Tempe City Council candidate forum tonight

Apologies for the short notice. This race is sort of slipping under the radar in the tumult of a presidential election year.

From the AZ Republic -

The seven candidates vying for three seats on the Tempe City Council will face off at Monday's candidate forum.

Voters will have a chance to hear incumbents Mark Mitchell and Hut Hutson defend their record and ideas, and challengers Darryl Jacobson-Barnes, Corey Woods, Rhett Wilson, Joel Navarro and Julie Jakubek highlight what the could do for Tempe.

The forum, sponsored by The Tempe Republic and the Tempe Chamber of Commerce, is at 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 31 E. Fifth St. It is open to the public and time will be provided for audience questions.

If you live in Tempe, this is a great chance to hear from your candidates for City Council.

Note: The D17 Democrats have invited the candidates to speak at its February 12th meeting; scheduling is still being worked out, but it will be an informative evening.

2008 Legislative Loon - 1st Runner Up

In a slight change from the previously announced format, instead of four posts announcing the three finalists for the 2008 Legislative Loon Award and the winner, there will be three posts listing the final results.

State Sen. Jack Harper (R-Surprise!), the subject of my previous post on this topic (and last year's winner), is 2nd Runner Up.

Tonight's subject, State Rep. John Kavanagh (R-LD8), is 1st Runner Up.

He's a real 'up-and-comer' - as an incoming freshman legislator a year ago, he was an almost totally unknown quantity and was unranked.

What we did know a year ago was that he came from a district (north Scottsdale) that is known for sending socially moderate, pro-business Republicans to the lege (i.e. -Sen. Carolyn Allen and Rep. Michele Reagan.) In addition, it was known that he was a retired police officer and current college program head (Scottsdale Community College.)

A year ago, expectations...hopes, anyway...were that while he was a loyal Republican, his careers as a public servant and educator would give him an understanding of the damage that blind ideology can wreak upon public service and infrastructure, and that he might pass that understanding on to a couple of his caucus-mates.


What a difference a year makes.


Let's look at his 'rabid ideologue' credentials -

He hates immigrants with the passion of a Pearce or Tancredo -

He is the sponsor or cosponsor of seven anti-immigrant bills (and counting), operates an anti-immigrant website called ProtectAZBorder.com (Google it if you want to look at it; I'm not going to link to it), and he has an anti-immigrant radio show on KFHX 1620 AM airing Fridays at 8 a.m. (I think it's a low power station based in Fountain Hills, but it streams its audio. Google it if interested.)

Coverage of some of his public expressions against immigrants here.

He's anti-public education -

He's sponsored or cosponsored seven bills that undermine public education, from a bill that makes permanent the corporate tax credit for donations school tuition organizations (STOs) for private and charter schools (HB2098) to barring the assessment of development fees to pay for school construction or maintenance (SB1138).

...He's not unusual in this regard - most of the Republican caucus in the lege works against public ed; however, very few actually work in public ed at the same time. Isn't it interesting that someone who works for a publicly-funded school (SCC) is dedicated to undermining the viability of public education?

He's a fiscally irresponsible (but oh-so-fervent) anti-tax crusader -

He has sponsored or cosponsored five bills that would decrease the state's revenues when it's already laboring under a budget deficit that exceeds a billion dollars. Perhaps he believes that the state can balance its budget with a voluntary tax (HB2339).

31 other Republicans have signed on to HB2339; apparently, they hope that the average citizen will step in to pick up the revenue slack while not noticing that the state's revenue problems were exacerbated by those same Republicans when they forced through yet another huge tax cut for corporations.


Highlights of some of his recent utterings and press coverage -

He wants to balance the state's budget on the backs of needy students.

From the Sierra Vista Herald (January 10, 2008) -

The proposal Wednesday by Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, would require universities to charge students at least 40 percent of what it costs to attend the schools. Now, some students can get fullride scholarships, including room and board, while others get a major percentage of their tab picked up. Kavanagh said the current policy essentially amounts to those without a college degree subsidizing the education of those who will get one.

And if you don't already see his plan as a carefully planned attack on financially-needy poor students (in the name of the state's own financial needs, of course), his proposal would exempt students on academic or athletic scholarships.

Or how about this gem, from the AZ Republic's Political Insider (aka - Plugged In) (the entry is quoted in its entirety because the entire entry *is* a quote) -

"Can we do that to prevent the decimation of our forests, the herniation of our postal workers and the pillaging of our budget?" - Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, asking Secretary of State Jan Brewer if her office could save money by sending ballot information electronically, instead of through the U.S. mail.

In case this isn't clear (somebody should take his thesaurus away, right now! :) ), let me clarify - he wants to use the state's budget problems to disenfranchise those who aren't Web users.

Why doesn't he just say what he really means? "Elderly folks who haven't adapted to an online world yet - you don't need to know about the ballot. You've already voted enough in your lifetimes. On election day, you just get in the way of busier, more useful people anyway. Poor people who can't afford web access - Just get to work and quit wasting time on civic niceties like informed voting."


What elevates Kavanagh about the rest of the Republican caucus (and above 2nd Runner Up Jack Harper) in the race for 2008 Legislative Loon isn't that he's a raving ideologue and frothing-at-the-mouth bigot (most of them are both).

It's the fact that he *is* well-spoken, well-educated, and highly intelligent, and quite capable of crafting and pushing well-thought out and responsible bills. He can even "work across the aisle" on some good bills (i.e. - HB2396, Steve Farley's ban on texting while driving, HB2557, a bill that specifies that schools cannot reduce or eliminate PE, music, or art instruction to meet academic standards in required subjects).

He's the 1st Runner Up because he's capable of being better. He could be a dedicated and hard-working legislator who could be disagreed with on policy issues (he *is* a Republican after all :) ), yet could be respected for at least trying to bring an air of intelligence and professionalism to his job.

Instead, he's just Loon in professional attire, nothing more than a polished Kool-Aid drinker.

...Next up - the Winner!

Of course, most regular readers can guess who that's going to be... :))

Hint: Even without the rest of his resume, the whole 'guns in schools' proposal (SB1214) put him over the top.

Not that he hasn't always been "over the top..."

Later!

Memo to John McCain: You should have stuck with Brimley - even oatmeal is hotter than Rambo these days

McCain catches Huckabee in that all-important category -

"Meaningless endorsement from a washed-up Hollywood action star."

From The Swamp in the Baltimore Sun -

For a while, it seemed like Mike Huckabee had a lock on the campy tough guy vote as he toted Walker Texas Ranger star Chuck Norris around Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

Then John McCain got Wilford Brimley, the gruff and tough actor turned oatmeal pitchman.

Today comes the tie break.

Sylvester Stallone of Rocky fame has come out for McCain.

Oh, the possible jokes...

"...After this message from Liberty Medical, the 2008 Republican Debate asks: 'Rambo' and 'Missing in Action' - cynically xenophobic gorefests or cathartic cultural statements?"

"...Quaker Oats, Grecian Formula or Human Growth Hormone - which helps a campaign more?"

"...Breaking news: Dr. Phil has suspended operations at his syndicated television show in order to film his newest reality series 'Psychological Babysitter To Celebrity Train Wrecks.' This week, watch Dr. Phil counsel Steven Seagal, who has threatened to cut off his pony tail unless one of the presidential campaigns calls him."


Anybody have one of their own they want to add to the list?

Later!

Sometimes hardball is the wrong game to play...

Whatthehell are they thinking?

In a move that I sort of predicted a couple of weeks ago, the Clinton campaign has requested that the DNC change the nomination rules.

From Reuters via Yahoo! News:

Sen. Hillary Clinton, in an about-face, said on Friday she wants the Democratic Party delegates in two states that were barred by the national party to be reinstated and counted in the race to determine the party's U.S. presidential nominee.

In those states, Michigan and Florida, Clinton could stake claim to nearly all the delegates to the nominating convention in question -- more than 350.

Is the Clinton campaign deliberately trying to alienate the grassroots of the party? Do they really believe they can win the general election (presuming that she wins the nomination, a possibility that stunts like this could jeopardize) without the votes of the supporters of the other primary candidates? Do they even care about the damage such a move could do to the party's (and the eventual nominee's) image?

Are they supremely arrogant, or just supremely foolish?

For the sake of the party, Governor Dean and the DNC should respond to the request with a firm and final

"No."


More coverage -

Rolling Stone (critical)

New York Times (critical)

Palm Beach Post (not so critical)

Detroit News (not so critical)


Later!

The nominations are in...

With the WGA still on strike, this awards season has been something of a bust, but that all changes tonight... :)


It's a new year, and a new session of the legislature, and it's time to announce the finalists in the 2008 Legislative Loon award.


This year's competition has a number of contenders for the top spot, but the finalists came down to three names familiar to readers of this blog.

This is the first of a series of four posts - one for each finalist, detailing their qualifications for this year's award, followed by a fourth naming the winner. The winner will be announced next week.

On to the finalists...


State Senator Jack Harper(R-LD4), the defending champion, made a strong case to retain his title, sponsoring or cosponsoring at least 10 anti-immigrant bills, three anti-abortion measures, and a offering a number of bills and utterings of the 'unrepentant wing nut' variety.

Some of the highlights of his entries in the category -

...the previously discussed SB1064, a proposal to open up Arizona's presidential primaries - for everyone except Democrats...

...a slightly watered-down version of the infamous "guns in bars" bill. His SB1132 would allow gun owners to carry their weapons in a restaurant as long as the proprietor of the establishment specifically posted that such was allowed. (note: Believe it or not, I could actually support this bill except for the fact that the posting required under the language of this bill doesn't actually clearly state that guns are permitted. Yes, that means that patrons that aren't part of the gun culture wouldn't know that they were around people who were mixing booze and guns. An article on the bill by Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services, via the Sierra Vista Herald is here.)

...his refusal to hold re-confirmation hearings for the commander of the Arizona National Guard, Gen. David Rataczak, because he doesn't like the fact that Governor Napolitano hasn't mobilized the National Guard to patrol the border with Mexico. (EV Trib editorial here)

...his sponsorship of seven bills designed to reduce state or local revenues (i.e. - SB1002, end equalization tax for education; SB1138, bar local development fees to pay for schools in newly'built areas) or increase fiscal irresponsibility (HCR2004, creative use of federal money that isn't subject to specific encumberances).

[And all you CD8 types should remember that Tim Bee is the one who put Harper on the Senate Appropriations Committee. Just something to think about when Bee tries to portray himself as a "moderate Republican" during his campaign to unseat Gabrielle Giffords in November.]

...the reintroduction of a bill to create a state-sponsored and funded anti-immigrant vigilante force...errr..."homeland security force" (SCR1007).

...during a meeting of the Joint Appropriations Committee on January 23rd, he grilled ASU Michael Crow over university courses that "challenge the social norms." He objects to courses that discuss subjects, such as sexuality, that are "deviant from from the majority" and wants "assurance that courses that challenge the social norms will be eliminated in light of budget issues." (The lege's video archive page is here; select the longer January 23, 2008 meeting. Harper's part starts at around the 1:21:00 mark.)

Yes, in a period when the state is facing a budget shortfall in the vicinity a billion dollars, and he's concerned with a couple of individual class offerings that have a single class section. He's actually interested in turning the state universities into higher-ed versions of vocational high schools, not institutions of higher learning -

He wants his "tax money going to train someone for a career not going to push someone's social agenda."


No UFO sightings here, but Sen. Harper offers a well-rounded resume. He's petty, unprofessional, reactionary, and bigoted.

He's made a very strong statement in his campaign to retain the title.

Next up: State Rep. John Kavanagh (R-LD8).

Later!

The Three Amigos Ride Again...

Yesterday, the House of Representatives considered overriding the President's veto of H.R. 3963, the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007. The Act would have renewed and expanded SCHIP, the program that provides health insurance coverage for poor children.

The attempt to override the veto failed by a 260 - 152 vote, 2/3 required to override the veto.

Naturally, being loyal Republicans all, Jeff Flake (R-AZ6), John Shadegg (R-AZ3), and Trent Franks (R-AZ2) voted to sustain the President's veto; according to the tenets of their ideology, the profits of private insurers are more important than poor children.

While none of the three could be bothered to speak on the House floor in support of children, or even to defend their support of the President's veto, the ever-consistent Trent Franks did have time to stroll to the floor of the House and insert a statement into the record bemoaning...

...the 35th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision. (p. E71 of the Congressional Record).

Nice to see that he still stops worrying about the welfare of children once they're born.


..Update - few days ago, I wrote a post noting John Shadegg's conspicuous absence while his constituents in Paradise Valley dealt with TCE-contaminated tap water.

Later, DownWithTyranny in California found him campaigning for John McCain in South Carolina. (Thanks for the update DWT!)

So, let's see where Shadegg's priorities lie -

1. Defend his conduct in circumventing campaign finance laws.

2. Traipse around South Carolina in winter.

3. Vote to screw over poor children and protect insurance company profits.

4. Join a court motion to stop a lawsuit over the 'under God' reference in the Pledge of Allegiance.

- Work for his constituents.

There's no number for that last because there's no evidence that he *ever* works for his constituents; hence, there's no way to quantify where that falls on his list of priorities.


...x4mr has a post on the SCHIP override vote here; Michael Bryan of Blog for Arizona has one here.

Later!

The Scottsdale City Council and water contamination

There was a theme to Tuesday night's meeting, and that theme was "It's an election year."...

At last night's meeting of the Scottsdale City Council, the council considered an item placed on the agenda by Councilman Ron McCullagh to direct City staff to research and report back on the ramifications and impacts of a possible City "acquisition of the portion of the Arizona American Water Company that serves Scottsdale customers."

There was a few minutes of discussion, where each member of the council, especially those up for election this year, chimed in on the subject. Most took the opportunity to affirm their vigilant concern for the welfare of Scottsdale's residents.

In the end, Councilman McCullagh expressed the strongest condemnation of Arizona American Water, calling it a "poor corporate citizen" with "poor customer service."

Did I mention that Councilman McCullagh is a customer of Arizona American Water? :))

The council finally did pass a motion directing City staff to research adding Arizona American's Scottsdale customers to the City of Scottsdale water system.

I don't think this will actually go anywhere; it seemed to be more an exercise in "showing the voters that we're on top of things" than anything else. The council members seemed to hope that the staff's report will say that the problem has been dealt with and no one needs to worry any more.


Of course, the election-year posturing during the AzAmWater discussion was nothing compared to the sniping and backbiting that engulfed the Council (or at least 3 member of it) during the consideration of the item that preceded it, a request by Councilman (and more importantly, mayoral candidate) Jim Lane for an update on the progress of the protracted (and often adversarial) negotiations between the City and Barrett-Jackson for B-J's continued use of WestWorld for its annual collector car auction.

Last year, in an effort to break the logjam, Mayor Manross stepped it and took personal control of those negotiations.

The logjam remains, and many in the city have used that to criticize the Mayor (I haven't followed this particular topic all that closely, so I don't know whether or not those criticisms are justified.)

Two of the loudest critics, Lane and Tony Nelssen, sit on the City Council.

So does a third critic, Bob Littlefield, but he was remarkably silent during this discussion. Not sure why. (He is said to be mulling a run for Mayor, but he would have to resign his position on the Council to make such a run. He may decide that too many candidates could split the anti-Manross vote and just support Lane.)

Anyway, the three of them (Manross, Lane, and Nelssen) spent a big chunk of the meeting interrupting, talking over and just plain pointing the finger of blame at each other.

Lane tried to undercut Manross by proposing the formation of a blue-ribbon citizens' commission to handle the negotiations. His motion died for lack of a second, but his message was sent - he doesn't think that Manross can handle the job.

And when Lane wasn't criticizing Manross, Nelssen was.

Nelssen brought up the point that a couple of months ago, he suggested that Craig Jackson and his staff be invited to meet with the Council. Manross stated that she didn't want to turn this into "a political circus."

Nelssen responded to Manross by saying "You run these meetings. It's *your* responsibility to keep them from being a political circus."

Manross just stared at Nelssen for a "if looks could kill" moment.

More than a few of us in the gallery chuckled and whispered "yep - it's an election year."


Video of the meeting (the 'regular' meeting, dated January 22, 2008) is available on this page; the Barrett-Jackson part of the meeting starts at around the 17:00 minute mark and lasts 30 minutes or so; the AzAmWater part starts at around the 50 minute mark.

Later!

Positive voter registration trends for Democrats in CD5

The AZ Star (Tucson) ran an AP article on the Arizona Secretary of State's voter registration numbers for the presidential preference election on February 5, 2008. It inspired me to look at a more local breakdown of registration trends.

Those numbers, when compared to the registration numbers for 2006, show some very favorable trends for AZ Democrats.

Statewide, overall registration has increased 5.6%, with Democratic registrations increasing at more than twice the pace of Republican registrations. Democratic registrations are up 5.9%; Republican registrations are up 2.7%.

Of course, both major parties should take heed of the fact that Independent/non-affiliated registrations are up 9.7%.


In CD5, the numbers are even more eye-opening. (Apologies for the formatting - I haven't figured out how to set up a neat table in Blogger. :( )

Key -

Party, Jan 2008 #s, Oct 2006, Raw change, % change

Democratic Party, 92201, 86743, 5458, 6.3%

Republican Party, 139265, 139057, 208, 0.15%

Independent, 94457, 87060, 7397, 8.5%

Overall, 328145, 315185, 12960, 4.1%

To sum up - In CD5, the trends indicated by the statewide numbers are even more pronounced. Independent registrations increased at more than twice the pace of the increase in overall registrations. In addition, Democratic registrations increase at a greater pace than the overall pace.

As for the Republicans? They virtually maintained status quo, while everyone else moved up.

The short-term trends are even more encouraging.

Since October 2007, the date of the voter reg report immediately prior to the current one, in CD5, Republican registrations have decreased .19%, Independent registrations have decreased 2.53%, and overall registrations have decreased by .47%.

As for Democratic registrations? They increased by 1.48%.

:))

The indication of decreased Independent registrations is attributable to Arizona's closed primary system for the presidential preference primary election. Many independent voters registered with a party in order to vote in that party's primary. Most, but not all, will change back after February 5th,

The fact that Democratic registrations increased while the overall registration numbers decreased suggest that most of the independents registered as Democrats.

This idea is supported by the national trend of record Democratic turnout in the caucuses and primaries in New Hampshire, Iowa, and Nevada.

Simply put, average voters are far more excited by the slate of Democratic contenders for the presidency than they are by the slate of Republican contenders.

Add to that the continued voter dissatisfaction with the status quo (war without end, economy stalling, health care that doesn't care, economy tanking, immigration rhetoric founded on blind hate not substance, economy in recession) associated mostly with the Republicans, and you have a trend that should continue to favor the Democratic Party, both nationally and here in AZ.


The trends in LD8 and LD17 are similarly positive for Democrats -

In LD17, Democratic registrations are up 5.8% since October of 2006 (down .54% since October 2007), Republican registrations are up only 1.1% since 10?06 (down 1.4% since 10/07). Overall registrations are up 5.1% since 10/06 and down .5% since 10/07.

Of course, even in the slightly negative news for Democrats (down a little since October 2007), one shouldn't lose sight of the fact that they still did better than the Republicans in LD17.


Oh, and for the first time in recent memory, there are more registered Democrats in LD17, 25,530, than Republicans, 25,383!


An advantage of 147!

In October of 2006, the Republican registration advantage was 970, for a net change of 1117 more Democratic registrations than Republicans.


In LD8, the trend is even better (though the Reps still have a huge registration advantage there).

LD8 Democratic registrations are up almost 8% since October 2006, Republican registrations are up almost 1% and overall registrations are up 5.1%.

Those are pretty encouraging numbers, but the short-term numbers are even better -

Since October 2007, Republican registrations are down .5% while Democratic registrations are up 2.11%! (Overall registrations in LD8 are down almost .5.)

These numbers, both locally and statewide, won't make any difference on February 5th - that election is 'party-only.'

Come November, however, these trends could spell trouble for Republican candidates up and down the ballot.

Water company on the agenda of the Scottsdale City Council

In light of the events of the past week, it should come as no surprise that the Scottsdale City Council has changed its agenda for Tuesday's meeting to include a discussion of the Arizona American Water Company.

What is a little surprise is the wording of the agenda item itself -

***16B. Acquisition of Arizona American Water Company

Request: At the request of Councilman Ron McCullagh, discussion and direction to staff to investigate and analyze the legal and financial impacts of acquisition of the portion of the ArizonaAmerican Water Company that serves Scottsdale customers.

"Acquisition"??

That should make for an interesting discussion.

More on the water contamination situation:

As reported on Saturday, the tap water ban for AZ American Water's customers has been lifted, the facility is completely shut down and the investigation into the incident is continuing.

According to Todd Walker, spokesman for Arizona American Water, the Miller Road Treatment Facility won't be brought back online until the issue and process have been reviewed and resolved.

The EPA was closed Monday due to the MLK holiday, but I'll contact Vicki Rosen at the EPA before I head out to the City Council meeting on Tuesday.

During my talk with Walker, I asked for a comment on the Scottsdale City Council agenda item, but he demurred, saying that he didn't know enough about it to have a comment.

I should have more info tomorrow night.


An observation about the whole thing -

I've got to give credit where it is due - at the November meeting of the NIBW Community Involvement Group (post on that here) where people found out about an "incomplete remediation" incident at the MRTF, almost a month after it occurred, was marked by community anger at the lack of communication.

That failure was certainly corrected with this incident with the emails, reverse 9-1-1 calls, and media notifications, all made the day that the blower malfuntion was discovered.

Many people have complained that they didn't receive the notifications, and their anger and frustration is understandable, but under the communication plan agreed to by the EPA and all of the participants, they only had to send out a letter within 30 days.

Perhaps their communications missed some customers, but they did go above and beyond and deserve credit for that.

Save the criticisms for the apparently chronic problems at the MRTF. :)

HRC visit and other pres campaign info...

From an email courtesy of Doug Mings, chair of the LD17 Democrats -

Barack Obama for President

LD 17 (Tempe) For Obama Organizational Meeting

Where: ASU, Coor Hall, Room 195

When: Tuesday, January 22 at 7pm

What: With 2 weeks left, join Obama supporters, staff, and volunteers tohelp with the crucial final push and sign up for phone banks and canvassing to help organize Tempe for Senator Obama!

Contact: Greg Whitten, Obama Field Organizer Gwhitten@Obamaaz.com
Cell: 602-616-9017;
Office: 602-297-2008

Phoenix Headquarters
22 East Mitchell (between 3rd St and Central, just north of Osborn and southof Indian School)
Phoenix, AZ 85012
602-297-2008

Hillary Clinton for President

Hillary Clinton will visit Phoenix tomorrow, Tuesday, January 22.

She will speak at Caesar Chavez High School, which is 3921 W. Baseline in Phoenix. Doors open at 6:00 P.M. The event starts at 7:00 P.M.

Phoenix Headquarters-2845 N. Central Ave (SE Corner of Central and Thomas)
Phoenix, AZ 85004
602-279-8030 (o);
602-277-5042 (f)

Contact: Tony Wagner, Arizona Field Director
602-279-8030 (o);
602-277-5042 (f)
twagner@HillaryClinton.com www.HillaryClinton.com


John Edwards for President

http://johnedwards.com
East Valley For Edwards

Come out to an event and regardless of your age, background or experience,find out how you can get involved and make a difference.
602-705-7773;

EastValleyforEdwards@gmail.com


Dennis Kucinich for President
www.dennis4president.com/home

Local CoordinatorRick Romero:
602.515.9844;
romero85008@yahoo.com

Short Attention Span Musing - Primaries Edition

...The MSM and Clinton camp are painting the results of Saturday's Nevada caucuses as a huge victory for Clinton. However, the numbers that count, the number of delegates allocated, show that the results were almost dead even. Clinton received 13 delegates; Obama 12. (MSNBC) Other say that the numbers are still 13 - 12, but favoring Obama.

Either way, not exactly an overwhelming victory.

With previously pledged superdelegates, Clinton *does* have a significant lead in delegate totals. (CNN) On the other hand, though, superdelegates are notorious front-runners. If one of the other candidates starts pulling away in the primaries, a lot of those superdelegates will throw their support to the candidate that they believe is the popular choice.


...John Edwards is easily the candidate most in need of a victory in South Carolina. He has yet to win an event, and was completely shut out of the delegate allocation in Nevada. Another showing of 3rd or worse, especially one in his home state, may just end his candidacy.


...On the Republican side, Mitt Romney's camp is painting him as the frontrunner, but he may be the weakest "frontrunner" in primary history. He has yet to win a seriously contested primary and the next major GOP test is in Florida, a state where Rudy "noun, verb, 9/11' Giuliani has been campaigning for years.

McCain has the momentum heading into Florida, Huckabee has the hardcore religious conservative vote there, Romney has the personal fortune to spend there, and it's practically a 2nd home state for Giuliani.

One of the top 4 GOP candidates will tank in Florida, and his candidacy will be history.


...A suggestion for volunteers and staffers that will be representing Democratic candidates at LD and other local groups' forums before the primary: Know your candidates' health care positions.

I've been to the LD17 and LD8 forums over the last couple of weeks, and health care was the issue that most inspired 'spirited' discussion. Expect to be grilled on this issue like no other at events like this week's forum held by the Arizona chapter of the NJDC (Tuesday at 7:00 p.m., Country Inn and Suites, 10801 89th Place, Scottsdale)


...Not that I'm one given to defending John McCain (I leave that to Politico Mafioso), but when Chuck Norris criticized McCain as too old to be president, I had to laugh. Norris is almost 68 years old and is washed up as an actor (hasn't appeared in anything other than an infomercial or a Huckabee video since 2005). McCain is a few years older but is hardly washed-up. McCain's campaign schedule alone gives lie to Norris' assertion.

John McCain may not be doing his job of representing Arizona, but that's because he has chosen not to do so, not because he is incapable of doing so.

There are many things to criticize about John McCain (remember the Chelsea Clinton joke in 1998? That kind of casual meanness alone disqualifies McCain from the presidency), but his age isn't one of them.

Give it up Chuck.


...And the best news of the day, non-primary related -


We are officially in the last year of the Bush presidency.


Later!

The tap water ban has been lifted in Scottsdale and P.V.

According to AZCentral.com -

A three-day ban on using tap water provided by the Arizona American Water Co. affecting about 5,000 Paradise Valley and Scottsdale residential and commercial customers has been lifted.

The article goes on to cite the Arizona American Water Company's latest press release advising its customers to run their taps to clean any possible contamination out of their systems, including running their hot water to clean out their hot water tanks.


In honor of this week's events, let's call it "The Great 2008 Paradise Valley/Scottsdale Cluster-Flush."


Stay tuned on this one - the Arizona Corporation Commission is expected to have hearings about this, PV (and probably Scottsdale) officials will be meeting with company officials, and Congressman Harry Mitchell is going to bring it up at the February 7, 2008 meeting of the House Transportation and Infrastructure's Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment. He sits on the subcommittee.

The meeting subject is "Agency Budgets and Priorities for FY 2009."

Congressmen talking about agency budgets usually have the undivided attention of the relevant agency heads. :)

For updates, including the next NIBW Community Involvement Group (CIG) meeting time/place, contact the EPA's Vicki Rosen at rosen.vicki[at]epa.gov to be added to the email alert list.

Where's John Shadegg?

In the many articles and blog posts regarding the water contamination problems in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley, many people have been quoted, from spokespeople for the various agencies and companies involved, affected residents, and even elected officials.

Congressman Harry Mitchell (D-AZ5) has gone so far as to directly contact senior EPA officials to express his concerns with the repeated problems this particular treatement facility (MRTF).

There's a limit to what a Congressman can do here, directly anyway, but what he can do is bring to bear a level of pressure and scrutiny that a member of the general public cannot.

And two Congressmen? Twice as much pressure and scrutiny.

So why hasn't John Shadegg (R-AZ3) brought his influence to bear?

I'm sure some readers are asking "Why should Shadegg get involved? It's Mitchell's district."

Well, that's only partially true. A number of the affected customers are in Scottsdale, and that *is* in Mitchell's district.

However, the bulk of the folks who can't drink their tap water are in Paradise Valley, which is in Shadegg's district.

See the southeastern portion of this district map of Shadegg's CD3, courtesy the Maricopa County Recorder's Office.


So I ask again - Where's John Shadegg?


I know Shadegg markets himself as a "laissez-faire, Reagan-style" Republican, but who knew that "laissez-faire" was French for "let them drink poison"??

Contamination levels down, but tap water usage ban remains in effect

The Arizona Republic has the details -

A ban on drinking tap water remains in effect indefinitely for nearly 5,000 Paradise Valley and Scottsdale customers of Arizona American Water while the company works with government health officials to test water samples for a potentially toxic solvent.

The ban, which began Wednesday, urges customers not to drink tap water or use it to prepare food.

Arizona American's initial warning was to expire at 5 p.m. Friday but now is indefinite.

{snip}

After the problem was detected, a test of the water showed the level to be 22 parts per billion. 5 ppb is the maximum contaminant level allowed.

{snip}

Thursday, it had dropped to 1.9 ppb, within acceptable levels, but more checks of the system are needed.

Read the complete article (linked above) for more details, but to summarize - the affected customers in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley still shouldn't use their tap water for drinking or food preparation.

Arizona American Water's latest (18 January 2008) press release is here.

Arizona state government FAQ page on this is here.

Edit to add:

There is a blog, The TCE Blog, that is dedicated to publicizing the effects of TCE. If you are interested in learning more about TCE, it's worth a read. It's written by Neil Fischbein, who once lived in a town with a water supply that was contaminated with TCE.

End edit.

Tempe mourns - Evelyn Cahill passes away at 88

Evelyn Cahill, mother of former Tempe City Councilman Dennis Cahill and mother-in-law to State Senator Meg Burton-Cahill, passed away on January 15th.

In addition to Dennis and Meg, she leaves a sister, three other sons, 14 grandchildren, 25 great-grandchildren and scores of friends from her years of working in the Tempe school system and volunteering with many community organizations.

Her funeral service will be held at 3:30 p.m., Saturday, January 19, at ASU's Newman Center, 230 E. University Drive, Tempe. There will be a wake immediately afterward at her home on Parkway Blvd. Burial services will be private.

Her obituary from AZCentral.com -

Evelyn Cahill, 88, passed away January 15, 2008 at her home. Born in Boyde Wisconsin to Peter and Louise Duce, Evelyn had two brothers and four sisters. Evelyn married Jim Cahill and they had had four sons. The family moved to Tempe in 1953. She was a loyal and vocal ASU football fan. Evelyn worked as a waitress and later in Tempe schools food services. She enjoyed her years working in the schools and around children very much. Evelyn is survived by her sister Florence; sons Dennis (Meg), David (Sonja), Donald (Sue) and Dwight (Rebecca); 14 grandchildren and 25 great-grandchildren. Evelyn was a talented, beautiful, eclectic and strong woman. She was a lifelong Catholic. Evelyn loved to travel, garden and play cards. She enjoyed volunteering, especially enjoying serving meals at the Escalante Center and volunteering at the Tempe Sister Cities' Hackett House. Evelyn's home hosted a young Chinese piano student who attended ASU. Evelyn was passionate about life and her family. She loved being the mother of four sons, and loved that to this day they are referred to as "The Cahill Boys." She was never happier than when surrounded by her family. In her retirement years, Evelyn enjoyed the recreational, craft and social activities available though the various Tempe Community Centers. She was a member of the District 17 Democrats, but always believed in supporting the person she felt best for the position regardless of political party. Evelyn especially enjoyed sharing her opinions about local politics, always having a flock of political signs in her yard and a button or two on her blouse for those she supported. Evelyn was much loved by family and friends and we will miss her humor and charm. The funeral service will be held January 19th, 3:30pm at the Old Mount Carmel Church located at the Newman Center: 230 East University Drive, Tempe. In lieu of flowers the family suggests memorial contributions may be made in Evelyn's name to Hospice of the Valley 1510 E. Flower Street Phoenix, AZ 85014.

An article from the AZ Rep's Tempe community edition can be found here.

My deepest condolences go out to Dennis, Meg, her family, and her many friends on their loss.