PHX Reporter

Abe Hamadeh, the former nominee for Arizona Attorney General, expressed his disapproval of Governor Katie Hobbs' remarks following her decision to withdraw her nominations for multiple state agency directors from Senate consideration. In a post on the X platform, Hobbs reportedly told the Senate to "drop dead" in response to their handling of her nominees.

Hamadeh criticized the governor's rhetoric, stating, "This type of rhetoric to tell elected officials to 'drop dead' is dangerous and divisive, whether it's coming from the governor or the media." He emphasized that Arizona deserves competent leaders.

Hobbs alleged that the Senate intentionally delayed the consideration of her nominees. She sent a letter to Senate President Warren Peterson, accusing the Committee on Nominations of conducting an improper review of her nominations. Hobbs primarily blamed Senator Jake Hoffman, Chair of the Committee on Nominations, and claimed that the entire process was unlawful. She also stated her intention to "pursue other lawful means of ensuring the state government can work for Arizonans", according to the letter.

The Republican majority in the Senate possesses enough votes to reject the governor's director nominees. Hobbs placed blame on Senate Republicans, while they argued that she was acting unlawfully and that her nominees were unworthy of consideration. The nominations committee previously approved Hobbs' choices for other departments, such as the Department of Public Safety and the Department of Corrections. However, they recently rejected her choice to lead the Arizona Department of Housing due to plagiarism allegations, sparking tension between the Democratic Governor and the Republican majority.

The withdrawn nominees were intended for various agencies, including lottery, tourism, environmental quality, insurance and financial institutions, gaming, housing, child safety, and veteran services. Hobbs' letter states that these nominees will now serve as executive deputy directors for up to a year without confirmation, or until the Senate resumes the regular order of confirming nominees.

In response to Hobbs' letter, Senate President Petersen criticized the move by the Executive Branch, stating, "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." He expressed concern that the legality of decisions made by state agencies would be questionable without directors in place, potentially leading to litigation against the state.

Chairman Hoffman also criticized Hobbs, accusing her of weaponizing the government of Arizona to advance her "extreme far-left agenda." He argued that the people of the state deserve highly qualified, non-partisan individuals to lead these agencies, and blamed Hobbs for the struggles faced by her nominees. Hoffman suggested that she should have done her homework before making her nominations and took responsibility for her failures.

The tension between Governor Hobbs and the Republican-controlled Senate continues to escalate as both sides clash over the nominations process and the qualifications of the nominees.