
A Flag Day reckoning
Kings are so European … Budget 2.0 incoming … And they don’t need Palantir to find you.
Arizona’s “No Kings” event at the state Capitol in Phoenix drew thousands of rally-goers who protested a wide variety of grievances related to the Trump administration.
And they had no shortage of reasons to protest — from continued ICE raids to the president’s felony record.
The rally at the Capitol was among the more than 2,000 “No Kings” day events across the country — including in small Arizona towns from Yuma and Douglas to Page — that were planned to overshadow a military parade in Washington D.C. marking the Army’s 250th anniversary.
The military parade also happened to be on President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday.
Despite tensions across the country over immigration — and the temperature climbing to well above 100 degrees — Phoenix kept the conversation relatively light with drag performers and homemade signs.
And despite stern warnings from the state's Democratic governor and attorney general that violence and destruction of property won't be tolerated, police presence was minimal and the event at the Capitol was a jovial, family-friendly affair — with a few exceptions.
At one point, a counter-protester attempted to steal a flag, resulting in a brief scuffle and a few punches thrown. Another counter-protester pulled his gun on the crowd after protesters shoved him and knocked off his hat. Protesters talked the man down and he holstered his weapon before police took him away.
But the day was not without violence.
Before the Phoenix protest began, news broke that there had been a targeted assassination attempt on two Democratic state lawmakers in Minnesota. One lawmaker and her husband were killed and another lawmaker and his wife were seriously injured. The attacker had a more extensive list of Democratic politicians he planned to kill, per police.
But Arizona's rallies were peaceful, and Flag Day brought out the patriots.
Nicki Kirkeby, a longtime Arizonan and activist, wore a bedazzled stars-and-stripes top to the protest which she said was held on the perfect day to celebrate the American people.
“We're founded on democracy, and right now, our democracy is at threat, and so we better stand up for it. And you know, it's like, wake up Congress,” she said.
Many of the protesters were critical not just of the Trump administration, but the members of Congress who have unwaveringly supported the president (*cough cough* Rep. Andy Biggs). Among those calling out Republicans at every level was a guy wearing a chicken suit and others flaunting a plethora of taco paraphernalia. (If the taco-related protest memorabilia confused you, we got you covered: TACO is an acronym Democrats and economists have coined in light of Trump's flip-flops on tariffs, standing for Trump Always Chickens Out.)
The signs more commonly understood were the upside-down American flags, which represent the country’s distress.
Those holding flags had relentless dedication to the cause, but may have carpal tunnel to worry about in the future.
While the medics didn’t have any complaints of median nerve compression, as far as we know, they did deal with ongoing heat-related issues. The medical team was composed of doctors, nurses, EMTs and self-trained volunteers who helped maintain the safety of the peaceful protesters.
Matt King, who was on the organizational side of the medical team, said he was happy to join the village that ensures these events have first responders.
“Everybody is here for the cause and trying to find their own way to support (the cause),” he said.
The peaceful protesters didn’t see many counter protesters and there were minimal law enforcement interactions.
The Phoenix crowd checked all the demographic boxes, with 65+ year olds, LGBTQ+, families with strollers, Gen Z friend groups and even middle-aged white men beating the odds.
For those who couldn’t be in the heat, an impromptu car parade occurred down 17th Avenue in front of the Capitol building. The car-based activists held flags and signs from windows, while others passed out water to the crowd lining the street.
Although nerves have been high across the country, Saturday’s protest was an orderly gathering that aimed to mobilize more people in the community. And the good news for protesters and the MAGA opposition is there’s only like 1,300 days left of Trump’s presidency.
That is, assuming he’s a president and not a king.
The Shadow Budget
In a spooky, late-night Friday the 13th floor session, Arizona's House Republicans passed their version of a $17.3 billion state budget.
Today, Senate Republicans are set to drop their own, completely different plan that was actually negotiated with Gov. Katie Hobbs. They could pass that budget as early as Wednesday.
Republican Rep. Nick Kupper said on Twitter that the Senate’s budget adds $300 million more in spending, and he won’t vote for a budget that expensive.
House Democrats have repeatedly criticized their colleague’s budget, not only for its cuts to Medicaid and public school spending, but for putting it together without negotiating with the governor or Senate. No Democrats were present when the House passed the main budget bill around 9:30 p.m.
That was before an hours-long break when lawmakers added amendments to the 15 bills comprising the House’s budget.
Lawmakers — especially those in the Freedom Caucus — managed to squeeze a lot of personal requests into the budget during that break, like:
Giving $4 million to Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap’s office while granting him control of the information technology staff. Heap sued the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors for control of IT on Thursday.
Redirecting the $15.3 million lawmakers awarded in 2023 to a Prescott rodeo foundation — funding that a judge deemed unconstitutional this year — directly to the City of Prescott to "improve and refurbish the rodeo grounds."
Allocating $3.6 million more to police for pepper ball equipment, license plate readers and public safety training simulators.
House Speaker Steve Montenegro thanked legislative staff for spending “hours upon hours engrossing these bills so that we can vote tonight.”
Considering many more lawmakers and the governor plan to use the Senate’s budget as a starting point, those hours may not matter.
Not MAGA enough: As we mentioned above, Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap is suing the county supervisors amid a long-running dispute over who gets to run elections, the Phoenix New Times’ Zach Buchanan reports. Heap, a die-hard MAGA guy, wants the GOP-controlled board of supervisors to provide more funding and return control of the IT system to the Recorder’s Office. He says the supervisors are blocking him from delivering the “honest” elections he promised on the campaign trail. The supervisors pointed to Heap’s "irresponsible and juvenile ready-fire-aim approach to governance.” Behind the scenes, the lawsuit is backed by America First Legal, which was founded by Stephen Miller, a deputy chief of staff at the White House (and architect of the ICE raids you’ve been seeing in the news lately), the Associated Press reports. But America First Legal might not be allowed to represent Heap. Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell wrote a cease and desist letter saying she is the attorney for all elected officers in the county, VoteBeat’s Jen Fifield reports.
Last-ditch attempt: Two GOP lawmakers want to give some “teeth” to oversight of the prison system, but the House didn’t include their plan in last week’s budget bill and Gov. Katie Hobbs is staying mum on whether she supports the idea, Capitol scribe Howie Fischer reports. Now, Reps. Shawnna Bolick and Walt Blackman are trying to beef up prison oversight in the state budget so officials can deal with complaints raised by the 35,000 inmates in the state prison system, such as poor nutrition and the healthcare problems contended in a long-running federal lawsuit, as well as recent murders, escapes and assaults.
Education for all: Elsewhere in the prison system, education advocates are thrilled that Pell grants can be used to educate inmates, which wasn’t possible until two years ago, the Capitol Times’ Kiera Riley reports. Since then, Arizona officials have been breaking out of their silos, leading to partnerships between the Department of Corrections and the Arizona Board of Regents, for example, along with collaborating with officials in four other states that are trying to include inmates in their post-secondary education programs.
Better sign up for doggy daycare: Bolick and Blackman also partnered up to get an animal cruelty bill through the House, the Capitol Times’ Jamar Younger reports. The bill, SB1658, would require pet owners to provide food and shelter, and also make it a crime to not provide medical care for a pet. The bill took a convoluted path through the Legislature, and still has one more step — a final read in the Senate — before it would head to Hobbs’ desk.
Ginning up support: Democratic U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego wrote an op-ed for Fox News last week, calling for Republican lawmakers to allow small nuclear reactors in places like Apache County. Gallego visited St. Johns, a small town in Apache County, in April to talk with local officials about the area’s potential for nuclear power, the White Mountain Independent’s Jenn Moreira reports. The Salt River Project, one of the big Arizona utilities trying to build a nuclear reactor, told Moreira they’re applying for a federal grant to set the plan in motion.
All we need to set our plans in motion is a little “green” energy from our subscribers.
Shared tragedy: The assassination of Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman hit home with Gabby Giffords, who was shot in the head in 2011 during a political event in Tucson, KTAR’s Kylie Werner reports. Giffords and her husband, Sen. Mark Kelly, both spoke out after the shooting in Minnesota, which also took the life of Hortman’s husband and left another lawmaker and his wife injured.
“There will be more to say, but this much is clear: We must protect our democracy from those who try to destroy it with a gun,” Giffords said.
After President Donald Trump declared that it’s now illegal to wear a mask while protesting (which is not how making laws works), the Republic spoke to a bunch of protesters who wore masks at Saturday’s events.
Most were concerned about being tracked at the event or ending up in a Palantir database for activists.
“When the cops come for us, when this tyrannical government comes for us, I want to be as safe as possible,” Gilbert resident Sarah Marmolejo, 28, who wore a white bandana covering her nose and mouth, told the Republic.
But, uh, if you’re worried about being tracked, giving your name, age and city to the local newspaper might be counterproductive.
Shout out to “Megan,” a 19-year-old tutor from Phoenix, who was the only person in that story to think that fact through.
I'm guessing that Alysa didn't get shot in the leg by a rubber bullet either. Not that that is a bad thing - getting shot is no fun anyway.
About Senator Hoffman's list referring to Secretary Adrian Fontes as a Marxist, to paraphrase Lloyd Bentsen (look it up), having worked at Berkeley: I served with Marxists, I knew serous Marxists, and Secretary Fontes, you're no Marxist.
Seriously, I think MAGA folks just use "Marxist" as a synonym for "I don't like you." Just silly.