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The Gaggle: An Arizona politics podcast
The Gaggle: An Arizona politics podcast
Author: The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com
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Helping you keep up with what matters in Arizona's political news. Each week we interview politicians, public figures or journalists to break down one local issue and how it affects your life in Arizona.
Coming to you every Wednesday morning, The Gaggle is hosted by The Arizona Republic's national political reporters Ron Hansen and Stephanie Murray, and is produced by Amanda Luberto.
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Lawyers are there with guaranteed expertise to help sort out your issues, even when time and money can be scarce.
But the guaranteed expertise doesn't necessarily go all the way to the top. At least not in Arizona.
Now there is a stream of complaints from customers being misled, mistreated and scammed, and the Arizona Supreme Court might be rethinking its oversight.
This week on The Gaggle, we talk with an Arizona Republic reporter about her recent investigation into the Arizona Supreme Court's decision to loosen ownership rules for law firms.
Email us! thegaggle@arizonarepublic.com
Leave us a voicemail: 602-444-0804
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Guest: Laura Gersony
Hosts: Ron Hansen, Stephanie Murray
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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In late January, Homeland Security agents raided 15 locations of Valley sports bar Zipps after receiving a tip 11 months beforehand that they were employing undocumented immigrants.
E-Verify was set up in 2008 to bar the demand for illegal workers, but in 2025, the Arizona Republic found that no state law enforcement agency is routinely looking for violations. Employers often ignored it.
This week on The Gaggle, a politics podcast by The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com, we talk with someone from the Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan think tank that examines all layers of America's immigration system.
Email us! thegaggle@arizonarepublic.com
Leave us a voicemail: 602-444-0804
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Guest: Colleen Putzel-Kavanaugh
Hosts: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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There's a bitter feud between two city leaders. The mayor's top staffer is under a mysterious investigation and is being confined to his house during work hours. And the biggest controversy at the center of it all is a parking garage.
What sounds like a made-for-TV political drama is real life for Scottsdale and it's tearing the conservative-majority city government apart.
This week on The Gaggle, we talk with The Republic's Scottsdale city reporter for an update on the drama happening in the West's most western town.
Email us! thegaggle@arizonarepublic.com
Leave us a voicemail: 602-444-0804
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Guest: Shawn Raymundo
Hosts: Ron Hansen, Stephanie Murray
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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Political candidates just filed their quarterly campaign finance reports, one of the few times that the public can peek inside political campaigns to see who is giving money to politicians and what those candidates are doing with the cash.
The reports for hotly contested races like Governor, Congressional District 1 and more give us an insight into how they might do in the primaries.
So as the saying goes, this week, we follow the money.
Email us! thegaggle@arizonarepublic.com
Leave us a voicemail: 602-444-0804
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Guest: Brendan Glavin
Hosts: Ron Hansen, Stephanie Murray
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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For the second time this month, a U.S. citizen has been shot and killed by federal agents during a surge in immigration enforcement in Minneapolis.
The raids, protests and the new dimension of Second Amendment rights has gotten the attention of Arizonans as the presence of national agents has increased in the state.
This week on The Gaggle, we talk with guests on both sides of the issue as it expands in Phoenix and across the state.
Email us! thegaggle@arizonarepublic.com
Leave us a voicemail: 602-444-0804
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Guest: Erica Connell, Art Del Cueto
Hosts: Ron Hansen, Stephanie Murray
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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Being the largest county in the state, Maricopa County will play an immense role in settling Arizona's biggest races in the 2026 midterms this year.
Over the last few years, the county has done relatively well ensuring the process is safe, efficient and without major hiccups.
But that doesn't mean there haven't been problems, nor differing opinions on how to handle them.
This week on The Gaggle, we are joined by Supervisor Thomas Galvin, a Republican member of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors to talk about the county's litigious relations with Republican County Recorder Justin Heap, the future of election security, data centers and his personal advocacy for bringing hockey back to the desert.
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Guest: Maricopa County Supervisor Thomas Galvin
Hosts: Ron Hansen, Stephanie Murray
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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For the fourth time, Gov. Katie Hobbs offered her vision for Arizona's legislative priorities for 2026.
She touched on affordability and political violence, but noticeably left out some key topics.
This week on The Gaggle, we are joined by Republic reporters who cover the Governor's Office and the Arizona Legislature to walk us through what Hobbs covered in her speech and what it all means.
Email us! thegaggle@arizonarepublic.com
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Guest: Stacey Barchenger, Ray Stern
Hosts: Ron Hansen, Stephanie Murray
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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In January 2021, President Donald Trump leaned on Arizona officials to disregard the state's certified 2020 election results to present an alternative selection of electors. These Republican "fake electors" tried to deem Trump the winner in Arizona, although the state went to Joe Biden.
Years later, Democrat Kris Mayes' office got indictments of the 11 Republican electors and 7 others, but has yet to go to trial for most of the defendants.
This week on The Gaggle, we are joined by Republic reporter Stacey Barchenger. She brings us up to date on the ongoing fake electors' case, the importance it has to Mayes' bid for reelection, and if it can be closed this year.
Email us! thegaggle@arizonarepublic.com
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Guest: Stacey Barchenger
Hosts: Ron Hansen, Stephanie Murray
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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Goodbye 2025 and hello 2026!
Another packed election year is among us and races for Governor, Attorney General and more are expected to be noteworthy. The legislature will be working across the aisle (maybe) with an even tighter budget, Turning Point USA figures out who they are without Charlie Kirk and the weight of a Trump endorsement will be debated.
This week on The Gaggle, we are joined by members of the Arizona Republic politics team. In a roundtable discussion, they describe what they are watching for in Arizona politics in 2026.
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Leave us a voicemail: 602-444-0804
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Guest: Stacey Barchenger, Ray Stern, Laura Gersony, Stephanie Murray
Host: Ron Hansen
Producers: Amanda Luberto, Madison Knutson
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We are taking some time off for the holiday this week and we hope you are too! We'll be back next week, but for now, enjoy a break. Thanks for listening to us all year!
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This is normally a time when Canadians take a break from the cold and spend their time — and money — here in the desert for some sunshine. But this year, we have plenty of sunshine but a lack of Canadians.
The friendly neighbors to the north are feeling insulted and economically punished by President Donald Trump. He implemented and raised tariffs on Canadian goods and has stated that he would like to see it become the 51st state in the union.
This week on The Gaggle, we are joined by two experts to discuss the impact a lack of Canadian visitors is having on Arizona.
Read Michael's story here
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Guest: Michael Salerno, Miles Zimbaluk
Host: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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In just a few short weeks, Arizona lawmakers will return to the Capitol to work through another year's budget, consider any legislative needs and take up oversight of Gov. Katie Hobbs' administration as they see appropriate.
But lawmakers are working with a tighter purse than usual, and the looming midterm election will have a lot of influence over the decisions made and the laws that get passed.
This week on The Gaggle, we're joined by The Republic's state politics reporter Ray Stern.
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Guest: Ray Stern
Host: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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Artificial intelligence is making its way into everything in American life: the stock market, journalism, medicine and more.
Now major universities like Arizona State are buying into the future of AI by combining it with their offered education.
This week on The Gaggle, we explore the role AI has at ASU, the future of AI in universities and how the concerns are being met.
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Guest: Helen Rummel
Host: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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We are off this week to enjoy the holiday and we hope you are too. Have a safe and lovely holiday, Gaggle listeners.
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Since Charlie Kirk's death, Turning Point USA and its supporters have completed the tour he began, recently making the final stop at the University of California, Berkeley, which resulted in protests and arrests.
In some ways, the chaotic setting underscored the early turbulence for Turning Point after Kirk's death. The organization, so strongly connected to his persona, faces not only grief but pressure to reboot itself.
But the unifying power of Kirk feels missing. So, what is the future of Turning Point in the conservative ecosystem?
This week on The Gaggle, we are joined by a Republic reporter who has been covering Turning Point since Kirk's death and was in Berkeley for the last stop of that college tour.
Email us! thegaggle@arizonarepublic.com
Leave us a voicemail: 602-444-0804
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Guest: Stephanie Murray
Host: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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Adelita Grijalva is best known for not getting to start her job in an unprecedented act by Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson. After a seven-week delay, the Speaker has set a time to formally swear in Rep.-elect Grijalva for Nov 12.
She holds the key to potentially forcing a vote in the House of Representatives to release files on an investigation into Donald Trump and disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
But she is also looking forward to getting to work for her constituents.
This week on The Gaggle, we are joined by Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva to discuss the delay in her swearing-in, the longest government shutdown in history and what she wants to accomplish on Capitol Hill.
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Guest: Adelita Grijalva
Host: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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As of Nov. 3, President Donald Trump has the lowest approval rating of his second term at 37%.
This is usually a good sign for the party out of power, but disapproval in Trump isn't the whole picture. The Democratic Party is having a hard time translating criticism into support.
Through July, Republicans have gained 9 times as many new registered voters than Democrats since the November 2024 election.
This week on The Gaggle, we're joined by Democratic strategist and CNN commentator, Maria Cardona, to look at how her party is faring one year before the midterm elections.
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Guest: Maria Cardona
Host: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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In August 2023, authorities reported 82,000 migrants crossed through the Darién Gap, the jungles that separate Panama and Columbia, on their way to the United States.
In August 2025, there were seven.
In that corridor these days, more migrants are heading southward, away from the U.S. border.
This unprecedented event of reverse migration is in direct response to the Trump administration's push for border and immigration crackdowns.
This week on The Gaggle, we are joined by two reporters who recently traveled to Mexico and Panama to document these voyages.
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Guest: Daniel Gonzalez, Omar Ornelas
Host: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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It's been about a year since Sen. Ruben Gallego made history becoming the first Latino elected to the U.S. Senate from Arizona.
He is mostly known for lighting into President Donald Trump, Republican leadership and even his former opponent Kari Lake.
This week, we sit down with the senator to discuss some of what has transpired since he was elected to the Senate, what he thinks Democrats need to do next and what comes after the Trump era ends.
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Guest: Senator Ruben Gallego
Host: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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In less than a year, Arizonans will have a chance to decide who to send to Washington for the final two years of President Donald Trump's second administration.
David Schweikert stepping away from CD1 makes his open seat a hot competition for Republicans to keep and Democrats to flip.
In CD6, candidates are already lined up to take the district for the Dems away from Rep. Juan Ciscomani.
This week, we talk with a House races expert about how the races are shaping up so far, what each party has to do to win and what it would mean for the political atmosphere.
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Leave us a voicemail: 602-444-0804
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Guest: Erin Covey
Host: Ron Hansen
Producer: Amanda Luberto
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