KEN BENNETT –
AZVoices.gov is not what it appears to be
Last year, a new website AZVoices.gov was hailed by former Secretary of State Ken Bennett and Senator Bob Worsley as way for voters to connect with lawmakers. At the time, the two sold it as a way to rate and comment on pending legislation.
Those who understood and utilized the electronic system called ALIS questioned the need for a new system. They questioned the need for – and propriety of – a privately run popularity contest.
Worsley, who made his millions selling things to people they didn’t need, was behind the fundraising effort to bring the site to Arizona voters. He claimed that he wanted the system for voters because his staff was busy fielding calls from constituents in support of – or in opposition to – different bills. He claimed it was too difficult to gauge public sentiment that way.
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PAUL BABEU –
Babeu Under FBI Investigation, RICO Fund Spending Questioned
On March 24, the Arizona House Government and Higher Education Committee, under the leadership of Rep. Bob Thorpe heard testimony on the highly questionable practices of Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu and County Attorney Lando Voyles’ use of civil asset forfeiture proceeds from J Cabou of the Perkins Coie law firm. Days later, the Casa Grande Dispatch confirmed that FBI agents have conducted interviews in with several individuals regarding the Sheriff’s Office usage of seized criminal funds.
It was reports of abuse of Arizona’s RICO law, by law enforcement agencies, that led Thorpe to call for the hearing.
The Casa Grande Dispatch reports that the “FBI agents have probed the role of the Arizona Public Safety Foundation.”
During Thorpe’s hearing, Cabou, who is working with the ACLU, was joined by attorneys with both the Goldwater Institute and Institute for Justice to push civil asset forfeiture law of reform, offered the Committee specifics related to the Foundation.
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DAVID GOWAN –
EDITORIAL: Gowan taking a gamble asking for investigation
If the intended outcome of House Speaker David Gowan’s call for an investigation of his travel expenditures is a pronouncement of his innocence and media acknowledgement of that finding, he may be disappointed.
This week, the Sierra Vista state representative (who once represented Green Valley) requested that Attorney General Mark Brnovich investigate whether he violated state policies or broke state law when he and Sergeant At Arms Billy Cloud took a 4,800-mile trip to communities all located within Congressional District 1.
Speaking frankly, we’re not sure the same request would be put forward if the Attorney General were a Democrat. Rep. Gowan is clearly confident that his admission of a mistake in requesting more than $12,000 in reimbursements — and his prompt repayment of those erroneous travel expenses — will be enough for Brnovich’s office to clear the Speaker’s name. If party politics were a concern, an aggressive investigation by the AG might spread beyond the single incident and raise …..
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