As Israel and Iran continue their conflict, Arizona’s large Iranian-American community is monitoring events closely.
Freshman U.S. Rep. Yassamin Ansari, D-Phoenix, is the daughter of Iranian immigrants who fled the county after the 1979 revolution. As the first Iranian-American Democrat in Congress, Ansari agrees there should be regime change, but does not condone the U.S. getting involved.
"Iranian people are different than their government. The regime in Iran is brutal. It is an authoritarian dictatorship and Iran should not have a nuclear weapon. But I’m very concerned about U.S. escalation in this conflict, U.S.’s role in a potential war," Ansari said.
Ansari says President Donald Trump needs authorization from Congress to declare war, and she is particularly concerned about his foreign policy decisions and mixed social media messages; including instructing Iranians to evacuate Tehran.
An estimated 25,000 Iranian-Americans live in Arizona.
-
Andy Biggs, Republican congressman and gubernatorial candidate, says he wants to get Arizona’s desalination plant in Yuma up and running. -
Rep. Andy Biggs has a track record of supporting checks on a president’s ability to engage in war activities, but he said President Donald Trump’s actions in Iran are above board. -
A majority of state senators want to ask voters to double their pay, with the claim that Arizonans may get a better, or at least broader, choice of people to represent them. -
Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly said he believes the culture at the Department of Defense and a disregard for traditional military safeguards contributed to a missile strike on an Iranian girls' school. -
The bill would eliminate income tax for people who make less than $46,000 a year.
