Arizona Governor Takes Her Own AG Off the Case

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer doesn't want her own attorney general to defend the state's immigration law in court. She doesn't think his heart is in it. AG Terry Goddard is a Democrat (and potential challenger in the next election) who has stated his personal opposition to the law but promised to uphold his duties as the state's top lawyer. Not good enough, said Brewer, who removed him from the case while citing a "lack of confidence" in his conviction, reports the New York Times.

It didn't help that Goddard met yesterday with representatives of the Justice Department, who are considering a federal challenge to the law, before briefing the governor's legal team. “For some inexplicable reason, the Department of Justice officials met with the Arizona attorney general hours before meeting with the State of Arizona’s legal team, and then allowed the attorney general to hold a press conference to discuss the meeting,” said Brewer in a statement. (More Arizona immigration law stories.)