🔥 DeSimone's Desert Dogma: Conservative Host Blames "Illegal Alien Invasion" for Tucson's Budget Woes
How fear-mongering about immigration distracts from real fiscal solutions in the Old Pueblo
This is based on Wake Up Live with Chris DeSimone, a MAGA-conservative podcast in Southern Arizona, which was broadcast by Live The Dream Media on 5/6/25.
😽 Keepin’ It Simple Summary for Younger Readers
👧🏾✊🏾👦🏾
👥 Some grown-ups in Tucson 🏙️ talk on a podcast 🎙️ about things happening in our city. They think we should spend more 💵💰 on police 👮♂️ and less on helping people who don't have homes 🏚️. They say people living on the streets 🚶♂️🚶♀️ choose to be there, but most experts 🧠 say that's not true ❌ - people become homeless because housing costs too much 💸 or they lose their jobs 🛠️ or get sick 🤒. The podcast hosts also blame people coming from other countries 🌍 for problems in Tucson. When we talk about community problems, it's important to understand the real causes 🔍 and find solutions that help everyone 🤝, not just blame certain groups of people. 🚫👥
🗝️ Takeaways
💰 Conservative host Chris DeSimone blames immigrants and government spending for Tucson's budget issues while simultaneously demanding more funding for police, exposing the contradiction in right-wing fiscal thinking
🏘️ Dr. JoAnn DeFilippo opposed affordable housing tax initiatives by claiming homelessness is primarily "by choice," perpetuating harmful stereotypes that prevent systemic solutions
🗳️ Republican candidate Janet Wittenbraker casually referenced the "stolen" 2020 election, normalizing dangerous election denialism in local politics
👮♀️ The podcast revealed how conservatives selectively support labor rights when they benefit police unions, while typically opposing them for other public employees
🔊 Throughout the show, guests promoted fear-based narratives about crime, homelessness, and immigration that serve to divide the community rather than build collective solutions
Desert Dissonance: A Mayor-in-the-Making's Microphone
The morning sun beats down on Tucson's parched political landscape, where conservative voices like those on "Wake Up Live with Chris DeSimone" continue to dominate local discourse with their particular brand of desert dogma. What makes yesterday's episode especially piquant? Our host is now a mayoral candidate for Oro Valley, transforming this podcast from simple commentary to potential campaign platform.
As your guide through this cacti-filled campaign trail, I tuned into what amounts to DeSimone's unofficial stump speech – a veritable sonic saguaro of conservative talking points, with prickly perspectives on immigration and the occasional revealing bloom of political aspiration.
The podcast's studio may be air-conditioned, but with DeSimone's mayoral ambitions now out in the open, the temperature of his rhetoric takes on new significance. Let's unpack what happened when the would-be mayor and his revolving door of guests took to the microphones to discuss our region's pressing issues – and perhaps more importantly, how these views might shape Oro Valley's future leadership.
The Budget Mirage: A Mayoral Candidate's Fiscal Platform
Now throwing his hat into the Oro Valley mayoral ring, DeSimone kicked off with what could easily double as campaign talking points – a critique of Tucson's budget that might preview his fiscal approach should he win the mayor's chair. With sidekick "Malta Joe" nodding along, our mayoral hopeful painted a picture of fiscal irresponsibility while simultaneously demanding more police funding. Talk about having your budget cake and eating it too!
"They're at their highest budget ever," DeSimone complained, noting the increase from "$1.3 billion in 2020" to "$2.4 billion" today, before claiming officials "don't have any money for cops."
Right, because budget increases couldn't possibly be addressing infrastructure needs, climate resilience, or housing – it must be wasteful spending on... what exactly? The conservative boogeyman du jour?
Most telling was our aspiring mayor's casual aside blaming immigration enforcement: "Hopefully they're not spending time facilitating an illegal alien invasion of America. So now Border Patrol customs can do their real job."
There it is – the reflexive pivot to demonizing immigrants, a campaign classic as reliable as monsoon season. Should we expect similar rhetoric in upcoming Oro Valley debates? The implication that addressing humanitarian needs at the border is somehow an "invasion" deliberately orchestrated by local officials offers a concerning preview of potential policy priorities.
What went conveniently unexamined by the mayoral candidate was how corporations and wealthy property owners continue benefiting from tax breaks while essential services strain under increasing demand. No mentions of how regressive taxation disproportionately burdens working-class residents. No recognition that adequately funding both social services AND public safety is entirely possible with progressive taxation models.
But why let evidence-based policy solutions get in the way of a good immigrant-blaming campaign platform?
JoAnn DeFilippo: Affordable Housing Mythmaker
The temperature rose further when Dr. JoAnn DeFilippo called in to discuss Pima County politics and proposed property tax increases. DeFilippo's target was Matt Heinz's three-cent property tax increase, which would address affordable housing.
DeFilippo framed this modest investment in housing as some sort of socialist plot: "These truly are these socialist movements," she declared, as though ensuring people have roofs over their heads was tantamount to seizing the means of production.
But her most harmful rhetoric came when discussing homelessness: "I do not confuse those lacking affordable housing with the homeless who choose to be there. Do not confuse that because there's a huge difference."
Choose to be there? As though people wake up one morning and think, "You know what would be fun? Living in a wash during monsoon season!"
DeFilippo doubled down with a dubious statistic: "Wasn't it that 80-20 split? [...] Only 20% of the people really had what we would identify as the reasons for being homeless, and the other 80% of them were by choice."
This deliberate mischaracterization flies in the face of extensive research showing homelessness results from systemic failures: unaffordable housing, inadequate mental health resources, domestic violence, medical bankruptcies, and yes, substance abuse – which itself is often a symptom rather than a cause.
When DeSimone added, "Yes. They're on the streets because they're on drugs, Jackass," the conversation plunged further into dehumanizing territory.
Because obviously, the solution to addiction is criminalization and contempt, not healthcare and compassion. How's that "war on drugs" working out after five decades?
This framing of homelessness as a moral failure rather than a policy failure serves a clear purpose: shielding wealthy interests and policymakers from accountability while stigmatizing vulnerable communities. It's a narrative that conveniently absolves us from collective responsibility and justifies inaction on affordable housing.
Janet Wittenbraker: Swimming Against Tucson's Blue Tide
The show's next segment featured Republican candidate Janet Wittenbraker, running for Tucson's Ward 3 council seat. Her interview revealed both the challenges conservatives face in Democratic-leaning Tucson and the concerning rhetoric they deploy to gain traction.
Wittenbraker, who has previously run unsuccessfully for mayor and district supervisor, recounted her political awakening while working in the city manager's office: "That's when it occurred to me that the city government or your county government has just a direct impact on how you live your life every day, your quality of life."
Fair enough – local government matters enormously. But Wittenbraker's conception of "quality of life" quickly narrowed to complaints about homeless encampments near her home at "Prince and Campbell."
"I woke up this morning to gunshots in my neighborhood," she claimed, immediately connecting this to homelessness. "They've given carte blanche to the homeless to start sleeping in our washes. They're destroyed. They're filled with trash, drugs, fecal matter, PCs, and they also caught on fire."
Notice how "they" – homeless residents – are framed as invaders rather than community members experiencing crisis. The dehumanization is as stark as our desert landscape.
What's missing from this narrative? Any recognition that those experiencing homelessness are Tucsonans too, deserving of dignity and solutions beyond criminalization. Any acknowledgment that affordable housing, mental health services, and addiction treatment would address these issues more effectively than enforcement alone.
Most alarming was Wittenbraker's casual endorsement of election denialism. Speaking about her campaign volunteer, she stated: "She was, you know, a political agnostic... And then they stole our election in 2020."
This dangerous falsehood – soundly rejected by courts, election officials of both parties, and reality itself – went completely unchallenged by DeSimone. The normalization of this anti-democratic lie reveals how deeply election conspiracy theories have penetrated local conservative discourse.
Christopher Knapp: A Badge-ing Labor Rights Issue Reveals Mayoral Motivations
In a fascinating display of ideological flexibility (or perhaps potential voter outreach?), the show's final guest was Detective Christopher Knapp from the Oro Valley Police Officers Association. As Knapp discussed contract negotiations with town management, our mayoral candidate DeSimone suddenly transformed into a champion of worker representation – a position worth noting as he seeks to lead the very town where these negotiations are occurring.
Knapp described concerning negotiation tactics: "The town manager blocked those meetings. He came in and said that according to the town code, four dash eight dash one, we're not allowed to meet with Mayor and Council."
DeSimone, typically not a friend of unions or labor rights when they involve teachers or healthcare workers, was suddenly outraged: "Your attorneys have already addressed the town on it, and we're in a legal battle. You mean just like every other citizen in Oro Valley?"
Funny how labor rights become sacred when the workers in question wear badges – or perhaps when their votes might help in an upcoming mayoral race, isn't it?
The segment revealed the interesting position DeSimone might find himself in if elected – having championed police association rights as a podcaster, would Mayor DeSimone maintain that position when sitting across the negotiation table? This contradiction between conservative anti-union rhetoric and pro-police union advocacy could create some awkward governing moments.
Knapp's concerns about negotiation transparency were legitimate. He described how town management tried to prevent officers from speaking to elected officials or media: "We're not allowed to speak to any media related to any media unless they agreed in that we agreed on what was being presented."
These are genuine threats to democratic accountability that Mayoral Candidate DeSimone rightly questioned. But where is this passionate defense of transparency and democratic process when it comes to, say, teachers' unions or environmental advocates? And more importantly, how would Mayor DeSimone handle these same negotiations from the other side of the table?
From Campaign Trail to Community Path: A More Inclusive Vision
The desert has always been a teacher of resilience, where life thrives despite harsh conditions by building community and sharing resources. This wisdom points toward a better path forward than the divisive rhetoric we heard in this episode.
As DeSimone campaigns for Oro Valley's top spot, voters might want to consider: do solutions to our region's challenges lie in criminalizing poverty, demonizing immigrants, and pushing austerity politics? Or do they lie in building communities where everyone has access to dignity, shelter, opportunity, and voice?
True leadership means recognizing that community safety comes through investment in people – healthcare, education, economic opportunity – not just policing. It means acknowledging that housing affordability affects everyone from young families to seniors on fixed incomes. It means understanding that scapegoating immigrants for budget woes is neither factual nor productive for our uniquely multicultural borderlands.
Oro Valley voters deserve candidates who unite rather than divide and who see all residents as worthy community members rather than sorting them into "deserving" and "undeserving" categories. The upcoming election offers a choice between fear-based politics or community-centered leadership.
The saguaros that define our landscape don't survive by hoarding resources—they thrive by developing extensive root systems that support the entire desert ecosystem. Perhaps our political leaders could learn from these ancient desert dwellers.
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Quotes
Chris DeSimone on immigration: "Hopefully they're not spending time facilitating an illegal alien invasion of America. So now, you know, Border Patrol customs can do their real job." (Discussing Tucson's budget and border enforcement)
Chris DeSimone on homelessness: "They're on the streets because they're on drugs, Jackass." (Responding to Dr. DeFilippo's comments about homelessness)
Dr. JoAnn DeFilippo on affordable housing tax: "These truly are these socialist movements." (Referring to Matt Heinz's proposed property tax increase for affordable housing)
Dr. JoAnn DeFilippo on homelessness: "I do not confuse those lacking affordable housing with the homeless who choose to be there." (Claiming most homeless people choose their situation)
Janet Wittenbraker on the 2020 election: "And then they stole our election in 2020." (Casual reference to debunked election conspiracy theories)
Christopher Knapp on negotiation restrictions: "The town manager blocked those meetings... we're not allowed to meet with Mayor and Council." (Describing concerns about Oro Valley police contract negotiations)
Janet Wittenbraker on crime: "I woke up this morning to gunshots in my neighborhood." (Connecting crime to homeless encampments near her home)
People Mentioned and Quotes
Chris DeSimone: Host of the Wake Up Live podcast and conservative commentator and Oro Valley mayoral candidate who stated, "We're down Maslow's hierarchy of needs right now" when discussing Tucson's problems.
Malta Joe: Co-host or producer of the show, who shared anecdotes about meeting rock musicians.
Dr. JoAnn DeFilippo: Conservative commentator on Pima County politics who claimed, "Anybody who votes for this property tax increase, I suggest you start looking for another job come 2026."
Janet Wittenbraker: Republican candidate for Tucson's Ward 3 who stated, "We have a council that generally votes in lockstep with a radical ideology."
Christopher Knapp: Detective with the Oro Valley Police Department and head of their police association, who said, "We thought... there was no indication of this happening" regarding negotiation problems.
Matt Heinz: Pima County Supervisor referenced for his property tax proposal for affordable housing.
Kevin Dahl: Current Ward 3 councilmember criticized by Wittenbraker for allegedly being unresponsive.
Jeff Wilkins: Oro Valley Town Manager described as creating barriers to police union negotiations.
Doug Ducey: Former Arizona Governor briefly mentioned in a critical comment about treatment of nurses during COVID-19.
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