EPA defends plan to ease compliance requirements in face of coronavirus
PHOENIX - The Environmental Protection Agency defended its plans to waive some environmental compliance requirements during the COVID-19 outbreak, insisting the policy chage is "not a license to pollute," but environmentalists were not convinced.
Officials call for Grand Canyon closure to help stem coronavirus spread
TEMPE - Arizona lawmakers joined local and tribal officials Tuesday calling on the Interior Department to reverse its "reckless" decision to keep Grand Canyon National Park open during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr. Smith goes home from Washington: Hill offices adapt to teleworking
WASHINGTON - Voters with concerns about the stimulus bill working its way through Congress can still share their opinions with their representatives in Washington - even though their representatives may not actually be in Washington as offices there, like the rest of the nation, are learning to telework.
Endorse check: Value of Arizona endorsements mixed in presidential race
WASHINGTON - Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who got the most Arizona endorsements, dropped out of the presidential primary. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders got none and is polling at a steady 30% in the state. Campaigns tout them, but analysts say endorsements "matter a lot less than they used to."
Lawmakers blast plan to shift $3.8 billion from Pentagon to border wall
WASHINGTON - The Trump administration plans to tap the Pentagon for another $3.8 billion in military funds to pay for border wall construction this year, a move critics blasted as "theft," a raid and a money grab.
Panel says Grijalva can subpoena ‘stonewalling’ administration officials
WASHINGTON - The House Natural Resources Committee granted Chairman Raul Grijalva, D-Tucson, the authority Wednesday to subpoena administration officials, after committee Democrats said they were "left with no choice" in the face of bureaucrats' resistance.
Blasting for border wall is typical of feds’ neglect of tribes, leaders say
WASHINGTON - Tohono O'odham Nation Chairman Ned Norris said the "controlled blasting" in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, for a border wall that will ultimately cut through his reservation, is just the latest example of the federal government ignoring its duty to consult with tribes.
House panel OKs bill to undo Trump changes to Endangered Species Act
WASHINGTON - A House committee gave preliminary approval Wednesday to a bill that would reverse Trump administration changes to the Endangered Species Act, after a heated debate between members over which side had the best interest of the act at heart.
Despite relatively short tenure, Arizona delegation making waves
WASHINGTON - Arizona's congressional delegation has an average tenure well below that of other states, but they have combined important committee and caucus posts with aggressive media appearances to give the delegation a presence bigger than its relatively short tenure would indicate.
Arizona lawmakers split, as House takes historic vote to impeach Trump
WASHINGTON - Arizona lawmakers split along party lines Wednesday as the House took a historic vote to impeach President Donald Trump, making him just the third president to be impeached and the first while facing re-election.
Impeachment impasse: Few minds appear changed by weeks of testimony
WASHINGTON - Two months of investigation and two weeks of televised hearings do not appear to have changed any minds in Arizona's congressional delegation about the potential impeachment of President Donald Trump, a situation so far mirrored in the public, according to recent polls.
Potential deportation of medically vulnerable migrants halted, but questions remain
PHOENIX – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will again process deferred action requests for humanitarian reasons, reversing the agency’s decision to kill the program.
