PHOENIX (AP) — A judge will hear arguments Thursday in a Phoenix courtroom over whether to move former Donald Trump presidential chief of staff Mark Meadows’ charges in Arizona’s fake elector case to federal court.
Meadows has asked a federal judge to move the case to U.S. District Court, arguing his actions were taken when he was a federal official working as Trump’s chief of staff and that he has immunity under the supremacy clause of the U.S. Constitution, which says federal law trumps state law.
The former chief of staff, who faces charges in Arizona and Georgia in what state authorities alleged was an illegal scheme to overturn the 2020 election results in Trump’s favor, had unsuccessfully tried to move state charges to federal court last year in an election subversion case in Georgia.
Democratic Attorney General Kris Mayes’ office, which filed the Arizona case, urged a court to deny Meadows’ request, arguing he missed a deadline for asking a court to move the charges to federal court and that his electioneering efforts weren’t part of his official role at the White House.
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While not a fake elector in Arizona, prosecutors said Meadows worked with other Trump campaign members to submit names of fake electors from Arizona and other states to Congress in a bid to keep Trump in office despite his November 2020 defeat.
In 2020, President Joe Biden won Arizona by 10,457 votes.
Last year, Meadows tried to get his Georgia charges moved to federal court, but his request was rejected by a judge, whose ruling was later affirmed by an appeals court. The former chief of staff has since asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the ruling.
The Arizona indictment also says Meadows confided to a White House staff member in early November 2020 that Trump had lost the election. Prosecutors say Meadows also had arranged meetings and calls with state officials to discuss the fake elector conspiracy.
Meadows and other defendants are seeking a dismissal of the Arizona case.
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In their filing, Meadows’ attorneys said nothing their client is alleged to have done in Arizona was criminal. They said the indictment consists of allegations that he received messages from people trying to get ideas in front of Trump — or “seeking to inform Mr. Meadows about the strategy and status of various legal efforts by the president’s campaign.”
In all, 18 Republicans were charged in late April in Arizona’s fake electors case. The defendants include 11 Republicans who had submitted a document falsely claiming Trump had won Arizona, another Trump aide, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and four other lawyers connected to the former president.
In early August, Trump’s campaign attorney Jenna Ellis, who worked closely with Giuliani, signed a cooperation agreement with prosecutors that led to the dismissal of her charges. Republican activist Loraine Pellegrino also became the first person to be convicted in the Arizona case when she pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge and was sentenced to probation.
Meadows and the other remaining defendants have pleaded not guilty to the forgery, fraud and conspiracy charges in Arizona.
Trump wasn’t charged in Arizona, but the indictment refers to him as an unindicted coconspirator.
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Eleven people who had been nominated to be Arizona’s Republican electors had met in Phoenix on Dec. 14, 2020, to sign a certificate saying they were “duly elected and qualified” electors and claimed Trump had carried the state in the 2020 election.
A one-minute video of the signing ceremony was posted on social media by the Arizona Republican Party at the time. The document was later sent to Congress and the National Archives, where it was ignored.
Prosecutors in Michigan, Nevada, Georgia and Wisconsin have also filed criminal charges related to the fake electors scheme.
PHOENIX – Bonneville Phoenix on Wednesday announced an exciting update to the evening programming lineup for Arizona Sports 98.7 FM.
Arizona Sports at Night with Kellan Olson and Mitch Vareldzis will air weeknights from 6 to 8 p.m. when there is no play-by-play on 98.7 FM. The show will be fast-paced with entertainment and information that Arizona Sports fans need in their evenings.
“The new show is an exciting addition to the Arizona Sports lineup and extends our local talk into the evenings,” said Brian Long, Bonneville Phoenix director of programming operations. “Arizona Sports at Night will serve Valley sports fans with live, local content on their commute home and all throughout the evening.”
Arizona Sports, the home of the Arizona Cardinals, Arizona Diamondbacks, Phoenix Suns and Arizona State football and basketball, will now have more local programming when the teams are not on the court or field.
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Olson has been with Bonneville Phoenix for nine years. He has covered the Phoenix Suns and co-hosted the Empire of the Suns podcast since 2015. His role will shift to help with Arizona Sports at Night and fill-in work on the daily shows. Olson will continue covering the Suns with in-depth coverage of games and practices, both for ArizonaSports.com, on pregame and postgame shows, and on the Empire of the Suns podcast.
Vareldzis has been with the company for six years, primarily as the producer of Burns & Gambo. His role will also expand to include pregame and postgame coverage of the Suns.
Vareldzis has also previously been host of Arizona Sports Saturday and the State of the Sun Devils podcast.
The first Arizona Sports at Night airs on Monday, Sept. 9. It will also air shortened shows around partner specials such as the Arizona Cardinals’ Big Red Rage and Arizona State football’s Sparky’s Den.
Updated Arizona Sports 98.7 weekday lineup:
6 to 10 a.m.: Bickley & Marotta
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10 a.m. to 2 p.m.: Wolf & Luke
2 to 6 p.m.: Burns & Gambo
6 to 8 p.m.: Arizona Sports at Night (when there is no play-by-play on 98.7 FM)
Joe Andreessen beat the odds to make Buffalo Bills roster
The Buffalo native and University at Buffalo linebacker surprised everyone with his performance over the summer.
The Buffalo Bills have won four straight AFC East titles, but their streak could be in jeopardy in 2024. The departure of star receiver Stefon Diggs opens up the possibility for regression from quarterback Josh Allen. Couple that with the fact that the team’s No. 2 receiver Gabe Davis also split town, and there is plenty reason to feel uneasy about this team’s offensive capabilities this season.
At the very least, the Bills return standout tight end Dalton Kincaid as well as late-season breakout receiver Khalil Shakir. The team also added second-round receiver Keon Coleman to the fold as well. If James Cook can continue holding down their backfield, the Bills could still boast one of the most effective offenses in the league.
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Their opponent this week will be the Arizona Cardinals, who have a lot to look forward to on offense. Kyler Murray, Trey McBride, James Conner, and Marvin Harrison Jr. should be spectacular but the team’s defense lacks the same high-end potential. While this team could have the offensive firepower to surprise some people, it would take a massive improvement on the other side of the ball for them to compete for a Super Bowl.
PROP TALK: These are the best prop bets for NFL games this week
Cardinals vs. Bills odds, moneyline, over/under
The Bills are favorites to defeat the Cardinals, according to the BetMGM NFL odds. Looking to wager? Check out the best mobile sports betting apps offering NFL betting promos in 2024 including the ESPN BET app and Fanatics Sportsbook promo code.
Spread: Bills (-6.5)
Moneyline: Bills (-300); Cardinals (+240)
Over/under: 48
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FEELING LUCKY? Here are the best parlay bets and odds for NFL games this week
NFL Week 1 odds, predictions and picks
Ravens vs. Chiefs | Packers vs. Eagles | Jaguars vs. Dolphins | Steelers vs. Falcons | Vikings vs. Giants | Panthers vs. Saints | Patriots vs. Bengals | Titans vs. Bears | Cardinals vs. Bills | Texans vs. Colts | Raiders vs. Chargers | Broncos vs. Seahawks | Commanders vs. Buccaneers | Cowboys vs. Browns | Rams vs. Lions | Jets vs. 49ers
Lorenzo Reyes: Bills 25, Cardinals 23
I think Buffalo may struggle a bit on offense this season. Josh Allen may feel the pressure of needing to create more, given the loss of Stefon Diggs, and this could prompt carelessness with the ball. That has long been a problem for Buffalo, which should still win this game. Still, I think it’s a closer affair with the Cardinals’ improved roster.
Tyler Dragon: Bills 27, Cardinals 20
Not much is expected of Kyler Murray and the Cardinals this season. Cardinals rookie wideout Marvin Harrison Jr. is a player to watch. Arizona will play teams tough, but they lack talent across the board. The Bills lost plenty of veteran leaders over the offseason, Stefon Diggs. Josh Allen is going to have to elevate Buffalo’s offense the way franchise quarterbacks are expected.
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Safid Deen: Bills 26, Cardinals 16
Josh Allen has some new teammates to get used to, but he’s still one of the best offensive players in the sport. He’ll be able to gut out a win against Kyler Murray and Arizona.
Richard Morin: Bills 23, Cardinals 15
A still-getting-to-know-you Bills offense combined with a sleepy Cardinals team playing on the East Coast is a recipe for a slow game. I think the Bills get it done, but it will produce questions of whether they have the offense to be a legitimate AFC contender in 2024.
MOST VALUABLE BET: Who is the favorite to win NFL MVP in 2024?
Tourism logos have to do a lot of work to communicate the attractions of an entire region or a country in a single design asset. That can sometimes result in drab, generic designs, or it can result in some of the most creative logos around.
The new logo for Visit Arizona, the 48th US state’s tourism office, lands in the latter group, and it bucks the minimalist trend with a design that’s delightfully detailed. The logo packs in lots of symbolism in a clever visual device that also links to the state’s history.
While Arizona is probably most famous for the Grand Canyon, Visit Arizona was determined that the new design wouldn’t be limited to one bucket list landmark but would encourage broader travel across the state. It gave the job to Phoenix-based Heart & Soul Marketing, which undertook a stunning rebrand.
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At the centre of the new logo is a motif inspired by Native American mandalas. The circular design created by Hopi and Isleta Pueblo artist Kevin Coochwytewa features an array symbols associated state. The sun is surrounded by icons representing the saguaro cactus, petroglyph hands, rainclouds in reference to the Sonoran Desert monsoon storms, a hummingbird (representing hummingbird capital Sierra Vista) and even a computer chip to represent the semiconductor manufacturing industry.
“Arizona is more than just one famous landmark,” says Heart and Soul’s associate creative director Hanna Heisler. “It’s an accumulation of the countless incredible people, places, ecosystems and cultures that make our state so uniquely vibrant. We wanted to leverage an authentic and meaningful art form that could encapsulate the diverse spectrum of elements that make state 48 truly special.”
The mandala is used in a lockup with a turquoise logotype with copper-colour mountains, and the lockup is versatile. There are options to adorn the space in the ‘O’: a saguaro cactus for Central Arizona, a ponderosa pine for the north and a hummingbird for the south.
The brand colours are new too, with a strong emphasis on turquoise and copper, the former inspired by Native American turquoise jewelry and the latter by the state’s copper production and the star on the state flag. Supporting colours include greens as well as sand to recognise that despite the desert, Arizona has lush forests.
Daily design news, reviews, how-tos and more, as picked by the editors.
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Key to the branding project was a discovery phase that involved surveys and online interviews with residents about what icons, textures and colours they felt represented them and their state.
The new logo (bottom) compared to the previous Arizona tourism identity (top) (Image credit: Visit Arizona / Heart & Soul Marketing)
The new logo is a striking improvement on the previous design which was unimaginative to the point of generic: the only reference to the state was the shape of its borders in the ‘O’. To an extent, it also bucks the prevailing trends in logo design.
The detailed design of the mandala could limit the interpretation of all the symbols at small sizes, but the overall lockup remains simple enough to work, and it’s striking and recognisable even if you don’t immediately see the details that make up the ‘O’ and take it only to represent the sun. There’s also an AZ monogram logo in the same colours for smaller applications.
For more news in tourism logo design, see the new Switzerland logo and the ongoing debate around the novel multilingual Dubai logo.
