He cited a statement from Arizona Media Association, the broadcast partner for Arizona Clean Elections debates, which said that “candidates must receive at least 1% of the total ballots cast in all the primaries for their race to be included.” 

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Emergency Rule Change Temporarily Limits State Bar Complaints Against Attorneys in Arizona

Rachel Alexander
Arizona State Bar

The Arizona Supreme Court, which oversees the State Bar of Arizona (SBA), is considering proposed changes to the SBA, and approved one temporary emergency rule change Friday. The SBA, whose leadership is dominated by progressives, has come under intense criticism in recent years for targeting conservative attorneys, especially election attorneys. The court adopted R-24-0046 as an emergency rule in order to allow it to go into effect temporarily before the 2024 general election. It limits the ability of those who have no connection to a matter to file a complaint against an attorney.

The justices are reviewing 70 total rule change petitions, and will decide whether to adopt, adopt with amendment, reject, or continue a change. Changes resulting from this process will then be referred to a study committee for further consideration. The rule change process began in January, with proposals offered to the public for comment. The justices are expected to make their decisions on all 70 rule change petitions within the next few days. Most rules that are adopted will go into effect in January.

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Former Phoenix New Times Co-Owner Sentenced to Five Years in Prison Related to Prostitution, Sex Trafficking of Minors

Rachel Alexander
Michael Lacey

The former co-owner of the tabloid Phoenix New Times, Michael Lacey, was sentenced to five years in prison on Wednesday for laundering money from Backpage.com, a site he founded and ran that was accused of prostitution and sex trafficking of minors. His co-owner Jim Larkin killed himself a few days before the second trial was to begin in 2023 (the first trial ended in a mistrial). The New Times is known for regularly running articles attacking conservatives in politics that are strategically placed next to articles about pedophiles and murderers. 

Scott Spear and John “Jed” Brunst, former executives with Backpage, were sentenced to 10 years each for numerous crimes. “The defendants and their conspirators obtained more than $500 million from operating an online forum that facilitated the sexual exploitation of countless victims,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division in a press release. “The defendants thought they could hide their illicit proceeds by laundering the funds through shell companies in foreign countries. But they were wrong.” 

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State Bar of Arizona Disciplinary Panel Dismisses Complaint Against Kari Lake’s Two Attorneys over Voting Machine Tabulator Lawsuit

Rachel Alexander
Margaret Downie

A disciplinary panel for the State Bar of Arizona (SBA) dismissed complaints filed against two of Kari Lake’s attorneys that were brought over their work representing Kari Lake in a 2022 lawsuit, Lake v. Hobbs, challenging the use of voting machine tabulators in elections. The panel of three, led by Presiding Disciplinary Judge Margaret Downie, found that the SBA did not prove by clear and convincing evidence that Kurt Olsen — who represented himself and isn’t a licensed member of the SBA — and Andrew Parker violated any ethics rules. The decision cited a recent opinion from the Arizona Supreme Court, Ariz. Republican Party v. Richer, which held that attorneys should not be sanctioned for bringing election lawsuits. 

U.S. District Court Judge John Tuchi, who was appointed to the bench by President Barack Obama, ordered sanctions of $122,200 against Olsen, Parker, and attorney Alan Dershowitz over a year ago for bringing the lawsuit. The sanctions were requested by the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, who were represented by Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell. The Maricopa County Republican Committee censured Mitchell over the representation.

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