Recall Pearce turns in more than 18,000 signatures

Arizona had a good day today...and Russell Pearce had a very bad day.

Today was a "historic" day, as described by Chad Snow, chairman of Citizens for a Better Arizona.. 

For the the first time in Arizona history, a sitting legislator faces a recall election.

For the first time in US history (as far as anyone can find, anyway), a sitting state senate president faces a recall election.

Monday afternoon, hundreds of supporters, ages 8 to 80, of the Recall Pearce initiative gathered at the state capitol to help turn in the petitions circulated by more than 300 volunteers who gave up their weekends and evenings to work for a better Arizona.

Reports were that Pearce was at the Capitol Monday but didn't meet with the Recall supporters, nor did he answer media questions.

They turned over 18,000 signatures, more than the number of votes Pearce received last November.

Now the process of certifying the signatures begins.  My expectations are that Pearce and his allies, which include both the governor and the secretary of state, will do everything they can to derail the movement.

When this effort began in January, many skeptics (and I freely admit, I was one of the skeptics) didn't believe that Randy Parraz and the rest of the Citizens for a Better Arizona crew could pull it together and pull it off, but they did, and regardless of whatever games the Pearce and his friends play with the certification process, all of the Citizens for a Better Arizona deserve our thanks.

Arizona Capitol Times coverage here

Arizona Republic coverage here.

Phoenix New Times coverage here.


Some pics of the day today, courtesy Robert Hääscħ, via the Recall Pearce Facebook page -

Marching from the Senate building to the Executive Tower

Filling the entrance of the Tower

Randy Parraz explaining a chart showing the number of sigs gathered

Crates full of petitions

The story of the end of Pearce's political career, if this leads to that outcome, won't be titled  "For Who The Bell Tolls" (that's been taken already by some no-name hack :)) ), ir'll be "For Whom The Papers Riffle."  Not as profound a title, but it may have as profound a meaning...

Debt Ceiling Up For A Vote Tomorrow; Nationwide Default Imminent

After weeks of posturing and playing chicken with America's economic stability (and fiscal credibility), House Republicans are bringing H.R. 1954, raising the government's debt limit, to the floor for a vote Tuesday evening.

It's a vote designed to fail - they're bringing the bill to the floor under "suspension of the rules," meaning that it will require a 2/3 vote to pass.

There are 432 members of the House right now, and 2/3 of that total is 288.  That means that if all 192 Democrats in the House voted to raise the debt limit, the measure would still need 96 Republicans to vote for it in order to pass.

However, not every D will vote for it  (though the vast majority will) plus some will be absent (i.e. - Gabby Giffords).  In other words, H.R. 1954 will need the support of somewhere between 102 and 106 Rs to pass.

Probably not going to happen.  Most of them are more interested in adhering to their economic nihilist ideology than in actually governing.

The move to require a 2/3 vote, however, frees up any Republican who is from a district that is more moderate than they are to vote for raising the debt ceiling without, you know, actually raising the debt ceiling.

The vote is scheduled for ~6:30 p.m. Eastern, or 3:30 p.m. Arizona time.  The debate on the matter will be earlier in the day, late morning or early afternoon Arizona time.

Government Executive magazine, a publication of the National Journal, offers a list of likely ramifications of default here.  For readers who believe that ultimately the Republicans will do the responsible thing here, read the list.

There's nothing on the list that the Republicans harbor any serious objections toward.

Remember

Picture of Arlington National Cemetary, Memorial Day 2010, gratefully borrowed from Arlington's website.

Courtesy the National Archives,  the state-sorted roll calls of

- WW II Army and Army Air Force dead is here

- WW II Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard dead is here

- Korean War dead is here

- Vietnam War dead is here.

An Arizona Republic article from 1999, archived by BYU, with links to lists of Arizona's war dead, is here.

2012 committees update

Edited/corrected on 5/29 per an email from frequent reader and commenter Thane.  Thanks Thane!

Edited on 5/30 per an observation from commenter Steve, to clarify some poorly crafted language.  Thanks Steve!

Things have been fairly quiet on the committee formation front, but a few new ones sprung up since the last update.

For U.S. Senate -

Douglas McKee of Ft. Mohave has filed for the Republican nomination.  Ft. Mohave (population ~14K), between Lake Havasu City and Bullhead City in the northwest corner of the state probably isn't the best place from which to launch serious statewide campaign, but I did a quick Google search on him.  His Twitter feed is here, his "fathers' rights" website is here.

Richard Grayson of Apache Junction has filed for the Green Party nomination.  He's run against Jeff Flake, the expected Republican nominee next year, in the past and is making another run.


For U. S. House -

No new committees that I could find


For statewide office -

Ken Bennett has filed an exploratory committee for a 2014 run for governor.  Not "new" news, but I hadn't found the committee on the Secretary of State's, aka, his, website.


For Arizona Legislature -

Adam Kwasman has filed for the Republican nomination for LD26 House.  According to his Linkedin page, he was the campaign manager in 2010 for Jesse Kelly's failed bid for Gabby Giffords' CD8 House seat.  The LD26 House seats are currently held by Republicans Terri Proud and Vic Williams, though after redistricting they could all end up in separate districts.

Robert McDonald Jr. has filed for the Democratic nomination for LD18 Senate.  He ran in 2010, coming in second in the Democratic primary to Andrew Sherwood.


Other state-level committees -

The Republicans have formed a committee to oppose the recall of Sen. Russell Pearce.  Yes, it's officially "non-partisan" but it is chaired by Matt Tolman, Pearce ally and friend, and more importantly for this post, former 2nd Vice Chair of the AZGOP and Chair of the LD18 Republican Party.  His Linkedin page is here.


City of Phoenix -

Phoenix' general election is in August, with the runoff (if necessary) in November.  Candidate petitions are due June 1, so I won't go over the whole list of candidates yet (mostly because it hasn't been finalized yet), but some candidates have already been certified for the ballot -

Greg Stanton for Mayor

Eric Frederick, Gary Whalen, and Thelda Williams for City Council, District 1

Jim Waring for City Council, District 2

Brenda Sperduti and Daniel Valenzuela, City Council, District 5

Arthur Olivas Jr., City Council, District 7


Tempe and Scottsdale -

There don't seem to be any new committees that I could find.



Later!

Legislative Republicans Still Scheming To Topple Voter Protection Act

The 2011 session of the legislature just ended but the Republicans in the lege are already planning for 2011.

One of the few things, perhaps the only thing, preventing the legislature from laying complete waste to Arizona's already weak societal infrastructure has been the Voter Protection Act.  The VPA, also known as "Proposition 105" was an amendment to the Arizona Constitution approved by the voters that effectively bars the legislature from interfering with any voter-approved initiatives (there are exceptions, but it takes a 3/4 vote and must further the intent of the initiative).

That safeguard has prevented the legislature from utterly destroying public education, early childhood health care, and AHCCCS, Arizona's Medicaid program (though they are trying that last anyway).

The Republicans in the lege have made periodic attempts to circumvent or overturn the measure, but those attempts have been rebuffed each time.

However, those Republicans are nothing if not persistent.  They are talking about going after the VPA again next session.

From the Arizona Capitol Times, by Jeremy Duda -

The chorus of lawmakers calling for an overhaul of the Voter Protection Act quieted to a low murmur in 2011, but supporters say the dormant issue will be back on the Legislature’s agenda next year.


Several Republican legislators said they will revive their plans to change Proposition 105, the 1998 ballot measure that strictly limits the Legislature’s ability to tamper with voter-approved measures. Legislative wins on a pair of big-ticket ballot measures, along with a standard informal agreement to steer clear of referenda in non-election years, helped keep the issue on the shelf.

Rep. Chad Campbell, House Democratic leader, was quoted in the article.

“The voters have shown time and time again that they do not want the Legislature undermining their ability to run initiatives and protect their interests. And I don’t blame the voters for that. I would agree with them.”

That pretty much sums up my take on this.  The Republicans will posture all they want, and maybe do even more to cripple the state's fiscal situation in an attempt to scare the voters into rolling over for the anti-society agenda pushed by the GOP pooh-bahs. 


However, the voters haven't done so before now, and with the growing dissatisfaction with the cold-heartedness (cutting education to pay for tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy) and corruption (Fiesta Bowl junkets, anyone?), they aren't likely to trust any ballot measure the legislature pushes targeting the voters' will.

Note:  right now, the Cap Times' piece isn't behind a paywall, but it soon could be.

The Arpaio Scandals: It's getting where you need a scorecard to tell them apart

With the latest scandal to hit Sheriff Joe Arpaio's Maricopa County Sheriff's Office this week, the arrest of three MCSO employees for involvement with drug and human-trafficking cartels, it seems as if the scandals could form their own baseball team.  Here's the lineup:

Leading off and playing center field, the fleet-footed rookie above

Batting second and playing second, the politically motivated investigations and indictments of Maricopa County supervisors and Arpaio political adversaries Don Stapley and Mary Rose Wilcox

Batting third and playing left field, the politicall motivated investigation of and charges levelled against a county judge who failed to kiss Arpaio's behind

Hitting cleanup and playing first, the news that Arpaio and his office misspent almost $100 million of jail funds

Hitting fifth and playing the hot corner (3rd base for the heathens out there :) ), former Chief Deputy Dave Hendershott, who's as famous for taking one for the team as he is for hitting them out of the ballpark

Batting sixth and catching, Joel Fox and the SCA laundered campaign contributions/depraved attack ad

In the seventh spot and playing shortstop, the new linchpin of Arpaio's defense, Bill Montgomery and the hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of campaign finance violations

Batting eighth and playing right field, the Taj Mahal of buses, ostensibly purchased to transport prisoners, but now used to throw loyalists under in hopes that the bodies will stave off a federal indictment

And batting ninth and pitching, the master of distraction, Joltin' (rhymes with Revoltin'), Joe Arpaio.

The MCSO scandal bench is pretty deep - dead bodies at the hands of his detention officers, millions of dollars in lawsuits, junkets to Honduras to "train" the military there, just months before a right-wing military coup there, and more await their turn at the plate.

His team does have one glaring weakness - his star relief pitcher and biggest ally at the legislature, State Senator Russell Pearce, has troubles of his own.  Like a growing recall effort and a son who has been sentenced to a year in prison.  Wonder if he's going to do his time in  a luxury hotel room one of the private prisons that his father so ardently supports?

Fortunately for Arpaio, if this lineup ever sees a game, the umpire will be a federal judge, not any of the Maricopa County judges that he has tried to intimidate.

Unfortunately for him though, if this lineup ever sees a game, the opposing team captain won't be the prosecutor he's hired for his team, it'll the the US Attorney.

Schweikert makes pronounceement: Gutting Medicare is "honorable"

Big hat tip to David Safier at Blog For Arizona for noticing this.

ABC News featured an interview today with CD5's Congressman David Schweikert.  He spent his time whistling past the graveyard over the Republican loss in NY-26 last night, something which most observers (including me) attribute to the Republican candidate's whole-hearted embrace of the plan to turn Medicare into a corporate voucher plan.

Among the "highlights" -

Destroying Medicare is "based on the math."

Destroying Medicare will "save the republic."

Destroying Medicare is "the honorable" thing to do.

At the end of the interview, there was a staged, "awww, isn't that cute moment" moment with Schweikert's dog, Charlie.  Schweikert called to the dog to get him to jump up, but had to tug on his leash to get Charlie to move for the camera.

Wonder if Schweikert will be surprised when the seniors and working families that he is throwing under the bus tug on his leash?

There's a new third rail in American politics tonight

Social Security used to be called the "third rail" of American politics, implying that any politician that tried to touch it would see their political career shocked to death.

While Social Security is still vitally important to most Americans, a Republican in upstate New York learned tonight that there is a second "third rail" - Medicare.

From Talking Points Memo -

Democrat Kathy Hochul Wins Upset In NY-26, Medicare Vote Key To Victory


Republicans are going to have plenty of questions about their plan to turn Medicare into a voucher program tomorrow morning after Democrats romped to an improbable victory in a special election focused almost entirely on the issue.


Democrat Kathy Hochul lead 48-43 with over 83% of the votes counted and her victory looks to be a strong one -- the Associated Press called the race within an hour of the polls closing.

Look for Republican wags across the nation to blame the loss on the presence of a third candidate, a tea party type, in the race.

Just remind them that Hochul received approximately twice as large a percentage of the vote (48%) as the Democratic candidate in the same district received just six months ago (24%).

That's not the fault of the tea party type.

In spite of the loss, look for R office holders and seekers to double down on the "destroy Medicare" plan - they'd rather go down in flames than to admit they're wrong.

To those Republicans I say this (and I'm showing my age :) ) -

Keep on keepin' on - 2012 will be here soon.

Kirk Adams and Sal DiCiccio pass on the Kool-Aid in favor of a tall glass of Whine

And the Night Of Picking On Republicans continues... :)

On Thursday, the Goldwater Institute,  Arizona's corporate lobbyist organization masquerading as a right wing "think tank," will host Steven Greenhut, the writer of the anti-worker propaganda tome book called  Plunder: How Public Employee Unions are Raiding Treasuries, Controlling Our Lives and Bankrupting the Nation.

The "special guests" on Thursday?

- Sal DiCiccio, the member of the Phoenix City Council who was behind SB1322, the misbegotten proposal to privatize city services in Phoenix and Tucson (which passed the lege, only to be vetoed by Jan Brewer.  Turns out that she likes him as much as the rest of us. :) ).

- Kirk Adams, former Speaker of the Arizona House and current candidate for Congress (in a district to be determined later) and sponsor of a pension "reform" bill during this past session of the lege that erodes the pensions of public employees.

The name of the event is "How Public Servants Became our Masters & What We Can Do about It".

Wonder if anybody at GI noticed the irony there? 

Both DiCiccio and Adam have been, are, and will continue to be "public servants."

I'll leave it to blunter people than me to speculate on the quality and price tag to the public of that "public service" but the simple fact is that both of them collect publicly-funded paychecks or have in the past and are campaigning to do so in the future.

I have no question that Adams and DiCiccio will gloss over that little fact during their "discussion" but I do have one question -

Which one is going to bring the crackers, and which one will bring the cheese?

Republican leader: No help for Joplin unless there are cuts elsewhere

From Politico, written by Jake Sherman -

The No. 2 House Republican said that if Congress doles out additional money to assist in the aftermath of natural disasters across the country, the spending may need to be offset.

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said “if there is support for a supplemental, it would be accompanied by support for having pay-fors to that supplemental.”

Cantor is one of the 233 House Republicans who voted to protect subsidies to Big Oil and one of the 235 who voted to destroy Medicare.

Well, say what you want about Cantor and his ilk, (like Arizona's Jeff Flake, David Schweikert, Trent Franks, Ben Quayle, and Paul Gosar) nobody can deny his consistency.

Travis Waldron at ThinkProgress has his take here.

Jan Brewer and Tom Horne seek to overturn November's election results

...Of course, they only want to change the part of the election results they don't like, not the part that gave them their current jobs...

From the Tucson Sentinel, by Dylan Smith -

Gov. Jan Brewer and Attorney General Tom Horne will ask a federal court to determine if Arizona's new medical marijuana law is legal, they announced Tuesday.

The two said court action is needed to determine if the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act violates federal law.

The state will seek a declaratory judgment regarding the measure, Brewer said.

It's kind of interesting that Republicans are all for "following the will of the people" - except when the "people" support something they don't approve of, like Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, comprehensive immigration reform, or, as in this example, medical marijuana.

Brewer's press release is here.

BTW - Ummm...didn't we just get through a legislative session where Republicans all over the Capitol spent their days proudly thumbing their noses at the feds?  You'd think they'd be proud of something that the AZ voters did that those feds may not like...

Maricopa County Politics: the very definition of "small world"

Item one:  Witness one Mark Goldman, attorney.  A former deputy Maricopa County Attorney, he was heavily involved in the case ginned up by former Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas against Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley, a political rival of Thomas' biggest political ally, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

Item two:  Witness Dennis Wilenchik, attorney.  At one point in time, his firm employed Thomas.  When Thomas became county attorney, Wilenchik's firm received oodles of private contracts from MCAO, essentially using public funds to pay Wilenchik et. al. to serve as Thomas' political hatchetmen "special prosecutors".  Cases included (but were hardly limited to) the persecution and arrest of the publishers of the Phoenix New Times for their coverage of Arpaio and his misdeeds.

Item three:  Goldman, like Thomas, worked for Wilenchik at one point (see the link in the first item).

Item four:  Goldman is the attorney for State Senator Scott Bundgaard in his "domestic violence" case.

Item five:  Jason Rose, the AZ Republicans' resident PR guru, is Bundgaard's PR guy, helping him deal with the fallout from the domestic violence incident.  Bundgaard's case is still pending, in Phoenix Municipal Court, but I'm not sure.  Their records don't seem to be available online.  However, I can find no mention of the case in the Maricopa County court system's records.

Item six: Arpaio incurred fines of over $75K over illegal campaign finance activity when his campaign spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on advertising that supported Bill Montgomery, a Thomas ally, over Rick Romley, a Thomas and Arpaio adversary, in the race to fill Thomas' unexpired term as CA.

All of which leads to item seven:

A Paradise Valley-located fundraiser for Montgomery, scheduled for Wednesday evening.

Organized by Goldman, it boasts a host committee (aka - list of big $ contributors) that includes Goldman, Wilenchik and Rose.

It also boasts of a "special appearance" by Arpaio, and curiously, Joe Miller, the candidate for U.S. Senate in Alaska who lost to Lisa Murkowski, who ran as a write-in candidate.  Maybe Miller will take the time to bring a housewarming gift to his friend Sarah Palin at her new digs in north Scottsdale.

Goldman's political fundraising LLC, GoldmanSmith, was incorporated in April, shortly after folks started figuring out that Bundgaard's "domestic violence incident" wasn't going to go away.  It's got a bare-bones website, and only one event listed - this one.

I don't know what sort of concoction they are brewing up over in PV, but given the ingredients include a number of people with large amounts of money and a personal or professional need for a "friendly" county attorney, whoever is standing over the cauldron better be able to stir with one hand.

The other holding will be holding their nose.

Have any Arizona legislators taken a trip to Maine recently?

From the Morning Sentinel (of Maine), written by Erin Rhoda -

WATERVILLE -- A state representative from Garland was arrested Saturday morning for pointing a handgun at a man at point-blank range in a Dunkin' Donuts parking lot.


The legislator, Republican Frederick L. Wintle, 58, faces a felony charge of criminal threatening with a dangerous weapon and a misdemeanor charge of carrying a concealed weapon for pulling a gun on Morning Sentinel photographer Michael Seamans, of Sidney, in a public area near a busy road.

One can reasonably expect this sort of behavior out of some of Arizona's Republicans, given their history of gun-fetishist behavior, and it's not much of a surprise when you see it in certain Western or Plains states (i.e. - Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, etc.), but the farther north and east one goes in this country, the less one expects to find occurrences of it.

And you don't get any more north and east than Maine.

Of course, it's easy to see the difference between Maine and Arizona (aside from Maine having winters straight out of a Jack London novel :) ) -

- In Maine, when a lawmaker engages in violent behavior, the leader of his caucus (in this case, the Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives) wants him barred from the House.

- In Arizona, when a lawmaker engages in violent behavior, the leader of his caucus (in this case, the President of the Arizona State Senate), declares that he is the victim and defends the lawmaker in question and not the real victim.

Short Attention Span Musing

...Late this week, the state elections director announced that she made a "mistake" in the timetable for forcing a recall election of Russell Pearce in November, meaning that any such election is now delayed until March of next year.

Has anyone else noticed that Amy Bjelland, the state elections director made the "mistake" benefitting Senator Russell Pearce, the current president of the state senate, was formerly the legal counsel for the Republicans in the state senate? 

Before she went to work for her current boss, Ken Bennett, who used to be a former Senate president himself? 

That many coincidences strains credibility.

I know a lot of good people (in other words, not people who support Pearce) who truly believe Bjelland made an honest mistake.  However, and maybe this just means that I'm not a good person, or perhaps just simply too cynical, but I don't believe that.

...Now that the latest "rapture" is over, it's time to take stock.  Of the 61 legislative Republicans, most of whom trip over themselves proving their devoutness whenever the opportunity presents itself...in front of TV cameras, anyway...how many are missing?  Surely at least a dozen or so must have been scooped up, right?

...Rumor has it that Sarah Palin is moving to north Scottsdale.  I don't know if it is true, but if it is, David Schweikert, Jeff Flake, and Jan Brewer better watch their backs.  One of them will have a target on it.

...Too funny for any words that I can add to it:  Newt Gingrich, Dancing Queen.


Later...

Pearce recall update: state elections director does what Pearce couldn't - delay his recall election

Arizona has long been a "pre-clearance" state, subject to US Department of Justice oversight of the state's elections and processes.  While the latest "incident" probably won't garner specific attention from the DOJ (read: an investigation and an indictment), it does illustrate the reason why Arizona has spent decades as a pre-clearance state -

These people are morally incapable of simply just doing the job right and letting candidates succeed or fail on their own merits.

From the Arizona Republic, written by Jim Walsh -

Arizona's elections director said she inadvertently gave an incorrect timetable to the organizers of a drive to recall controversial Senate President Russell Pearce, forcing a change in strategy in the historic recall effort.

Elections Director Amy Bjelland said she initially told recall organizer Randy Parraz that if he filed his signatures by May 25, there would be enough time to verify them and schedule a November election.

But Bjelland since has notified Parraz that Gov. Jan Brewer has 15 days to officially call an election if the signatures check out, not five. The difference of 10 days in the recall timetable means Citizens for a Better Arizona already has missed the actual deadline, May 10, to turn in the signatures for a November election and can only hope for a March 13, 2012, election.

{snip}

Parraz said Citizens for a Better Arizona was hoping to force a November election by turning in far more than the required 7,756 signatures by May 25, based upon Bjelland's original timetable.

"We know it was not intentional. We needed more time anyway," he said.

Parraz is far more forgiving, and tactful, than me.

I don't know if Bjelland is taking the blame over this on her own volition or if her boss, Secretary of State Ken Bennett, gave her a little push, but tactics this heavy-handed won't help Republicans in general or Pearce in particular.

Before the "oopsie," the Rs were going to have a year to work with/live down the fallout of the Pearce recall.  In addition, before this, it was all about Pearce and only Pearce.

Now, there will be five more months of stories about Pearce and his depredations, stories that will be prominent during the campaign season (remember, there will be a presidential primary around that time - there's going to all kinds of political coverage going on).


...In other recall news, Pearce is getting a little testy over the recall.  At an anti-recall rally with Joe Arpaio, John Kavanagh and other leading lights of Arizona's nativist subculture, he dropped a really curious quote.

From AZFamily.com (Phoenix TV 3), by Stacy Delikat (emphasis mine) -

..."You take everything seriously, people know who these folks are, they've tried it before," said Pearce. "They're simply open-border anarchists who have no respect for the rule of law, we'll deal with it."

Just a quick refresher for those unfamiliar with Pearce's MO of "do as I say, not as I do," particularly when it comes to the "rule of law" -

Just this year, he's...

...proclaimed that sitting legislators are above the laws that govern the rest of us when it comes to carrying weapons in the public buildings of the legislature

...created a "blacklist" of people he arbitrarily barred from the Senate building for the "crime" of daring to disagree with him on immigration issues

...supported Scott Bundgaard, his ally in the Senate, and his use of "legislative immunity" to avoid arrest because of a domestic violence incident along a Valley freeway

...dissembled, denied, and just plain lied about his involvement with the Fiesta Bowl scandal, where a number of Arizona's lawmakers took gifts and laundered campaign contributions from Fiesta Bowl lobbyists, in violation of many state laws..  Most of the lawmakers involved have now quietly repaid the Fiesta Bowl and amended their financial disclosure reports. 


Many words can be used to describe Pearce and his activities.

"Quiet" isn't one of them.  Neither is "repentant."

As for "law-abiding"?

It's only used by him, his cronies, and his followers, and only to describe him.

Schweikert: Doing what he was born to do

...Pimping for Big Oil Pumping gas...

From the KNXV (channel 15)  -

Tomorrow: 10 stories to watch in Arizona 5/18 2011

{snip}
 
SCHWEIKERT PUMPS GAS

Congressman David Schweikert will meet with constituents and fill up gas tasks as he talks about rising gas prices and energy independence. 8am-9am, Danny’s Family Car Wash, Scottsdale.

FYI, Danny's Family Car Wash is headed up by Danny Hendon, a noted "entrepeneur"/corporateer with bankruptcy issues and a track record of securing taxpayer-backed financing based on a sketchy letter of credit.

Just the sort of "association" that one can expect from the pro-corporate/anti-senior "Foreclosure Dave."

Note:  Green2V, the company in question (re: letter of credit), is incorporated in AZ,  and is Hendon's and a partner's through a series of his other corporate and partnership entities (here, here, here, and here), all registered at the same address, 15509 N. Scottsdale Rd.

Pearce spin machine getting up to speed

Most of the R blogs/press release outlets in Arizona have posted a press release from Russell Pearce.  It touts his new "charity," formed to bring clean water to Haiti.

Sounds like an "awww, geee - isn't that nice" sort of moment except for a few things.  Minor things, really, more nagging sort of details.  But still... -

- The website for the "effort" was registered on April 19, 2011, a few weeks after the Fiesta Bowl scandal blew up in Pearce's face and just about the time that people realized that the Recall Pearce initiative has legs and may just well succeed in forcing a recall election.

- Pearce, and the other Republican senators that chose him to be their leader and face to the rest of the country, earned an "F" from the Grand Canyon Chapter of the Sierra Club for his "work" on environmental issues during this past session.  This work included SCR1015, which would have referred to the voters an amendment to the Arizona Constitution to remove federal Clean Waters Act protections from waters in Arizona. 

Soooooo...we are expected to believe that Pearce, a man renowned for his antipathy toward people whose skin color is other than lily-white, supports clean water for Haitians while being opposed to clean water in Arizona?

- "Pearce Johnson Foundation" is nowhere to be found in the databases of CharityNavigator.com, Arizona Corporation Commission, or Arizona Secretary of State.  A corporate entity could have been created, either as a non-profit or an outright charity and the paperwork upload is lagging, or it could have been in another state (but why do that?), but so far, I cannot find any independently verifiable evidence that this charity actually exists legally.

- Sort of related to the above point, the website is soliciting contributions from the public, yet there is no contact info on the website.  The only contact method is a web contact form. 

No "bricks and mortar" address, no phone number.  Not even an email.

Most charity watchdog groups, including state attorneys general, encourage would-be givers to check out the so-called charities before they give.  Between the lack of public info and the opaqueness of the website, there's no way to do that here.


Somebody really should sit down with Pearce and the others involved and let them know that forming a charity that doesn't seem to actually be a charity, well, that isn't something that will help Pearce with what ails him in the public relations area.

Nope, not at all.

Huckabee out of race for the Republican nomination for president

I understand the ego involved in making the announcement on his own Faux News program, but if this was a truly momentous announcement, wouldn't it have been made during weekday primetime?

I mean, on cable and on Saturday night?

I love politics and knew that he had some sort of announcement scheduled for today, but even I would rather watch the DBacks beat the Dodgers in LA.

And did.  It was a good game.  :)

Anyway, from AP via Yahoo! News -

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee said Saturday he won't seek the Republican presidential nomination, choosing to stick with a lucrative career as a television and radio personality over a race that would be both costly and caustic.


"All the factors say go, but my heart says no," Huckabee, the winner of the 2008 Iowa caucuses, said on his Fox News Channel show.

Huckabee's decision further muddies the GOP field as the Republican Party seeks a challenger for President Barack Obama.

I normally don't care about the inner-workings of the Republican candidate selection process, but I have to say this - Huckabee's decision fits perfectly with the Republican meme that public service, even well-compensated public service, takes a backseat to financial self-enrichment.

Of course, certain ones find a way to turn public service into self-enrichment.  We call them members of Congress.  And the Arizona legislature.

Later...

David Schweikert has time for contributors but not for constituents

Cross-posted from Blog For Arizona...

If you are bored and looking for a really expensive drink and some lame conversation tomorrow after helping out the Recall Pearce effort.  :)


First, from Schweikert's House website -

Due to a scheduling conflict, the Listening Sessions with David Schweikert planned for May 16th and May 19th, 2011, have been postponed to a future date to be determined.

However, whatever the "scheduling conflict" may be, apparently it isn't important enough to get in the way of campaign fundraising.

From an announcement for an event on Saturday -

You are Invited to Attend the

Talking With Tempe Event

in support of

U. S. Congressman David Schweikert

House Financial Services Committee
& Vice Chair of the Capital Markets Subcommittee

Hosted by

Honorable Hugh Hallman

Honorable Onnie Shekerjian

Dennis Redmond & Dick Foreman

Saturday, May 14
4:00pm – 6:00pm

$100 Attend
$1,500 Co-Host

The Penthouse at Bridgeview Condominiums

140 E. Rio Salado Parkway, Tempe AZ 85281

Host Committee:

Steve Chucri

Jose Esparza

Bettina Nava

Barry and Jody Aarons

Ann and Danny Seiden

The Honorable Laura Knaperek

Umm...yeah. Nice priorities there, Dave.

BTW - think it's a coincidence that Schweikert stressed his particular House committee membership in the notice? Check out the host committee for the event -

Chucri is a lobbyist.

Esparza is a lobbyist.

Nava is a lobbyist.

Aarons is a lobbyist.

Seiden is a lobbyist.

Knaperek is a lobbyist.


Later...

Pearce threatens to lock up workers if they protest

In keeping with his favorite way of dealing with those who disagree with him.  Another reason to turn out to help out the recall effort in LD18...not that we needed yet another.

From Stephen Lemons of the Phoenix New Times -

The latest addition to the Pearce foot-in-mouth disease compendium is a remark he made at a recent Legislative breakfast given by the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce, where Pearce threatens to lock 'em up, should public sector employees and unions representing them ever follow the lead of their brothers and sisters in Wisconsin.


According to the Yellow Sheet, Pearce made this crack about what he and his buddy Sheriff Joe Arpaio would do if workers stood up for their rights and demonstrated:

"I've spoken with the sheriff, and he has some nice buses that hold a lot of people. We've also got some tents with a view."

Pearce should know. Not only because he used to work for Arpaio, and claims credit for the Tent City idea, but because his 30 year-old son Joshua Pearce has been in and out of stir on probation violations.

His threat brought an immediate response from Rebekah Friend, executive director of the Arizona AFL-CIO.

"Suggesting a police crackdown before a rally has even occurred is just more of the same intimidation, threats and innuendo we’ve come to expect from Senator Pearce and his crony Arpaio."

The Recall Pearce effort is near its goal of gathering enough signatures to force a recall election.  A big push is planned for this weekend, and the need for volunteer canvassers over the next couple of weeks is huge.  If you have even a couple of hours to spare in the near future, consider volunteering.

Anybody up for a game of "Guess the ghostwriter"?

...Anybody have a list of Chuck Coughlin's interns?

From Jeremy Duda and Jim Small of the Arizona Capitol Times -

The spotlight that enveloped Gov. Jan Brewer after she signed the nation’s toughest illegal immigration law is expanding into the publishing world.


On November 1, Broadside Books, an imprint of HarperCollins, will release “Scorpions for Breakfast: My Fight Against Special Interests, Liberal Media, and Cynical Politicos to Secure America’s Border” The 208-page book is already available for pre-order on Amazon.com.

Lest you think the title of this post is a shot a Jan Brewer, an implication that she couldn't possibly write this on her own because of a lack of intelligence - it isn't.  The simple fact is that most public figures, political or not, don't have the time or skill necessary to write a book, even one as short as Brewer's.

Nope, the title of this post is a shot at the absolute clunkiness of the title of her book.  My guess is that a professional writer wasn't brought in, because no pro, or even a good amateur, would have come up with a title that long and awkward.

Personally, I'd have gone with "'Headless Bodies and Brain Freezes -  Profiles In Terrorizing Voters', By Governor Jan 'We Has Did' Brewer".

Of course, I'm just a wiseass Democrat.  :)

2014 speculation already starting...

Hot on the heels of Jan Brewer's floating of the "term limits don't apply to me" trial balloon, announcing her interest in a third term as governor, Mike Sunnucks of the Phoenix Business Journal put out a 2014 speculation piece.

As should probably should have been expected, it was mostly filler of the  "I'm a political reporter and the legislature is out of session, so I have to come up with *something* to keep my editor happy" variety.

Well, if a trained, experienced, professional journalist gets to do that, so can a lowly amateur blogger (that's my way of saying that it's time for a little filler here :) ).

In his article, Sunnucks mentioned a few names.  Here's my take on those names, plus a few more added for good measure -

Jan Brewer - she may want it, but she is unlikely to get it.  Those pesky term limits will get in the way.

Ken Bennett - as Secretary of State, he's the heir apparent on the R side.  Formed an "exploratory" committee this past week, so should have a large campaign warchest by the time 2014 rolls around.  The presumptive frontrunner in the general election, with the caveat:  it's three years out.

Tom Horne - current AG and has had his eye on the 9th floor for years.  Best shot may be if a D wins in 2014 and he can challenge as the R frontrunner in 2018.  May be too old after that.

Paul Babeu - current Pinal County Sheriff.  I think this one is just pure filler on Sunnucks' part, but given the state of R politics anything could happen.  Still, seems more likely to pursue a Congressional run rather than a statewide run to take advantage of fame/notoriety in a single area of the state.

John Shadegg - former Congressman and current lobbyist "fellow" at the Goldwater Institute.  Could happen, but why would he want the instant and permanent migraine known as the Arizona Legislature?

Scott Smith - current mayor of Mesa.  I don't know enough about him to comment.

Hugh Hallman and Jim Lane - the mayors of Tempe and Scottsdale, respectively.  Both are up for reelection next year and neither is a lock (though Lane is in better shape).  Either one would have to win reelection and then raise his statewide profile.  Hallman has ambitions but probably needs to solidify his wavering base of support in Tempe before even *thinking* of a statewide run.  If Lane runs, the marionette strings will run right back to the Goldwater Institute and Lamar Whitmer.

My adds -

Russell Pearce - current president of the state senate (at least until the recall petitions are certified) and would love to be publicly considered the "top dog," but a move to the ninth floor would be a step up in paycheck size but a step down in practical political power.  And Pearce is all about power.  If he does go for it, however, he could get through an R primary, but may be too polarizing for the general election.

Fife Symington - former governor and pardoned convicted felon.  Makes noises about running again every four years.  Fellow Republicans want nothing to do with him, but Democrats pray that he runs and wins the nomination.  May be why he never follows through on his threats to run again.

Brenda Burns - current member of the Arizona Corporation Commission.  Big Fan of Big Business, and Big Business is a Big Fan of hers.  ACC isn't exactly the highest profile perch from which to launch a high profile campaign, but if the chips fall the right way, could trade in her ACC reelection campaign for a campaign for governor.

Joe Arpaio - currently the rather infamous sheriff in Maricopa County.  Like Symington, makes noises every four years.  Unlike Symington, has more than a snowball's chance in Phoenix of pulling it off on the R side.  Still, even if he avoids federal indictment, come 2014 he'll be, like, 900 years old (actually, 82).  For a lot of reasons, not gonna happen.

New sneaky bad Arizona laws to keep an eye on

People have heard about the high profile laws recently enacted (the anti-abortion measures, school vouchers, attacks on unions, etc.) and even the surprisingly vetoed (loosening the state's already lax gun laws, the scheme by Sal DiCiccio/Frank Antenori to privatize city services in Tucson and Phoenix), but there are a few new laws that have escaped wide notice that have the potential for abuse.

The worst of these, in my opinion, is SB1282, a measure from Sen. Steve Yarbrough, the legislator who has made a fortune from his tuition tax credits law.

The new measure exempts religious entities that engage in political activities from having to file reports as poltical committees.

Pardon my cynicism, but while I don't believe that legitimate churches and other religion-focused entities will abuse the law, I fully expect that certain less-than-scrupulous folks will gleefully form paper churches to launder political expenditures/bribe money through. 

Think "Sheriff's Command Association (SCA) run by Captain Joel Fox," only now calling it "Sheriff's Hallelujah Association run by Pastor Joel Fox."

They didn't get in trouble for what they did with the SCA money, they got in trouble for trying to hide it.

This law sets up a potential shield for like-minded political operatives.

Other laws to watch, in no particular order:

SB1471 from Sen. Ron Gould.  It contains a number of changes to election and ballot laws, many of which I don't fully understand.  One is clear however - it bars anyone who has been "employed by or volunteered for a candidate, campaign, political campaign or political party" in an election from assisting a voter at a polling place.

SB1472 and SB1482, also from Gould.  Under the guise of "increased publicity," erodes the "merit" aspect of the retention of judges.

SB1453, Sen. Rich Crandall's measure to create a "right" for parents to exempt their children from any school material that they don't approve of.  Interestingly, while the restriction applies to public schools absolutely, Crandall's measure carves out an exception for charter schools - they can just seek a waiver from parents.

HB2565, from Rep. Steve Court.  Similar to SB1453 above, this one creates a religious exemption from secondary school and class policies.

SB1412, from Sen. Don Shooter.  Creates a number of new felonies related to early ballots.  Aimed at unions and Democratic candidates and campaigns that collect and deliver early ballots for voters.  Softened by the House, but still ripe with opportunities for mischief by unscrupulous prosecutors and elections officials...not that I'm implying that there have ever been any such in Arizona.

SB1333, Sen. Frank Antenori's (R-I Hate Tucson, Even Though It's The Biggest Part Of My District) scheme to force the deannexation of the part of Tucson in which he resides so it can incorporate as a separate town.  He really hates Tucson.

SB1187, the Center for Arizona Theocracy Policy's measure, via Sen. Linda Gray, to lengthen the amount of time it takes to get a divorce.

SB1167, Yarbrough's measure to restrict people's ability to challenge ballot questions referred to the ballot by the legislature.  Probably not entirely Yarbrough's measure, as this one was the subject of a "strike-everything" amendment in the House, with the amendment fronted by Rep. Eddie Farnsworth, who cited legislative "leadership" as behind his amendment.  Enacted with an emergency clause so it went into effect immediately upon the governor's signature and the new restrictions apply to ballot measures moved by this year's legislature.

HB2303, Rep. JD Mesnard's move to allow counties to establish centralized "voting centers" in place of precinct polling places.  There isn't any provision regarding the placement of such voting centers, rendering it quite easy for those voting centers to be situated in a way to inhibit voting in predominantly minority (presumably Democratic-leaning) areas or to ease voting in affluent (presumably Republican-leaning) areas.  The U.S. Attorney/Department of Justice *could* step in on this one, but I don't expect them to until there has been a stolen election or two.

This list isn't complete by any stretch, but the list of bills signed into law can be found here.  Just select the radio button next to "Signed" and click on "Search."

Republican plans to destroy Medicare run aground; leadership cries "Full steam ahead!" anyway

Republican members of Congress across the country have been getting an earful from constituents on their plan to gut Medicare, the health care plan for America's seniors.

The public expressions of displeasure have even reached Arizona.

From an AP article by Paul Babington, via Philly.com -

Robert Howarth, a Republican-turned-Democrat in Arizona, urged freshman Republican Rep. David Schweikert to find "other ways" besides the House-backed plan.


"We don't have to gut Medicare and go after the poor people on disability and Medicare," Howarth said at Schweikert's spirited town hall in Tempe, Ariz. "The millionaires and billionaires are not paying their fair share, like they used to," he said.

Howarth noted there was a strong economy and federal budget surplus during a time of higher tax rates in Bill Clinton's presidency.

The national pushback was so strong and nearly-universal that the Republicans have, backed off from their plans.  For now, anyway.

While temporarily heartening, the GOP leadership has already reiterated their threats against America's seniors, all in the name of "balancing the budget."

Of course, affirming their intent to gut Medicare only a couple of days after all but two of them voted to protect taxpayer subsidies to the most profitable industry in history only serves to illustrate the authenticity of their interest in "balancing" the budget.

The AP article quoted above, while written and published days before the Protect Big Oil vote, had a rather prescient line -

In an interview, Schweikert said he has talked with "market makers" who told him "we're going to punish you" if Congress doesn't make huge strides in reducing the deficit.

It's clear that Schweikert and his fellow Republicans in Congress may have the job title of "representative."

It's also clear that they have neither intent nor even interest in "representing" the people of their districts.

Jan Brewer starting to think that the AZ Constitution doesn't apply to her

Bill Bertolino of the Arizona Guardian has a couple of interesting stories up. (Because the pieces are behind a subscriber firewall, I'm linking to the general website only)

In the first, he writes of Governor Jan Brewer's consideration of possibly challenging the state's term limits so that she can run for a third term.

From the article -

Only five months into what is widely viewed as her final term in office, Gov. Jan Brewer is already weighing a decision on whether to challenge the Constitution so she can run for a third term.


"At this point, this is something she is looking into but she hasn't made any decision one way or the other," said Brewer spokesman Matthew Benson. "Certainly it's something we've been aware of – that there's been some ambiguity in the Constitution on this."

Bertolino followed up the Brewer piece with a talk with Grant Woods, a Republican and former Arizona Attorney General.

From that piece -

The state's former top lawman and ardent supporter of Gov. Jan Brewer doubts she's eligible for a third term.



Former Attorney General Grant Woods says he believes the Constitution prohibits governors from serving more than two consecutive terms, even if they inherited a partial term like Brewer did.

The relevant part of the Arizona Constitution -

1. Term limits on executive department and state officers; term lengths; election; residence and office at seat of government; duties


(Version amended by 1992 Proposition 107)

Section 1. A. The executive department shall consist of the governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, attorney general, and superintendent of public instruction, each of whom shall hold office for a term of four years beginning on the first Monday of January, 1971 next after the regular general election in 1970. No member of the executive department shall hold that office for more than two consecutive terms. This limitation on the number of terms of consecutive service shall apply to terms of office beginning on or after January 1, 1993. No member of the executive department after serving the maximum number of terms, which shall include any part of a term served, may serve in the same office until out of office for no less than one full term.

I'm not an attorney like Woods, but it seems pretty clear to me.

Of course, I'm not the Governor either, nor am I one of her advisors who want to keep riding the gravy train for as long as possible.

My message to her (not that I'm under any illusions that she actually reads this blog):  You can run for a third term as governor if you want to.  I'll oppose you, but you are free to do so.

In 2018.

High school English teachers rejoice! Something took root in at least one young mind...

...At least, the mind was young a few many years ago.

Regular readers may have noted the "currently reading" line in my profile doesn't change often.  Mostly that's because I read a lot more often than I update my profile.

I enjoyed reading novels long before it became required for various school courses.  Once that happened, I (and the other students) quickly learned that the books required for class were like "Life Cereal" - good for you, but not very tasty -

The works of Shakespeare were interesting to a point...like once.  After the third or fouth of his plays, he was boring.

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton?  Unrelentingly depressing.  Not the sort of fare that rambunctious young teens are going to enjoy.

Anthem by Ayn Rand?  Well, at least we realized that an author who created such a purely self-centered "hero" was probably seriously messed up.

To be sure, some of the reading was more enjoyable - I've always loved the works of Steinbeck and Twain, and the other students had their own favorites.

Mostly, though, even those of us who loved reading wanted to read something other than what was on the syllabi for our classes.  I wanted to read the works of Asimov, Bradbury, and Mencken (now there's an unusual combo for ya :)) ).

One of the "good for you" books that *did* penetrate many teenaged minds (and one in particular, an important fact for the purposes of this post :) ) was the new entry under "currently reading" -

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Lush and informative and engrossing and evocative and powerful, it remains the best American novel ever written in the opinion of many, including me.

It's worth of a another read, and I heartily recommend it.

If that book is not to your taste, try one of these.

It's official: Susan Bitter Smith is a perennial candidate

From the Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) -

The first Republican challenger to the Democrats’ “Solar Team” emerged Monday as Scottsdale Republican Susan Bitter Smith filed an exploratory committee for the Arizona Corporation Commission. Smith, former president of the Central Arizona Project board of directors, said she would bring years of water and energy management experience to the board.

I'll leave the discussion of the appropriateness of career industry lobbyist Bitter Smith gaining a seat on the ACC, the group that is supposed to oversee industry for another day.

However, at this point,Bitter Smith is looking more and more like a candidate in search of an office.

In addition to her time with the Central Arizona Project Board of Directors, she's...

...been a member of the Scottsdale City Council

...run for Congress in 2000, coming in third in a five-way Republican primary for the seat that was eventually won by Jeff Flake.

...run for Congress in 2008, coming in second to David Schweikert in a six-way Republican primary for the seat that Harry Mitchell held on to.

...run for Congress in 2010, coming in third behind Schweikert and Jim Ward in a six-way Republican primary for the seat that Schweikert went on to win.

Hmmm...it seems that *somebody* likes running for office.

Thoughts on Bin Laden's death

“I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that." - Martin Luther King, Jr. (source:  HuffingtonPost)

I understand and laud the late Dr. King's sentiment, but I'm nowhere near as good a human being as he was.

My thoughts are closer to this sentiment -

I never wanted to see anybody die, but there are a few obituary notices I have read with pleasure.


Clarence Darrow

Personally, I don't wish for anyone's death, nor do I rejoice in anyone's death.  However, there are certain people whose death I do not and will not mourn.

Bin Laden is one of those.


Having said that I have to ask (back to being a wiseguy) - how many high school athletic teams are going to change their name to the "SEALS"?

I'm guessing the number will be well into double digits.

And this won't be their mascot -

Text of President Obama's announcement regarding Bin Laden

Courtesy an emailed press release from the White House -

Good evening.


Tonight, I can report to the American people and to the world that the United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of al Qaeda, and a terrorist who’s responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children.


It was nearly 10 years ago that a bright September day was darkened by the worst attack on the American people in our history. The images of 9/11 are seared into our national memory -- hijacked planes cutting through a cloudless September sky; the Twin Towers collapsing to the ground; black smoke billowing up from the Pentagon; the wreckage of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the actions of heroic citizens saved even more heartbreak and destruction.

And yet we know that the worst images are those that were unseen to the world. The empty seat at the dinner table. Children who were forced to grow up without their mother or their father. Parents who would never know the feeling of their child’s embrace. Nearly 3,000 citizens taken from us, leaving a gaping hole in our hearts.


On September 11, 2001, in our time of grief, the American people came together. We offered our neighbors a hand, and we offered the wounded our blood. We reaffirmed our ties to each other, and our love of community and country. On that day, no matter where we came from, what God we prayed to, or what race or ethnicity we were, we were united as one American family.


We were also united in our resolve to protect our nation and to bring those who committed this vicious attack to justice. We quickly learned that the 9/11 attacks were carried out by al Qaeda -- an organization headed by Osama bin Laden, which had openly declared war on the United States and was committed to killing innocents in our country and around the globe. And so we went to war against al Qaeda to protect our citizens, our friends, and our allies.


Over the last 10 years, thanks to the tireless and heroic work of our military and our counterterrorism professionals, we’ve made great strides in that effort. We’ve disrupted terrorist attacks and strengthened our homeland defense. In Afghanistan, we removed the Taliban government, which had given bin Laden and al Qaeda safe haven and support. And around the globe, we worked with our friends and allies to capture or kill scores of al Qaeda terrorists, including several who were a part of the 9/11 plot.



Yet Osama bin Laden avoided capture and escaped across the Afghan border into Pakistan. Meanwhile, al Qaeda continued to operate from along that border and operate through its affiliates across the world.


And so shortly after taking office, I directed Leon Panetta, the director of the CIA, to make the killing or capture of bin Laden the top priority of our war against al Qaeda, even as we continued our broader efforts to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat his network.

Then, last August, after years of painstaking work by our intelligence community, I was briefed on a possible lead to bin Laden. It was far from certain, and it took many months to run this thread to ground. I met repeatedly with my national security team as we developed more information about the possibility that we had located bin Laden hiding within a compound deep inside of Pakistan. And finally, last week, I determined that we had enough intelligence to take action, and authorized an operation to get Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice.


Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability. No Americans were harmed. They took care to avoid civilian casualties. After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body.


For over two decades, bin Laden has been al Qaeda’s leader and symbol, and has continued to plot attacks against our country and our friends and allies. The death of bin Laden marks the most significant achievement to date in our nation’s effort to defeat al Qaeda.

Yet his death does not mark the end of our effort. There’s no doubt that al Qaeda will continue to pursue attacks against us. We must –- and we will -- remain vigilant at home and abroad.

As we do, we must also reaffirm that the United States is not –- and never will be -– at war with Islam. I’ve made clear, just as President Bush did shortly after 9/11, that our war is not against Islam. Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader; he was a mass murderer of Muslims. Indeed, al Qaeda has slaughtered scores of Muslims in many countries, including our own. So his demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity.


Over the years, I’ve repeatedly made clear that we would take action within Pakistan if we knew where bin Laden was. That is what we’ve done. But it’s important to note that our counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan helped lead us to bin Laden and the compound where he was hiding. Indeed, bin Laden had declared war against Pakistan as well, and ordered attacks against the Pakistani people.


Tonight, I called President Zardari, and my team has also spoken with their Pakistani counterparts. They agree that this is a good and historic day for both of our nations. And going forward, it is essential that Pakistan continue to join us in the fight against al Qaeda and its affiliates.


The American people did not choose this fight. It came to our shores, and started with the senseless slaughter of our citizens. After nearly 10 years of service, struggle, and sacrifice, we know well the costs of war. These efforts weigh on me every time I, as Commander-in-Chief, have to sign a letter to a family that has lost a loved one, or look into the eyes of a service member who’s been gravely wounded.

So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when our people have been killed. We will be relentless in defense of our citizens and our friends and allies. We will be true to the values that make us who we are. And on nights like this one, we can say to those families who have lost loved ones to al Qaeda’s terror: Justice has been done.


Tonight, we give thanks to the countless intelligence and counterterrorism professionals who’ve worked tirelessly to achieve this outcome. The American people do not see their work, nor know their names. But tonight, they feel the satisfaction of their work and the result of their pursuit of justice.


We give thanks for the men who carried out this operation, for they exemplify the professionalism, patriotism, and unparalleled courage of those who serve our country. And they are part of a generation that has borne the heaviest share of the burden since that September day.

Finally, let me say to the families who lost loved ones on 9/11 that we have never forgotten your loss, nor wavered in our commitment to see that we do whatever it takes to prevent another attack on our shores.
 
And tonight, let us think back to the sense of unity that prevailed on 9/11. I know that it has, at times, frayed. Yet today’s achievement is a testament to the greatness of our country and the determination of the American people.


The cause of securing our country is not complete. But tonight, we are once again reminded that America can do whatever we set our mind to. That is the story of our history, whether it’s the pursuit of prosperity for our people, or the struggle for equality for all our citizens; our commitment to stand up for our values abroad, and our sacrifices to make the world a safer place.


Let us remember that we can do these things not just because of wealth or power, but because of who we are: one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.


Thank you. May God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America.

Guest Column: Caleb

Jerry Gettinger, friend and friend of the blog, occasionally shares his thoughts on various matters.

Today, he shared something deeply personal and totally non-political.

Caleb

I lost a very dear friend last week. Once one passes the signpost of 70 years, the obituaries often write about someone you know or knew. But this friend was special. His leaving was as difficult a loss as I have ever experienced.



There wasn’t one moment when our friendship was in doubt. Caleb was always there without question, much like a one’s child or brother. He was 15, a very old age for a dog that was sizable, and Caleb was a big dog. At the risk of sounding morose or self-indulgent, I request a few minutes of your time to tell you about Caleb.


I’ve always believed that it’s important for children to have a dog. The children learn from the dog and the dog is there to learn tolerance and devotion from the children. We had just put down our dog when I suggested to my youngest daughter that we go to the pound “just to look around.” My wife’s immediate response was “don’t you dare get another dog.” “Of course not’” I said. “We’ll just look.” And off we went.


Visiting the pound is difficult at the very least. A lot of dogs, very few potential owners. Most of the dogs are puppies that will grow into large dogs, but most never get that far. There are very few small dogs. We walked up and down the cement row looking at the puppies. My daughter and I did not say a word, but we knew that we were not going home without a dog. We just couldn’t. I started talking to one of the volunteers. She explained how few large dogs get adopted. I walked over to one cage where there was only one puppy. It was obvious by the size if the pup’s paws that this was going to be a large dog. The volunteer told me that the puppy had been at the pound the time limited to each dog and was going to be euthanized the next day. I looked at Sarah and she looked at me and we both said “you’re not going to hurt our dog.” Caleb was on the way home with us within a half an hour.


When we walked in the door with Caleb, my wife’s response was “I knew it.” As if on cue, Caleb walked over to my wife and started licking her toes. Caleb became family.


He was almost 15 when we took him to our Vet. He had been having trouble getting up and occasionally was in pain. A few days ago, he couldn’t get up without our assistance and was hurting almost all the time. I called our Vet and made the appointment. When we got there, I knew what was coming. Knowing didn’t make it easier.


Caleb was the kind of dog you would call “sweet.” He never hurt anyone, but there was that sense that you did not harm his family. When we had a gathering at our house, I would suggest to the visitor to have Caleb sniff his (or her) hand. Caleb did the duty and then walked away as if to say “OK, come on in.”


The only time Caleb was threatening concerned a time when I started receiving death threats because of a rather benign letter that was printed in the newspaper. We would come home from work and there would be messages on my answering machine verbalizing their opinions of me and what I could do with my opinion. And then one day, a car parked in front of our house and a man opened the car door and started walking toward the front door. The look on his face told me he wasn’t coming to praise me for my literary ability. Without my speaking or motioning, Caleb was by my side. We have a screen door, reinforced with wrought-iron. There was a slight hesitation when the gentleman saw Caleb. (Caleb was a wolfhound weighting over 100 pounds.) Then I heard a low, guttural sound from Caleb that I had never heard before. The man slowed down, but did not stop. Caleb’s posture and the depth in his voice became more intense and spoke volumes. The man was back in the car and driving away within minutes. Caleb didn’t move until the car was out of sight.


With tears in my eyes, I say goodbye to my friend and thank you. I will miss you and your presence. You were not just a good dog, you were family. There is an emptiness in our household that cannot be replaced. While your leaving has been painful, your friendship gave me something I will always cherish.


Jerry Gettinger
 

Breaking: President Obama announces the bin Laden is dead

Announcement on every TV channel at this moment...

And now the world wonders:  How pissed is Donald Trump that Obama has "trumped" him two nights in a row?

Update: 2012 candidate committees

Edit on 5/2 to add another candidate who was brought to my attention in a comment at Blog for Arizona.  My apologies to Ms. Baldenegro.  No slight was intended...

Things are still slow on the candidate committee front, as it is still early, and many potential candidates seem to be waiting for redistricting to see exactly what district they will be running in.

However, a few noted candidates have announced or formed committees, as have a few less-noted candidates.  Where a specific district is listed, expect that to change after redistricting.

Note: Some of these have been covered in earlier posts but are included here for comparison's sake.  In addition, only new candidates for an office, or current office holders seeking a move to a different office are included.  Incumbents running for reelection aren't included in this list.

For U.S. Senate -

Right now, the "big dog"  in the race to replace the retiring Jon Kyl is Republican current CD6 Congressman Jeff Flake.  He raised over $1 million in just a few months.  Also in the race is Republican Bryan Hackbarth, a former mayor of Youngtown, AZ.  As of this writing, no Democrats have formed committees this race, though once Congresswoman Gabby Giffords' condition/intentions become clearer, that is expected to change.

For U.S. Congress -

Republican former speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives Kirk Adams announced his intention to run for Congress immediately after becoming a "former" state legislator this past week.  He doesn't have paperwork up on the FEC's website, but he did tweet about it -

No word if Adams' speeches and press releases will be written directly by Jon "not intended to be a factual statement" Kyl, or if Kyl's principles will just be the "guiding light" behind Adams' public statements.

Also running:

Ann Kirkpatrick, a Democratic former Congresswoman, looking for a rematch in CD1 with dentist and current occupant Paul Gosar.

Wenona Benally Baldenegro, an attorney and a 2010 graduate of EmergeArizona, is a candidate for CD1, also.

Russell Jenna, a Republican/tea party type, in CD3 (currently held by Republican Ben Quayle).

Chuck Gray, a Republican former state senator, in CD6 (currently held by Flake).

Matt Salmon, a Republican former Congressman and GOP state chair, in CD6.

Gabriela Saucedo-Mercer, Republican, CD7 (currently held by Democrat Raul Grijalva).


For legislature:

Thomas J. Shope, Jr., Republican, has opened an exploratory committee for LD23 House.  Because he is a "Jr." and I don't know Pinal County all that well, some of this may be for his father, but he seems to have been the press guy for Paul Babeu's campaign for Pinal County Sheriff in 2008 and seems to be the son of the mayor of Coolidge, AZ.  Shope Sr. is the committee chairman.

Bob Blendu, a Republican former state senator, has opened a committee for LD12 House.

Tom Murray, Republican, has opened a committee for LD12 House.  He ran as a Libertarian candidate for Estrella Mountain constable in 2010.  He didn't win.


For Tempe City Council -

Ann Heins, Republican


For City of Scottsdale -

Still quiet.  So far.


For City of Phoenix (2011 elections) -

In full swing, with petitions due in the month starting tomorrow.  Peggy Neely made her entry into the race for mayor official, and a number of candidates have jumped into the race to fill her seat in Phoenix' District 2.  The full list of candidates is here.

More on this election as candidate petitions are filed.


Later...