MOHAVE COUNTY – Dist. 1 Sup. Travis Lingenfelter made an impact during his first meeting as a member of the Mohave County Board of Supervisors. Lingenfelter successfully steered the Board in the direction of possible adoption of a resolution declaring Mohave to be a Constitutional Sanctuary among Arizona counties.
Contemplation of a resolution arises from the belief of some that multiple levels of government have overreached and violated the rights of citizens and free enterprise during the nine-month long coronavirus pandemic.
The Lake Havasu Patriots group has been lobbying the board to adopt resolution 1776 which would express county opposition to any action in conflict with the state and federal Constitutions. Lingenfelter told supervisors during their Monday meeting that he engaged ASU law professor IIan Wurman to refine resolution 1776 for Board consideration.
Lingenfelter said Wurman’s draft takes issue with executive orders issued by Arizona Governor Doug Ducey during the pandemic. Lingenfelter said state lawmakers are already focused on changing the Governor’s emergency authority when the legislature convenes its 2021 session in Phoenix next Monday.
“The resolution is a strong statement from Mohave County in support of the state legislature as their session starts this month and they begin to peaceably legislate these important and contested policy questions,” Lingenfelter said.
Dist. 4 Sup. Jean Bishop said she opposes a sanctuary resolution for a number of reasons. She said she thinks adoption would
represent an admission that the county has infringed upon Constitutional liberty during COVID-19 when she doesn’t believe it has.
Bishop also said the resolution unnecessarily puts the Board of Supervisors in the position of determining the Constitutionality of one restriction or another, a job she said lies with the Courts. Deputy county attorney Bob Taylor agreed it is the Courts and not the Board that makes Constitutional determinations and he said any Constitutional resolution adopted by the county is more of a “political statement” than legal authority.
Dist. 2 Sup. Hildy Angius and Dist. 5 Sup. Ron Gould thanked Linfenfelter for involving Wurman in the resolution writing effort.
“I believe that it is a very well written document and I would support the Board adopting that resolution,” Gould said.
Bishop dissented in the 4-1 vote directing staff to use Wurman’s draft as the foundation for review in bringing a resolution back to the Board for possible approval.
Dave Hawkins
Lingenfelter being a great Constitutional expert when he can’t balance his own finances. These people are not “patriots”, but “typhoid Marys”. Why not just do away with all traffic laws, too, they infringe on “constitutional freedom”, in the name of safety. What a pile of nonsense.
Bishop needs to go. If the recall succeeds, and it likely will, Jennifer Esposito is the best Republican for the job.
ElectEsposito.com