In case you missed it, and given that they were going strong well into the wee hours of the morning, you probably did.
Note: when a bill description is in quotes, it's quoted from the summary of that bill crafted by legislative staff.
Note2 - I didn't see the discussion for most of the bills because of the late hour, so for the most part, I am not including any of those here.
- SB1611, Russell Pearce's latest attack on people with brown skin. Passed 7 - 6. The four Democratis on the committee opposing, as did Republicans Rich Crandell and Sylvia Allen. Crandall suffers from occasional bouts of decency, so his vote wasn't entirely surprising. Allen, however, is a close friend and ally of Pearce, and usually is completely on board the nativist train. Senior moment?
- SB1308 and SB1309, the anti-14th Amendment bills, passed by identical 8 - 5 votes (1308 and 1309). All four Democrats on the committee, as did Republican Crandall.
- SB1405, turning Arizona's hospitals into immigration checkpoints, passed 8 - 5. Same voting pattern as above.
- SB1407, requiring school districts to collect data on students who cannot prove lawful residency in the U.S. and district, and requires districts to forward the info to the state. Passed 8 - 5. Same voting pattern as above.
- SB1519, completely repealing AHCCCS, Arizona's Medicaid program. Passed 8 - 5. Same voting pattern as above.
- SB1380, mandating drug testing for welfare recipients, passed 9 - 3, 1 not voting. Three Democrats opposed, and one (David Schapira) was out of the room when the vote was taken.
- SB1115, ending the Arizona Board of Regents, who oversee the state's universities, and replacing the Board with Boards of Trustees for each individual campus, passed 9 - 4. Party line vote.
- SCR1014, related to SB1115, removing from the Arizona Constitution language regarding the Board of Regents. Passed 9 - 4. Party line vote.
- SCR1045, completely policizing the selection of Arizona judges by removing language in the AZ Constitution requiring professional evaluations and screening by the Arizona Bar Association for the attorney candidates for the various judicial selection commissions in Arizona. Passed 9 - 4. Party line vote.
SB1141, "Requires parents, or persons who have custody, of a child who will attend a public, private or charter school to provide verifiable documentation of Arizona residency, and requires school districts and charter schools to maintain the documentation", passed by a 9 - 4 vote. Party line vote.
- SB1497, gives "Arizona Constitutional and statutory rights of public agencies to the legal entities created through intergovernmental agreements." Passed 9 - 4. Party line vote.
- SB1589, further privatizing the operations of MVD. Passed 9 - 3, one not voting. Three Democrats opposed, Kyrsten Sinema out of the room when the vote was taken.
- SB1540, "Establishes the removal or defacing of political mailers, handouts and flyers as a class 2 misdemeanor and requires a condominium and planned community to allow door to door political activity." Passed 11 - 2, Aboud and Cajero Bedford dissenting.
- HB2016, updating language regarding budget reports. Passed 12 - 1, Aboud dissenting.
- SB1013, tranferring the Arizona Capitol Police, currently a part of the AZ Department of Administration, to the Department of Public Safety. Passed 11 - 0, 2 not voting. Schapira and Cajero Bedford were out of the room when the vote was taken.
- SB1113, barring "existing licensed facilities operated by the state or contracted with the Department of Economic Security (DES) to provide intermediate care facilities for mental retardation services for developmental disability members", passed 13 - 0.
- SB1353, "Repeals state photo enforcement and adds an assessment of $10 on every civil penalty or fine resulting from a citation issued by a peace officer for a traffic offense. Requires a municipality to use monies to supplement funds available for the purchase of protective armor, electronic stun devices and other safety equipment." Passed 13 - 0.
- SB1583, updating the membership of the state nursing board. Passed 13 - 0.
- SB1039, creating a "home certificate program" relating to trust deeds and housing finance. Complete legislative summary here. Passed 13 - 0.
Of course, one should not forget the passage of the most vital bill of the entire legislative session, one that is key to the future success of the entire state.
SB1610, declaring that the Colt Single Action Army Revolver is the state's official firearm. Passed 9 - 4. Party line vote. I saw the debate on this one. The Democrats didn't actually object to the content of the bill, just the fact that is was being considered while the Republican majority refuses to address the real problems facing the state.
...Whew!!
Seriously, we should all thank the four Democratic members of the committee, Senators Aboud, Cajero Bedford, Schapira, and Sinema, as well as the committee and facility staffers who stayed throughout the entire proceeding. Contrary to some of the evidence, there are still a few dedicated public servants in Arizona.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Pearce's latest anti-immigrant screed passes committee
After more than two hours of discussion, and by a 7 - 6 vote, the Senate Appropriations Committee has approved SB1611, Russell Pearce's latest effort to one-up last year's SB1070.
The four Democrats on the committee, Sens. Kyrsten Sinema, David Schapira, Paula Aboud, and Olivia Cajero-Bedford, were joined by Republican Sens. Sylvia Allen and Rich Crandall, in voting against the bill.
The Crandall vote wasn't surprising as he voted against the anti-14th Amendment bills earlier in the evening, but I have no idea where Allen's vote came from. She's normally on board with all of the nativist garbage.
The debate was long and mostly involved Sen. Sinema going over the bill page by page with Pearce, the bill's sponsor, and pointing out everything that was wrong or just sloppily-written.
When Pearce wasn't resorting to "the law is the law and we must enforce it" to buttress his arguments, he was 'pooh-pooh'-ing concerns that the language of the bill might have some unintended consequences with statements like "it's a great spin" when Sinema brought up the point that Pearce's bill would penalize small children for crimes that they cannot legally be liable for because of their age). He was similarly dismissive of concerns that his bill would cause abused women to be turned away from domestic violence shelters if they didn't have proper documentation. He also tended to simply avoid answering questions that he didn't like.
He also tended toward hyperbole instead of verifiable facts - consular-issued ID cards are the "greatest threat to homeland security" and citing "facts" and statistics of dubious veracity in support of his position.
Allow me to sum up his position:
Those darn Mexicans!!
I wish I could write more, but I'm tired and I'm ticked off. It's 11:30 p.m. The Approps meeting is still going strong. It's time for bed.
The four Democrats on the committee, Sens. Kyrsten Sinema, David Schapira, Paula Aboud, and Olivia Cajero-Bedford, were joined by Republican Sens. Sylvia Allen and Rich Crandall, in voting against the bill.
The Crandall vote wasn't surprising as he voted against the anti-14th Amendment bills earlier in the evening, but I have no idea where Allen's vote came from. She's normally on board with all of the nativist garbage.
The debate was long and mostly involved Sen. Sinema going over the bill page by page with Pearce, the bill's sponsor, and pointing out everything that was wrong or just sloppily-written.
When Pearce wasn't resorting to "the law is the law and we must enforce it" to buttress his arguments, he was 'pooh-pooh'-ing concerns that the language of the bill might have some unintended consequences with statements like "it's a great spin" when Sinema brought up the point that Pearce's bill would penalize small children for crimes that they cannot legally be liable for because of their age). He was similarly dismissive of concerns that his bill would cause abused women to be turned away from domestic violence shelters if they didn't have proper documentation. He also tended to simply avoid answering questions that he didn't like.
He also tended toward hyperbole instead of verifiable facts - consular-issued ID cards are the "greatest threat to homeland security" and citing "facts" and statistics of dubious veracity in support of his position.
Allow me to sum up his position:
Those darn Mexicans!!
I wish I could write more, but I'm tired and I'm ticked off. It's 11:30 p.m. The Approps meeting is still going strong. It's time for bed.
Anti-birthright citizenship bills pass Senate committee
By matching 8 - 5 votes, the Senate Appropriations Committee today passed the two anti-14th Amendment bills, SB1308 and SB1309. The closest thing to a surprise vote was from Republican Sen. Rich Crandall, who voted against both bills.
Before readers start calling him a "moderate" or a "RINO," rest assured, he's neither of those things.
He just isn't a cross burner, either.
More later...
Before readers start calling him a "moderate" or a "RINO," rest assured, he's neither of those things.
He just isn't a cross burner, either.
More later...
Some pics from the early part of the day at the Legislature
The Senate Appropriations hearing is underway, and I am in the overflow room (SHR1).
They haven't gotten to the "good" bills yet, but here are a few pics from earlier in the day -
The targets of Russell Pearce's bills...
Senate hearing room cordoned off by police, who moved the gathered crowd, mostly opponents of the bills on the agenda, into another room.
One of the few pro-Pearce protesters. His mouth was loud, but he didn't really get a rise out of anybody.
Just the truth...
The labor rally in support of the workers in Wisconsin
Motorcycle Day at the Capitol. Not relevant to anything in Senate Appropriations, but I like the picture.
The crowd in the overflow room. The capacity is 140, and they need to open up two additional rooms to handle the overflow from the overflow.
Legislators Catherine Miranda and Albert Hale at the Latino Caucus' press conference on the anti-immigrant bills.
They haven't gotten to the "good" bills yet, but here are a few pics from earlier in the day -
The targets of Russell Pearce's bills...
Senate hearing room cordoned off by police, who moved the gathered crowd, mostly opponents of the bills on the agenda, into another room.
One of the few pro-Pearce protesters. His mouth was loud, but he didn't really get a rise out of anybody.
Just the truth...
The labor rally in support of the workers in Wisconsin
Motorcycle Day at the Capitol. Not relevant to anything in Senate Appropriations, but I like the picture.
The crowd in the overflow room. The capacity is 140, and they need to open up two additional rooms to handle the overflow from the overflow.
Legislators Catherine Miranda and Albert Hale at the Latino Caucus' press conference on the anti-immigrant bills.
Quick legislative update: Senate Appropriations not yet meeting; room locked off
Just a quick hit: Senate Appropriations is scheduled to meet at 2 p.m., but that isn't going to happen.
The Senate is still on the floor doing Third Read (final passage) of a number of bills. The lowlight, however, isn't that the committee meeting will start later than scheduled, that is "business as usual" here.
What is almost unheard-of is the fact that the committee hearing room, SHR109, is locked tight and Capitol police have just cleared the hundred+ people waiting for the hearing. Most of the folks present are opposed to one or more of the bills on the agenda.
Everybody has been funnelled into SHR1, which is serving as overflow seating. It's at least 3X the size of SHR109, and it is full.
More later...
The Senate is still on the floor doing Third Read (final passage) of a number of bills. The lowlight, however, isn't that the committee meeting will start later than scheduled, that is "business as usual" here.
What is almost unheard-of is the fact that the committee hearing room, SHR109, is locked tight and Capitol police have just cleared the hundred+ people waiting for the hearing. Most of the folks present are opposed to one or more of the bills on the agenda.
Everybody has been funnelled into SHR1, which is serving as overflow seating. It's at least 3X the size of SHR109, and it is full.
More later...
Monday, February 21, 2011
Russell Pearce in 2011: trying to outdo his 2010 anti-immigrant screed
AZ Senate President Russell Pearce (R-National Alliance) is attempting to out-SB1070 last year's SB1070, the bill that became the law that both powered and rode the wave of nativist sentiment sweeping across large portions of the country (and not coincidentally, the law that the utterly unqualified Jan Brewer used to gain an elected term as governor of Arizona.
He has introduced this year's SB1611.
Among other things, it...
...removes all consideration of federal law when determining eligibility for federal benefits...
...mandates a mandatory minimum sentence of six months in jail for using a false ID to obtain employment...
...mandates that if an undocumented immigrant is caught driving a vehicle, that vehicle will be forfeited to the state...
...mandates that if an undocumented immigrant is caught driving a vehicle, he/she must serve at least 30 days in jail, no matter what...
...mandates that if an undocumented immigrant is caught driving a vehicle, he/she must pay for all of the costs of his/her incarceration...
...bars school districts from admitting students who can't demonstrate "lawful presence" in the district (this one conflicts with federal law), and severely limits the documents that are acceptable proof...
...bars students from being homeschooled unless they prove "lawful presence" with the same documents as above...
...mandates indefinite suspension of all business licences of employers who don't use the E-Verify systems, even if there aren't any other violations of law involved...
...mandates that issuance of a title to an automobile is contingent on proof of lawful presence in the country...
...mandates that all applicants for any public housing must prove lawful presence before their applications are accepted...
...mandates eviction of any resident of public housing who allows an undocumented immigrant to reside in their unit...(so if your minor child, or elderly and ailing parent can't prove their immigration status, they're on their own)...
...mandates that any police officer lose his/her AZPOST certification (basically, the equivalent of a professional license for police officers. No AZPOST certification = no job) for any officer "who refuses to uphold the United States and Arizona constitutions and enforce the laws of this state." No word on what will happen if an officer refuses to enforce an Arizona law that has been found to violate the U.S. Constitution. Under this clause, he would lose his/her job no matter what he did.
...mandates that consular ID cards cannot be accepted as identification by the state or any political subdivision (this one has been floating around in one bill or another for a few years now. What if a consular official is stopped by the police? Under this provision, he/she has no way to prove his/her right to access consular premises...
Of course, the committee will be hearing the [cue up the sarcasm] *the single most vital piece of legislation of the Senate* - at least it must be, since the budget hasn't been balanced, the school system hasn't been firmed up, and an adequate permanent water supply hasn't been guaranteed for the state, but they are considering...
SB1610.
That one answers the most profound question of our time - "What is the official firearm of Arizona?"
After the bill's enactment, the official firearm of Arizona will be the Colt Single Action Army Revolver.
Whew! Now we can all rest easy tonight.
/sarcasm
The meeting to hear this bill, and the other *really* bad bills, will be held Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 2 p.m. in SHR109. Arrive early, as seating is limited and the room is sure to be packed.
Arizona Republic coverage of this, from Mary Jo Pitzl, is here
Arizona Capitol Times coverage, from Luige del Puerto, is here.
He has introduced this year's SB1611.
Among other things, it...
...removes all consideration of federal law when determining eligibility for federal benefits...
...mandates a mandatory minimum sentence of six months in jail for using a false ID to obtain employment...
...mandates that if an undocumented immigrant is caught driving a vehicle, that vehicle will be forfeited to the state...
...mandates that if an undocumented immigrant is caught driving a vehicle, he/she must serve at least 30 days in jail, no matter what...
...mandates that if an undocumented immigrant is caught driving a vehicle, he/she must pay for all of the costs of his/her incarceration...
...bars school districts from admitting students who can't demonstrate "lawful presence" in the district (this one conflicts with federal law), and severely limits the documents that are acceptable proof...
...bars students from being homeschooled unless they prove "lawful presence" with the same documents as above...
...mandates indefinite suspension of all business licences of employers who don't use the E-Verify systems, even if there aren't any other violations of law involved...
...mandates that issuance of a title to an automobile is contingent on proof of lawful presence in the country...
...mandates that all applicants for any public housing must prove lawful presence before their applications are accepted...
...mandates eviction of any resident of public housing who allows an undocumented immigrant to reside in their unit...(so if your minor child, or elderly and ailing parent can't prove their immigration status, they're on their own)...
...mandates that any police officer lose his/her AZPOST certification (basically, the equivalent of a professional license for police officers. No AZPOST certification = no job) for any officer "who refuses to uphold the United States and Arizona constitutions and enforce the laws of this state." No word on what will happen if an officer refuses to enforce an Arizona law that has been found to violate the U.S. Constitution. Under this clause, he would lose his/her job no matter what he did.
...mandates that consular ID cards cannot be accepted as identification by the state or any political subdivision (this one has been floating around in one bill or another for a few years now. What if a consular official is stopped by the police? Under this provision, he/she has no way to prove his/her right to access consular premises...
Of course, the committee will be hearing the [cue up the sarcasm] *the single most vital piece of legislation of the Senate* - at least it must be, since the budget hasn't been balanced, the school system hasn't been firmed up, and an adequate permanent water supply hasn't been guaranteed for the state, but they are considering...
SB1610.
That one answers the most profound question of our time - "What is the official firearm of Arizona?"
After the bill's enactment, the official firearm of Arizona will be the Colt Single Action Army Revolver.
Whew! Now we can all rest easy tonight.
/sarcasm
The meeting to hear this bill, and the other *really* bad bills, will be held Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 2 p.m. in SHR109. Arrive early, as seating is limited and the room is sure to be packed.
Arizona Republic coverage of this, from Mary Jo Pitzl, is here
Arizona Capitol Times coverage, from Luige del Puerto, is here.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Maricopa County Community College District to consider increasing tuition and fees
The Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) is meeting Tuesday night to consider increasing tuition $5 per credit hour (7.04%) and individual course fees by various amounts. The proposed increases are due to rising costs and dwindling resources, including drastically lower state aid.
The meeting will take place at the District's office, 2411 W. 14th Street in Tempe at 6:30 p.m.
The agenda for the meeting is a "normal" one. Most of the items on it that are "consent" items that will be approved as a bloc.
The tuition and fee hike items are "information" items only, meaning that no final vote will be taken though there may be some discussion. The final vote is scheduled for the Board's March 22 meeting.
The current tuition is $71 per credit hour, with a $241 per credit hour surcharge for out-of-state students. There isn't a proposal to increase the surcharge.
The proposed increase would make the cost for a typical full-time student (30 credit hours per academic year) $2,280, with the cost for out-of-state residents $9,510 per student (tuition and surcharge).
The course fee changes are expected to impact different campuses differently, with Phoenix College and Rio Salado College experiencing the greatest net increase, while Scottsdale Community College and South Mountain Community College expected to feel the least impact. Actually, Scottsdale CC is expected to see a small net decrease in course fee-related revenue
The tuition increase is expected to bring in additional revenue of $12.9 million. The course fee hikes are expected to net a total of $346K.
The last time the Board considered a tuition hike (two years ago), it defeated the move over the urgings of students who supported a small hike to support and maintain the quality of the education provided across the district. The Board majority at the time was led by Colleen Clark and Jerry Walker who opposed any tuition hikes as a way to force deeper cuts to the District.
Clark as since resigned (replaced by Doyle Burke) and Jerry Walker lost his reelection bid (to Dana Saar), so I cannot predict the fate of the proposed increases.
The tuition increase item is here, its associated attachment with a schedule of current and proposed tuition and general fees is here.
The course fee changes item is here, its associated attachments are here and here.
I'll try to attend the meeting Tuesday evening, but there will be a very long meeting of the Senate Appropriations Committee at the State Capitol starting a 2 p.m.-ish, and I expect to be there for the duration. In other words, unless a LOT of bad bills are pulled from that agenda, I should be there until at least 6 or 7 p.m. Folks interested in the MCCCD meeting should make arrangements to attend the meeting themselves or to have one of the attendees give an update.
The meeting will take place at the District's office, 2411 W. 14th Street in Tempe at 6:30 p.m.
The agenda for the meeting is a "normal" one. Most of the items on it that are "consent" items that will be approved as a bloc.
The tuition and fee hike items are "information" items only, meaning that no final vote will be taken though there may be some discussion. The final vote is scheduled for the Board's March 22 meeting.
The current tuition is $71 per credit hour, with a $241 per credit hour surcharge for out-of-state students. There isn't a proposal to increase the surcharge.
The proposed increase would make the cost for a typical full-time student (30 credit hours per academic year) $2,280, with the cost for out-of-state residents $9,510 per student (tuition and surcharge).
The course fee changes are expected to impact different campuses differently, with Phoenix College and Rio Salado College experiencing the greatest net increase, while Scottsdale Community College and South Mountain Community College expected to feel the least impact. Actually, Scottsdale CC is expected to see a small net decrease in course fee-related revenue
The tuition increase is expected to bring in additional revenue of $12.9 million. The course fee hikes are expected to net a total of $346K.
The last time the Board considered a tuition hike (two years ago), it defeated the move over the urgings of students who supported a small hike to support and maintain the quality of the education provided across the district. The Board majority at the time was led by Colleen Clark and Jerry Walker who opposed any tuition hikes as a way to force deeper cuts to the District.
Clark as since resigned (replaced by Doyle Burke) and Jerry Walker lost his reelection bid (to Dana Saar), so I cannot predict the fate of the proposed increases.
The tuition increase item is here, its associated attachment with a schedule of current and proposed tuition and general fees is here.
The course fee changes item is here, its associated attachments are here and here.
I'll try to attend the meeting Tuesday evening, but there will be a very long meeting of the Senate Appropriations Committee at the State Capitol starting a 2 p.m.-ish, and I expect to be there for the duration. In other words, unless a LOT of bad bills are pulled from that agenda, I should be there until at least 6 or 7 p.m. Folks interested in the MCCCD meeting should make arrangements to attend the meeting themselves or to have one of the attendees give an update.
Gettinger on "Illegals"
Friend of the blog Jerry Gettinger has written another piece, this one offering the sort of historical perspective on the immigration issue that I cannot, being a relatively new resident of Arizona (17+ years).
Here it is -
Later...
Here it is -
Every time I hear Pearce or Arpaio talk about “illegals” taking over, I think back to when I was growing up on a farm in South Texas. My dad’s farm was literally on the border with Mexico. It was during the Second World War when any young man who could went to war. My Dad was exempt because of the farm. It was a large farm (3500 acres) and the family also had a packing shed. The whole operation ran 24 hours, 7days. We shipped everything we grew. It was a year-round growing season.Thank you for your writing, Jerry.
In those days, the only mechanization on a farm was a tractor and a plow, and so manual labor was crucial. Dad had built a village for the workers where about 250 lived, some with their families. No one questioned who or where the workers came from. Without them the crops did not get harvested.
Every so often, a border patrol agent would stop by. Everyone knew each other and everyone knew that there was a war and food was most important. So the agent would mention to my father that the agent and one or two others might visit the next day around 3 o’clock to make sure everyone had papers. 3, maybe 3:30. I remember Dad half-smiling saying something like “well. Ok, but everybody here is where they are supposed to be.” The agent smiled, nodded and left.
The next day around 2:30, Dad would yell in his broken Spanish for everyone to take a break. Everyone knew what he meant. All of a sudden, the place was empty. Soon a Border Patrol car drove up, parked and an agent got out. He knew Dad and vice versa. “Everybody ok here, Joe?” (My Dad’s name) Dad would say “take a look,” and the agent looked at an empty village. “Looks OK to me.” And the agent got back into the car and drove off to the next farm. You see, without those “illegals,” crops didn’t get harvested, soldiers didn’t get fed and the war effort slowed down. During those difficult times no one was called an “Illegal.” They were workers and were important to the war effort as any factory worker. At times there was a problem, but not often. The workers were there to earn money for their families and the work they did was key. Without them a lot less food would get sent. I would imagine some of them stayed after the war and made Texas their home. They sure weren’t illegal in those days.
Later...
12News' Sunday Square Off: Jan Brewer's "Let them eat cake" moment
Resnik - "Is it fair that businesses should get these tax breaks while universities suffer and those patients suffer?"
Brewer - "Absolutely. Absolutely."
Earlier on Sunday, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer appeared on 12 News' (KPNX) Sunday Square Off program, hosted by Brahm Resnik, to defend the hundreds of million dollars worth of corporate tax cuts she signed into law a few days ago.
Her appearance was an exercise in regurgitation -
She regurgitated the long-refuted theories of trickle-down economics (which should be referred to as "tinkle down" economics).
I regurgitated the undigested remnants of breakfast while listening to her spout (that's just a metaphor - I hadn't eaten breakfast yet :) ).
My favorite quote is above, but there were other "profound" tidbits from the program (video clip embedded below) -
The quote leading this post happened at about the 6:58 mark -
BTW, Brewer's handlers really might want to go back to their campaign plan of keeping her away from open mikes. Resnik didn't ambush her or treat her poorly, but she still crammed both of her feet in her mouth.
Up to her knees.
Brewer - "Absolutely. Absolutely."
Earlier on Sunday, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer appeared on 12 News' (KPNX) Sunday Square Off program, hosted by Brahm Resnik, to defend the hundreds of million dollars worth of corporate tax cuts she signed into law a few days ago.
Her appearance was an exercise in regurgitation -
She regurgitated the long-refuted theories of trickle-down economics (which should be referred to as "tinkle down" economics).
I regurgitated the undigested remnants of breakfast while listening to her spout (that's just a metaphor - I hadn't eaten breakfast yet :) ).
My favorite quote is above, but there were other "profound" tidbits from the program (video clip embedded below) -
3:32
Brewer - ...I know that the free enterprise is what really stokes the fuel of the furnace, and the furnace is business in Arizona..
Resnik - So it *is* something of a gamble?
Brewer - Life is a gamble.Or how about -
4:00 (talking about the impact of the corporate tax breaks on Arizona's unemployment crisis)
Resnik - People are asking "How soon will half a billion dollars in tax breaks create a job for me?"
Brewer - Because we know businesses, particularly high paying wage businesses, are the people who create those jobs and if you stymie them and you make it impossible for them to maintain here by charging them above their competitive states that we're competing with, they won't come here, they won't stay here, they will go someplace else and if we become competitive, they will bring new jobs, we will keep the jobs that we have, and that means that it's, [not] to use the phrase "the trickle down, the bottom line is that more people will have jobs, and therefore those people with the jobs are going to go out and it's going to trickle down to the lawnmower guy, to the dry cleaner, it's just the facts.
Resnik - So if those tax cuts don't take effect for another few years, how soon would you expect to see new jobs here created by those tax breaks?
Brewer - Well, you know, we have been very creative since I have been governor, and we've been very successful at bringing new businesses here. We've been named the solar king of the nation, which we're very proud of and that's one of my number one goals in regards to what kind of jobs that we're looking for. So we have been somewhat successful, but we know that if we have the ability to move forward, and now that we have done that with the competitive package, big businesses don't just pick up and move overnight. They need to know that there's stability and predictability, and then, they come, and so, we have the very best people working on the Commerce Authority, and it's going to be a good thing for Arizona.
Resnik - Speaking of predictability/unpredictability, you and many Republicans have said this year, next year, and the year after that, the state is going to have trouble paying its bills. A lot of folks might be wondering how you explain these tax breaks to universities who are going to be losing millions of dollars in funding, to tens of thousands of people who are going to be losing their health care. Help us understand how you can justify tax breaks on the one hand and all these deep cuts on the other hand.
Brewer - Well, we don't...if we do not encourage business growth, that brings jobs to Arizona, it's going to get worse. So we have to look out of the box, and have not the money to continue down that path of spending. So we have cut up into this point of time over two billion dollars out of government. Government needs to get smaller. And businesses need to be able to have and appreciate and work within the free enterprise system. That's what's going to generate, that's what's going to turn us around.Yup. In case you didn't notice, Brahm Resnik asked a direct question and for nearly three minutes, Brewer wasn't even in the same area code as a direct answer.
The quote leading this post happened at about the 6:58 mark -
Resnik - Is it fair that businesses should get these tax breaks while universities suffer and those patients suffer?
Brewer - Absolutely. Absolutely.
Resnik - Because?
Brewer - Because it is business that drives our economy. It's business that allows people to have jobs. It's the jobs that allow people to spend the money and it's jobs that allow people to become and be self-responsible for themselves.And finally, on her cuts to education -
Brewer - Since I have been governor, I have been, really, the leading advocate for education, all the way from the grammar schools, to the junior high schools, the middle schools, and high schools, and the universities. And I went in, and I was the one that stepped forward to try to protect education from some devastating cuts the last year when I went to the public and asked for the temporary one cent sales tax because I knew that we needed that bridge to protect that portion of our education system. And then I went to the universities and spoke with the presidents and I spoke with the Board of Regents, of which I am a member, and told them exactly what's going to take place, that we were headed for a cliff, and it's not only happening here in Arizona, it's happening across the country, and they needed to come forward and bring me a plan, that was two years ago. During those two years, there was a lot of dialogue, they started working with the community colleges, and so they were very much aware of what was going to take place. So now, I am still waiting. They have presented a few things to me in regards to what they can do. The bottom line is they're going to have to streamline just like everybody else has had to streamline. We all know how important our research and development is at our universities. We know that businesses work with them. That's why there's an incentive piece in the Commerce Authority bill to allow that to happen. The bottom line is, is if you don't have the money, then everyone is going to have to share some of that responsibility, of streamlining, and doing a better job with the revenues that they have.The video included here is short, approximately 10 minutes, and it is included to both show that none of these quotes were made up, or were misleadingly taken out of context (hey, I may be partisan, but I have higher journalistic standards than, say, Fox News.)
BTW, Brewer's handlers really might want to go back to their campaign plan of keeping her away from open mikes. Resnik didn't ambush her or treat her poorly, but she still crammed both of her feet in her mouth.
Up to her knees.
The coming week: legislative edition
As usual, all info gathered from online sources including the website of the Arizona legislature and all info is subject to change without notice.
This week since most committees either aren't meeting or are just receiving presentations, the schedules of both chambers will again be combined into one post.
Just a few days ago, I put up a post about this week's meeting of the Senate Appropriations Committee. It was already scheduled to be the nastiest of the week, and with a revision to the agenda that was posted Friday afternoon, it became one of the harshest slates of bills of the session thus far.
Details ahead...
On the Senate side of the Capitol this week -
Only a few of the Senate's committees are scheduled to meet this week.
On Monday, Rules will meet at 1 p.m. in Caucus Room 1. There are 39 bills on the agenda right now, and all will be rubberstamped by the committee. Of real interest is an agenda item seeking approval for late introduction of bills relating to Roosevelt Dam, a state firearm, and changes to the public safety employee pension plan.
On Tuesday, Appropriations will meet at 2 p.m. in SHR109. Even during a typical week for committee activity, this one would stand out for the utter vileness of most of the bills scheduled for consideration -
- a "strike everything" amendment, aka "striker", to SB1039 from Al Melvin, creating some sort of "home certificate" program involving "timeout deeds of trust" and other things relating to housing-related debt instruments. I don't really understand this one, but since it is from Cap'n Al "let's tie education funding to turning AZ into a nuclear waste dump" Melvin, it is presumed to be bad, very bad.
- SB1113, Andy Biggs' move to prohibit long term care facilities currently operated by the state or contracting with the state from providing "intermediate care facilities" for mental retardation for a member who has a developmental disability (Arizona Long Term Care System, or ALTCS). This looks to be part of a scheme to totally privatize this function, and steer the contracts (and associated $$$) to a particular provider, one who isn't currently a contractor for the state
- A striker to SB1115 aimed at hamstringing higher education in Arizona. It would serve to permanently reduce state aid to community college districts. It also would end the Arizona Board of Regents, instead creating a Board of Trustees for each individual state university. Call it the "divide and conquer" clause - instead of one unified voice fighting for the state's university system, each separate university would claw at the others for a piece of an ever-dwindling pool of money. The closest thing to a "good" clause in this would be the creation of an Arizona Polytechnic University in Mesa. Otherwise, this is completely bad
- A striker to SCR1014, an amendment to the Arizona Constitution removing gubernortorial appointment language regarding the AZ Board of Regents (related to the above measure)
- A striker to SB1141, requiring school districts and charter schools to demand and maintain proof of residency in Arizona for their students. This looks to be the creation of a target list for those who wish to use the school system to hunt immigrants
- SB1308 and SB1309, the anti-14th Amendment/birthright citizenship bills that have been held for a couple of weeks as Russell Pearce and Ron Gould (and others) twist arms to raise support for the measures
- SB1405, turning Arizona's hospitals into immigration checkpoints
- SB1407, requiring that AZ's school districts collect information on immigrant students and forward that info to the state, and penalizing school districts that don't do so
- SB1519, completely repealing AHCCCS
- SB1589, mandating that ADOT authorize all titling, registration, licensing (all varieties), and tax reporting functions. It allows the director of ADOT to establish minimum standards of service and a quality assurance program but doesn't exempt ADOT from the current moratorium on agency rule-making. In other words, no oversight
- SB1610, relating to a "state firearm" (no text available as yet)
- SB1611, "immigration omnibus." No text available as yet, but it wouldn't shock me if this turns out to be an attempt to reinstate some of the provisions of 2010's SB1070 that were blocked by a court ruling
Both of the above measures still need to be introduced, with the approval of the Rules Committee, and assigned to committee
- SCR1045, making appointments to the various judicial selection panels totally political (no more screening of attorney applicants for the panels by the AZ Bar Association)
On Wednesday, Finance will meet at 9 a.m. in SHR1. One bill on the agenda: SB1609, relating to changes to the state's public pension plans. No text available, and will need Rules Committee approval for introduction (it will get that, but it will be a few days before the bill text is available online)
No agendas have yet been posted for committees that meet on Thursday.
On the House side of the Capitol, they will begin hearing Senate-passed measures -
On Monday, Rules will meet at 1 p.m. in HHR4. 46 bills on the agenda right now; rubberstamp.
On Monday, Energy and Natural Resources will meet at 2 p.m. in HHR4. Presentations only (SRP and AREVA Solar).
On Tuesday, Government will meet at 2 p.m. in HHR4. Two bills on the agenda:
- SB1153, allowing municipalities with an appointed auditor to allow that auditor access to the executive session minutes of the local council or local municipality committees. Seems non-controversial.
- SB1171, allowing municipalities to force a county to transfer a wastewater/sewage system operated by the county within the municipality to that municipality. Not so non-controversial. Rooted in a conflict between the town of Marana and Pima County. At this point, as much a personality conflict as anything else, a conflict where one party is looking at the legislature to intervene.
On Tuesday, Environment will meet at 2 p.m. in HHR5. Presentation from ADEQ on particulate reduction (air quality).
On Tuesday, Employment and Regulatory Affairs will meet at 2 p.m. in HHR3. One bill on the agenda: SB1167, making changes to the state's retirement system.
On Wednesday, Higher Education, Innovation, and Reform will meet at 9 a.m. in HHR2. Presentation from the CEO of the Lumina Foundation for Education, an organization dedicated to undermining/corporatizing the American higher education system. A report from the American Association of Colleges and Universities here.
On Wednesday, Health and Human Services will meet at 9:30 a.m. in HHR4. The agenda is all Senate bills that look to be harmless, so far.
On Wednesday, Appropriations will meet at 2 p.m in HHR1. House bills on this agenda, including -
- HB2070, which has been amended to create an armed "state guard" force outside of the National Command Authority. It would be answerable to the governor and legislature, and be funded by monies siphoned from the Arizona National Guard
- A striker to HB2136 to create a state agency fee commission to study and pass judgement on state agency fees
- HB2301, mandating that school districts spend at least 50% of their maintenance and operation budget on teacher salaries and removes the restrictions against using "soft capital" funds (books, desks, etc.) on non-soft capital expenditures
- A striker to HB2592, relating to "schools; classroom budget funds." No text available as yet.
On Thursday, Judiciary will meet at 9 a.m. in HHR4. The only item currently on the agenda is "adoption of rules."
On Thursday, Agriculture and Water will meet at 9 a.m. in HHR5. On the agenda: two presentations (Arizona Well Water Association and Central Arizona Project) and two seemingly non-controversial Senate bills.
Some Capitol events (and here, from the Arizona Capitol Times):
Monday is Arizona Citizens Defense League/NRA Lobby Day, aka - "Gun Fetishists Running Wild At The Capitol" Day. Look for the Capitol lobbyist dress code to call for Kevlar suit jackets that day
Wednesday at the Wyndham in Phoenix at 11:30 a.m., Kimber Lanning of Local First Arizona will speak on the impacts of buying locally. Mentioned here because Thursday, Ms. Lanning will be one of the five Independent candidates for the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission interview for appointment to the chairmanship.
Thursday, as noted above, the four partisan legislative appointees to the AIRC will meet to select a fifth, Independent, member to serve as chair of the AIRC.
Later...
This week since most committees either aren't meeting or are just receiving presentations, the schedules of both chambers will again be combined into one post.
Just a few days ago, I put up a post about this week's meeting of the Senate Appropriations Committee. It was already scheduled to be the nastiest of the week, and with a revision to the agenda that was posted Friday afternoon, it became one of the harshest slates of bills of the session thus far.
Details ahead...
On the Senate side of the Capitol this week -
Only a few of the Senate's committees are scheduled to meet this week.
On Monday, Rules will meet at 1 p.m. in Caucus Room 1. There are 39 bills on the agenda right now, and all will be rubberstamped by the committee. Of real interest is an agenda item seeking approval for late introduction of bills relating to Roosevelt Dam, a state firearm, and changes to the public safety employee pension plan.
On Tuesday, Appropriations will meet at 2 p.m. in SHR109. Even during a typical week for committee activity, this one would stand out for the utter vileness of most of the bills scheduled for consideration -
- a "strike everything" amendment, aka "striker", to SB1039 from Al Melvin, creating some sort of "home certificate" program involving "timeout deeds of trust" and other things relating to housing-related debt instruments. I don't really understand this one, but since it is from Cap'n Al "let's tie education funding to turning AZ into a nuclear waste dump" Melvin, it is presumed to be bad, very bad.
- SB1113, Andy Biggs' move to prohibit long term care facilities currently operated by the state or contracting with the state from providing "intermediate care facilities" for mental retardation for a member who has a developmental disability (Arizona Long Term Care System, or ALTCS). This looks to be part of a scheme to totally privatize this function, and steer the contracts (and associated $$$) to a particular provider, one who isn't currently a contractor for the state
- A striker to SB1115 aimed at hamstringing higher education in Arizona. It would serve to permanently reduce state aid to community college districts. It also would end the Arizona Board of Regents, instead creating a Board of Trustees for each individual state university. Call it the "divide and conquer" clause - instead of one unified voice fighting for the state's university system, each separate university would claw at the others for a piece of an ever-dwindling pool of money. The closest thing to a "good" clause in this would be the creation of an Arizona Polytechnic University in Mesa. Otherwise, this is completely bad
- A striker to SCR1014, an amendment to the Arizona Constitution removing gubernortorial appointment language regarding the AZ Board of Regents (related to the above measure)
- A striker to SB1141, requiring school districts and charter schools to demand and maintain proof of residency in Arizona for their students. This looks to be the creation of a target list for those who wish to use the school system to hunt immigrants
- SB1308 and SB1309, the anti-14th Amendment/birthright citizenship bills that have been held for a couple of weeks as Russell Pearce and Ron Gould (and others) twist arms to raise support for the measures
- SB1405, turning Arizona's hospitals into immigration checkpoints
- SB1407, requiring that AZ's school districts collect information on immigrant students and forward that info to the state, and penalizing school districts that don't do so
- SB1519, completely repealing AHCCCS
- SB1589, mandating that ADOT authorize all titling, registration, licensing (all varieties), and tax reporting functions. It allows the director of ADOT to establish minimum standards of service and a quality assurance program but doesn't exempt ADOT from the current moratorium on agency rule-making. In other words, no oversight
- SB1610, relating to a "state firearm" (no text available as yet)
- SB1611, "immigration omnibus." No text available as yet, but it wouldn't shock me if this turns out to be an attempt to reinstate some of the provisions of 2010's SB1070 that were blocked by a court ruling
Both of the above measures still need to be introduced, with the approval of the Rules Committee, and assigned to committee
- SCR1045, making appointments to the various judicial selection panels totally political (no more screening of attorney applicants for the panels by the AZ Bar Association)
On Wednesday, Finance will meet at 9 a.m. in SHR1. One bill on the agenda: SB1609, relating to changes to the state's public pension plans. No text available, and will need Rules Committee approval for introduction (it will get that, but it will be a few days before the bill text is available online)
No agendas have yet been posted for committees that meet on Thursday.
On the House side of the Capitol, they will begin hearing Senate-passed measures -
On Monday, Rules will meet at 1 p.m. in HHR4. 46 bills on the agenda right now; rubberstamp.
On Monday, Energy and Natural Resources will meet at 2 p.m. in HHR4. Presentations only (SRP and AREVA Solar).
On Tuesday, Government will meet at 2 p.m. in HHR4. Two bills on the agenda:
- SB1153, allowing municipalities with an appointed auditor to allow that auditor access to the executive session minutes of the local council or local municipality committees. Seems non-controversial.
- SB1171, allowing municipalities to force a county to transfer a wastewater/sewage system operated by the county within the municipality to that municipality. Not so non-controversial. Rooted in a conflict between the town of Marana and Pima County. At this point, as much a personality conflict as anything else, a conflict where one party is looking at the legislature to intervene.
On Tuesday, Environment will meet at 2 p.m. in HHR5. Presentation from ADEQ on particulate reduction (air quality).
On Tuesday, Employment and Regulatory Affairs will meet at 2 p.m. in HHR3. One bill on the agenda: SB1167, making changes to the state's retirement system.
On Wednesday, Higher Education, Innovation, and Reform will meet at 9 a.m. in HHR2. Presentation from the CEO of the Lumina Foundation for Education, an organization dedicated to undermining/corporatizing the American higher education system. A report from the American Association of Colleges and Universities here.
On Wednesday, Health and Human Services will meet at 9:30 a.m. in HHR4. The agenda is all Senate bills that look to be harmless, so far.
On Wednesday, Appropriations will meet at 2 p.m in HHR1. House bills on this agenda, including -
- HB2070, which has been amended to create an armed "state guard" force outside of the National Command Authority. It would be answerable to the governor and legislature, and be funded by monies siphoned from the Arizona National Guard
- A striker to HB2136 to create a state agency fee commission to study and pass judgement on state agency fees
- HB2301, mandating that school districts spend at least 50% of their maintenance and operation budget on teacher salaries and removes the restrictions against using "soft capital" funds (books, desks, etc.) on non-soft capital expenditures
- A striker to HB2592, relating to "schools; classroom budget funds." No text available as yet.
On Thursday, Judiciary will meet at 9 a.m. in HHR4. The only item currently on the agenda is "adoption of rules."
On Thursday, Agriculture and Water will meet at 9 a.m. in HHR5. On the agenda: two presentations (Arizona Well Water Association and Central Arizona Project) and two seemingly non-controversial Senate bills.
Some Capitol events (and here, from the Arizona Capitol Times):
Monday is Arizona Citizens Defense League/NRA Lobby Day, aka - "Gun Fetishists Running Wild At The Capitol" Day. Look for the Capitol lobbyist dress code to call for Kevlar suit jackets that day
Wednesday at the Wyndham in Phoenix at 11:30 a.m., Kimber Lanning of Local First Arizona will speak on the impacts of buying locally. Mentioned here because Thursday, Ms. Lanning will be one of the five Independent candidates for the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission interview for appointment to the chairmanship.
Thursday, as noted above, the four partisan legislative appointees to the AIRC will meet to select a fifth, Independent, member to serve as chair of the AIRC.
Later...
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Take Two Aspirin And...: The Doctor Is In...
WebMD doesn't have info on your ailment? Not enough time or insurance coverage for a visit to a flesh and blood doctor? No problem.
Dr. R. Musings is here for you with the AZBlogRadioM.D. radio show. The phones are now open.
...The first caller is Dave from Fountain Hills.
Dr. Musings: Hi Dave, what are your symptoms?
Dave from Fountain Hills: Doctor, I've got this stiff neck and a headache, and I'm having trouble sleeping.
Dr. Musings: OK, Dave. What have you been doing recently?
Dave: Well, recently I've been sleeping in my office at work...
Dr. Musings: If you've been sleeping on a couch, that could certainly contribute to your symptoms.
Dave: At first, I thought that too, but I've been doing that since the beginning of the year and the problem just popped up this week.
Dr. Musings: Hmmm. What has happened this week?
Dave: Well, this meddlesome watchdog group has been calling for an investigation of my sleeping arrangements and wants me to pay taxes on the benefit I am receiving from the use of my office as a hotel room.
Dr. Musings: Stress from that could certainly contribute to your symptoms.
Dave: I thought that too, but I've been planning to sleep in my office since even before I was in the office and am kind of immune to the objections of the little people, and anyway, let's face facts - I'm a Republicans, so the rules don't apply to me anyway.
Dr. Musings: OK, so what else did you do this week?
Dave: Well, on Thursday, I was at the White House having my picture taken with the President as he signed a bill naming a new federal courthouse after Judge John Roll, one of the victims of the mass shooting in Tucson in early January. It was funded by economic stimulus funds.
Dr. Musings: Uh-huh....
Dave: After that, I went back to my hotel room...errrrr...*office* and pumped out a press release, criticizing the stimulus package as a complete failure...
Dr. Musings: Stop right there. It's obvious that you are suffering from a strong case of whiplash. Take two aspirin, wear a foam neck collar, and for at least the next four weeks, no twisting yourself like a pretzel to pat yourself on the back while stabbing public employees, women, and poor people in the back.
Dave: I'll have nothing to do for a whole month?!? [muffled cursing] Doctor, that will put a serious crimp in my fundraising for the 2012 election cycle.
Dr. Musings: I know it will be difficult, but better that than getting so twisted up you need surgery.
Dave: Surgery?!?!?
Dr. Musings: Cranio-rectal dislodgement surgery.
Dave: What? Would that really be necessary?
Dr. Musings: Well, to be honest, that's only a recommendation, not a necessity. Many of your colleagues live long and profitable, though not very productive, lives with their craniums firmly lodged in their rectums. The condition makes driving more difficult, but as an Arizona driver, nobody will notice any thing out of the norm.
Dave: Whew! My lobbyists....errr....constituents need me to be at full speed. Thank you Doctor! I don't know what I'd do without you. Tell you what, I'm going propose a bill declaring that we replace that socialist Medicare program with cards with your phone number on them. Anyway, thanks again Doc! Gotta go foreclose on....errrr...."meet with" a constituent.
Dr. Musings: Umm, OK Dave. Glad to help. Next caller. Jack from Surprise, are you there?
Jack from Surprise: Doctor, I've been experiencing this stinging sensation on the top of my head since Tuesday.
Dr. Musings: What happened on Tuesday?
Jack: One of my strike-everything amendments was heard in committee in the Arizona House of Representatives.
Dr. Musings: Oh? How did that go?
Jack: Not well, Doctor. It was this harmless little idea to mess with Indian tribes to keep them from opening a casino near my district while messing with cities and towns' state-shared revenue, and NOBODY supported it. Industry opposed it, the Center for ArizonaTheocracy Policy opposed it, the Attorney General opposed it, members of the committee picked on me, even the committee chair, my seatmate, opposed it. Even some uppity wiseass blogger from Scottsdale opposed it. It was unanimously voted down. That NEVER happens. I'm so embarrassed, Doctor. It's as if even my fellow crazy Republicans think that I'm too crazy for the legislature.
Dr. Musings: Jack, you are clearly suffering from the after effects of a total smackdown.
Jack: Oh. What do I do for that, Doctor?
Dr. Musings: Take two aspirin. After that, pull out a jar of peanut butter, at least 16 ounces, and a full box of saltine crackers, and eat them. Don't drink anything while you are doing this.
Jack: But...but...but, Doctor, if I do that, I won't be able to speak!
Dr. Musings: That's kind of the point Jack. Thank you for your call. Next caller, you're up. Ron from Lake Havasu, are you there?
Ron from Lake Havasu: Hi Doctor Musings. Yes, I am.
Dr. Musings: How can I help you today, Ron?
Ron: Well Doctor, for the last few weeks, I've had this burning sensation in my throat and a rumbling sensation in my stomach.
Dr. Musings: What's been going on in your life for the last few weeks?
Ron: It started when I tried to ram through a couple of anti-birthright citizenship bills in my own committee. The bills are part of my plan to rid the country of those sneaky children who were born here but whose parents were not. My committee, my own freakin' committee!, heard nearly 90 minutes worth of testimony from some ringer I had schlepped in for just this occasion, but then I had to pull the bills before a vote because I was stabbed in the back by some of my own fellow Republicans. They were so worried about looking bad over attacking children that they wimped out, citing Constitutional concerns. ARRGGGHHH!
Dr. Musings: Go on, Ron.
Ron: Then this past week, I got screwed over twice. First I couldn't get another anti-immigrant bill through my committee, one that would turn hospitals into immigration checkpoints, and had to pull that one too. The next day, my "birther" bill, which would have required presidential candidates to produce paperwork that doesn't even exist for most of them, was actually defeated but traitorous Republicans and and wussy Democrats who were more concerned with not violating the U.S. Constitution than with keeping a black man out of the White House.
Dr. Musings: Hmmm.... OK Ron. It seems as if you are suffering from a severe case of ego-initiated acid indigestion, brought on by abject failure.
Ron: Sounds bad, Doc. What is the treatment?
Dr. Musings: Take two aspirin, drink a bottle of Pepto, and try again. There's no salve for failure that's more effective than success.
Ron: Doc, I can do that. On Tuesday, Senate Appropriations will meet and consider my bills. For good measure, there are going to be a LOT more bad bills on the agenda, just to serve as a warning to backsliders - no more wimpy protestations about "the Constitution" or other crap. Wonder if they'll let me fly my Confederate flag over the Capitol on Tuesday...
Dr. Musings: On that rather bizarre note, we are out of time and have to go for now. Thank you callers. Thank you listeners. Tune into our next show where we interview a follicly-challenged Senate President about treatments for male pattern baldness.
Talk to you all next week! Dr. R. Musings, for AZBlogRadioM.D., signing out.
Dr. R. Musings is here for you with the AZBlogRadioM.D. radio show. The phones are now open.
...The first caller is Dave from Fountain Hills.
Dr. Musings: Hi Dave, what are your symptoms?
Dave from Fountain Hills: Doctor, I've got this stiff neck and a headache, and I'm having trouble sleeping.
Dr. Musings: OK, Dave. What have you been doing recently?
Dave: Well, recently I've been sleeping in my office at work...
Dr. Musings: If you've been sleeping on a couch, that could certainly contribute to your symptoms.
Dave: At first, I thought that too, but I've been doing that since the beginning of the year and the problem just popped up this week.
Dr. Musings: Hmmm. What has happened this week?
Dave: Well, this meddlesome watchdog group has been calling for an investigation of my sleeping arrangements and wants me to pay taxes on the benefit I am receiving from the use of my office as a hotel room.
Dr. Musings: Stress from that could certainly contribute to your symptoms.
Dave: I thought that too, but I've been planning to sleep in my office since even before I was in the office and am kind of immune to the objections of the little people, and anyway, let's face facts - I'm a Republicans, so the rules don't apply to me anyway.
Dr. Musings: OK, so what else did you do this week?
Dave: Well, on Thursday, I was at the White House having my picture taken with the President as he signed a bill naming a new federal courthouse after Judge John Roll, one of the victims of the mass shooting in Tucson in early January. It was funded by economic stimulus funds.
Dr. Musings: Uh-huh....
Dave: After that, I went back to my hotel room...errrrr...*office* and pumped out a press release, criticizing the stimulus package as a complete failure...
Dr. Musings: Stop right there. It's obvious that you are suffering from a strong case of whiplash. Take two aspirin, wear a foam neck collar, and for at least the next four weeks, no twisting yourself like a pretzel to pat yourself on the back while stabbing public employees, women, and poor people in the back.
Dave: I'll have nothing to do for a whole month?!? [muffled cursing] Doctor, that will put a serious crimp in my fundraising for the 2012 election cycle.
Dr. Musings: I know it will be difficult, but better that than getting so twisted up you need surgery.
Dave: Surgery?!?!?
Dr. Musings: Cranio-rectal dislodgement surgery.
Dave: What? Would that really be necessary?
Dr. Musings: Well, to be honest, that's only a recommendation, not a necessity. Many of your colleagues live long and profitable, though not very productive, lives with their craniums firmly lodged in their rectums. The condition makes driving more difficult, but as an Arizona driver, nobody will notice any thing out of the norm.
Dave: Whew! My lobbyists....errr....constituents need me to be at full speed. Thank you Doctor! I don't know what I'd do without you. Tell you what, I'm going propose a bill declaring that we replace that socialist Medicare program with cards with your phone number on them. Anyway, thanks again Doc! Gotta go foreclose on....errrr...."meet with" a constituent.
Dr. Musings: Umm, OK Dave. Glad to help. Next caller. Jack from Surprise, are you there?
Jack from Surprise: Doctor, I've been experiencing this stinging sensation on the top of my head since Tuesday.
Dr. Musings: What happened on Tuesday?
Jack: One of my strike-everything amendments was heard in committee in the Arizona House of Representatives.
Dr. Musings: Oh? How did that go?
Jack: Not well, Doctor. It was this harmless little idea to mess with Indian tribes to keep them from opening a casino near my district while messing with cities and towns' state-shared revenue, and NOBODY supported it. Industry opposed it, the Center for Arizona
Dr. Musings: Jack, you are clearly suffering from the after effects of a total smackdown.
Jack: Oh. What do I do for that, Doctor?
Dr. Musings: Take two aspirin. After that, pull out a jar of peanut butter, at least 16 ounces, and a full box of saltine crackers, and eat them. Don't drink anything while you are doing this.
Jack: But...but...but, Doctor, if I do that, I won't be able to speak!
Dr. Musings: That's kind of the point Jack. Thank you for your call. Next caller, you're up. Ron from Lake Havasu, are you there?
Ron from Lake Havasu: Hi Doctor Musings. Yes, I am.
Dr. Musings: How can I help you today, Ron?
Ron: Well Doctor, for the last few weeks, I've had this burning sensation in my throat and a rumbling sensation in my stomach.
Dr. Musings: What's been going on in your life for the last few weeks?
Ron: It started when I tried to ram through a couple of anti-birthright citizenship bills in my own committee. The bills are part of my plan to rid the country of those sneaky children who were born here but whose parents were not. My committee, my own freakin' committee!, heard nearly 90 minutes worth of testimony from some ringer I had schlepped in for just this occasion, but then I had to pull the bills before a vote because I was stabbed in the back by some of my own fellow Republicans. They were so worried about looking bad over attacking children that they wimped out, citing Constitutional concerns. ARRGGGHHH!
Dr. Musings: Go on, Ron.
Ron: Then this past week, I got screwed over twice. First I couldn't get another anti-immigrant bill through my committee, one that would turn hospitals into immigration checkpoints, and had to pull that one too. The next day, my "birther" bill, which would have required presidential candidates to produce paperwork that doesn't even exist for most of them, was actually defeated but traitorous Republicans and and wussy Democrats who were more concerned with not violating the U.S. Constitution than with keeping a black man out of the White House.
Dr. Musings: Hmmm.... OK Ron. It seems as if you are suffering from a severe case of ego-initiated acid indigestion, brought on by abject failure.
Ron: Sounds bad, Doc. What is the treatment?
Dr. Musings: Take two aspirin, drink a bottle of Pepto, and try again. There's no salve for failure that's more effective than success.
Ron: Doc, I can do that. On Tuesday, Senate Appropriations will meet and consider my bills. For good measure, there are going to be a LOT more bad bills on the agenda, just to serve as a warning to backsliders - no more wimpy protestations about "the Constitution" or other crap. Wonder if they'll let me fly my Confederate flag over the Capitol on Tuesday...
Dr. Musings: On that rather bizarre note, we are out of time and have to go for now. Thank you callers. Thank you listeners. Tune into our next show where we interview a follicly-challenged Senate President about treatments for male pattern baldness.
Talk to you all next week! Dr. R. Musings, for AZBlogRadioM.D., signing out.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Legislative weekly wrap up, with a quick preview of next week
The Arizona legislature's activity, week of February 14. 2011, in review -
- The big news this week was the passage of a massive corporate tax cut bill in a special session. The bill, HB2001, is "massive," both in terms of its impact on the state's fiscal situation (blowing a $538 million hole in the annual state budget by fiscal year 2018) and in sheer size (it's 214 pages long).
Legislative summary of the package here; fiscal note, prepared by the state's Joint Legislative Budget is here. House Democratic caucus press release on the bill here; Jan Brewer's press release praising her signing of the bill into law is here.
- Failed to pass committee: SB1526, a "birther" bill from Sen. Ron Gould. Three Republicans, Adam Driggs, John McComish, and Rick Murphy, joined the two Democrats on the Senate's Judiciary Committee, Kyrsten Sinema and Steve Gallardo, in defeating the measure. Their main objection was that the bill as written would create a stricter standard of citizenship for presidential candidates than is in the U.S. Constitution (Arizona: candidates must be born of two American citizens; U.S. Constitution: candidates must be a 'natural born" citizen, with no mention made of parentage)
This one isn't completely dead yet - a House version this could still move forward, or it could be reintroduced as a "strike everything" amendment to another bill proposal.
-A lot of very bad bills gained committee approval this week. A very brief list:
SB1467 (barring educational institutions from enacting or enforcing a policy that bars possession of concealed weapons on campus);
SB1216 (imposing a copayment on obstetric services for AHCCCS patients; illegal under federal law, and the committee knows that, but seven Republicans voted for it anyway);
SCR1032 (a proposed amendment to the Arizona Constitution to require 60% of the voters in an election to support a tax hike for said hike to pass);
SB1390 (placing geographic restrictions on abortion services - a doctor performing an abortion must have clinical privileges at a hospital that offers ob/gyn services and is within 30 miles of the location of the abortion services. Would all but eliminate the availability of abortions in rural Arizona);
SB1548 (tying school funding in Arizona to the establishment of a nuclear waste dump here)
SB1433 (creating a "nullification" commission to oversee state legislative nullification of federal laws and regulations that state legislators don't like)
HB2077 (mandating the federal agencies report to a county's sheriff and pay a fee before engaging in activities in that county; also ordering that all money collected as a result of fines, fees, or penalties collected by the federal agency be transferred to the state's General Fund)
HB2675 (as introduced, would have defined "unlawful use of food stamps" as use of a food stamp care after the unlawful transfer of a food stamp card and would have mandated that the cards be bright orange and state in large black print "Government Food Stamp Card." The version that passed committee didn't contain the part about the design of the cards.)
HB2313 (saying that the state can seize federal property under eminent domain)
Too many bad bills passed committee this week to list them all here. Suffice to say, any anti-union (worker), anti-Union (federal government) anti-abortion, and anti-fiscal responsibility/good governance measures are still alive.
Most committees are winding down work on their own chambers' bills, and now the focus will be on the floor passage of bills so they can be transferred to the other chamber for consideration.
Among the measures receiving final passage in one chamber and now ready to the other this week were:
SB1187 (lengthening the waiting period before a divorce becomes final)
HB2230 (exempting a corporation's commercial leases with itself from sales tax requirements)
In other legislature-related news:
Republican former state senator Chuck Gray of East Mesa announced his candidacy for Congress in 2012. Note: While he states that he will be running for the 6th District seat currently held by Republican Jeff Flake (who has announced that he is running for the U.S. Senate next year), because of redistricting and the addition of a ninth Arizona Congressional district next year, the actual district he runs for may be very different than the current 6th District.
Non-incumbent campaign committees opened for legislative seats (while all list a district, that district's designation and layout will change after redistricting):
Republican Bob Blendu, LD12 State Representative
Republican Tom Murray, LD12 State Representative
Coming next week at the legislature: Senate Appropriations is scheduled to hear two anti-birthright citizenship bills (SB1308 and SB1309), a bill to turn hospitals into immigration checkpoints (SB1405), and a bill to end AHCCCS (SB1519) (that schedule is subject to change at any time).
Otherwise, most of the focus now turns to floor action on bills that have already been through committee consideration. However, floor calendars (agendas) haven't yet been posted for next week.
- The big news this week was the passage of a massive corporate tax cut bill in a special session. The bill, HB2001, is "massive," both in terms of its impact on the state's fiscal situation (blowing a $538 million hole in the annual state budget by fiscal year 2018) and in sheer size (it's 214 pages long).
Legislative summary of the package here; fiscal note, prepared by the state's Joint Legislative Budget is here. House Democratic caucus press release on the bill here; Jan Brewer's press release praising her signing of the bill into law is here.
- Failed to pass committee: SB1526, a "birther" bill from Sen. Ron Gould. Three Republicans, Adam Driggs, John McComish, and Rick Murphy, joined the two Democrats on the Senate's Judiciary Committee, Kyrsten Sinema and Steve Gallardo, in defeating the measure. Their main objection was that the bill as written would create a stricter standard of citizenship for presidential candidates than is in the U.S. Constitution (Arizona: candidates must be born of two American citizens; U.S. Constitution: candidates must be a 'natural born" citizen, with no mention made of parentage)
This one isn't completely dead yet - a House version this could still move forward, or it could be reintroduced as a "strike everything" amendment to another bill proposal.
-A lot of very bad bills gained committee approval this week. A very brief list:
SB1467 (barring educational institutions from enacting or enforcing a policy that bars possession of concealed weapons on campus);
SB1216 (imposing a copayment on obstetric services for AHCCCS patients; illegal under federal law, and the committee knows that, but seven Republicans voted for it anyway);
SCR1032 (a proposed amendment to the Arizona Constitution to require 60% of the voters in an election to support a tax hike for said hike to pass);
SB1390 (placing geographic restrictions on abortion services - a doctor performing an abortion must have clinical privileges at a hospital that offers ob/gyn services and is within 30 miles of the location of the abortion services. Would all but eliminate the availability of abortions in rural Arizona);
SB1548 (tying school funding in Arizona to the establishment of a nuclear waste dump here)
SB1433 (creating a "nullification" commission to oversee state legislative nullification of federal laws and regulations that state legislators don't like)
HB2077 (mandating the federal agencies report to a county's sheriff and pay a fee before engaging in activities in that county; also ordering that all money collected as a result of fines, fees, or penalties collected by the federal agency be transferred to the state's General Fund)
HB2675 (as introduced, would have defined "unlawful use of food stamps" as use of a food stamp care after the unlawful transfer of a food stamp card and would have mandated that the cards be bright orange and state in large black print "Government Food Stamp Card." The version that passed committee didn't contain the part about the design of the cards.)
HB2313 (saying that the state can seize federal property under eminent domain)
Too many bad bills passed committee this week to list them all here. Suffice to say, any anti-union (worker), anti-Union (federal government) anti-abortion, and anti-fiscal responsibility/good governance measures are still alive.
Most committees are winding down work on their own chambers' bills, and now the focus will be on the floor passage of bills so they can be transferred to the other chamber for consideration.
Among the measures receiving final passage in one chamber and now ready to the other this week were:
SB1187 (lengthening the waiting period before a divorce becomes final)
HB2230 (exempting a corporation's commercial leases with itself from sales tax requirements)
In other legislature-related news:
Republican former state senator Chuck Gray of East Mesa announced his candidacy for Congress in 2012. Note: While he states that he will be running for the 6th District seat currently held by Republican Jeff Flake (who has announced that he is running for the U.S. Senate next year), because of redistricting and the addition of a ninth Arizona Congressional district next year, the actual district he runs for may be very different than the current 6th District.
Non-incumbent campaign committees opened for legislative seats (while all list a district, that district's designation and layout will change after redistricting):
Republican Bob Blendu, LD12 State Representative
Republican Tom Murray, LD12 State Representative
Coming next week at the legislature: Senate Appropriations is scheduled to hear two anti-birthright citizenship bills (SB1308 and SB1309), a bill to turn hospitals into immigration checkpoints (SB1405), and a bill to end AHCCCS (SB1519) (that schedule is subject to change at any time).
Otherwise, most of the focus now turns to floor action on bills that have already been through committee consideration. However, floor calendars (agendas) haven't yet been posted for next week.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
The Democratic Senators of the Wisconsin Legislature: Heroes For Our Time
By now, everyone has heard of the developments in Wisconsin - the Republican governor and legislative majority in Wisconsin is railroading through legislation to bust the public employee unions in Wisconsin, the affected workers - teachers, firefighters, and more - are protesting, and now the entire Democratic caucus of the Wisconsin State Senate has left the state to block the Republicans from achieving the quorum needed to vote on the union-busting measure.
In honor of the 14 Democrats who are standing up for working Wisconsans by standing up and leaving their home state, here's the list -
Tim Carpenter, Milwaukee
Spencer Coggs, Milwaukee
Timothy Cullen, Janesville (no photo available)
Jon Erpenbach, Middleton
Dave Hansen, Green Bay
Jim Holperin, Conover
Robert Jauch, Poplar
Chris Larson, Milwaukee (no photo available)
Julie Lassa, Stevens Point
Mark Miller, Monona
Luther Olsen, Ripon
Fred Risser, Madison
Lena Taylor, Milwaukee
Kathleen Vinehout, Alma
Robert Wirch, Pleasant Prairie
An open invitation to any or all 14 of the Wisconsin Senate Democrats -
On March 26, Arizona's District 17 Democrats are holding our annual "Chili Cook-off" and you are invited. If necessary, I'll pay the admission fees for all of you, though the blogging budget can't cover airfare.
If you are still people without a home, or even a state, at the end of March, the Democrats of South Scottsdale and Tempe will welcome you with open arms and even feed you. The quality of the chili recipes is generally very good, even the vegan, but there are probably going to be a couple of entries that you might want to avoid if you don't want your taste buds seared off. :)
In honor of the 14 Democrats who are standing up for working Wisconsans by standing up and leaving their home state, here's the list -
Spencer Coggs, Milwaukee
Timothy Cullen, Janesville (no photo available)
Jon Erpenbach, Middleton
Dave Hansen, Green Bay
Jim Holperin, Conover
Robert Jauch, Poplar
Chris Larson, Milwaukee (no photo available)
Mark Miller, Monona
Luther Olsen, Ripon
Fred Risser, Madison
Lena Taylor, Milwaukee
Kathleen Vinehout, Alma
Robert Wirch, Pleasant Prairie
An open invitation to any or all 14 of the Wisconsin Senate Democrats -
On March 26, Arizona's District 17 Democrats are holding our annual "Chili Cook-off" and you are invited. If necessary, I'll pay the admission fees for all of you, though the blogging budget can't cover airfare.
If you are still people without a home, or even a state, at the end of March, the Democrats of South Scottsdale and Tempe will welcome you with open arms and even feed you. The quality of the chili recipes is generally very good, even the vegan, but there are probably going to be a couple of entries that you might want to avoid if you don't want your taste buds seared off. :)
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
It never stops: the birthright citizenship and turning hospitals into immigration checkpoints coming back already...
While this will be covered as part of the regularly scheduled "Coming Week" post that will go up on Saturday or Sunday, but we need to get out a heads up on this to as many people as possible.
The two birthright citizenship bills (SB1308 and SB1309) and the hospitals/immigration checkpoints bill (SB1405) may have failed to gain committee approval the last two weeks (getting pulled from each agenda they were on before the committees voted on them), however, Russell Pearce, Ron Gould, and the rest of the nativists in the lege haven't given up.
Not by a long shot.
While most Senate committees have completed their work on Senate bills for the session and aren't meeting next week (once the House passes some bills and sends them over to the Senate, committee meetings will start up again), Appropriations will meet on Tuesday at 2 p.m. in SHR109 to consider those three bills, as well as SB1519, a measure from Sens. Andy Biggs and Ron Gould that would end Medicaid (AHCCCS) in Arizona.
Note for Thursday, 2/17/2011 - nine House committees are meeting, including many that don't normally meet on Thursdays. It looks as if the House is trying to cram through as many bills as possible before the deadline for the chambers of the legislature to consider bills originating in their own chamber.
I didn't see anything that truly stood out as *bad*, but I only did a quick scan and could have missed something. Check out the list here.
The two birthright citizenship bills (SB1308 and SB1309) and the hospitals/immigration checkpoints bill (SB1405) may have failed to gain committee approval the last two weeks (getting pulled from each agenda they were on before the committees voted on them), however, Russell Pearce, Ron Gould, and the rest of the nativists in the lege haven't given up.
Not by a long shot.
While most Senate committees have completed their work on Senate bills for the session and aren't meeting next week (once the House passes some bills and sends them over to the Senate, committee meetings will start up again), Appropriations will meet on Tuesday at 2 p.m. in SHR109 to consider those three bills, as well as SB1519, a measure from Sens. Andy Biggs and Ron Gould that would end Medicaid (AHCCCS) in Arizona.
Note for Thursday, 2/17/2011 - nine House committees are meeting, including many that don't normally meet on Thursdays. It looks as if the House is trying to cram through as many bills as possible before the deadline for the chambers of the legislature to consider bills originating in their own chamber.
I didn't see anything that truly stood out as *bad*, but I only did a quick scan and could have missed something. Check out the list here.
When you find yourself in a hole, the first rule is: QUIT DIGGING!!
However, we all know what the Republicans in the Arizona legislature think about rules...
Winged Victory is the weathervane atop the old State Capitol building (actually, it was the territorial capitol building first) and legend has it that as the desert winds changed, it would turn toward Arizona's future*.
With the Arizona lege's special session passage of HB2001, the massive tax windfall for corporations (and a $538 million hole in the state's finances), Winged Victory has assumed a new pose, one that illustrates the direction the legislature is moving the state toward...
* = Actually, while there is a legend or three surrounding Winged Victory, I don't know what they are. Let me be clear, this line was crafted for this story. But it sounds right. :))
Deepest thanks go out to Vince Palermo, a photographer and graphic designer, for his help with turning a concept into the above picture. His website, Vinceisvisual.com, is here.
Later...
Winged Victory is the weathervane atop the old State Capitol building (actually, it was the territorial capitol building first) and legend has it that as the desert winds changed, it would turn toward Arizona's future*.
With the Arizona lege's special session passage of HB2001, the massive tax windfall for corporations (and a $538 million hole in the state's finances), Winged Victory has assumed a new pose, one that illustrates the direction the legislature is moving the state toward...
* = Actually, while there is a legend or three surrounding Winged Victory, I don't know what they are. Let me be clear, this line was crafted for this story. But it sounds right. :))
Deepest thanks go out to Vince Palermo, a photographer and graphic designer, for his help with turning a concept into the above picture. His website, Vinceisvisual.com, is here.
Later...
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