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Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs pulls remaining director nominations

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Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs pulls remaining director nominations


PHOENIX — Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs announced Monday she withdrew the remaining director nominees from the Senate confirmation process, saying partisanship had forced her to find other means to fill the roles.

Hobbs sent Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen a letter expressing her frustration with the process and Republican Rep. Jake Hoffman, the chairman of the Committee on Director Nominations.

“It is clear that this committee has taken upon itself to impose some other, impossible standard — or perhaps no standard at all beyond the whims of Sen. Hoffman — for evaluating nominees,” Hobbs, a Democrat, said in the letter.

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“This is not the lawful role of the Senate and is not a process in which I or my nominees will continue to participate.”

Petersen fired back, calling Hobbs’ decision unlawful.

“This move by the Executive Branch showcases another prime example of an elected official who believes they’re above the law and will go to extreme measures to bypass the requirements of the law when they don’t get their way,” Petersen said in a statement.

“The law is very specific on who is to run our state agencies. Without directors fulfilling these obligations, the legality of every decision made by these state agencies is dubious and litigation against the state would surely prevail.”

How many Arizona agency directors still need confirmation?

Directors for 13 state agencies still need to be confirmed, a process Hobbs said would extend into her second term at the current rate.

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She accused Hoffman and the Nominations Committee of slow playing the process by approving nominees who never get brought to the Senate for a vote and using nominations for political posturing.

Hobbs added that when the Senate asked her to speed up the process of nominating directors in January, she did so within days.

“If you have concerns about individuals’ qualifications, simply say so,” Hobbs said. “But it is clear the Senate’s vetting process is not functioning as intended by law or tradition.”

Here are the directors who still need to be confirmed:

• Elizabeth Thorson, Arizona Department of Administration
• Angie Rodgers, Arizona Department of Economic Security
• Karen Peters, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
• Carmen Heredia, Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System
• David Lujan, Arizona Department of Child Safety
• Jackie Johnson, Arizona Department of Gaming
• Joan Serviss, Arizona Department of Housing
• Barbara Richardson, Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions
• Lt. Col Dana Allmond, Arizona Department of Veterans Services
• Alec Esteban Thomson, Arizona State Lottery
• Cynthia Zwick, Residential Utility Consumer Office
• Lisa Urias, Arizona Office of Tourism
• Robyn Sahid, Arizona State Land Department

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Can Hobbs legally find a different way to confirm the directors?

Hobbs said she would “pursue other lawful avenues” but didn’t specify what that would look like.

State law requires Senate confirmation for directors, who can only lawfully serve for one year without confirmation.

Hobbs said there was a framework to allow for the Senate confirmation process to resume.

“Should the Senate return to the regular order of confirming nominees as contemplated by law, or if I am able to find qualified candidates who might satisfy the shifting, amorphous and partisan standard for confirmation that the Senate appears to have adopted, I will resume sending nominations for the Senate’s review,” Hobbs said.

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Arizona

Wildcat fire in Arizona grows to more than 14,000 acres – KYMA

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Wildcat fire in Arizona grows to more than 14,000 acres – KYMA


MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. (CNN, KYMA/KECY) – A 14,000 acre wildfire, named the Wildcat Fire, was 0% contained on Monday.

It sparked in the Tonto National Forest on Saturday, and high winds stopped firefighters efforts from the air.

One gate is closed for travel as a major fire burns through short grass and brush within Tonto National Forest.

“I mean, it was concerning, I guess the first night that we saw it just because we could see it right over the top of this house right here,” said Lucas Raymond, an Arizona resident.

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Clearing the lot

Raymond and his family live in nearby Rio Verde. They’re ready to go in case the fire makes an unexpected turn.

They protected their home by clearing the lot around their neighborhood.

“Yeah, I mean, we have a three year old so I mean, we, we stay mobile as much as we possibly can, but we definitely have a plan if we need to get out of here. We can get out of here,” Raymond spoke.

Other residents nearby taking the risks in stride.

Hopeful

Hoping the weather and the universe will corporative, Nina Devries moved here just about a year ago and she’s feeling hopeful.

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“We have hoses around the building. Several of them and they are connected so we would pick them up and try to keep things dry. But, basically just say positive and know that it’s going to be taken care of,” Devries expressed.

Those strong winds with around 40 mile per hour gusts forcing crews to ground their air units for a few hours.

On Monday, they’ll send them back up once the weather gets better, and around 300 fire personnel are battling the blaze right now and a lot of work lies ahead to contain this fire.

Good news

But there’s good news, humidity is up and temperatures are down.

There was also a little rain for the neighbors on Monday. It’s anything that will keep their homes fire free.

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“Oh, it would be devastating. People love this area out here. I mean, the the residents out here fight for, fight for it out here. It’s not the easiest place to live,” Raymond added.

On Sunday afternoon, officials confirmed another wildfire, named the Basin Fire. It is burning southeast of the Wildcat Fire, but forward progress for this fire has reportedly been stopped.



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Baseball: Dodgers' potent offense helps Yamamoto get win over Arizona

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Baseball: Dodgers' potent offense helps Yamamoto get win over Arizona


Yoshinobu Yamamoto threw 6-1/3 innings of two-run ball and Freddie Freeman delivered a grand slam among three home runs for the Los Angeles Dodgers in a 6-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday.

With plenty of backing from the powerful Dodger lineup, Yamamoto (5-1) struck out eight while allowing seven hits and one walk in another solid start for the National League West leaders, who extended their winning streak to four.

The Japanese right-hander surrendered a 1-0 lead when Joc Pederson hit a line-drive single with two out and two on in the top of the third at Dodger Stadium.

Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitches against the Arizona Diamondbacks in a baseball game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on May 20, 2024. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

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Los Angeles quickly turned things around, however, racking up six runs against right-hander Slade Cecconi (1-4) in the home half of the inning.

Enrique Hernandez tied it with his solo homer and Shohei Ohtani drew a walk to load the bases before Freeman put the Dodgers up 5-1 with his fifth long bomb of the season. Will Smith extended the lead with a solo blast.

Yamamoto exited after giving up an RBI single to Kevin Newman in the seventh, while Ohtani finished 1-for-3 with a run scored.

“I allowed the first run but was able to reset myself (mentally),” Yamamoto said.

The three-time MVP of Japan’s Pacific League threw an MLB career-high 100 pitches, including 69 strikes.

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“My number of good pitches increased as the second half of the game progressed,” he said. “I felt like I was throwing with a good tempo.”


Related coverage:

Baseball: Yamamoto gets 4th win after longest MLB start

Baseball: Shohei Ohtani’s walk-off single lifts Dodgers past Reds

Baseball: Cubs’ Shota Imanaga gets 5th win with gem against Mets

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Arizona State men, women golf teams out of NCAA postseason; Arizona men advance

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Arizona State men, women golf teams out of NCAA postseason; Arizona men advance


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Four days after the Arizona State men’s golf team was eliminated in the Rancho Santa Fe (California) Regional, just the fifth time that a No. 1 seed failed to make it to the NCAA championship since 2009, the ASU women’s team was knocked out of the postseason. Missy Farr-Kaye’s squad finished 16th, one stroke out of the top 15 that advanced after the first of two cuts in the women’s postseason championship.

Two ASU golfers advanced as individuals, however, as senior Ashley Menne and Patience Rhodes got through the final day. The second cut was set for Monday night and will send the top eight teams to match play with the championship finale set for Wednesday.

The Arizona Wildcats are among the top 30 men’s teams to advance to Omni La Costa Resort & Spa’s North Course in Carlsbad, California, for the men’s championship, which runs May 24-29. UA finished third in the West Lafayette Regional. After missing last year, Arizona will make its 29th championship appearance.

Local juniors shine

Peoria Sunrise Mountain alum Ben Lorenz, who plays collegiately at Oklahoma, won medalist honors at the Rancho Santa Fe Reginal. He helped OU become one of the 30 teams to advance to Omni La Costa Resort & Spa’s North Course in Carlsbad, California, for the championship, which runs May 24-29.

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Max Lyons from Phoenix was named the Big East Men’s Golfer of the Year after his junior season at Marquette. He led the league with a 72.33 scoring average with 17 par-or-better rounds.

Scottsdale Christian Academy graduate Gracie McGovern, now a freshman at TCU, along with Brynn Kort, finished runners-up in the 2024 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship in San Antonio last week.

Rahm, Mickelson miss cut at PGA

Phil Mickelson, who won the PGA Championship three years ago, missed the cut in the major this time around, as did fellow former ASU golfer Jon Rahm. For Rahm, it snapped his cuts made streak in the majors at 18, which had led all pro golfers.



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