An op-ed by Leadership Now Arizona Co-Founder John Fees and former Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism at DHS Elizabeth Neumann on why business and civic leaders must confront growing political extremism and help rebuild trust in our institutions. The piece echoes their fireside chat at February’s Arizona Town Hall, reflecting on the 2024 election and what comes next.

Read the article

Leadership Now Arizona Co-Founding Member John Fees joined a town hall on improving Arizona elections, emphasizing trust, civic engagement, and collaboration. “We can do better, and we can strengthen our own dialogues just by having conversations and assuming the best between neighbors,” he said.  

Read The Article

Leadership Now Arizona founding member Adam Goodman spoke with the Washington Post following our statement condemning Shelby Busch of the Maricopa County Republican Committee for making lynching threats against fellow Republican Stephen Richer.

“Adam Goodman, a prominent businessman who leads a local organization opposing violent rhetoric and threats against election workers, condemned Busch’s comments. He said he blamed Trump for the “rise in violence and antisemitism.” Trump, he said, “has horribly failed” on setting the appropriate tone required of a national leader.

“I don’t believe it’s an idle threat, because we’ve seen too many acts of violence against election workers,” said Goodman, who describes himself as a political independent. Goodman said Busch “is sending a message to others that that is acceptable behavior.” Arizona, he said, is home to “a sector of the electorate who is not engaged with reality” and is “whipping each other up into a frenzy.”

“Violence,” he said, “is a real threat and possibility.”

Read The Article

As Arizona business and community leaders, we unequivocally condemn the threats made recently by Shelby Busch, the first vice chair of the Maricopa County Republican Committee, toward Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer.

Elections are the heart of American democracy. Officials like Stephen Richer take on the essential role of executing secure and accurate elections and must be free to do so without constant concern for their safety or that of their staff.

As members of Leadership Now Arizona, we recently issued an open letter and an op-ed reaffirming our support for these officials amidst an increasingly hostile environment, while highlighting the critical role democracy plays in our state's economic health. 

Leadership Now Arizona members will persist in speaking out and remain committed to defending our democracy from further attack.

Signed,

Adam Goodman
John Fees
Leadership Now Arizona

PDF

Op-ed in Arizona Republic by two founding members of Leadership Now Arizona, John Fees and Adam Goodman. In it, they speak to the profound risks to Arizona’s elections from violent threats against election officials – and the important role of business leaders in pushing back.

"98% of Arizonans will see the 2024 election administered by someone other than the officials who administered the 2020 election" and "45% of local election officials said they fear for the safety of their colleagues."

Read The Article