Tucson Speaks Out: May 25

Ciscomani casts deciding vote

Trump’s “Big Ugly Tax Bill,” which benefits the filthy rich, passed the House by one vote, 215 to 214. Congressman Juan Ciscomani’s vote put Republicans over the top. The legislation cuts tens of thousands of Ciscomani’s constituents from Medicaid and SNAP food stamp programs.

Ciscomani is a sly politician. He’s not telling his voters they are severed off the government health programs until 2027, when the massive cuts go into effect, well after his 2026 midterm reelection. This is a politically expedient move by Ciscomani, who will be standing for reelection in November 2026.

Of course, he doesn’t want voters to be mad at him on election day. Little do they know what will happen to the health care of tens of thousands of souls in his district in 2027. How proud Congressman Juan Ciscomani must be to have been the vote to make a difference for “King Trump’s Big Fat for the Rich Tax Cut Bill” to pass in the House.

Jerry Wilkerson SaddleBrooke

The big bad bill

Juan Ciscomani is my U.S. Representative in CD6.

On April 15, 2025 I received a newsletter from him which stated “it is critical that we do not slash or underfund critical programs like Medicaid and SNAP.” I continued to call his offices and was reassured that Mr. Ciscomani would never vote for a bill that would cut Medicaid, SNAP or other critical programs which 77,000 of his constituents rely on.

Mr. Ciscomani voted yesterday to slash Medicaid, SNAP and Planned Parenthood.

The spending cuts in this bill are supposed to happen in 2029, the year after Trump leaves office. This means all the tax cuts would happen while Trump is president, exploding the deficit, with promises to start cutting spending in 4 years.

This is a highly regressive bill that favors the wealthy with $1.1 trillion tax cuts for incomes above $500,000, and hurts the poor, with cuts to Medicaid, ACA and SNAP of $1.1 trillion.

You, Mr. Ciscomani, have lied and lost all credibility.

Rachel Rulmyr

Northwest side

Foreign students at universities

Noem has indicated that the government’s war on Harvard’s admission of international students may be expanded to include Columbia. If this occurred in the early days of the country we could not have had benefit of the genius of Alexander Hamilton, who was a foreign born student when he enrolled in Kings College, later known as Columbia University. Narrow-minded, punitive, vindictive, petty politically based attacks on educational institutions to satisfy those of dictatorial aspirations make a sad day for this once-great nation.

Sally Wasielewski

East side

Trump unchecked

President Trump is a brilliant leader. He knows everything about anything. Just ask him. He claims winning three presidential elections and is angling to run for a fourth time despite what the Constitution says. He has unwavering support from all his appointees who have pledged total fealty to him. So we have a president who knows everything with an incompetent cabinet of yes people. The result has been a confusing four months of ever-changing, incomprehensible domestic, economic, and foreign (“policies”?) destroying our government making the rich richer and the poor poorer and making the United States less respected and less safe. His acceptance of a 14-year-old 747 jet from Qatar to be retrofitted as his presidential jet, at a cost of over a billion dollars at taxpayers’ expense, which will take longer than he has time in office. He plans to keep it after he leaves. What gall.

Michael H. Mount

Foothills

USA, climate change denier

“Not doing that climate change crud anymore.”

That’s U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. Just words? Don’t think so. Here’s what Trump is actually doing to firmly position the USA alone in the global economy as a climate change denier:

1. Obliterating existing data on climate change to stop the national discussion on mitigation — according to David Swain, UCLA climate scientist, there’s now no shared factual reality.

2. Decimating the budget of the National Weather Service — weakening our capacity to warn US citizens of upcoming hurricanes, wildfires, drought and other extreme weather events.

3. Denying climate disaster relief through FEMA — especially in “blue” states.

4. Loosening and outright removing restrictions on air pollution, which experts admonish will lead to greater emission numbers and increase global warming.

5. Overturning governmental authority to regulate greenhouse gases —effectively leaving the world’s greatest economy uninformed, unprepared and more polluted.

Trump: “Rising seas will create more oceanfront property.” This is not a trump standup routine. This is your president taking you, your children and grandchildren on a ride into hell on Earth.

Rick Rappaport

Oro Valley

A better path than bureaucracy

As an economic policy reformer and Tucson resident, I’ve spent the past year developing a policy framework called *The Prosperity Loop* — a modern alternative to the outdated welfare system.

Currently, families are penalized for earning slightly more than the qualifying thresholds for food or cash assistance. This “welfare cliff” traps people in poverty and fuels bureaucracy that serves neither dignity nor efficiency.

A Universal Basic Income (UBI) — an unconditional monthly payment for all — offers a simpler, smarter foundation. Funded by a National Wealth Fund sourced from commons revenues like carbon fees, UBI would replace red tape with stability. Programs in Alaska, Finland, and even Stockton, California, have shown that this model reduces poverty and improves well-being without discouraging work.

Instead of cutting lifelines, let’s build a 21st-century system rooted in trust, security, and shared prosperity.

Founder, ProsperityLoop.org

Scott Huette

Midtown

Maginot Line

As any strategist knows, what one individual tries to defend, another individual will overcome and destroy; case in point, the “Maginot Line” over the United States or the “Golden Dome.” At one time, President Reagan tried the “Star Wars” or Strategic Defense Initiative but was unsuccessful for the same reasons President Trump will be with his “Golden Dome”; i.e., the enemies we are defending against are very close to our technological equals, the funding of a defense scheme is more expensive that an attack strategy, covering the entire U.S. will be difficult — if not impossible — so which part of the country will be left as an open target? The technology that President Trump is so proud of will be difficult to create and fund with many of the people fired or their work places closed by his cost cutting measures — remember the nuclear technicians maintaining our nuclear arms? Mr. Trump will have to “reinvent the wheel” and recreate the scientific and research institutions which were shuttered and closed.

Richard Rebl

East side

Deciding budget vote cast by Ciscomani

Since District 6 Congressman Juan Ciscomani cast the deciding House of Representatives vote (215-214) passing President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Budget Bill,” he is now on record for cutting food benefits to low-income households (SNAP benefits would be cut by $267 billion over 10 years), as well as deep cuts of $700 billion to the Medicaid program. Medicaid changes he supported will basically turn what is now a “health care program” into a “welfare program” by requiring ill recipients to contribute 80 hours per month imposed by a new “work, education or service” provision. Mr. Ciscomani said these changes will “strengthen Medicaid by tackling waste, fraud and abuse.” While slashing services for the poor, he supported an additional $46.5 billion for the border wall and also the elimination of a $200 tax on the purchase of gun silencers, which has been in place since 1934. More deadly weapons, more border wall, and let’s make sure to “strengthen” Medicaid by cutting $700 billion! Big, yes — Beautiful, NO!

John Lillie

Foothills

Capitulating to bullies

The U of A has been nothing but a disappointment this year and last. First the mismanagement of funds and then golden parachutes for incompetence. Now we have Patricia Prelock, the U of A’s new provost, sacrificing beloved staff at the expense of students. She is waiting to make an announcement and finalize her decision on cultural centers until after students leave for summer break. The cowards on campus in positions of leadership never seem to surprise me with their lack of backbone.

We just witnessed a president speak insanity and lies to the leader of South Africa and then go hold a “pay to play” dinner with crypto-grifters for millions a pop. Money laundering and black market in the White House and capitulation at the U of A.

Patricia Prelock, your decision could be a courageous one. Even one to keep these centers “as is,” but from what I am reading tonight you have chosen a cowards retreat. Please correct me if this is wrong.

Carissa Sipp

Midtown

Differential water rates

In Tucson, we live in a bowl. That’s just our geography. From downtown it’s uphill in every direction except toward Marana. It costs a lot of money to pump and hold that water uphill. Not just for flushing toilets, that also covers firefighting.

It only seems right and fair to pay for the actual cost of getting the water there.

The perverse irony here is that Tucson Water makes more money off of the poorest person in town than the richest person in town because we all pay the same per gallon.

Here’s my idea. Charge water rates based on the actual cost of service. There are eight lift zones from downtown to Ventana Canyon so it could get pricey. Keep the same rates for the city along with county residents that are in the same or lower pressure zones. Only then will differential water rates be fair and justified.

Fred Coy

Retired Tucson Water engineer

Northwest side

Ciscomani betrays his constituents

U.S. House Rep. Juan Ciscomani is supposed to represent the nearly 800,000 people living in Congressional District 6. Instead he represents the ultra-wealthy and obeys his masters in the administration. He voted for the Trump budget plan that proposes $2.2 trillion on tax breaks for the wealthy while gutting Medicaid by nearly $800 billion. In Arizona Medicaid pays for nearly half of childbirths, for nearly half of nursing home patients, and healthcare for 3 of every 8 children. The bill he voted for cuts $294+ billion in food and nutrition assistance to families, children and nursing mothers. More than 170,000 of his constituents rely on Medicaid. He has violated his oath and betrayed the most vulnerable of his constituents. We need members of Congress who will stand up for us, not the wealthy donors and corporate influencers. Ciscomani must go.

Gail Kamaras

East side