Rules are meant to be broken...and leaked. This week at the Capitol brought a couple of twists in the ongoing push to repeal the territorial ban.

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“There are few bad people. The problem is that bad incentives happen to good people.”

- Van Jones

Quoted at the Arizona Community Foundation’s Connects Forum


** Rules Are Meant To Be Broken, And Leaked
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This week at the Capitol brought a couple of twists in the ongoing push to repeal the territorial abortion ban. House Speaker Ben Toma previously gaveled us out so that we would “have more time” to determine whether the country’s most restrictive control of bodily autonomy should remain in place. Democrats in the House tried twice again to bring the repeal to the floor for a vote without successfully reaching the necessary 31 votes (below). The Speaker imposed a new rule that 31 votes are needed to override his opposition. Right now, one man’s refusal blocks us from repealing the 1864 abortion ban.

There were two surprising revelations this week - one intentional and one unintentional. The Senate had two Republicans joining Democrats in supporting Senator Anna Hernandez’s motion to introduce a late bill. This new bill is being drafted and will provide a path to repeal the territorial ban. However, with the Speaker’s new rule, the path of resistance to solve this problem remains difficult, as it will still require 31 votes in the House to get it on the board.

The unintentional twist came in the form of everyone’s nightmare of accidentally sending an email to ‘ALL’. the group. The House attorney shared an email to ‘ALL’ members that said the quiet part out loud, showing how the Majority is trying to cover for bringing the territorial ban to life and their continued refusal to repeal it.

We can decipher a few things from the 24 leaked slides, primarily that the intent is to confuse, conflict, and compete against the Arizona for Abortion Act Initiative. They recognize that restricting abortion is a losing political position by stating: “Additionally, voters in seven states - California, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Montana, Ohio, and Vermont - have sided with abortion rights supporters on ballot measures.”

The Phase 2 Plan is outlined as “disguising” a new 14-week abortion ban as 15 weeks (more on how elusively subjective the number of weeks pregnant is discussion for another time). Doing this would “solidify an arbitrary number of weeks in the Constitution.”

So, I will continue to work in anticipation of returning Wednesday to the Capitol, where I hope the time requested to work on an appeal will actually be a clean repeal. Because really, BOOM. Easy as that.

With kindness,

Sarah

Ps - The territorial ban has been the focus of the past two weeks of legislative work. We have voted on only a handful of bills, as everything has stalled.


** Housing Discussions
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In the spirit of Frank Lloyd Wright’s commitment to housing and sharing of ideas, his Foundation hosted an affordable housing salon at Taliesin West with leading experts in the field. Dr. Laurie Goodman, Founder of the Housing Finance Policy Center at the Urban Center, and Dr. Chris Herbert from Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies discussed how our housing problems are rooted in diminished housing supply and will require a rebalancing of zoning and building code regulations. They also emphasized how solutions like additional dwelling units (ADUs)

It was my first time visiting this spectacular space. There aren’t many meetings I attend that get interrupted by coyotes howling! If you haven’t visited Taliesin West, I encourage you to tour and learn more about this historic property and Frank Lloyd Wright’s legacy.
Frank Lloyd Wright - Taliesin West ([link removed])


** Candidates To Follow
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We have two very important Maricopa County candidates to support: Dr. Laura Metcalfe, for County School Superintendent and Daniel Valenzuela, for District 3 County Supervisor.

Both are incredibly talented candidates running for important positions. I am happy to join them to talk to voters about the importance of our races.

Please come out to meet them and help spread the word!
Sign Up to Help Volunteer! ([link removed])


** Community Corner
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As a parent of a Madison Eagle, I was thrilled to host a a group of Madison School District third graders at the Capitol.

It was so fun to see their minds turn as I fielded their questions on everything from the work we do, the election process, the different regalia on legislators’ desks, and the Speaker’s hidden Chamber doors.

I was happy to see their excitement and curiosity in action and was reminded that we are not only working for their future but also role modeling our actions as leaders for them.

Thank you for your support, however it comes!
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