Hobbs tells constituent “It’s none of your business” who paid for foreign trip, which local reporting shows was covered by lobbyists
GILBERT, AZ— Katie Hobbs is under fire from Arizonans for giving the “worst possible answer” when she told a constituent “It’s none of your business” who paid for her recent trip to Mexico.
Hobbs was caught at a baseball game in Mexico City when she snapped at a constituent inquiring who paid for her trip, which the Arizona Republic later reported was funded by lobbyists and would have been illegal under an ethics proposal Hobbs claimed to support.
Arizona Mirror columnist Elvia Diaz wrote:
“But when someone asked Hobbs at the game whether she had paid for the trip herself or whether it was funded with Mexican money, she fired back: “None of the above. It’s none of your business.”
That was the worst possible answer she could’ve given.”
Diaz went on to highlight an alleged pay-to-play scheme that involved Hobbs’ administration and a political donor to Hobbs who received a $4M increase of taxpayer funds:
“…Hobbs’s “it’s none of your business” reply made it weird and secretive.
Hobbs already faces an investigation into donations tied to Sunshine Residential Homes. In 2024, at Republicans’ request, Attorney General Kris Mayes opened an investigation after reports that the company got a huge state reimbursement hike after donating $200,000 Hobbs and her inauguration.
Hobbs has denied wrongdoing. The investigation is still ongoing — this week, in fact, Mayes’ office reportedly asked Hobbs for an interview over it. The governor hasn’t committed to doing so.”
Congressman Andy Biggs, the frontrunner for the GOP gubernatorial nomination, offered the following statement regarding the hypocrisy of Katie Hobbs:
“The hypocrisy and arrogance from Katie Hobbs is unacceptable but unsurprising.
Whether it’s her shadowy Inauguration Fund used to collect millions of dollars and sidestep transparency requirements, her veto of a common-sense transparency bill, or her administration’s alleged pay-to-play scheme, Katie Hobbs has consistently tried to hide the money influencing her office from Arizonans.
Now, she tells us it’s none of our business who funds foreign trips while our state’s unemployment numbers rise and our affordability ranking plummets.
She’s absolutely wrong. Arizonans deserve to know the truth about who pays politicians’ trips and who is influencing our elected officials. This is just another example of why Arizonans cannot trust Katie Hobbs.”
Read the whole column from Elvia Diaz at the link below:
