Arizona stories ready to republish | November 12, 2026

Below are today’s Arizona and national stories, available for immediate republication. You can access them via The Center Square RSS feed or BLOX Content Exchange.

Arizona Democratic Party leaders celebrate election wins
A gaggle of Democratic politicians, union leaders and progressive activists gathered to celebrate a victory six decades in the making on Tuesday morning. The cadre of political insiders were gathered on the steps of the Arizona Capitol to commemorate the Democrats’ first legislative trifecta in 60 years, with Gov. Katie Hobbs, Senate President-elect Priya Sundareshan and House Speaker-elect Oscar De Los Santos taking turns laying out the party’s goals for the new year. But a Republican - current Senate Majority Leader John Kavanagh, who will be the minority leader next year - is warning voters may have buyers' remorse as policies are reversed. By Christopher Boan.

First Democratic mine inspector in 50 years stresses safety
Arizona's newest mining inspector says he was compelled to run by the lack of action he'd seen from the industry in keeping the state's network of open and shuttered mines safe. By Christopher Boan.

Auditor closely reviews just 11 of 17,000 vendors to justify billions in increased spending
Annual vendor spending at Washington’s Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) jumped $2.9 billion in four years, but a state audit assuring taxpayers that the surge was “valid” relied on a small, hand-selected sample of just 11 vendors.

House Republicans kill attempt to impeach War Secretary Hegseth
After strenuous White House opposition, an attempt to impeach Secretary of War Peter Hegseth failed in a 211-204 vote Tuesday evening.

Hegseth calls impeachment effort 'sabotage' at Pentagon briefing
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on Tuesday denounced an effort to impeach him over his handling of the war in Iran, calling it a politically motivated attack that would embolden America's adversaries.

Three Iranian men indicted on terrorism charges in New York
Three Iranian men have been indicted on terrorism charges in New York, including for a plan to commit a terrorist attack at a British Royal Air Force Base in the U.K. to kill American servicemen and women, federal authorities said.

VA rolls out new foreclosure prevention program for veterans amid watchdog concerns
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is rolling out a new program to help veterans avoid foreclosure, but a federal watchdog is warning that the agency lacks a comprehensive plan to evaluate the program’s effectiveness.

Texas, Florida top ALEC ranking of state veterans’ policies
Texas topped Florida in a new ranking of state policies supporting veterans and military families. The Lone Star state got 66 out of 100 points in the American Legislative Exchange Council's new report, released Tuesday, a day before Veterans Day. 

Jim Jordan to be U.S. House minority leader; Emmer remains GOP whip 
In a surprising move, the U.S. House Republican Conference elected current House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, to the position of minority leader in the 120th Congress.

Thune reelected as Senate Republican leader 
The Senate Republican Conference reelected U.S. Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., as the chamber’s Republican leader. Currently the Senate majority leader, Thune will assume the position of Senate minority leader in the 120th Congress, which begins in January.

Republicans need concessions to back Democratic healthcare agenda
Congressional Republicans will not help Democrats' priorities to reverse Medicaid cuts and restore healthcare subsidies without concessions.

U.S. Supreme Court appears split on migrant labor dispute
U.S. Supreme Court justices appeared divided on Tuesday over whether administrative agencies or federal courts should adjudicate migrant farm worker disputes. 

Prices up 0.4% in October; shutdown wiped out annual inflation rate
Consumer prices rose 0.4% in October, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday, but the agency could not say how much prices have risen over the past year because last year's government shutdown erased the comparison.

🛠️ Having trouble locating The Center Square RSS feed in your CMS? Contact John Derr at [email protected].

GOP LEADERSHIP: Now that they’re the minority party in the chamber, Arizona Senate Republicans will meet Thursday to pick their leadership for the new year. The Center Square will report from the Capitol, talking with leaders to see where the GOP hopes to go in 2027. By Christopher Boan.

WHITE HOUSE LEGAL: White House Special counsel Will Scharf will speak at the Federalist Society’s National Lawyers Convention in Washington, D.C., as the Trump administration prepares face a Democratic majority in Congress. (Andrew Rice)

IBOGAINE RESEARCH: The Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Veterans Affairs will announce a new federal award supporting regulatory and manufacturing preparations for clinical trials of ibogaine as a potential PTSD treatment, part of a broader Trump administration push to advance psychedelic drug treatments for PTSD, opioid use disorder and other mental health conditions. (Morgan Sweeney)

F-35 PARTS: Taxpayers own about 26 million F-35 spare parts worth roughly $31 billion, and the Department of War cannot say where all of them are or what they cost. A Government Accountability Office report found the F-35 Joint Program Office still did not know, as of March 2026, the status of $85 million in parts a prime contractor lost between 2018 and 2022, and that the program has spent at least $17 million since 2020 on physical inventories that failed to verify what actually exists. About 17,000 parts worth $1.3 billion, possibly as much as $2.5 billion, were never entered into the program’s property system. (Brett Rowland)

RUSSIA/UKRAINE: Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff are in Moscow to meet with Putin following a trilateral meeting between the U.S., Ukraine and Russia. Discussions with Russia have been described as positive as the U.S. continues to broker a long-lasting deal to bring the more than four-year war to an end. (Sarah Roderick-Fitch)

DEMS PRESSER: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., who will likely hold the position of speaker in the 120th Congress, will hold a press conference. (Therese Boudreaux)

To view more videos, visit The Center Square YouTube channel here.

Want to embed or republish video? Just reply to this email and we’ll get you set up.

Thank you for reading today’s edition of the Arizona Daily Planner from The Center Square. As always, our reporting is available for you to republish in print or online at no cost. Information about content usage can be found in our republishing guidelines.

If you have questions, need additional context, or would like to discuss specific coverage needs, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly.

We appreciate your continued partnership in delivering impactful news to your readers.

Dave Mason
Regional Editor
[email protected]