My Thoughts On the Arizona Legislature Adjourning For the Year

If you don’t live in Arizona (or aren’t following news related to the Maricopa County audit), you may have just learned that the Arizona legislature is about to adjourn for the year. That wouldn’t be newsworthy were it not for the fact that the Senate’s election audit is weeks from wrapping up. State Senator Kelly Townsend has been on a crusade to keep the legislature in session over the summer in the event that new laws need to be drafted to address any problems found in the audit. Last night, social media platforms were abuzz with requests that the Arizona legislature remain in session.

I’ve been aware of this issue for more than a month as I follow Kelly Towsend on Telegram and she has been pretty vocal about it. I understand her concerns, but I’ve been uncertain as to whether I should push the matter myself on social media. Although the legislature won’t return in its full capacity to draft new laws this year, the judiciary committee can meet at any time to discuss the results of the audit and take appropriate action. It seems like no further legislation may be needed anyway. A slew of new election reform bills have been passed by the House and Senate, but they’re being held hostage by Governor Ducey, who needs a budget approved by the end of the month. If Ducey gets his budget, the legislature gets their election reform bills signed into law.

I did post a request last night on Telegram for the legislature to consider remaining in session. I did not expect them to honor the request. I was hoping that if enough people made a fuss, they would respond, and they did not disappoint.

The AZ Senate will finish what they started. Sine Die will not impact the audit. It’s an important procedural step to make their legislation effective. Don’t fall for the hype. pic.twitter.com/2JkVS9CsNb

— Christina Bobb (@christina_bobb) June 23, 2021

I’m reluctant to trust politicians. But it’s my working hypothesis that a few brave elected officials here in Arizona have found a reason to expose election malfeasance (or fraud). They’ve taken a beating from their colleagues and the media for their cause. If politicians are determined to expose corruption in the very mechanism that gives them power, we might extend to them a small degree of trust.

I assume they would not have embarked on such a task without developing a comprehensive plan that outlines the strategies and tactics necessary to achieve their goal, whatever it may be. If they succeed, they will go down in history as heroes. If they fail, they need not bother seeking re-election. Their fate is in their hands, and they have more at stake in this than I do. They are the ones who must carry out their plan. My role is to support them with prayer and make my concerns known. Last night, I made them known, and the President of the Senate responded, asking me to trust them. Until and unless they do something to violate that trust, I’m going to sleep well, trusting that a few good people are working on our behalf to set things right.

The Senate may even have a plan to deal with the missing routers, logs, and passwords that the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has refused to turn over. Karen Fann has confirmed that if evidence of fraud is found, criminal referrals will be made to the Attorney General’s office. While the board may stiff-arm the Senate, the AG’s office can simply impound the subpoenaed materials. That may be why Fann isn’t pushing the issue as hard as some would prefer. I suspect that leaders in the Senate have a strategy mapped out further in advance than they can say publicly, but that just a hunch.