GOP taunts Hobbs with a state budget that’s insulting
The Republican-run Arizona House on Monday passed a $15.8 billion state budget for the coming fiscal year that will ...
Well, no, actually, it won’t.
As a serious proposal to address the needs of the state and avoid a July 1 government shutdown, their “skinny budget” was a complete waste of time.
As political theater, however, it was the stuff of Oscars.
Cue the Republican sales job. “I voted YES on the budget today to keep the government running so no Arizonan is held hostage to special interests,” Rep. Austin Smith, R-Wittmann, tweeted. “Democrats keep threatening a veto from Katie Hobbs. They are willing to shutdown the government to protect special interests. SAD!”
“Arizona House passes budget to avoid Arizona shutdown,” House Majority Leader Leo Biasiucci, R-Lake Havasu City, tweeted. “Will Governor Hobbs Veto this bipartisan budget or will she do what’s right for every resident of Arizona?“
Seems to me a bipartisan budget would require at least one Democrat supporting it. This one passed both the House and the Senate with a bare minimum of votes, all of them Republican.
But to answer Biasiucci’s clearly rhetorical question …
“The issues Arizonans are facing require more than business as usual,” Hobbs tweeted, shortly after the budget cleared its final hurdle. “I will not sign a budget that is just more of the same and does nothing to demonstrate a desire to move our state forward.”
If Republicans had been truly interested in approving a budget that Hobbs would sign, they would have negotiated a plan with Democrats.
Instead, they demanded that Hobbs pass a supposed continuation of last year’s budget before they will even consider any of her priorities, pointing out that Democrats supported the spending plan last year.
“Democrats LOVED this budget last year,” Rep. Jacqueline Parker, R-Mesa, tweeted. “Now with their puppet Hobbs in office, they’re feeling greedy for EVEN more of your tax dollars. Don’t ever let them tell you the dems are here to get things done.”
But this budget isn’t really a continuation of last year’s budget.
It’s actually short of last year’s spending plan, given one-time spending gimmicks employed by the Legislature last year. Rep. Jake Hoffman, RQueen Creek, who along with his fellow far-right conservatives opposed last year’s budget but voted yes on Monday, told the Arizona Mirror the budget is really $2.3 billion less than last year’s spending plan.
And it contains none of the spending priorities of Hobbs, who submitted her own equally unrealistic $17.1 billion budget in January — one that had Republicans clutching for their inhalers.
Hers was an opening salvo, an invitation for negotiation.
The Legislature’s reply was the equivalent of a toddler putting his fingers over his ears and singing LA LA
that did not meet their requirements. In the end, the Fishers were able to find their “dream home in a private setting with a mountain view,” Cindy said.
House #1: Space for an RV and a ‘to die for’ yard
This 2,391-square-foot home in the Lucero community of Estrella had an RV garage fit for a car aficionado. It had space for at least five cars and was temperature controlled.
The backyard was also “to die for,” Scott said. The yard backed up to the mountains and had an outdoor kitchen, barbecue, firepit and a private pool and spa.
But the Fishers didn’t know how they would make the interior space work with furniture, and the layout of the three-bedroom, 2 1⁄2-bathroom home felt “choppy,” Scott said.
The house was originally $969,900.
listed at
House #2: Courtyard, chef’s kitchen but too-small garage
Located in the Golf Canyon subdivision of Estrella, this 3,500-square-foot home had four bedrooms and 3 1⁄2-bathrooms. It had a courtyard area in the front and a southwest style.
The couple liked the open layout of the home and the oversized chef ’s kitchen. A wall of sliding doors led to the backyard, which had a pool, firepit, covered patio and green space.
The Fishers had reservations about the garage, though. After taking measurements, Scott determined that the space was too small.
The house was originally listed at $1,150,000.
House #3: ‘Frank Lloyd Wright’ flair, spacious kitchen
The architecture of this 2,731-squarefoot
Estrella home had a “Frank Lloyd Wright” flair to it that the couple liked, said Scott.
The primary and two guest bedrooms were on opposite ends of the home, and the spacious kitchen had room for entertaining. It had quartz countertops, dark cabinets and an extended island for prep space.
Many items on the Fishers’ checklist were also ticked off with the home’s backyard: a pool, grass area and mountain views. The home was listed as having a three-car garage, one less space than Scott wanted.
This three-bedroom, three-bathroom property was originally listed at $799,000.
Which home did they choose?
The Fishers decided to pass on the home with the RV garage. They couldn’t get past its wonky layout.
The garage was the dealbreaker for the home located in the Golf Canyon subdivision of Estrella. “If I can’t get my vehicles in, I just can’t live with that,” said Scott.
The Fishers were hooked on the 2,731-square-foot home with a “Frank Lloyd Wright” flair to it. They closed on the home in December and moved in later that month.
The home sold for about $25,000 under asking.
Right now, they are relishing in the
tranquility of their new home. The Fishers have privacy from their neighbors, and their community is relatively quiet.
Scott and Cindy like to sit in their kitchen and view the rolling mountains and relax in their backyard at night.
“At the end of the day, it’s all just about sitting outside and relaxing,” said Scott.
They are planning to add an outdoor kitchen to their new home. And even though the house was listed with a three-car garage, Scott said he can still fit all their cars.