Governor Napolitano's message on her appointment to Obama's cabinet

Courtesy an email -

Monday, December 1, 2008

Dear Friends,

Today, I have accepted President-elect Barack Obama’s offer to join his administration as the Secretary of the United States Department of Homeland Security. I am humbled by the invitation, and proud to accept it, but it was by no means an easy decision.

Over the past six years, together, we have accomplished a great deal in Arizona. We moved our state in a new direction, strengthening our schools with voluntary full-day kindergarten, higher teacher pay and higher standards for our students. We expanded access to children’s health insurance and saved Arizonans millions of dollars with one of the largest free prescription drug discount programs in the country. And we’re rebuilding Arizona’s economy with a focus on high-wage, high-tech jobs of the future.

Yet, I believe that when called upon to serve in a new way – particularly at such a critical time in the history of our country – it is my duty as a citizen to step forward and say, “Yes.”

Arizona also faces a time of challenge, and I intend to carry forward with my most important responsibilities as the leader of this state. In just a few weeks, I will deliver my State of the State address, and shortly thereafter, I will present to the Arizona Legislature a balanced budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2010.

In the weeks that follow, upon my confirmation as Secretary by the U.S. Senate, I will tender my resignation as Governor of Arizona. Secretary of State Jan Brewer will then take over. In the meantime, specific members of my staff will be designated to oversee the Arizona transition, to ensure that power and responsibility are transferred seamlessly.

So, while our work here at the Governor’s office is not over, I want to take this opportunity to say, “thank you.” You entrusted me to run this state to the best of my ability, and I have tried with all my being to do so. I will continue to work toward what is best for Arizona and Arizonans, but from a different place and with a different charge.

In my first inaugural speech, I said, “Our strength lies in our diversity and it lies in our heritage. And we must draw on both of these gifts in the days ahead.” Those words are still true and still useful today. We will face change together, and continue to stand together as “One Arizona.”

Yours very truly,

Janet Napolitano
Governor

Tedski at R-Cubed has a couple of takes on today's developments here and here; legislator-elect Daniel Patterson has his take here.

The Republican blogosphere is, in a word, *giddy* about today's announcement - Sonoran Alliance here, Mesa Issues here.

Later...

Hilllary Clinton: Expected to fail as Secretary of State...

...not because she is unqualified or even simply a bad person, but because of something totally out of her control.

Rush Limbaugh likes her selection as USSOS.

From Newsweek -

Rush Limbaugh has seldom been a fan of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. But the conservative radio pundit has given his blessing to her selection as the next secretary of state.

He calls it "a brilliant stroke" by President-elect Barack Obama, who opposed Clinton for the Democratic nomination.

Rush Limbaugh applauding an appointment/nomination by a Democratic president is like me applauding a free agent signing by the New York Yankees.

As a lifelong Red Sox fan, I only applaud moves by the Yankees that I thnk make them weaker. Something tells me that Limbaugh has a similar (or harsher!) attitude toward Democrats.

Later!

Individual privacy rights get another hearing...

Earlier this week, the Arizona Court of Appeals reinstated a lawsuit initiated by the Havasupai Tribe over some blood samples that had been misused by scientific researchers. The samples had been gathered under the guise of diabetes research, but were later used for a variety of other purposes, and used without the permission of the donors or the tribe.

Much of the impetus for the tribe's lawsuit stemmed from the fact that some of the additional research ran counter to the tribe's cultural beliefs, which doesn't generate a lot of sympathy from people who aren't members of the tribe, many of whom may see it as a "backward" tribe standing in the way of scientific progress.

However, everybody should pay attention to this case - it goes straight to medical privacy rights and the right to control what happens when we allow access to our bodies and medical histories.

These researchers specifically told the tribe members that the blood samples in question would be used from only one purpose, even though evidence suggests that the researchers knew all along that the samples were intended for other purposes.

From the AZ Republic's coverage (emphasis mine) -

According to court records, in 1989, tribal leaders asked ASU anthropologist John Martin to initiate a study into the prevalence of diabetes among tribal members. Martin enlisted ASU geneticist Therese Markow.

Markow was interested in schizophrenia and she obtained a grant to study it among the Havasupai, even though, according to court records, Martin told her the tribe would not approve. She pursued the study anyway, courts records show.

Between 1990 and 1992, more than 200 blood samples were drawn. An assistant to Markow actually slept in the Supai medical clinic while gathering the samples. At night, he clandestinely examined the clinic's records, looking for reports of schizophrenia among tribe members, according to court records.

In some instances, there might be an overriding public interest (emergencies, etc.) that allows for medical information gathered for one purpose to be used for another without the explicit permission of the patient(s) involved. However, scientific research is *not* an emergency situation, and the behavior of the researchers in this case (as illustrated above) proves that they lied in order to gain access to private information that they would not otherwise have received permission to access.

I have a lot of respect for scientific research, but am not a fan of the sort of deliberate deception masked as "scientific inquiry" exhibited in this case.

In this case, because of the researchers' obviously planned lies ("deception aforethought"??), the tribe (and through them, all of us) should prevail in the lawsuit.

A loss here would only engender further erosion of individual privacy rights, and that is something that is *not* in the public interest.

Note: basic case information from the lawsuits are available at the links - Coconino County court here; Maricopa County court here.

Later!

Memorial Service for Joel Sinclaire

Info courtesy an email from Jeanne Lunn, forwarding info from Joel's family -

















As most of you have heard, our dear friend Joel Sinclaire passed away in his home on November 23, 2008.

In addition to being a true professional and first-class business mind, Joel was a ceaseless advocate for positive change. While he was those things and more, he would always say his most important role was that of husband, son, and friend.

His memory lives on with his wife Doreen, his mother Claire Sisenwein, his brother Adam Sisenwein, and with the countless friends who were touched by his good humor and sharp mind.

Memorial services are to be held Sunday, November 30, 2008 at 2 P.M. at the Mt. Sinai Jewish Cemetery located at 24210 N. 68th St., Phoenix, AZ 85054

A notice of the Memorial Services can be found by clicking here.

Please consider making a donation to one of the following charities in
remembrance of Joel:

Toys for Tots

Jewish National Fund

Sierra Club

Directions to Mt. Sinai -

24210 North 68th Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85054
(480) 585-6060

Mt. Sinai is located just north of Pinnacle Peak Road, two miles east of Tatum Boulevard and half a mile west of Scottsdale Road.

From the west:
Take I-17 or the 51 to the 101 and head east. Take the Tatum exit and turn north on Tatum. Make a right onto Pinnacle Peak Road, headed east. Go 2 miles, just past the power station on the left, to 68th Street. Make a left onto 68th Street and proceed north to Mt. Sinai.

From the east:
Take Scottsdale Road to Pinnacle Peak Road. Make a left onto Pinnacle Peak, going west. Proceed a half mile to 68th Street, and make a right. Go north to Mt. Sinai.

From the south:
Take the 101 North to Scottsdale Road. Turn north on Scottsdale Road to Pinnacle Peak Road. Make a left onto Pinnacle Peak, going West. Proceed a half mile to 68th Street, and make a right. Go north to Mt. Sinai.

America's priorities suck

From AP -

Wal-Mart worker dies after shoppers knock him down

A worker died after being trampled by a throng of unruly shoppers when a suburban Wal-Mart opened for the holiday sales rush Friday, authorities said.

At least three other people were injured.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., in Bentonville, Ark., would not confirm the reports of a stampede but said a "medical emergency" had caused the company to close the store, which is in Valley Stream on Long Island.

One of the other people injured in the melee was a pregnant woman who has apparently had a miscarriage.

Ending lives in order to save a few dollars? That's where we are now?

Good freakin' God...

Goldwater Institute Lauds Burton-Cahill, Ableser, and Schapira*

* OK, not really. :))

The anti-government "think tank" has issued its report card for the 2008 session of the Arizona Legislature, and all three of D17's legislators earned grades of "F."

With a final grade of 31 (F), Senator Meg Burton-Cahill tied for the lowest grade in the State Senate with Senators Debbie McCune-Davis and Rebecca Rios.

Over in the House, State Representatives Ed Ableser and David Schapira slacked off the pace set by their colleague in the Senate and earned a grade of only 36. Still an "F" by Goldwater Institute standards, but one that leaves room for improvement.

On that note, two of the highest..errr..."lowest" scoring legislators, Theresa Ullmer and Tom Prezelski, are not returning to the lege next year, so there will be an opportunity for the D17 contingent to move up down in the Institute's rankings. :)

And before you ask about the title of this post, any time an anti-government group such as the Goldwater Institute doesn't like certain elected representatives, it probably just means that those representatives are doing the jobs that they were hired to do.

Later!

AZ's Legislative Republican Picking Their Targets...

...and it looks like that in addition to education, Mexicans and other minorities, poor people, the future of the state, and plain ol' common good, one of their targets this coming session will be the press.

From Matt Benson at the AZ Rep's Political Insider -

Those of us in who inhabit the Senate press room just received this notice, proving the axiom that no good news ever arrives after 5 p.m. on the evening before a holiday (what, you've never heard that?)

Anyway, below is the letter. It was addressed to Howie Fischer, Capitol Media Services reporter and dean of the Capitol Press Corps (he's been in this room since 1982. Just ask him.).

Dear Mr. Fischer:

This letter is to inform you that the Arizona state Senate will not be renewing the current lease ending December 31, 2008, for the media space within the Arizona Senate building.

Arrangements are being made for you to continue to lease space from the Arizona Legislative Council on the Capitol Complex in the old Capitol. The Legislative Council will be mailing out a new lease that is similar in all material respects with a few modifications.

The new lease amount is not anticipated to increase over the next lease term. If you choose to enter into a new lease with the Legislative Council, please respond as soon as possible so the space can be made ready for occupancy January 1, 2009.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Timothy Bee, Arizona Senate President

Now, I don't understand why they've targeted Howie Fischer or why they want the press out of the proximity of Senators. Fischer is not only the dean of AZ's political reporters, he's one of the fairest. He just reports the news and other developments at the lege honestly.

Of course, given the hyper-partisan nature of the incoming Republicans, that honesty may be the thing they dislike the most about Fischer. An honest reporting of their activities over the next two years may be just the medicine that the Arizona Democrats need.

Note1 - I don't normally quote MSM pieces in their entirety, but this one was short and it was all relevant.

Note2 - There is a possibility that while Bee's letter was addressed to Fischer, it applies to all media operations based in the press offices in the Senate building. I would check on that, except that it's Thanksgiving and there's no one around to answer that question, and either way, it doesn't change the point of this post.

Have a happy and safe holiday!

Later!

Renzi co-conspirator sentenced to prison

From a US Department of Justice press release -

Texas Businessman Sentenced to Prison for False Statements to Federally Insured Bank

WASHINGTON – A Sherman, Texas, businessman was sentenced today to three years in prison for each of two counts of submitting a false statement to a federally insured financial institution, Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division Matthew Friedrich announced. The prison terms will run concurrently.

James W. Sandlin, 57, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Richard A. Schell in the Eastern District of Texas. In addition, Judge Schell ordered Sandlin to serve three years of supervised release following his prison term and imposed fines totaling $20,000. Sandlin was indicted on Nov. 15, 2007, and convicted by a federal jury in June 2008.

{snip}

Sandlin is also under indictment along with Congressman Richard G. Renzi on conspiracy, honest services mail and wire fraud, and extortion counts in the District of Arizona. The trial in that case is scheduled to begin on March 24, 2009, in Tucson, Ariz.

I'm not sure what impact, if any, that Sandlin's current conviction will have on the Renzi trial. I'm sure that Mike Bryan at Blog for AZ, lawyer that he is, will have some insight into that aspect.

More on the Renzi/Sandlin indictment from the Washington Post here and The Sunlight Foundation here.

BTW - I don't know about you, but I was hoping that Renzi's trial would be in Phoenix. Just for the sake of being able to be in attendance when he is brought down.

Oh well. Us denizens of Maricopa (and CD1) will just have to read the snarky and insightful reports of Mike Bryan (insightful), Tedski (snarkily insightful), and the other Sonoran bloggers.


Later...

And so the pardons begin...

From Newsweek -

(WASHINGTON) President George W. Bush has granted pardons to 14 individuals and commuted the prison sentences of two others convicted of misdeeds including drug offenses, tax evasion, wildlife violations and bank embezzlement.

The new round of White House pardons announced Monday are Bush's first since March and come less than two months before he will end his presidency. The crimes committed by those on the list also include offenses involving hazardous waste, food stamps, and the theft of government property.

There were a a few interesting names and crimes on the list, but nothing too earth-shattering came up when I did a little research in a few of them.


Then I came across the name "William Hoyle McCright, Jr."

He was convicted of bank fraud in the early 1980s after he was caught lying on bank reports and misapplying bank funds while he was the Executive Vice President of the First National Bank of Midland, Texas. (Information on his convictions and partially successful appeal of those convictions here, courtesy Justia.com)

Let's be clear here - I'm not accusing the Bushies of playing favorites by pardoning somebody for his strong Republican ties, but...

...His bank eventually failed (1983), at least in part due to the bad loans made under McCright's auspices, much like Silverado Savings and Loan did under the guidance of W's brother Neil later in the decade...

...According to the FEC, McCright gave $700 to John McCain's failed presidential bid this year...


...One of McCright's partners in the crimes that he was pardoned for, Jim Eastup, is an active Texas Republican, even serving as a campaign treasurer for a county treasurer candidate there (documentation on page 24 of this .pdf )...


...Another of McCright's partners in the crime, Sam Conner (and his wife, Nancy) are contributors to the RNC (according to the FEC)...


...Conner was also one who smeared John Kerry's service in Vietnam, helping Bush's 2004 reelection efforts...


And that's all after a cursory search. Something tells me that with a little more patience, I could find some serious dirt here.

However, as brazenly partisan as this pardon seems, it still isn't as cringe-worthy as Bill Clinton's pardon of Marc Rich in 2001.

However2, give it time - I have plenty of faith in the Bushies and their ability to maintain their status as the "most corrupt presidential administration in history."


Snarky Note: During my research for this post, I came across this website for the George W. Bush Presidential Library, proposed for the campus of Southern Methodist University. Given SMU's past ethics issues (i.e. - NCAA 'death penalty' for repeated football recruiting violations), why not just set up a couple of bar stools in front of the magazine rack at a local Wal-Mart?

It's less expensive and more intellectually appropriate, and it would reduce the number of criminals (pardon recipients are still criminals, just unpunished ones) coming into contact with the students of a once-proud (and perhaps future-proud) university.

Less Snarky Note: McCright is listed as the president of a Texas corporation, H&M Production, Inc. A visit to the Texas Secretary of State's website revealed that one has to pay to search their corporate records online. For 'free' access to the records, a call to the TXSOS's office is necessary.

And given the rather "non-profit" nature of the operation here, a phone call was all the budget could handle. :))

After that phone call, however, I don't know much more than I did before the call.

According to the operator at TXSOS, H&M is an active corporation (no website that I could find), it was incorporated in 1993, McCright is the only officer listed in the paperwork, it has a Midland, Texas address, and the records don't list what the business does.

Because I couldn't *see* the records, I couldn't follow any threads connecting H&M to other entities, but I've got other feelers out.

Another take on this topic, particularly the pardon of McCright, from Harper's Magazine.

More later...

Joel Sinclaire, candidate for county supervisor, passes away

From AZCentral.com -

Joel Sinclaire, an attorney and candidate for the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, was found dead in his Scottsdale home Sunday afternoon.

He was 46.

It is unknown how Sinclaire died, his friends said Monday afternoon. His mother discovered him in the bed of the Scottsdale guest house he shared with his wife around 1 p.m. Sunday.

In addition to his recent campaign for the supes, he was a small business owner, family man, and environmental activist involved with The Sierra Club.

My prayers and deepest condolences go out to his wife, mother, and his entire family at this time of mourning and grief.

Arpaio wants exemption from fiscal responsibility

More specifically, he is insisting that the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors not cut his office's budget when they cut the rest of the county's budget because of a revenue shortfall.

From AZCentral.com -

While the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office is dealing with the county's budget shortfall in the current fiscal year, administrators are beginning to brace for some of the most severe cuts in the agency's history in light of more bad economic news for the county.

Already faced with a hiring freeze and looking at a proposed suspension on capital spending for new projects, Sheriff Joe Arpaio pushed back to county administrators earlier this month with a memo that details his strenuous opposition to further cuts.

Deputy County Manager Sandi Wilson has asked each department to identify 20 percent of their budgets that could be cut. The proposals are due Dec. 8.

"This is not an option for my office," Arpaio wrote, adding a request that administrators exempt law-enforcement agencies from the hiring freeze.

Ummm...maybe instead of posturing, he should just cut out his department's junkets to Honduras, lawsuit-inducing murders of prisoners, and public-endangering grandstand ploys...Oh wait -

Posturing, particularly for TV cameras, is what he does best, and what he has always done best.

The Southwest looks to be well-represented in the Obama cabinet

First came the news that AZ's own Governor Janet Napolitano has been tabbed to take over the Department of Homeland Security.

Then came the strong rumors that Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ7) will be selected as Secretary of the Interior.

Now today comes the news that New Mexico governor Bill Richardson has been tapped to be Secretary of Commerce.

While all of those selections (if they become official) are good ones, both for the desert Southwest and for the country as a whole, the most significant for the Southwest is that of longtime environmental and progressive activist Grijalva, not that of the higher-profile Napolitano or Richardson. Grijalva has long been involved with southwestern and national environmental issues, serving as a member of the House's Committee on Natural Resources and chairing that committee's National Parks, Forests and Public Lands Subcommittee. In short, he brings the right disposition and experience to the job once held by prominent Arizonans Bruce Babbitt (1993 - 2001) and Stewart Udall (1961 - 1969).

Over 50% of Arizona's land area is under federal control, as is Utah's, over 40% of New Mexico is federal land and over 80% of Nevada is. Colorado is slacking - a little over 30% of it is under federal jurisdiction.

Note: not all of the land areas mentioned above are under Interior's jurisdiction, such as that which is under military control. Still, a huge percentage of the Four Corners states and Nevada are federally-controlled.

In other words, there's definitely a need for a native of the southwest to be overseeing the Department of the Interior.

While both are longtime westerners and have served ably as governors of southwestern states, Napolitano and Richardson bring the sort of experience and temperment that lends itself to more generalization. In fact, both were rumored to have been considered for other posts before the proposed ones were settled on - Napolitano for Attorney General or White House Counsel and Richardson for Secretary of State (and with all due respect to Senator Clinton, Bill Richardson has way more qualifications for the job.)


On to consideration of more mundane ramifications...

Of the three seats, the Democratic Party is most likely to lose the AZ governorship. Not only would a Republican, Jan Brewer, ascend to the office upon Napolitano's move to D.C, but the Republicans have a registration advantage in AZ. That advantage will have to be overcome by the eventual Democratic nominee (Terry Goddard???) in 2010.

However, in AZCD7, the Democrats have an almost 2-1 registration advantage, so unless there's a brutal Democratic primary battle as part of a possible special election and the eventual winner is weakened significantly, the Dems will hold on to that seat.

In New Mexico, there are over 200,000 more registered Dems than Reps, so the Democratic Party *should* keep the NM governor's office. I say "*should*" because western Democrats are rather independent, which is why New Mexico is considered a battleground state during presidential elections.

Later...

The $70 per hour lie

During the discussions leading up to September's $700 billion bailout of the financial services industry, most of the naysayers focused on the "rightness" of interfering with free market forces. Eventually for most of those naysayers though, scads of campaign contributions outweighed any ideological considerations.

The package giving hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars to huge corporations was passed "for the good of the country."

However, when auto industry executives journeyed to Congress with hat in hand to try to get in on the fun (on separate corporate jets, of course), most of the naysayers, particularly the right wing ones, have focused on a report that the average auto worker receives $70 per hour in wages and benefits.

They (and unfortunately, one of my sisters, who's usually pretty even-keeled about such things) are calling for the auto manufacturers to break their contracts with the auto worker unions as part of any reorganization and bailout.

There's one major problem with that $70 figure. It's inaccurate, and the people citing it know that.

In other words, they're lying.

According to the Center for Automotive Research (as cited in this New Republic article), the actual figures are closer to $28 per hour in wages and $10 per hour in benefits for workers. The difference between the cited figure of $70 and the more realistic one of $38 came from a little statistical deception - the higher figure is inflated by benefits paid out to retirees, not just active workers.

The $70 number is being used to cravenly whip up anti-union (and anti-worker!) sentiment during a period of economic strife. That anti-worker sentiment is used to mask the fact that most federal efforts to ease the impact of the economic downturn have focused on large companies and their wealthy managers.

Edit on 11/24 to add -

Large companies like Citigroup, which is getting another $20 billion in cash as well as hundreds of billions in debt guarantees.

Something tells me that more of that money will end up in the pockets of Citigroup's executives than will be used to rehire some of the thousands of employees that Citigroup has laid off just this year.

End edit...

BTW - thanks for the heads-up on the New Republic piece to Jon Talton in this post on his blog.

Later!

Time for some 2010 speculations...

...especially since "Candie Dates" at Sonoran Alliance got the ball rolling with a post concerning possible candidates to replace Jan Brewer at the Secretary of State's office if she ascends to the governor's office (OK, OK - "when" :( ) and the AZ Rep has an article about how Janet Napolitano's expected move to D.C. would "shake up" the 2010 race for governor.

A couple of caveats -

1. Most of my focus will be on Democrats from Maricopa County because they're who I have the most familiarity with. There are certain to be candidates from Pima, Pinal, Coconino and other counties whose names I haven't heard.

2. This is all pure speculation on my part. None of the potential candidates mentioned has ever spoken to me about their future plans.

3. The underlying assumptions are that Janet Napolitano leaves and does not return to run against John McCain in two years (though a run against Jon Kyl in four years remains a possibility) and that, despite laying the groundwork for a reelection run, McCain chooses not to run again at age 74.

4. The goal of this post is to start a discussion, so if you have some legitimate speculations of your own, feel free to leave a comment (just keep it civil :) ).


On to the idle thoughts random musings... :))

State Mine Inspector - why on God's green earth is this still an elected office? Could someone explain this to me, please?


State Superintendent of Public Instruction -

Speculation elsewhere on possible Republican candidates has focused on State Sen. John Huppenthal and State Rep. Rich Crandall. Both are very conservative; Huppenthal despises public education with a burning passion and Crandall does not.

As for possible Democratic candidates, Slade Mead and Jason Williams, who both ran in 2006 may try again. However, Williams has remained more active in the education field and has a higher profile in that area. Other to consider include Jackie and John Thrasher. Both are career teachers, both lost elections this year and may want to try for different offices in 2010 - it's looking more and more like John is not destined to be the one who unseats Congressman Trent Franks in CD3 and Jackie could make Republicans Jim Weiers and Doug Quelland eat green crow by winning a statewide office after weaselling their way back into office in LD10.


State Treasurer - No clue here. At all.


Attorney General -

On the Republican side, I have no idea, though I expect their nominee to be some party apparatchik.

As for the Democratic possibilities, I don't have much more of a clue here, though Tim Nelson (former candidate for Maricopa County Attorney) is a possibility if he doesn't accompany Napolitano to D.C. Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon is a possibility here too, if he chooses to give Terry Goddard an unobstructed run at the Democratic gubernortorial nomination. Long shots to even consider a run, much less win one, are Don Bivens, chair of the AZ Democratic Party, and Mark Manoil, chair of the Maricopa County Democratic Party. Both are practicing lawyers.


Secretary of State -

The Sonoran Alliance post linked above has a pretty good run down of possible Rep candidates for 2010 even though the focus was on possibilities for appointment to replace Brewer in the immediate future. One name that was mentioned over there was former Tempe state Rep. Laura Knaperek. They raved over her because she is so conservative, but I don't see it - she lost her last general election in 2006 against a couple of relatively new Democratic candidates for state lege, and she lost her last primary this year in CD5. Even good candidates can lose *one* election but she has lost three this decade. She may want to consider *not* running for office for a while.

Current Corporation Commissioner Kris Mayes may consider a run here, too. While her non-political experience is in journalism, she has degrees in law and public administration. Since she is rumored to be interested in moving to the ninth floor (aka - the Governor's office), this office would be a logical steppingstone.

As for Democrats, Sandra Kennedy has been rumored to have interest in the job, though her recent victory in the AZ Corporation Commission race probably means she won't go for this in two years. There are a couple of termed out state legislators who may be interested, and perhaps some not-so-termed-out ones, if it doesn't look like the Dems will improve their representation in the lege in two years.


Governor -

The list is long and varied here. The Republican possibilities are discussed in the AZ Rep article, though Jan Brewer has to be considered the early favorite whether or not she ascends into the governorship within a few weeks. A dark horse here could be Congressman Jeff Flake, whose interest in the job has been the subject of rumors in the past. While the governor's job pays less than U.S. Rep, he wouldn't have to fly back and forth to D.C. every weekend and wouldn't have to sleep in his office to save money for his kids' college education.

On the Democratic side, current Attorney General Terry Goddard is considered the presumptive front-runner for the Democratic nomination with Phil Gordon the primary threat to that. Former AZ Dem chair and former candidate for U.S. Senate Jim Pederson is also mentioned frequently. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords has been the subject of rumors here, but she seems more likely to take a run at John McCain's Senate seat at this point.


Arizona Corporation Commission (2 seats) -

No clue as for the Republican possiblilities, and the only Democratic names that I can think of right off the top of my head are Sam George and Kara Kelty, both of whom were candidates this year.


U.S. Senate -

If McCain doesn't run again, the field is wide open on both sides of the aisle.

Republican possibilities include current Congressmen John Shadegg (CD3) and Jeff Flake (CD6), though there are sure to be other names floated (Mayes' name might fit here, too, but she passed on a run in CD1 this year. She may not be interested in federal office.)

Democratic possibilities include whichever of the Goddard/Gordon duo doesn't run for governor, Jim Pederson (again) and Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (CD8). Giffords may be a possible candidate even if McCain runs again - many people in AZ believe that a strong female candidate would have the best chance of unseating the popular McCain.


U.S. Congress -

There is a frequent rumor that Congressman Ed Pastor (CD4) could face a primary challenge in two years from Maricopa County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox. If that actually happens, it would be an interesting, and probably heated, contest between two entrenched west Phoenix political machines.

As for the other CDs, I've got no idea, though any special-election winning replacement for rumored-to-becoming-U.S. Secretary of the Interior Raul Grijalva (CD7) is certain to face some strong challengers.


Other names that could fit into one of these potential races include Dennis Burke (former Napolitano chief of staff and rumored U.S. Attorney-to-be), state legislators David Lujan (D), Kyrsten Sinema (D), Chad Campbell (D) and Michelle Reagan (R) and outgoing Scottsdale Mayor Mary Manross.



Later!

45 years ago today...

May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963

Photo courtesy the archives of Life Magazine, accessed through Google