Pearce throwing in papers to run for state senate seat: He's baaaaack...

From the Arizona Capitol Times, written by Jeremy Duda -

Recalled former Sen. Russell Pearce is eyeing a return to the Capitol.

Pearce, who was ousted in a historic recall election in November, filed paperwork with the Secretary of State’s Office on Jan. 30 to run for the Senate in the new District 25.

In the article, Pearce is indirectly quoted (from this article from Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services) as saying this is not a guarantee that he will run, that the paperwork was only a "technical" matter. 

However, given the arrogance of Pearce and his supporters, I expect that he will have to be defeated two or even three times before he (and they) start to get the message.

If he does actually run (and I think that he will run for *something*, but for now, I'm presuming that he is going to run for the senate), because the maps of the new legislative districts place his house in the new LD25, he will face current Sen. Rich Crandall.  Crandall is often referred to as a moderate Republican in the media, but he is the guy who is pushing a bill in the lege to allow Arizona's schools to opt out of the federal free/subsidized lunch program for poor students.

In other words, calling him a "moderate" Republican says a *lot* about where the Arizona GOP is located ideologically these days, but it doesn't really say much for Crandall.

Anyway, Pearce's candidate committee information is here.

Russell Pearce trying for a political comeback

...and in at least this observer's opinion, that's a good thing...for Arizona's Democrats and Independents.

In November, former state senate president Russell Pearce became the first sitting legislator in Arizona history to be successfully recalled.  Now, he is planning for a political comeback.

Donna at Democratic Diva has a report quoted from The Yellow Sheet, the Arizona Capitol Times' pricey political gossip rag, and other outlets (R blogs mostly) have copies of an email that support the Cap Times' story, Russell Pearce's next political move.

He's running for 1st Vice Chair of the Arizona Republican Party.

Now some will say that Pearce should just stay gone, and I understand that position.  However, I respectfully disagree with it.

One of the down sides, perhaps the ONLY down side, of Pearce's recall was that Democratic candidates all over the state could run by making Pearce and his arrogance, abuse of office, and divisiveness the poster child of the AZGOP and all of its candidates.  His ouster took that away, because politics is definitely an "out of sight, out of mind" enterprise.

His possible...ok, *probable*...return will serve to keep him in the public eye, and cause some of the contempt the voters have for him and his misdeeds to wash over onto all AZ Republican candidates.

As Donna speculated before me, this may just be a move to put himself in line for the chair of the AZGOP after this cycle, but that's only speculation on my part. 

For some reason, I'm not on the "good Republican" email distribution lists.  :)

To Russell Pearce:  Please don't out of this race like you did when you (almost) ran against Jeff Flake in 2007/2008.  The sane and reasonable majority in Arizona needs you...to serve as a negative example.

To AZGOP state committee members:  Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease be blindly loyal to one of your past electeds, no matter how craven his misdeeds.  We need you (and him) to remind voters of the true face of the GOP.

Russell Pearce, martyr? Not so much...

...though to listen to the whining among the Republicans, you'd think they were Al-Quaeda and Pearce was a suicide bomber...

As soon as it became clear that Russell Pearce had lost his November recall, the whispers started.  And when it became clear that Pearce didn't just lose but was thoroughly thumped, the whispers became shouts (whiny, wheedling shouts, but shouts nonetheless).

Tuesday, the Republican blog/press release site Sonoran Alliance posted a long and rather revisionist paean to Pearce that effectively sums up what most of the Rs have been saying.

Their main spin has been to claim that Pearce was the subject of a recall because of his anti-immigrant policies, positions and speeches and particularly because of his SB1070.

Now, I cannot deny the fact that Pearce's bigotry makes him much easier to dislike.  However, if the recall effort was based on that, why has only one other supporter of SB1070 faced a recall effort?  And that effort actually pre-dated SB1070 and was pushed by Republicans who fell the legislator in question (Sen. Rich Crandall, R-Mesa) isn't conservative enough.


Another R talking point is to claim that the recall process was abused and was never intended to an unpopular legislator.

Ummm...the recall law was followed to the letter, and it's been used once in a century.

Pearce wasn't just unpopular.  He misused and abused his office.

...He ordered the arrest of people who criticized him when those critics peacefully entered the Senate building for a scheduled appointment...

...He proclaimed that legislators could ignore the laws barring possession of weapons in public buildings...

...When the other legislators caught up in the Fiesta Bowl gift scandal shut up and paid up, Pearce refused to repay the Fiesta Bowl and still denies wrongdoing...

...When his friend and close political ally Sen. Scott Bundgaard was involved in a "domestic violence incident" (i.e. - he assaulted his girlfriend by the side of a Phoenix freeway), Pearce declared that Bundgaard was the victim...

It should be pointed out here that the GOP's whiners and spinners are expressing criticism only of the fact that Pearce was held accountable for his bad conduct in office, but have said nothing about the conduct itself.

Apparently, they believe if someone is stridently nativist, they should be forgiven "minor" foibles like corruption in office, abuse of power, and si\nple unbridled arrogance (not a crime in itself, but the attitude that he and the rest of his caucus were and are above the laws that govern the rest of society was the root of his downfall).

Bottom line:  the recall was legal, proper, and most importantly, deserved.

A few Christmas stocking stuffers...

It's that time of year.  Many commentators do something along the lines of a "diamond/lump of coal" theme for their Christmas stocking pieces, I'm going for the practical this year.

This year, the list of Arizonans who deserve a little something special in their stockings includes...

...State Sen. Scott Bundgaard.  In the wake of his "domestic violence incident" (a euphemism for "beating up his girlfriend by the side of a freeway").  After invoking legislative immunity from arrest (for misdemeanors, and only while the lege is actually in session), he is expending massive amounts of effort to keep the Senate Ethics Committee from weighing in on his conduct.  Now he is suing the members of the committee to block any inquiry.

Bundgaard seems to think that he stands a chance in hell of winning reelection next year.

So here's to hoping that on Christmas Day, Bundgaard looks in his stocking and finds a clue.


...Marcia Busching.  She has opened a committee for a run at a seat on the Arizona Corporation Commission.  While the ACC is incredibly important, it's also incredibly low profile.  On top of that, she'll be running against some incredibly well-funded Republicans who aren't shy about taking "contributions" from the industries that they are supposed to regulate.

So here's to hoping that on Christmas Day, Busching looks in her stocking and finds two things - a little good luck and a good communications person for her campaign.  It better be a big stocking... :)

...Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.  After seeing his buddy Russell Pearce go down in flames in November, the deluge just hasn't stopped.  He's been coming under growing criticism for his sacrifice of investigations of rape and child molestation cases while funnelling MCSO resources into his never-ending anti-immigrant raids (which apparently are far more camera-friendly than actual police work).

Now, the US Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division has released the scathing report of its investigation of Arpaio's operation of MCSO, and "scathing" may be something  of an understatement.

Instead of the usual combination of legalese and bureaucrat-ese that are the usual hallmarks of such things, it reads like it was written by someone who's a combination of Stephen King and Franz Kafka (OK, with a generous smattering of legalese and bureaucrat-ese thrown in.  It *is* DOJ, after all :)  .)

At this point, it looks like he should be less worried about winning reelection next year and more concerned with making an exit from office that doesn't involve an indictment.

However, he has spent the week declaring that it's all politics and that the investigation was a "sneak attack" and other similar utterances that prove that "denial" isn't just a river.  Of course, the list of his misdeeds may be longer than the Nile, but I digress... :)

Anyway, Arpaio is going on and on, even though the investigation has been going on for years and he has been the one who has used his office for politically-motivated investigations.

So here's to hoping that on Christmas Day, Arpaio looks in his stocking and finds a clue (hope Santa has one to spare after giving one to Bundgaard).

This was fun.  Have to do it again, soon.  :)

Short Attention Span Musing...

...Some people just didn't get the message from Tuesday's recall vote in LD18.

- Recalled state senator Russell Pearce wrote a rather delusional op-ed published by the Arizona Capitol Times.  Aside from the expected self-pitying and self-righteous blathering (the recall was all about his anti-immigrant positions and he did nothing wrong.  His opponenets made up his misuse and abuse of office and his meanness and arrogance toward the people of his district), he dropped some whoppers that weren't directly related to the recall election.  My favorite:

...we lead the nation in many areas, such as economic recovery, safer neighborhoods, job creation, quality education...

Either Pearce is completely clueless about the realities of life in Arizona, or he's trying out for a spot on Faux News.

Or both.

- State Senator Sylvia Allen, not recalled but a close friend of Pearce's, issued a press release that blamed everyone but Pearce for the recall.  Like Pearce above, she hasn't heard the message, or she has and is lying about it.

“Recalls have never and were never meant to be used against lawmakers whose sole fault was they disagreed with you on the issues. They’re designed to target people who may have committed crimes or were guilty of gross misconduct in office,” says Senator Sylvia Allen, President Pro Tem of the Senate.

So, is Allen saying that things like her friend's ordering the unlawful arrests of people who dissent from his extreme positions, protectiing a domestic abuser like Sen. Scott Bundgaard from answering for his crimes, and accepting "gifts" from the Fiesta Bowl and having the arrogance to say that he didn't have to report them or pay them back (before he quietly did so) aren't gross misconduct?

Or is she saying that violating free speech protections, ignoring domestic violence laws, and ignoring the ethical standards for elected officials are just "issues" where Pearce (and Allen) simply finds himself in disagreement with civil society?


...In other news, Governor Jan Brewer and her handlers are looking to strike while the iron is hot (read: before the AZ Supreme Court rules on her partisan interference with the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission).  Steve at Arizona Eagletarian has posted the text of a letter she sent to the rest of the AIRC.

She's demanding that they scrap the draft maps completely and come up with districts that are more to her (and that of Marilyn Quayle).  Without using the specific words, it's evident that she wants the AIRC to protect one "community of interest" above all others -

Arizona's community of Republican elected officials.

Even if the voters don't want incumbents interests served at the expense of Arizona's interests.

...The Republican members of the state senate have selected Senator Steve Pierce to be the president of the state senate.  Like his predecessor (Pearce) and his colleague (Allen), he doesn't have a clue about what happened Tuesday.

From the Arizona Republic article linked above -

"We're going to continue the good things that Russell started," Pierce said. "He did a wonderful job. He did not deserve what happened to him."

Russell Pearce was drunk with power and contemptuous of his constituents and Arizonans as a whole (unless they lined his pockets with "gift" and "campaign contributions"), and he lost an election as a result.

That's what is *supposed* to happen, and he deserved every bit of it.

...From the "has even less of a clue than Pearce, Pierce, and Allen" department - Sen. Scott "Fists of Fury" Bundgaard has formed a reelection committee for the 2012 cycle.  I won't predict that he can't make it through an R primary (made that mistake with Ben Quayle last year.  Never again will make the mistake of overestimating the standards of R primary voters.  However, his presence on a general election ballot could turn a safe R district into a D upset.


...In a long-rumored development, Richard Carmona, a former US Surgeon General, has entered the race for the Democratic nomination for the US Senate seat currently held by Jon Kyl.  He joins Don Bivens, an attorney and former chair of the Arizona Democratic Party, in the race.

Obviously, it is still early, and other candidates may yet enter the race, but I have to say this -

I hope there *is* a primary.  As long as it is clean, a primary is a good thing.  Especially since neither of the announced candidates has ever run for office before (so far as I can find). 

Arizona Democrats have a history of "clearing the field" for well-meaning but inexperienced candidates for high office, only to watch them get buried at the polls.  A robust primary will not only remedy the "inexperience" problem, it will generate media and public attention for the Democratic candidates, something that has been sorely lacking during the last few election cycles.

In addition, like their predecessors, both are bound to have highly-paid professional "consultants" on their campaign staffs who will tell each to run as "Republican-lite" candidates.

This highly-unpaid amateur is telling each candidate (and any others who may also jump into the race) -

Run as "sincere" candidates who focus more on the needs and concerns of Arizonans (even if that ticks off a few of the loud and proud screamers in the electorate) than on "triangulating" positions that are calculated to completely alienate the smallest number of voters (but leave a vague bad taste in the mouths of *all* voters).

Pandering to the fringe Rs even though you will never get their votes may not cost you the votes of the Democratic base (it's not like they'll vote for Jeff Flake), but it will cost you something almost as valuable - their energy.  A successful candidate doesn't just need votes, but also needs feet on the ground.

What those professional consultants won't tell you, in fact are afraid to tell you because they are worried about their next paying gig, is that most successful campaigns are more about the energy of the volunteers than they are about perfectly crafted and completely meaningless positions on issues.

Remember that.

Jack Harper wants the taxpayers to give Russell Pearce a quarter-milliion dollar going away gift

I've said it before, and I'll say it again -
State Rep. Jack Harper (R-Surprise!) is God's gift to writers.  And I don't mean that in a good way...

The outlook for the post-Pearce era in Arizona politics is slowly coming into focus, and over the near term at least, it looks a lot like it did when Pearce was in the Senate.  In other words, the Republicans are looking to siphon a lot of taxpayer money into their pockets, and not to benefit the people of Arizona.

From the East Valley Tribune, written by Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services -

Arizona voters may not be quite done with Russell Pearce.


Questions of Pearce’s political future aside, a little-known provision of the Arizona Constitution requires the Legislature to act to reimburse any recalled public official his or her “reasonable special election campaign expenses."

State Rep. Jack Harper has jumped all over this idea.  From his Twitter feed -

 
 
 
 
 
Now, while vague, there *is* a section of the Arizona Constitution that seems relevant.
 
From Article 8, Part 1, Section 6 -

The general election laws shall apply to recall elections in so far as applicable. Laws necessary to facilitate the operation of the provisions of this article shall be enacted, including provision for payment by the public treasury of the reasonable special election campaign expenses of such officer.

As the article linked above notes, this has never happened before, so no one, not even Ken Bennett, the Arizona Secretary of State, knows exactly what "reasonable" means in this context.
 
In addition, no one is quite sure who would be reimbursed.  Pearce spent what will end up being more than $250K, but it was all other people's money.  Harper's push on Pearce's behalf could end up directing taxpayer money into the coffers of Freeport McMoran, Pinnacle West, and other corporations whose PACs funded Pearce's failed campaign.
 
However, Harper, Pearce, and all concerned seem to be ignoring the other part of this clause in the AZ Constitution, the part about general election law applying to recall elections.
 
Under Arizona law, if someone spends money on a political activity (such as an election campaign), it has to be reported, in this case both as an expense and a personal contribution.
 
From Pearce's Pre-Recall Election Report, filed with the AZSOS, covering the period ending October 19, 2011 -
 
 

 

 
 
 
Pearce has documented no direct contributions or loans to his campaign, and none of the "in-kind" expenses totalled above were from Pearce himself.
 
In other words, either Pearce hasn't directly incurred any personal expenses related to the recall or he has failed to report campaign contributions and expenses.
 
In other words2, there's nothing to reimburse and there's no record to indicate that there is.  And the "magical" appearance of any such records as evidence of reimbursable expenses will also constitute evidence of violations of campaign finance laws.
 
Probably not something that someone who is likely to run for some office somewhere next year wants hanging over his head...

Historic night in Arizona...

For the first time in Arizona history, a sitting state legislator, the President of the Senate no less, has been removed from office mid-term by the voters.

Congratulations to Randy Parraz and all of the volunteers at Citizens for a Better Arizona for making this possible, and to Jerry Lewis...*Senator* Jerry Lewis...and his team for turning that possibility into a reality.

Pearce camp digging deep into bag of dirty tricks as recall election draws near

On Tuesday, voters in Mesa's LD18 will decide the political fate of State Sen. Russell Pearce, and in the light of recent polls that show him in a dead heat with or even behind his challenger, Jerry Lewis, Pearce and his followers are getting desperate.

After running a sham candidate, Olivia Cortes, in an attempt to siphon votes from Lewis, only to see her withdraw from the race, they are now running a robocall targeted at Latino voters. 

Note:  The animation is not part of the robocall, just the audio.

The call, with an actor using a Hispanic accent and trying to sound like a Democrat, is trying to suppress the anti-Pearce vote by announcing that Pearce and Lewis are Republicans (true) and that Democrats can effectively protest the lack of a Democratic candidate on the ballot by writing in another name, any other name (not true - under AZ law, such votes are meaningless unless the write-in candidate has previously registered with the AZ Secretary of State).

Stephen Lemons of the Phoenix New Times has complete coverage here.

The political committee behind the robocalls is Safeguard Arizona's Future, SOS info here.  It is chaired by Ronald Ludders, a tea party type and an employee of the Arizona Corporation Commission (according to his Facebook page).  So far this cycle, they've reported almost no activity and only $327 cash on hand.  My guess is that the robocalls cost more than that, so there should be some activity reported in the next filing.

Regardless of how Tuesday's election turns out, expect the dirty tricks to continue next year - Ludders formed a new committee just last week, Arizona Project.  Given his tea party and ACC connections, one can guess where he will find money to spend/launder for R candidates.

Because while some pundits have declared that Pearce's political career is on the line Tuesday, I believe that he is arrogant enough that if he loses, he will A) fight to overturn the election results in court, and B) will not take the hint and go away.  No matter what, he will be running for some office next year.

Still, better that he does that as a challenger than as an incumbent.  

The Lewis campaign and Citizens for a Better Arizona have big GOTV efforts planned; contact either to volunteer to help out.

The Pearce/Cortes scam in graphic form

I can't take credit for putting this together (but wish I could! :) ), but here is a great graphical summary of some of the ties between recalled state senator Russell Pearce and his supporters and the "campaign" of Olivia Cortes, one of the other two candidates on the ballot in November's recall election (the other being Jerry Lewis).

Note: for those who prefer words to pictures, Stephen Lemons of the Phoenix New Times has been doing a great job of covering the Pearce camp's dirty tactics.  His latest:  Lester Pearce, Russell's brother, has been campaigning for Russell.  Which wouldn't be a problem, except for the fact that Lester is a sitting Justice of the Peace and is barred from engaging in such activities by the Arizona Code of Judicial Conduct.

Pearce Recall Certified; Election Imminent*

* - Pending the inevitable legal challenge, of course...

From the East Valley Tribune, written by Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services -

State election officials announced Friday there are more than enough signatures to force Senate President Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, to defend his seat.


Elections Director Amy Bjelland formally certified there are10,365 valid signatures on the petitions. Only 7,756 were needed.

Gov. Jan Brewer now has 15 days to call the election, something she cannot legally refuse to do. That means the vote will come on the next available election date, Nov. 8, unless there is a legal challenge.

Later in the article, Fischer writes about how Pearce has no plans to mount a legal challenge to the recall, but Pearce's lawyer is Lisa Hauser, the infamous Republican attorney.  If there is an angle or scheme she can use in defense of Pearce's interests, she will. 

And even if there isn't, she may use the Casey Anthony "spaghetti" defense - throw a lot of spaghetti against the wall, and see if some of it sticks.

BTW - "spaghetti" isn't the real name, but since this is a PG-13 rated blog... :)


Congratulations, and thanks, are due to all of the folks at Citizens for a Better Arizona.  Without their vision, dedication, and thousands of hours of hard work, history would not have been made  - Pearce is the first state-level elected official in Arizona to be faced with a recall.

Has anybody noticed...

...that despite Russell Pearce's claims of massive support for him in LD18, his campaign finance reports from the 2010 election cycle show that he received a grand total of 7 contributions from LD18 residents, amounting to less than 2.5% of his total for the cycle?  He actually received more money from Fiesta Bowl-affiliated contributors.

Even more telling was the fact that, as far as I can tell, he didn't receive any contributions from his neighbors in his home precinct, Mesa 16.

Hmmm...

...that Arizona is lagging behind most other areas in the country economically, even in this rather tepid national recovery?   The folks at Brookings Mountain West, a joint effort from the DC think tank Brookings Institute and UNLV have in the most recent edition of the Mountain Monitor (Phoenix snapshot here; Tucson snapshot here; snapshots of 100 metropolitan areas available here).

Some Arizona-specific numbers, courtesy the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, dated today, here.

Simple summary of both:  Arizona's economy, while showing occasional signs of growth, is basically stagnant, and it is stagnant at the bottom of the trough.


...that former Alaska governor Sarah Palin (R-Half term) has ended/suspended (depending on who you ask) her (in)famous national bus tour...brace yourselves...about halfway through?

Insert your own punchline here.


...that (allegedly) corrupt Republican former Congressman Rick Renzi (R-Mantech) failed in his gambit to block a trial on corruption charges?  He argued that his corrupt activities were Constitutionally-protected and he can't be prosecuted for them.  A federal appeals court disagreed.

...Not really a political topic, at least not to the average Arizonan, but the holder of the number one spot on the FBI's most wanted list (ascending there upon the death of Osama bin Laden), James J. "Whitey" Bulger was finally captured in Santa Monica, California on Wednesday night.

Bulger has numerous bodies on his tally sheet, as well as being the main force behind the near-complete corrupting of the Boston office of the FBI in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Even though by all accounts he had been maintaining a low-profile in Santa Monica, society is a safer place tonight.

Later...

Short Attention Span Musing

...Is Frank Antenori angling for a promotion...or just another electoral beat-down?

H/T to The Range at the Tucson Citizen (Mari Herreras and Dan Gibson) , AZBlueMeanie at Blog for Arizona and Tedski at Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion for spotting this...

State Sen. Frank Antenori (R-Tucson)  has all but announced that he will run for Congress next year by posting a faux-poll on his Facebook page asking for "advice" from readers.

He wanted to know if they thought he should run for Congress or stay in the Arizona Legislature.  Maybe someone should remind him what happened the last time he ran for Congress.

In 2006, he came in fourth in a five-way R primary in CD8, looking to replace the retiring Jim Kolbe, a spot eventually won by Democrat Gabrielle Giffords.

He received 4.12% of the vote.


...It looks as if Hugh Hallman is getting out of Tempe while the getting is good...

From the East Valley Tribune, written by Garin Groff -

Tempe Mayor Hugh Hallman said he’ll stay involved in civic issues and is open to seeking another office after stepping down next June.


Hallman announced he won’t seek a third term while decrying the state of politics in Arizona. He’d like to address challenges he sees at the state and federal levels, though he hasn’t decided just how yet.

It's long been rumored that Hallman has his eye on higher office.  It appears as if he is setting up a statewide run for 2014, though run for Congress or Fulton Brock's seat as a Maricopa County supervisor next year isn't out of the realm of possibility.

Note: Neither Hallman nor Antenori has an active campaign committee at the federal, state, or county levels that I can find, as of this writing.


...Russell Pearce may not be toast yet, he's definitely feeling the heat.

Word has gotten out that the Maricopa County Recorder's Office has unofficially validated more than enough petition signatures to force a recall election.  Most electeds in his position would at least pretend to care about their images, but not Pearce.

Nope.  He went on KAET's Horizon on Thursday and started spouting outrageous, and more importantly for the people who have united to unseat him, easily disproven lies about those people.

This on top of a week spend dealing with criticisms over his handling of the "special session to nowhere," the special session called to change a single word in Arizona law that would have allowed 15,000 Arizonans to continue receiving federally-funded unemployment benefits?

The "special" session where the Republicans in the legislature refused to act to help average Arizonans who need the help, unless the corporate benefactors of those Republicans got another big tax cut?

Not a good week for Pearce.


...Not a good week for John Huppenthal, either.

To great fanfare, the man who is Arizona's Superintendent of Public Instruction pronounced that Tucson's Mexican American Studies program is illegal and must be changed or shut down.

As part of his supporting "evidence" he cited an audit conducted by a private firm.

The problem?  The audit he cited actually found that the program didn't violate the law.

Though as Huffington Post's Jeff Biggers points out here, Huppenthal may have done so himself.

Oopsie.

Later...

Pearce Republicans fiddle while Arizonans burn

...not the best title ever written, but it's better than the original - "Ya gotta be [bleepin'] kiddin' me!"

On Friday, the Arizona legislature was supposed to meet to make a change to Arizona law that would allow nearly 15,000 of Arizona's long-term unemployed to collect an additional 20 weeks of jobless benefits.

They could have done this during the regular session in March or April, as asked by the Democrats, but instead chose to work on more important things, like naming an official state gun and passing a bill aimed to help a particular rancher in southern Arizona escape from paying for his abuse of some undocumented immigrants.

Still, better late than never, right?

Well, forget the "late" part - Senate President Russell Pearce, House Speaker Andy Tobin, and the rest of the Rs doubled down on "never."

From a story published in the Yuma Sun, written by Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services -

Republican legislators balked Friday at a proposal by Gov. Jan Brewer to keep extended jobless benefits flowing, leaving nearly 15,000 Arizonans unsure if the unemployment checks they get this coming week will be their last.


Senate President Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, said a majority of his caucus could not support making the change necessary to have the federal government continue funding benefits for those who have been out of work for more than 79 weeks. Some lawmakers said the plan by the Republican governor was little better than the liberal policies they say got the country’s economy where it is today.

Pearce said there still is a chance lawmakers could approve the plan on Monday — but only if the governor agrees to add provisions he said would prevent fraud. And House Speaker Andy Tobin, R-Paulden, wants the package to also include tax breaks for business he said are needed to stimulate job growth.

{snip}

“The real issue is we have destroyed thousands of jobs in Arizona and also in America because of progressive socialist principles that have been used in the last 20 years that has changed our country,” said Sen. Sylvia Allen, R-Snowflake.

Ummm...yeahhhhh.

It wasn't just Pearce, Tobin, and Allen, either.  Other Rs made their contempt for their unemployed constituents pretty clear -

- Sen. Don Shooter (R-Yuma) showed up for the session in a costume - a sombrero, serape, and a half-filled bottle of tequila in a holster.

- Rep. Jack Harper (R-Surprise), always a favorite here, didn't even bother to show up, Tweeting from home that the Senate should remove Democratic Sen. Steve Gallardo, apparently for the crime of failing to kiss up to Republicans.

Harper's Twitter feed is here.  Be warned:  He *really* dislikes Sen. Gallardo.  And apparently he believes that good spelling is a communist plot to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids.

The relevant bills are here - Senate and House - and they were written and sponsored by Democrats, because no Republican would put his or her name on any measure to help Arizonans.

Even if the measure would cost Arizona nothing.

Other takes:

Andrei Cherny, chair of the Arizona Democratic Party -

"Today, legislative Republicans once again put an extreme ideology ahead of what was good for Arizona. To refuse to make a one-word change to statute that doesn't cost the state a dime is mean spirited, short sighted and wrong. Because of what they've done, our Arizona economy will take another hit and families will be pushed into poverty. The Russell Pearce Republicans showed once again that they are the ones driving the state -- into a ditch."

Rebekah Friend, Executive Director and Secretary-Treasurer of the Arizona AFL-CIO:

"The legislature had a simple job to do today. Just a one-word change to state law would preserve unemployment benefits for 15,000 Arizonans who need a lifeline. But Republican leadership in the legislature and Governor Brewer failed to do even the most basic things we ask of our elected officials. The Governor failed to produce a proposal, and many legislators didn’t even bother to appear. After these same politicians gave away millions in tax breaks to large corporations, their adjournment of this special session without action is simply a dereliction of duty.


"I thank the legislators who showed up today so that our state could extend unemployment benefits. We need more heroes for the working class, like Senator Steve Gallardo, who introduced a bill to help 15,000 families immediately; like Senator Kyrsten Sinema, who rushed back to the state to cast her vote; and like Senator David Schapira and five others who sponsored a bill to withhold pay from legislators during this special session. I hope that all of our legislators will have the heart and the common sense to extend benefits on Monday so that the lapse in this lifeline will only be brief."

There have been hints that the Rs may be willing to try again Monday, but those hints are likely just for show - a number of legislators from both sides of the aisle will be unable to attend next week (hence the really unusual Friday special session).  Reports are that after today, it will be at least a couple of weeks before there are enough available legislators to try again.

On Wednesday, I wrote a post describing the Republicans in the AZ legislature as "soulless".

At the time, I thought it may have been a little harsh, but given their long history of disdain for their constituents, I thought it was merited, at least as a metaphor..

However, even I, cynical lege-watcher of long experience that I am, didn't expect them to prove me to be understating the situation.

Pearce and Tancredo: Putting The "F" Back In Freedom

Wonder if Pearce et. al.  understand that his acting as if he is above the law just reinforces the reasons that people want to recall him?  He and his ilk would have everyone (especially their nativist followers) believe that it's all about immigration.  They want everyone to forget the arrogance, corruption, and the simple meanness that are the hallmarks of his Senate presidency.

Moves like this one won't help him.

From the Arizona Republic, written by Mary K. Reinhart -

A national fundraising effort to fight the recall against Senate President Russell Pearce may be running afoul of state campaign-finance laws.

Team America, a political-action committee headed by former U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., sent an e-mail blast Friday soliciting corporate and private donations for Citizens Who Oppose the Pearce Recall.

"Russell needs a quick infusion of funds to get his campaign started," said the e-mail, from Team America co-chair Bay Buchanan.

"Because it is a recall effort corporate funds are welcome and contributions are unlimited!!"

But state elections officials say Arizona law bans corporate and union donations to influence an election, and that includes opposing a recall effort.

Really?!?  Sure Russell "The law is the LAW" Pearce and his supporters wouldn't do anything illegal, would they?

From ARS 16-919 -

A. Except as provided in section 16-914.02, it is unlawful for a corporation or a limited liability company to make an expenditure or any contribution of money or anything of value for the purpose of influencing an election, and it is unlawful for the designating individual who formed an exploratory committee, an exploratory committee, a candidate or a candidate's campaign committee to accept any contribution of money or anything of value from a corporation or a limited liability company for the purpose of influencing an election. This subsection does not apply to political committees that are incorporated pursuant to title 10, chapters 24 through 40 and political committees that are organized as limited liability companies.

B. Except as provided in section 16-914.02, it is unlawful for a labor organization to make an expenditure or any contribution of money or anything of value for the purpose of influencing an election.

{snip}

1. "Election" means any election to any political office, any election to any political convention or caucus or any primary election held for the purpose of selecting any candidate, political committee or other person for any political office, convention or caucus.

Seems pretty clear to me, but I don't expect Pearce and his allies will let minor details like the law get in the way of their grasping for money.

Tedski at R-Cubed has his take, with a copy of a fundraising email from Pearce, here.

David Safier at Blog for Arizona has his take, with a tie in to the movie referenced by the title of this post, here.

BTW - That referenced movie, Team America: World Police, is perhaps the single funniest movie I've ever seen.  It is also almost certainly the single filthiest mainstream movie ever made.  It is from the creative minds behind the TV show South Park and showcases what they would do if they didn't have Comedy Central's censors looking over their shoulders.

I heartily recommend the movie, with one caveat - don't be fooled by the presence of marionettes in the movie.  In no way, shape, or form is this a movie for the kids.

Did anybody notice...?

...that Rep. Paul "I'm a millionaire" Gosar (R-AZ1) pushed an anti-Davis-Bacon Act amendment to the Homeland Security funding bill passed by the House this week?  The Davis-Bacon Act requires that workers on public works projects are paid the "prevailing wage" in their area.  The amendment failed, even with the support of the other four Arizona Republicans in the House.

It's kind of curious that a wealthy Congressman who (allegedly) represents the people of Arizona's First district, which contains some of the poorest areas of the state, would be actively working to suppress wages in that area (and across the country).


...that Sen. Russell Pearce has a pattern?  He's all for the blind "rule of law" when it is applied to people with brown skin or who simply disagree with him.  But for people he likes?  Not so much.

Latest example:  His appointment to the state's Child Support Committee has a history of violence in front of children.

Pearce's response when his appointee's criminal record was brought to his attention?

From an Arizona Capitol Times story, written by Gary Grado -

Finding qualified people to sit on the multitude of committees that have many seats is a challenge, and disqualifying people on the basis of a criminal record would make it even more challenging, Pearce said.

The blasé attitude, while disappointing, is hardly surprising.  This is the same guy who pronounced that state senators are above the law barring the possession of weapons in public buildings and that his ally and fellow state senator, Scott Bundgaard, was actually the victim in a domestic violence incident that took place in February.

Despite the statement of the actual victim.

Despite the reports of the police.

Despite the statements of eye witnesses.


...that since she bought a house in north Scottsdale, Sarah Palin has been everywhere except for Arizona?  It seems like she hasn't missed a landmark, tourist trap, or truck stop in her presidential campaign bus tour through the northeastern U.S.

Well, just she doesn't slip from notice here (OK, so that's not going to happen.  It works as an excuse to write this blurb :) ), based on the address, here is a list of electeds who need to watch their backs.

President Barack Obama - it's hardly a secret that she wants his job.  OK, she probably just wants the title.  If she actually won, she'd probably quit a couple of years into her first term to find a better-paying job.

Congressman Jeff Flake - it's hardly a secret that she'd "settle" for the US Senate seat held by the soon-to-be-retired Jon Kyl, a seat that's coveted by Flake.

Secretary of State Ken Bennett and anyone else eyeing a 2014 run for governor.  Arizona is a bigger state than Alaska, and while she probably isn't interested in dealing with the AZ legislature, anything could happen.

Congressmen David Schweikert and Ben Quayle - her new home places her at the western edge of the current Fifth Congressional District.  After redistricting, she could end up in either Schweikert's or Quayle's freshly-redrawn district.  As first-termers running for reelection in somewhat unfamiliar districts, they'll be highly vulnerable to challenges.

LD7 and LD8 state legislators Heather Carter, David Burnell Smith, Michelle Ugenti are all first-termers in the lege.  While it is highly unlikely that Palin would be interested in a run at the lege, they would be vulnerable in the same way that Schweikert and Quayle are vulnerable.  Nancy Barto, Michele Reagan, John Kavanagh could be vulnerable to a primary challenge from a high-profile opponent, but they've been around long enough that they could weather such a challenge.  After redistricting, she could end up in the new version of either district.

Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley.  While he has survived the attacks from Joe Arpaio and Andrew Thomas, he has been scuffed up enough for a challenger to defeat him.  Not the highest profile position, but they get to deal with an annual budget of more than $2 billion, with minimal oversight.  With Palin's predilection for misusing office (Troopergate, anyone?), this one cannot be ruled out.

Desert Ridge Justice of the Peace Clancy Jayne...OK, this one is a bit of a stretch, even for a wiseass post like this one.  Maricopa County JPs are paid pretty well (~$100K) but it's a job that is actual work.  She would have to show up and do the job, not spend her time flying around the country trying to find the greatest concentration of TV cameras.

Desert Ridge Constable Cory Hazlett...lower profile and lower pay than the JP job, and the job requires working outside.  Not gonna happen either.

Cave Creek Unified School District Governing Board members David Schaefer, Mark Warren, Susan Clancy, Casey Perkins, and Stephanie Reese.  Probably too low-profile for Palin's taste, and she's not exactly a fan of public education (her oldest daughter was homeschooled, not sure about her other children), but school board members probably garner the most respect accorded any elected position in Arizona.  Quitting halfway through her term as governor of Alaska has left Palin a little light in the respect department.

Peak View precinct Republican PCs Melinda Gulick, Peter Kanton, Regina Knapp, Gary McCaleb, Gwenn McCaleb, Lawrence Wangler, and Verna Wangler.  Low-profile and unpaid, yet gaining one of these slots could bolster carpetbagger Palin's bonafides with the AZ GOP.  Could result in the first known case of a PC candidate having to file campaign finance reports.

Finally, Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane.  Not being snarky here.  It's high-profile enough to give her Arizona visibility for any 2014 or 2016 runs in AZ, yet part-time enough for her to keep her financially lucrative reality TV/faux news career going.  Plus Scottsdale has a recent history of elected women as its mayor (Mary Manross, Sam Campana).

Hmmm....

Later...

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...

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.

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.

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.