Feely makes racist, false claim blaming immigrants for housing crisis
The housing crisis is real. But numerous studies show that immigration is not the driving force behind it.
By Morgan Fischer
June 25, 2026
The housing crisis is real. But numerous studies show that immigration is not the driving force behind it.
Jay Feely is hardly the Trumpiest candidate in the GOP primary race for the Phoenix- and Scottsdale-based Congressional District 1, a title that may rightfully belong to former state Rep. Joseph Chaplik. But at Wednesday’s GOP debate, the Trump-endorsed Feely did his best to live down to the MAGA mantle.
Specifically, when asked about affordability issues in Arizona, the former NFL kicker xenophobically scapegoated immigrants, falsely blaming rising housing costs on the state’s undocumented residents. He also pejoratively referred to those residents as “illegals,” a descriptor that stigmatizes a largely brown-skinned group of people, many of whom have lived productive and law-abiding lives in Arizona for years.
