Arizona Senate Republicans fired back after Governor Katie Hobbs (D) withdrew her nominations for Arizona’s state agencies and declared she would deny oversight from the Arizona Legislature by appointing permanent “executive deputy directors” instead.
In a statement released Monday afternoon, Hobbs called Arizona State Senator Jake Hoffman (R-Queen Creek), who heads the Arizona State Senate panel to vet and interview Hobbs’ nominees, a “fake elector” guilty of creating a “political circus” in the Senate.
In response, Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen (R-Gilbert) issued a press release calling Hobbs’ move illegal and promising the Senate will be ready to continue nomination hearings when Hobbs is ready to put forward new nominations.
Petersen stated that Hobbs’ actions suggest she believes herself to be “above the law” and proves she “will go to extreme measures” to bypass requirements enshrined in the Arizona legal code. “Without directors fulfilling these obligations, the legality of every decision made by these state agencies is dubious, and litigation against the state would surely prevail,” warned Petersen.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Unlawful Move by Governor Will Not Change Senate's Confirmation Process on State Agency Director Nominees@votewarren ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/sOg0b2dBMn
— AZSenateRepublicans (@AZSenateGOP) September 25, 2023
Hoffman (pictured above, right) was more severe in his denunciation, describing Hobbs’ withdrawal of nominations as a “stunt,” and accusing Hobbs of “weaponizing the government of Arizona to enact her extreme far-left agenda” in a statement published alongside a press release after Hobbs revealed her intentions.
“Hobbs has made it abundantly clear that she has no intention of working constructively with the Legislature the voters gave her,” Hoffman said. “Instead, she’s choosing to throw petulant temper tantrums when she doesn’t get her way.”
He also accused Hobbs of nominating “partisans and ideologues.” He suggested the decision to withdraw her nominations and attempt to bypass the legislature will leave Arizona state agencies unable to make new rules or decisions without a Senate-confirmed director.
“If the Governor wishes to limit her own authority,” said Hoffman, “we certainly welcome this limitation of her power.”
"Katie Hobbs has doubled down on her commitment to weaponizing the government of Arizona to enact her extreme far-left agenda." https://t.co/5lWOLcBpQH
— Arizona Free Enterprise Club (@azfec) September 25, 2023
Hobbs’ decision to pull her nominations and attempt to bypass the Arizona Senate came after Hoffman and the Senate panel voted against accepting the nomination of Joan Serviss to run the Housing Department after a vast pattern of alleged plagiarism was discovered in Serviss’s professional body of work.
During her hearing, Hoffman cited numerous advocacy letters that were signed by Serviss and sent to the federal government to sway public policy. Hoffman revealed that almost all of these letters contain unattributed writing from other advocacy groups, which Serviss defended as common in the field.
Ultimately, after Hoffman accused Serviss of plagiarizing major national media outlets and other advocacy groups, the panel’s Republican majority voted against accepting Serviss’ nomination.
At the time, Hoffman blamed Hobbs for the tense, public exchange, accusing her of neglecting to vet her nominees. Hoffman also accused Hobbs of withdrawing her nominees due to lack of vetting.
“Hobbs is the only person to blame for her nominees struggling to succeed under actual due diligence,” said Hoffman, adding that the governor “should have done her homework prior to making her nominations” but “is now attempting to blame everyone else except herself for her failures.”
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Georgia Star News and a reporter for the Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Katie Hobbs” by Katie Hobbs. Background Photo “Arizona Capitol” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0.
