By Howard Fischer
Mail | X: @azcapmedia

PHOENIX — The state House approved a measure Wednesday that one lawmaker said would, for the first time ever, making lying by a political candidate a crime.

As crafted by Rep. Walt Blackman, R-Snowflake, Senate Bill 1424 would make it a felony to impersonate a veteran if it is done “with the intent to obtain money, property or any tangible benefit.” What would run afoul of the law includes everything from saying they had served to being the recipient of any sort of decoration, medal or badge that was not lawfully earned through military services.

It also is crafted to make it a crime for people to say they are combat veterans or misrepresent the conditions of discharge.

Blackman, a tank commander who served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, said the measure is designed to ensure those who have served and have earned certain honors — and who have paid for that with their blood and their lives — are not disrespected by those who “don’t have the guts” to actually enlist and earn them.

But Rep. Alexander Kolodin argued it sets a bad precedent. He said there’s no question that politicians lie. But the Scottsdale Republican said that’s a matter for voters — and not the courts — to decide.

Kolodin argued that system works, pointing out a candidate in the 2024 GOP primary who claimed military experience he did not have — a candidate who ran against Blackman — lost his race by a wide margin.

The argument drew a fiery response from Blackman.

“It’s not about political speech,” he told colleagues. “It has nothing to do with politics.”

Kolodin, however, pointed out what SB 1424 would make a felony specifically includes those who misrepresent their veteran status “in furtherance of a campaign for political office.” And that, he said, sets a bad precedent.

“In this country, we’ve had a historical tradition that says the power is in the hands of the people, the voters,” Kolodin said. “And the voters get to say if somebody is lying or not.”

This legislation, he said, takes that decision away from voters.

“This bill tells a court that you can throw somebody in jail in lying in a run for office,” said Kolodin.

Consider, he said, the promise of President George H.W. Bush in 1988, when running for reelection, who said “Read my lips: no new taxes.”

Then there was to promise by President Barack Obama, in promoting his health care program, that “if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor.” Even PolitiFact dubbed that the 2013 “lie of the year.”

“We cannot open the door to allowing our courts to judge political speech within the context of criminal law,” Kolodin said. “It’s a massive threat to the civil liberties here in this state where politicians are allowed to say what they want and the voters get to decide.”

There history behind the bill. Blackman ran to regain his seat in the House in 2024 — he had left to pursue an unsuccessful bid for Congress in 2022 — when he faced opposition from Steve Slaton.

Slaton was in the military. But he claimed he had been a combat helicopter pilot in Vietnam.

Records produced during the campaign, however, showed he was trained as a helicopter repairman and was deployed in Korea.

Blackman said this isn’t about Slaton’s campaign. He said “stolen valor” legislation like this is justified, particularly in a state like Arizona with 500,000 veterans.

“This has nothing to do with political speech,” Blackman said.

“This has to do with blood, sweat and tears that men and women have left on the battlefield,” he told colleagues. “This has to do with people lying about and making money off it.”

What that means, Blackman said, is individuals remain free to claim they are veterans. What they will not be able to do if SB 1424 becomes law is use those claims to solicit campaign contributions and seek to be elected based on those lies.

During the debate, Blackman showed off a case with his decorations. He said that, despite what some think, they are more than “just cloth.”

“Every single one of these medals that I have earned and that other people have earned is not about political speech,” he said.

“It’s about people dying for this country,” Blackman continued. “It’s about people who stand up and say, ‘Send me!’”

That he said, contrasts with those who don’t want to be sent off to war who say they’re scared — but want to wear the same medals.

“This has to do with people putting it on the line and somebody saying, ‘I want to take that from you because I don’t have the guts to do it,’” Blackman said.

While Kolodin cast the sole dissenting vote against the measure, he wasn’t the only one with concerns about the verbiage — and the precedent that would be set about using criminal laws to deal with campaign lies.

“It opens the door to a little bit of mischief,” said Rep. Joseph Chaplik, R-Scottsdale, voting for the bill but saying he hoped there would be changes when the wording is now considered by the Senate.

This is the second time Blackman got a version of his measure out of the House.

But his original bill got assigned to the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Elections, chaired by Sen. Wendy Rogers, R-Flagstaff, who had supported Slaton over Blackman.

Rogers scheduled it for a hearing but then tabled the measure even after veterans showed up to testify. She said in a statement she wanted to alter the bill “so there would be no conflicts or confusion” with federal law.

Blackman started over, tacking the new verbiage onto an unrelated bill that already has been approved by the Senate. Now, with the 54-1 House vote, it goes back for a vote of the full Senate, bypassing Rogers’ committee.