A Yuma County judge is considering whether to dismiss a defamation lawsuit by a current Southern Arizona legislator against a former colleague.
Superior Court Judge Levi Gunderson heard arguments Wednesday from the attorney for former state Rep. Charlene Fernandez that the 2021 lawsuit must be dismissed under Arizona law and the U.S. Constitution. An attorney for state Rep. Mark Finchem, of Oro Valley, former state Rep. Anthony Kern and U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar disagreed.
The three Republicans say Fernandez, a Democrat, defamed them by co-signing a criminal referral to the FBI, along with every other Democrat in the state Legislature. The letter asked the FBI to look into their activities at the Jan. 6 2021 actions at the U.S. Capitol. The letter also named U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, but he did not join the lawsuit.
For opaque reasons, the three only sued Fernandez, who resigned last year to take a job as the U.S. Department of Agricultureโs Arizona director for rural development. At the Wednesday hearing, attorney George Wentz said they picked Fernandez because she had previously shown animus to Kern.
โThe law does not permit three public officials to target for defamation one member of the entire Democratic caucus who co-signed a criminal referral letter to the FBI,โ said David Bodney, the attorney for Fernandez, on Thursday.
โWhen a person submits a criminal referral letter to law enforcement, that letter is absolutely privileged as a matter of Arizona law,โ Bodney said. โWhen all 42 Democratic members of the Arizona Legislature submit that letter, the submittal is all the more privileged.โ
Gunderson said he would rule on the motion within 60 days.
Finchem, the Arizona Republic reported this week, is running three separate fundraisers, apart from his campaign for secretary of state. One is to pay for this lawsuit, another is for legal representation regarding the congressional investigation into the Jan. 6 attack and the third is to defray his costs for a Nov. 30, 2020, event in Phoenix building a case that the presidential election was stolen.
Tim Steller </&h6>
Ducey: Still no eyes on Senate
Gov. Doug Ducey, who is termed out, says he still isnโt entering the race to try to unseat Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly.
The AP reiterated Duceyโs position in a news story this week saying Ducey has notified Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell about the decision.
Ducey had already said in January 2021 that he would not seek to challenge Kelly.
โThe governor has said specifically he is not running for the United States Senate,โ Ducey spokesman C.J. Karamargin told Capitol Media Service in a news story Jan. 25, 2021.
That didnโt stop Ducey from sharing his new no-surprise announcement with donors, according to the Arizona Republic.
โRight now I have the job I want,โ Ducey wrote, adding that he is โfully committed to helping elect a Republican U.S. senator from Arizona,โ the Republic reported.
Kelly was elected in 2020 to finish the last two years of the term of the late Republican Sen. John McCain.
Howard Fischer</&h6>
No denunciation of Sen. Rogers
Less than 24 hours after condemning racism, Gov. Doug Doug refused to say Wednesday whether he would once again endorse Sen. Wendy Rogers.
And he would not directly condemn the Flagstaff senator herself for her statements and actions.
Ducey says his Tuesday statement condemning racism was not because of anything the senator had done but โwas in response to the Senateโs censure of Wendy Rogers.โ
โI have condemned racism and antisemitism in all of their forms every time I have been asked about it,โโ he said. Anyway, the governor said, he was never directly asked about whether he considers Rogers to be a racist.
What Ducey was asked last week, however, was whether he regretted having his political action committee spend $500,000 in 2020 to get her elected. And the governor said at the time that he needed a Republican elected in the district to provide him with a critical 16th Republican vote in the 30-member Senate.
Press aide C.J. Karamargin said much of the information that resulted in the Senate censure vote only became public over the weekend.
That included her speech to the America First Political Action Committee, a group of white nationalists, where she advocated building gallows to โmake an example of these traitors who have betrayed our country.โ And she opened with seeking applause from the crowd for Russiaโs invasion of Ukraine.
There was was no statement from Ducey until after the Senate voted, with 10 of the 16 Republicans in the chamber joining with all 14 Democrats, to censure Rogers. And even then, Ducey did not call out Rogers by name but instead issued a statement praising the Senate vote, saying it โsends a clear messageโ that โantisemitic and hateful language has no place in Arizona.โ
Howard Fischer</&h6>
Miller: Rogers is misunderstood
Former Pima County Supervisor Ally Miller weighed in this week on the controversy over comments by state Sen. Wendy Rogers.
In a letter posted on Wendy Rogersโ campaign website, Miller, who represented the northwest side of the Tucson area from 2013 to 2021, said people are misstating Rogersโ call for people to be hung on gallows.
โFirst, Rogers said that traitors need to be โtried and convictedโ prior to being hung,โ Miller wrote. โIsnโt that the way our criminal justice system works?โ
Yeah, maybe. Although hanging is only a legal method of execution in two states โ Washington and New Hampshire.
More to the point, though, is the question of who Rogers was calling a traitor needing to be hanged. Miller did not touch on that.
Tim Steller</&h6>
Landmarks lit up to back Ukraine
The historic Pima County Courthouse was decorated in blue and yellow lighting this week to show support for Ukraine.
Photos of the special lighting was shared on Pima Countyโs official Twitter page.
Not surprisingly, many of the comments centered on the countyโs mask rules rather than Ukraineโs war with Russia.
Several other landmarks in the state also have been used to show support for Ukraine, according to the Associated Press.
The fountain at Fountain Hills is to be lit blue and yellow every Wednesday night through March. It shoots a stream of water 560 feet into the air for about 15 minutes at the top of each hour from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
And the town of Gilbert lit its water tower in the colors of Ukraineโs flag last week.
Ducey this week said the state Capitol would show colored lights, as is City Hall in Phoenix, the AP reported.
