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Arizona Republic
E.J.(Ed) Montini is a political columnist at the Arizona Republic.
PROFILE
E.J. Montini
Guest
FROM E.J. Montini
To the Point
A never-Trump Republican senator says, 'Never more…' First term Arizona Republican Senator Jeff Flake is a staunch conservative, and he's voted the Party line — as defined by President Trump. But yesterday, Flake stunned his colleagues by announcing he won't run for a second term because of the President's behavior, which he called "reckless, outrageous and undignified." He told his colleagues Trump is "undermining" our democratic norms and ideals." Will other Republicans just say, "no," like Bob Corker of Tennessee? Or has the GOP become Trump's party?
To the Point
Welcome to 'Sequestration' The leaders of both parties in both Houses of Congress met for less than an hour at the White House this morning, but there was no deal to prevent $85 billion in arbitrary, federal budget cuts go into effect today. As both parties and scores of Washington veterans have been saying for months, "Sequestration" was supposedly designed so it would never happen. President Obama says there was no way he could force Congress to negotiate. Republicans, of course, blame the President . We hear about the gradual impact of sequestration across the country. Is the US in a new period of austerity?
Which Way, L.A.?
Guns and Politics in Arizona President Obama will be in Tucson tomorrow at a memorial for the six people who died in Saturday's shooting , including federal judge John Roll. Today, the relatives and friends of many other victims made public statements.
To the Point
Guns and Politics in Arizona Arizonans are divided about the direction of their state. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and the late federal Judge John Roll were both gun owners who opposed gun control . Giffords, who seems to have been the shooter's main target, warned during last year's campaign that "the rhetoric is incredibly heated," but she felt safe enough last Saturday to hold one of her "Congress on Your Corner" events in a Safeway parking lot. Are they now victims of Arizona laws allowing concealed weapons to be carried without permits, even in bars? Will Saturday's shooting lead to legislative change or will it be seen as evidence of why citizens need to be armed in case they need to defend themselves? Do permissive gun laws and Arizona's now infamous atmosphere of anger, especially about immigration , make for a dangerous combination?
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To the Point
Trump's new look at civil rights and global warming President Trump is reportedly ready to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. We look at the possible consequences. On the second half of the program, we hear about cuts in Obama-Era civil rights programs called for by the Trump Administration's first budget plan.
To the Point
The Trump agenda: where's the beef? President Trump says big things are happening. After celebrating a House bill on health care, he doesn’t yet have Senate agreement. With James Comey’s public testimony scheduled tomorrow, the President today tweeted his selection of a new FBI Director. Is the Chief Executive all style and no substance? Later, terror attacks in Iran and conflicting claims about who’s behind them.
To the Point
What happens when America retreats from the world? Is President Trump taking his "America First" agenda to extremes, withdrawing the country from the international stage on trade and climate change, distancing America from its traditional allies across the Atlantic and even threatening to physically isolate the country through the building of a wall along its southern border? León Krauze guest hosts.
To the Point
Ex-FBI Director Comey tells his side of the story Today, former FBI Director James Comey came close to calling the President who fired him a liar. The White House denied the claim and called it insulting, but Republican Senators did not challenge Comey’s truthfulness. Many questions remain: did the President try to obstruct a federal investigation? Later, we’ll go behind the “velvet rope” for a look at 5-Star health care for the richest Americans.