State Sen. Scott Bundgaard was involved in a domestic violence incident Friday night, one that resulted in the arrest of his then-girlfriend Aubry Ballard while Bundgaard invoked legislative immunity to avoid arrest.
Bundgaard, though GOP PR guru Jason Rose, has issued a couple of press releases (like this one) on the matter, as well as speaking about the event on the Senate floor Monday. In the press releases, he tried to paint the conflict as rooted in Ms. Ballard being jealous over Bungaard's participation in a knockoff version of "Dancing With The Stars" for charity.
Until Tuesday however, Ballard had remained silent.
That changed when she gave an interview to KPNX's (Phoenix channel 12) Brahm Resnik.
She cited long simmering "relationship problems" as at the root of the conflict between her and Bundgaard, not anything to do with "Dancing."
Not exactly in keeping with the Bundgaard/Rose script.
Note: I attempted to embed the video in this post, but the code wouldn't work here for some reason.
The Republican blog Sonoran Alliance has jumped in, utilizing a "it must be the woman's fault" tack - mentioning that she may have once posed for pictures in a bikini, and implying that she was intoxicated Friday night.
At least they have the KPNX interview.
Other videos related to this matter:
A YouTube video of a pre-charity event interview with Bundgaard and his dance partner, Rebecca Jowers -
A YouTube video of a practice session -
Both of the above videos were posted by the Arizona Kidney Foundation. There doesn't seem to be anything incriminating in them, but they serve as good background material.
A "night-of" YouTube video of the charity event from Trends Magazine. Bundgaard doesn't appear in the video, except as a cardboard cut-out with a sign that reads "Will Dance 4 Votes." (at the 3:57 mark, approximately)
Given the amount of dancing that is going on over this incident, that's turning out to be rather prophetic...
Given the way that Bundgaard's story is falling apart, and the fact that people, like Laurie Roberts of the Arizona Republic, have noticed that the US Supreme Court has already ruled that "legislative immunity" clauses are invalid, does anyone want to put a number on how much time is left in his political career?
The "domestic violence" angle may not be his undoing - that seems to be coming down to a "he said/she said" tie, but he is getting absolutely ravaged in public opinion over his invoking of legislative immunity so he could spend Friday night sleeping in his own bed while his soon-to-be former girlfriend curled up in a jail cell.
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
"Living for 32" - a survivor of the Virginia Tech shooting tells his story
Lost in the tumult of a legislative session that has been even uglier than most observers imagined it would be (throwing hundreds of thousands of Arizona's most vulnerable off of AHCCCS, attacks on a woman's right to choose, scads of anti-immigrant bill proposals, a senator claiming legislative immunity for getting into a fight with his girlfriend, Russell Pearce "blacklisting" critics, barring them from the Senate building, and worse) has been the unrelenting effort of certain members of the lege to loosen the few firearms laws in Arizona.
In spite of the mass shooting in Tucson, where six people were killed and more than a dozen others, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, were wounded by a single gunman.
Some of the efforts of those legislators have led to bills like SB1467, barring the state's educational institutions from banning guns on campus, and barring them from enforcing an already existing ban.
On Tuesday, Colin Goddard, a survivor the Virginia Tech massacre in April of 2007, the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, spoke at the Arizona State Senate in support of reasonable gun control measures and against proposals like SB1467.
(l-r) Rep. Lela Alston, Sen. Olivia Cajero Bedford, Sen. David Schapira, Colin Goddard, and Sen. Steve Gallardo
Goddard spoke of the events that day in Virginia - "10 minutes of Hell, 6 days in the hospital, 3 months in physical therapy."
He is working for the Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence and is touring the country promoting the documentary "Living for 32.."
The film tells both his story, his path from victim to survivor to activist, and the story of how easy it still is for unstable people to obtain guns in America.
Gallardo and Goddard
There will be screenings of the film on Wednesday, March 2, 2011 in Maricopa County.
The first will be at Glendale Community College at 2 p.m. in GCC's Performing Arts Center.
In the evening, the film will also be shown at 7 p.m. on the Tempe campus of Arizona State University in the Carson Ballroom, in the Old Main building.
KPHO (Phoenix channel 5) coverage of the press conference here.
Arizona Republic coverage here.
In spite of the mass shooting in Tucson, where six people were killed and more than a dozen others, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, were wounded by a single gunman.
Some of the efforts of those legislators have led to bills like SB1467, barring the state's educational institutions from banning guns on campus, and barring them from enforcing an already existing ban.
On Tuesday, Colin Goddard, a survivor the Virginia Tech massacre in April of 2007, the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, spoke at the Arizona State Senate in support of reasonable gun control measures and against proposals like SB1467.
(l-r) Rep. Lela Alston, Sen. Olivia Cajero Bedford, Sen. David Schapira, Colin Goddard, and Sen. Steve Gallardo
Goddard spoke of the events that day in Virginia - "10 minutes of Hell, 6 days in the hospital, 3 months in physical therapy."
He is working for the Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence and is touring the country promoting the documentary "Living for 32.."
The film tells both his story, his path from victim to survivor to activist, and the story of how easy it still is for unstable people to obtain guns in America.
Gallardo and Goddard
There will be screenings of the film on Wednesday, March 2, 2011 in Maricopa County.
The first will be at Glendale Community College at 2 p.m. in GCC's Performing Arts Center.
In the evening, the film will also be shown at 7 p.m. on the Tempe campus of Arizona State University in the Carson Ballroom, in the Old Main building.
KPHO (Phoenix channel 5) coverage of the press conference here.
Arizona Republic coverage here.
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
Redistricting Update: Colleen Mathis of Tucson selected as fifth member and chair of AIRC
Regardless of how the next round of redistricting turns out, Tucson should have nothing to gripe about.
Three out of the five members of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (AIRC) are from Tucson.
Independent Colleen Mathis joined Democrat Linda McNulty and Republican Richard Stertz on the AIRC today.
Mathis being sworn in by Secretary of State Ken Bennett. Commissioner Linda McNulty is in the foreground with her back to the camera
The first four members of the new AIRC met Tuesday afternoon to appoint the fifth member of the Commission. Last week, they interviewed the five candidates for that last spot but they instead of making the selection at that time, they chose to ponder over the candidates and their responses over the weekend.
After the weekend, the four members, with Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett serving as the non-voting temporary chair, met in the old Capitol building. After a few minutes of public comment, they adjourned into executive session at 1:16 p.m. to discuss "personnel matters."
At 2:39 p.m. they returned to regular session to select, by unanimous acclamation, Colleen Mathis of Tucson as the final member and chair of the AIRC.
While I'm not sure that it was legal for the four to deliberate behind closed doors, and it was obviously inappropriate, it is equally obvious that they did so.
The new Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission is (their applications linked to their names):
Chair Colleen Mathis, Independent of Pima County
Linda McNulty, Democrat of Pima County
Jose Herrera, Democrat of Maricopa County
Scott Freeman, Republican of Maricopa County
Richard Stertz, Republican of Pima County
Steve Muratore of Arizona Eagletarian has a report here.
Because the vast majority of the meeting took place outside of public view, it was pretty anti-climactic, and there isn't much to write about it.
However, I did get a few pics. :)
former AIRC candidate Marcia Busching addressing the panel, urging them not to give in to the implied threat issued last week (that the lege could withhold adequate funding for redistricting if the four selected Professor Paul Bender as the fifth member)
State Sen. David Schapira explaining the "bill-to-law" process in Arizona to Christopher Mathis, husband of Colleen (you can see the top of her head in this pic :) )
The post-meeting scrum as members of the media gather around the new chair of the AIRC
The new Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (l-r) - Jose Herrera, Linda McNulty, Chair Colleen Mathis, Scott Freeman, Richard Stertz
Three out of the five members of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (AIRC) are from Tucson.
Independent Colleen Mathis joined Democrat Linda McNulty and Republican Richard Stertz on the AIRC today.
Mathis being sworn in by Secretary of State Ken Bennett. Commissioner Linda McNulty is in the foreground with her back to the camera
The first four members of the new AIRC met Tuesday afternoon to appoint the fifth member of the Commission. Last week, they interviewed the five candidates for that last spot but they instead of making the selection at that time, they chose to ponder over the candidates and their responses over the weekend.
After the weekend, the four members, with Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett serving as the non-voting temporary chair, met in the old Capitol building. After a few minutes of public comment, they adjourned into executive session at 1:16 p.m. to discuss "personnel matters."
At 2:39 p.m. they returned to regular session to select, by unanimous acclamation, Colleen Mathis of Tucson as the final member and chair of the AIRC.
While I'm not sure that it was legal for the four to deliberate behind closed doors, and it was obviously inappropriate, it is equally obvious that they did so.
The new Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission is (their applications linked to their names):
Chair Colleen Mathis, Independent of Pima County
Linda McNulty, Democrat of Pima County
Jose Herrera, Democrat of Maricopa County
Scott Freeman, Republican of Maricopa County
Richard Stertz, Republican of Pima County
Steve Muratore of Arizona Eagletarian has a report here.
Because the vast majority of the meeting took place outside of public view, it was pretty anti-climactic, and there isn't much to write about it.
However, I did get a few pics. :)
former AIRC candidate Marcia Busching addressing the panel, urging them not to give in to the implied threat issued last week (that the lege could withhold adequate funding for redistricting if the four selected Professor Paul Bender as the fifth member)
State Sen. David Schapira explaining the "bill-to-law" process in Arizona to Christopher Mathis, husband of Colleen (you can see the top of her head in this pic :) )
The post-meeting scrum as members of the media gather around the new chair of the AIRC
The new Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (l-r) - Jose Herrera, Linda McNulty, Chair Colleen Mathis, Scott Freeman, Richard Stertz
Monday, February 28, 2011
More evidence that Jan Brewer should stay away from open microphones
...She is not having a good month when it comes to interview show appearances...
Arizona Governor Jan Brewer appeared on ABC's This Week. She spent most of last week lobbying and schmoozing in Washington, D.C. with the other state governors.
As part of her visit, she appeared with three other governors on ABC News' This Week.
While most of her appearance was limited to spouting typical Republican talking points (Scott Walker is great, the Wisconsin 14 are despicable, etc. - and no, she didn't use those exact words. I'm paraphrasing), one statement caused my ears to perk up.
* = Officially, anyway. As Governor, she is the official "head of government" here, though in practical terms, Russell Pearce and Joe Arpaio have strong cases for being considered the practical evil-doers in chief.
Huffington Post has complete coverage here, including a video clip from the show.
Arizona Governor Jan Brewer appeared on ABC's This Week. She spent most of last week lobbying and schmoozing in Washington, D.C. with the other state governors.
As part of her visit, she appeared with three other governors on ABC News' This Week.
While most of her appearance was limited to spouting typical Republican talking points (Scott Walker is great, the Wisconsin 14 are despicable, etc. - and no, she didn't use those exact words. I'm paraphrasing), one statement caused my ears to perk up.
"I think government is a necessary evil."Doesn't that mean, that since she is Arizona's Governor, she is 'evil-doer-in-chief'* here? Inquiring minds want to know. :)
* = Officially, anyway. As Governor, she is the official "head of government" here, though in practical terms, Russell Pearce and Joe Arpaio have strong cases for being considered the practical evil-doers in chief.
Huffington Post has complete coverage here, including a video clip from the show.
Ben Arredondo, party animal - Who knew?
The Cronkite News Service, a part of the ASU School of Journalism and Mass Communication, recently interviewed State Representative Ben Arredondo of Tempe. Rep. Arredondo is a longtime fixture in education and political circles in Tempe and Maricopa County, and is now in his first term in the state legislature.
The video compilation of the interview is below.
The most interesting question and answer came at approximately the 1:22 mark of the video.
Q: "What would your high school classmates voted you most likely to do?"
Arredondo: "Party."
At first, that answer surprised me, but given his love for his alma mater, the hometown ASU, one of the most famous party schools in the country, perhaps it shouldn't have. :))
Other Cronkite News Service videos can be found here.
Hat tip to the Arizona Capitol Times for the heads up on the video...
The video compilation of the interview is below.
The most interesting question and answer came at approximately the 1:22 mark of the video.
Q: "What would your high school classmates voted you most likely to do?"
Arredondo: "Party."
At first, that answer surprised me, but given his love for his alma mater, the hometown ASU, one of the most famous party schools in the country, perhaps it shouldn't have. :))
Other Cronkite News Service videos can be found here.
Hat tip to the Arizona Capitol Times for the heads up on the video...
First proceeding in the Andrew Thomas, et. al. Arizona Bar disciplinary case on tap for next Thursday
The Presiding Disciplinary Judge of the Arizona Supreme Court has set a time for the initial case management conference in the Arizona Bar Association's complaint against former Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas and two of his former assistants, Lisa Aubuchon and Rachel Alexander.
That conference will take place on Thursday, March 10, 2011 in the Arizona State Courts Building. It shouldn't be too colorful, as it is more to establish a schedule than to make any substantive decisions concerning the complaint against the threesome, but it may be worth keeping an eye on this.
Backgrround info:
The Bar complaint against Thomas, Aubuchon, and Alexander is here.
Thomas' motion to disqualify the Bar's Independent Counsel, John Gleason, from the matter because he isn't admitted to the Arizona Bar, is here. Gleason is an attorney in Colorado, and was appointed by the Arizona Chief Justice to serve as Independent Counsel in this matter.
Thomas' motion to dismiss the complaint, based in no small part on the previous motion, is here.
News coverage:
Phoenix New Times coverage of the complaint here.
AP coverage, via the Arizona Capitol Times, here.
That conference will take place on Thursday, March 10, 2011 in the Arizona State Courts Building. It shouldn't be too colorful, as it is more to establish a schedule than to make any substantive decisions concerning the complaint against the threesome, but it may be worth keeping an eye on this.
Backgrround info:
The Bar complaint against Thomas, Aubuchon, and Alexander is here.
Thomas' motion to disqualify the Bar's Independent Counsel, John Gleason, from the matter because he isn't admitted to the Arizona Bar, is here. Gleason is an attorney in Colorado, and was appointed by the Arizona Chief Justice to serve as Independent Counsel in this matter.
Thomas' motion to dismiss the complaint, based in no small part on the previous motion, is here.
News coverage:
Phoenix New Times coverage of the complaint here.
AP coverage, via the Arizona Capitol Times, here.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Joke of the day: A unionized public employee, a teabagger, and a CEO are seated at a table...
In honor of the public employees in Wisconsin, and everywhere, who are standing strong against the unrelenting attacks on public servants and public servants from Republicans, tea party types, and corporatists.
Stolen from a Facebook friend, who stole it from somebody else. I have no idea who the originator is, but that person deserves some serious wiseass points. :)
On a related note, evidently the police in Wisconsin understand that people cannot be arrested simply on the whim of an elected official. A law has to be broken first.
From AP via Yahoo! News -
Stolen from a Facebook friend, who stole it from somebody else. I have no idea who the originator is, but that person deserves some serious wiseass points. :)
A unionized public employee, a Tea Bagger, and a CEO are seated at a table. In the center of the table is a plate holding a dozen cookies. The CEO reaches across and takes eleven cookies. He looks at the Tea Bagger and says, "Watch out for that union guy, he's going to want part of your cookie".
On a related note, evidently the police in Wisconsin understand that people cannot be arrested simply on the whim of an elected official. A law has to be broken first.
From AP via Yahoo! News -
Police allow protesters to remain at Wis. CapitolLater...
The occupation of the Wisconsin Capitol by protesters fighting efforts to strip public workers of union bargaining rights carried on Sunday after police decided not to forcibly remove demonstrators and end a nearly two-week-long sit-in.
{snip}
Wisconsin Capitol Police Chief Charles Tubbs said demonstrators who had occupied all three floors of the Capitol would have to relocate to the ground floor overnight. Anyone who left the building was barred from returning until Monday morning, although police did allow union officials to bring food into the building for the protesters.
No demonstrators would be arrested as long as they continue to obey the law, Tubbs said. By late evening, the air smelled of pizza and lemon-scented disinfectant as demonstrators quietly ate dinner and several janitors worked around them to clean the Capitol's marble floors.
"People here have acted lawfully and responsibly," Tubbs said. "There's no reason to consider arrests."
Bundgaard case: And the spin begins
By now, most observers of the Arizona political scene are aware of the fact that state Sen. Scott Bundgaard was involved in a domestic violence incident Friday and invoked his immunity from arrest as a serving legislator to avoid incarceration.
The Arizona Republic has coverage here, written by Connie Cone Sexton, with contributions from Mary K. Reinhart and Kristena Hansen.
The Arizona Capitol Times has AP coverage here.
My intent here isn't to rehash the story - I don't have any facts in this matter other than those in the Republic article.
Nor is it to bash Bundgaard in a partisan manner - Democrats aren't perfect in this regard...though if any had similarly invoked legislative immunity from arrest, I have absolutely no doubt that they'd have been raked over the coals in the RW blogosphere and by the columnists at the Arizona Republic and the Arizona Daily Star for doing so.
In addition, in the interests of fairness to all involved, I am going to wait until more facts come to light before passing judgement, and urge all other observers to do the same.
However, it is evident that all observers aren't of a similar mind.
KTAR.com has Bundgaard's rather self-serving press release on the incident here. Note to Bundgaard: "name dropping" isn't a viable defense.
Republican blog Seeing Red AZ isn't holding back, rising to Bundgaard's defense by attacking the integrity and professionalism of the reporters of the Republic story. The comments section of their post show a similar ideologically-based disregard for the law (no matter if they aren't living together, violence between a boyfriend and girlfriend *is* "domestic violence") or for waiting for more facts to come to light. They've blindly accepted the word of Bundgaard, given through his flack Jason Rose.
Republican blog Sonoran Alliance has a much briefer (and better) press release from Rose over the names of Bundgaard and the woman in the incident, Aubry Ballard. In it, they apologize to everyone, announce that they are going their "separate ways," and ask for privacy. It's still self-serving, but in a lower-key manner.
To be sure, some of the uninformed angst is coming from the other side - the comments on the Facebook posting from 12News on the story are mostly divided into two categories.
1. "If it is a domestic violence case, the man must be 100% at fault." Until we know all of the facts, we don't know *who* is at fault. My initial reading of the story is that both were dishing out the violence, and both should have been arrested. And that the police who responded to the situation *wanted* to arrest both, but couldn't arrest Bundgaard due to his immunity from arrest under the provisions of the Arizona Constitution. Which brings us to...
2. "How did the legislature pass a law granting themselves immunity for their crimes?!?" Actually, they didn't. It's in Article Four, Section Six, of the Arizona Constitution, approved by the voters of Arizona. And even there, it's only immunity from arrest, during the legislative session, except for treason, felony, or "breach of the peace." It isn't immunity from prosecution.
Also, many people are now calling for a change in that section based on this one incident. It shouldn't be.
Such provisions have a valid purpose - they prevent the use of incarceration to harass political adversaries. Given last week's arrest of Sal Reza, a loud critic of Senate President Russell Pearce, at the behest of Pearce, it wouldn't be a stretch to imagine Pearce using that tool against recalcitrant legislators if the tool was available to him.
In short, while there are many emotional reasons to jump to conclusions one way or another, this is a situation where rationality should reign - wait until all of the facts are in, and *then* make an evaluation of the situation.
Of course, a rational person won't ignore the fact that Bundgaard has been in and out of court a multitude of times (30+) over the last two decades, ranging from civil cases (both as plaintiff and defendant), traffic cases* (all defendant, some guilty, some dismissed, but he must be paying a fortune for car insurance :) ), and family court (a lengthy divorce that included at least one order of protection). In his favor: nothing popped up on a search of criminal cases using "Bundgaard" as a search term. Also, there doesn't seem to be any indication of violence in his past, with the caveat that I don't know the nature of the order of protection in his divorce.
Stay tuned on this one. I'm betting that the story has legs...
* - His traffic cases show a pattern - he's got a lead foot all over the Valley and extending up to Yavapai County (Payson). Speed was the most frequent reason given for one of his citations, though far from the only reason (unregistered/uninsured, failure to yield, stop sign violation, obscured plate).
And he's probably *really* happy that photo enforcement has been discontinued on Arizona's freeways. They kept nailing him, which probably led to the license plate violation. :)
The Arizona Republic has coverage here, written by Connie Cone Sexton, with contributions from Mary K. Reinhart and Kristena Hansen.
The Arizona Capitol Times has AP coverage here.
My intent here isn't to rehash the story - I don't have any facts in this matter other than those in the Republic article.
Nor is it to bash Bundgaard in a partisan manner - Democrats aren't perfect in this regard...though if any had similarly invoked legislative immunity from arrest, I have absolutely no doubt that they'd have been raked over the coals in the RW blogosphere and by the columnists at the Arizona Republic and the Arizona Daily Star for doing so.
In addition, in the interests of fairness to all involved, I am going to wait until more facts come to light before passing judgement, and urge all other observers to do the same.
However, it is evident that all observers aren't of a similar mind.
KTAR.com has Bundgaard's rather self-serving press release on the incident here. Note to Bundgaard: "name dropping" isn't a viable defense.
Republican blog Seeing Red AZ isn't holding back, rising to Bundgaard's defense by attacking the integrity and professionalism of the reporters of the Republic story. The comments section of their post show a similar ideologically-based disregard for the law (no matter if they aren't living together, violence between a boyfriend and girlfriend *is* "domestic violence") or for waiting for more facts to come to light. They've blindly accepted the word of Bundgaard, given through his flack Jason Rose.
Republican blog Sonoran Alliance has a much briefer (and better) press release from Rose over the names of Bundgaard and the woman in the incident, Aubry Ballard. In it, they apologize to everyone, announce that they are going their "separate ways," and ask for privacy. It's still self-serving, but in a lower-key manner.
To be sure, some of the uninformed angst is coming from the other side - the comments on the Facebook posting from 12News on the story are mostly divided into two categories.
1. "If it is a domestic violence case, the man must be 100% at fault." Until we know all of the facts, we don't know *who* is at fault. My initial reading of the story is that both were dishing out the violence, and both should have been arrested. And that the police who responded to the situation *wanted* to arrest both, but couldn't arrest Bundgaard due to his immunity from arrest under the provisions of the Arizona Constitution. Which brings us to...
2. "How did the legislature pass a law granting themselves immunity for their crimes?!?" Actually, they didn't. It's in Article Four, Section Six, of the Arizona Constitution, approved by the voters of Arizona. And even there, it's only immunity from arrest, during the legislative session, except for treason, felony, or "breach of the peace." It isn't immunity from prosecution.
Also, many people are now calling for a change in that section based on this one incident. It shouldn't be.
Such provisions have a valid purpose - they prevent the use of incarceration to harass political adversaries. Given last week's arrest of Sal Reza, a loud critic of Senate President Russell Pearce, at the behest of Pearce, it wouldn't be a stretch to imagine Pearce using that tool against recalcitrant legislators if the tool was available to him.
In short, while there are many emotional reasons to jump to conclusions one way or another, this is a situation where rationality should reign - wait until all of the facts are in, and *then* make an evaluation of the situation.
Of course, a rational person won't ignore the fact that Bundgaard has been in and out of court a multitude of times (30+) over the last two decades, ranging from civil cases (both as plaintiff and defendant), traffic cases* (all defendant, some guilty, some dismissed, but he must be paying a fortune for car insurance :) ), and family court (a lengthy divorce that included at least one order of protection). In his favor: nothing popped up on a search of criminal cases using "Bundgaard" as a search term. Also, there doesn't seem to be any indication of violence in his past, with the caveat that I don't know the nature of the order of protection in his divorce.
Stay tuned on this one. I'm betting that the story has legs...
* - His traffic cases show a pattern - he's got a lead foot all over the Valley and extending up to Yavapai County (Payson). Speed was the most frequent reason given for one of his citations, though far from the only reason (unregistered/uninsured, failure to yield, stop sign violation, obscured plate).
And he's probably *really* happy that photo enforcement has been discontinued on Arizona's freeways. They kept nailing him, which probably led to the license plate violation. :)
Saturday, February 26, 2011
The coming week: Legislative edition
As usual, all info gathered from online sources, mostly the website of the Arizona Legislature, and subject to change without notice.
While there are more active committee agendas than last week, they're still short enough for both the Senate's and the House's work to be combined into one post.
Most committees in each chamber, other than the respective chambers' Rules committees, are now considering bills that have passed the other chamber.
Note: an "SHR" prefix indicates that a room is a Senate Hearing Room; "HHR" indicates a House Hearing Room.
All legislative calendars (1st Read, 2nd Read, 3rd Read, COW, and Caucus) can be found here.
House committee agendas can be found here.
Senate committee agendas can be found here.
All legislative bill proposals can be found here.
Capitol events for the week can be found here (courtesy the lege's website) and here (courtesy Arizona Capitol Times).
On the Senate side of the Capitol -
- Rules will meet on Monday in Caucus Room 1 at 1 p.m. Lots of bad bills to be rubberstamped for floor consideration later in the week. However, SB1611, Russell Pearce's latest anti-immigrant measure isn't on this particular agenda, even though many of the other bills that were on the same Appropriations agenda last week *are.* Not sure why not, but it could be related to the hubbub over Pearce's "blacklisting" of certain critics from the Senate building. Or maybe he is getting some flak from his own caucus over breaking his promise not to push his nativist agenda before the state has a balanced budget.
Of course, SB1611 could pop up on a Rules agenda later in the week. Rules is a gatekeeper for the legislative leadership, and all bills must be considered by the committee prior to floor consideration. If a Senate President/House Speaker doesn't want a particular bill to reach the floor, he can just ensure that it never sees a Rules agenda.
At this point in the legislative session, it isn't unusual for the Rules committees in each chamber to meet two or more times each week. Right now, only Monday's agendas are posted.
- Natural Resources and Transportation will meet on Monday in SHR109 at 2 p.m. Relatively quiet. Of possible interest: HB2360, relating to the membership of the Game and Fish Commission Appointment Recommendation Board. Legislative summary here.
- Judiciary will meet on Monday in SHR1 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet thus far, but this committee is chaired by Ron "fly a confederate flag on the Fourth of July" Gould, so that could change at any time.
- Education will meet on Monday in SHR3 at 2 p.m. Looks relatively quiet, but there could be some fireworks over HB2197, barring the establishment or operation of charter schools in "an age restricted community in unorganized territory." Better known as a "keep children out of Sun City" bill. Also: a presentation from AZ Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal.
- Banking and Insurance will meet on Tuesday in SHR3 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Government Reform will meet on Wednesday in SHR1 at 9 a.m. On the agenda: HB2005, loosening the rules regarding subdivisions "acting in concert." Looks like the real estate equivalent of weakening antitrust laws. Legislative summary here. All House Democrats opposed this one.
- Commerce and Energy will meet on Wednesday in SHR109 at 9 a.m. On the agenda: HB2558, giving landlords the ability to collect larger, utility-related, deposits from tenants. All House Democrats opposed this one.
- Public Safety and Human Services will meet on Wednesday in SHR3 at 2 p.m. Quiet so far.
- Water, Land Use, and Rural Development will meet on Wednesday in SHR3 at 2 p.m. One presentation and no bills on the agenda thus far.
- Healthcare and Medical Liability Reform will meet on Wednesday in SHR1 at 2 p.m. On the agenda: HB2443, banning abortions whose purpose is race or gender selection.
- Finance will meet on Thursday at 9 a.m. in SHR1. Looks quiet so far.
- Border Security, Federalism, and States Security will meet on Thursday at 9 a.m. in SHR109. No bills on the agenda, so this *should* be a quiet one, but leave it to Sylvia Allen to come up with this agenda item -
On Monday's Third Read (final passage) Calendar:
SB1334, allowing hunting within city limits, and forbidding a municipality from regulating same
SB1388, barring Maricopa County from regulating the sale of consumer fireworks in unincorporated areas of the county
SB1546, declaring that the state can use eminent domain to acquire federally-owned land.
SB1466, giving a justice of the peace control over the prosecution of a case in his/her court, specifically requiring a county attorney to gain a JP's approval before diverting or defering prosecution of an offender. The JP pushing for this, Lester Pearce of the North Mesa Justice Court in Maricopa County and brother of Senate President Russell Pearce, is noted for his belief that the Maricopa County Attorney's Office is too lenient. And that the amendment to the U.S. Constitution granting the right to vote to women is a violation of states' rights.
SB1174, barring the establishment or operation of a charter school in an age-restricted community.
SB1231, decreasing the state's revenue expenditure limit
SB1403, barring conditioning the award of public works projects on the use of union labor
SB1406, allowing the governor to enter into interstate compacts/New Confederacy treaties regarding the creation of a fence along the border with Mexico
SB1465, barring the acceptance of consular-issued identification cards as legally valid identification
SB1525, restricting a municipality's ability to assess development fees
SB1530, creating the most important appointed position in the state, that of "Poet Laureate."
SCR1024, asserting state sovereignty over "intrastate water resources." A "federal government GO AWAY!" postcard to D.C.
SCR1025, a proposed amendment to the Arizona Constitution to eliminate public funding for candidates for public office (aka - end Clean Elections)
...On the House side of the Capitol -
- Rules will meet on Monday in HHR4 at 1 p.m. Long agenda, lots of bad bills, rubber stamp.
- Energy and Natural Resources will meet on Monday in HHR4 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Education will meet on Monday in HHR3 at 2 p.m. or upon adjournment of the House floor session. Looks quiet so far, but sometime bills are "sneaky bad."
- Banking and Insurance will meet on Monday in HHR5 at 2 p.m. On the agenda: SB1094, "requires a legislative committee of reference to examine data from multiple sources and evaluate effectiveness when considering a legislative proposal regarding mandated health coverage"; SB1122, exempting faith-based "health care sharing ministries" from insurance regulations.
- Government will meet on Tuesday in HHR4 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Employment and Regulatory Affairs will meet on Tuesday in HHR3 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Military Affairs and Public Safety will meet on Wednesday in HHR3 at 9 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Health and Human Services will meet on Wednesday in HHR4 at 9:30 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Commerce will meet on Wednesday in HHR5 at 10 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Technology and Infrastructure will meet on Thursday in HHR1 at 9 a.m. On the agenda (possibly): SB1171, allowing a municipality to force a county to transfer a wastewater treatment facility to the municipality.
- Judiciary will meet on Thursday in HHR4 at 9 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Agriculture and Water will meet on Thursday in HHR5 at 9 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
Monday's Third Read calendar hasn't been posted for the House yet, but the calendar (agenda) for the Committee of the Whole, or COW session has been. COW is the last chance to debate or amend bills on the floor of a chamber of the legislature.
There are fourteen bills on the House COW calendar, but two are certain to grab most of the attention, both at the Capitol and in the media.
HB2384 and HB2416, both attacking women's reproductive rights.
From the legislative summary of HB2384: "HB 2384 prohibits the use of public funds for abortion procedures to any person or entity that provides, pays for, promotes, provides coverage of or referrals for abortion and training related to abortion procedures that are paid by tuition or fees for students at an Arizona university or community college.
From the legislative summary of HB2416: "HB 2416 specifies an abortion shall not be performed without voluntary and informed consent by the woman receiving an abortion and prohibits the use of telemedicine to perform an abortion.
Note: Given the length of the floor calendars for Monday, both Third Read and COW, no one should expect Monday's (non-Rules) committee meetings to start on time.
While there are more active committee agendas than last week, they're still short enough for both the Senate's and the House's work to be combined into one post.
Most committees in each chamber, other than the respective chambers' Rules committees, are now considering bills that have passed the other chamber.
Note: an "SHR" prefix indicates that a room is a Senate Hearing Room; "HHR" indicates a House Hearing Room.
All legislative calendars (1st Read, 2nd Read, 3rd Read, COW, and Caucus) can be found here.
House committee agendas can be found here.
Senate committee agendas can be found here.
All legislative bill proposals can be found here.
Capitol events for the week can be found here (courtesy the lege's website) and here (courtesy Arizona Capitol Times).
On the Senate side of the Capitol -
- Rules will meet on Monday in Caucus Room 1 at 1 p.m. Lots of bad bills to be rubberstamped for floor consideration later in the week. However, SB1611, Russell Pearce's latest anti-immigrant measure isn't on this particular agenda, even though many of the other bills that were on the same Appropriations agenda last week *are.* Not sure why not, but it could be related to the hubbub over Pearce's "blacklisting" of certain critics from the Senate building. Or maybe he is getting some flak from his own caucus over breaking his promise not to push his nativist agenda before the state has a balanced budget.
Of course, SB1611 could pop up on a Rules agenda later in the week. Rules is a gatekeeper for the legislative leadership, and all bills must be considered by the committee prior to floor consideration. If a Senate President/House Speaker doesn't want a particular bill to reach the floor, he can just ensure that it never sees a Rules agenda.
At this point in the legislative session, it isn't unusual for the Rules committees in each chamber to meet two or more times each week. Right now, only Monday's agendas are posted.
- Natural Resources and Transportation will meet on Monday in SHR109 at 2 p.m. Relatively quiet. Of possible interest: HB2360, relating to the membership of the Game and Fish Commission Appointment Recommendation Board. Legislative summary here.
- Judiciary will meet on Monday in SHR1 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet thus far, but this committee is chaired by Ron "fly a confederate flag on the Fourth of July" Gould, so that could change at any time.
- Education will meet on Monday in SHR3 at 2 p.m. Looks relatively quiet, but there could be some fireworks over HB2197, barring the establishment or operation of charter schools in "an age restricted community in unorganized territory." Better known as a "keep children out of Sun City" bill. Also: a presentation from AZ Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal.
- Banking and Insurance will meet on Tuesday in SHR3 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Government Reform will meet on Wednesday in SHR1 at 9 a.m. On the agenda: HB2005, loosening the rules regarding subdivisions "acting in concert." Looks like the real estate equivalent of weakening antitrust laws. Legislative summary here. All House Democrats opposed this one.
- Commerce and Energy will meet on Wednesday in SHR109 at 9 a.m. On the agenda: HB2558, giving landlords the ability to collect larger, utility-related, deposits from tenants. All House Democrats opposed this one.
- Public Safety and Human Services will meet on Wednesday in SHR3 at 2 p.m. Quiet so far.
- Water, Land Use, and Rural Development will meet on Wednesday in SHR3 at 2 p.m. One presentation and no bills on the agenda thus far.
- Healthcare and Medical Liability Reform will meet on Wednesday in SHR1 at 2 p.m. On the agenda: HB2443, banning abortions whose purpose is race or gender selection.
- Finance will meet on Thursday at 9 a.m. in SHR1. Looks quiet so far.
- Border Security, Federalism, and States Security will meet on Thursday at 9 a.m. in SHR109. No bills on the agenda, so this *should* be a quiet one, but leave it to Sylvia Allen to come up with this agenda item -
4. Presentations
Attorney General Tom Horne -- Update on the Arizona LawsuitAfter the meeting, collectibile Burning Cross keychains will be available in the lobby.
David & Donna Lamoreaux -- Drug & Human Smuggling Route Affecting Farmers
Richard Valdemar -- The Unholy Trinity: American Street Gangs, Mexican Drug Cartels, & Radical Islamic Terrorists
On Monday's Third Read (final passage) Calendar:
SB1334, allowing hunting within city limits, and forbidding a municipality from regulating same
SB1388, barring Maricopa County from regulating the sale of consumer fireworks in unincorporated areas of the county
SB1546, declaring that the state can use eminent domain to acquire federally-owned land.
SB1466, giving a justice of the peace control over the prosecution of a case in his/her court, specifically requiring a county attorney to gain a JP's approval before diverting or defering prosecution of an offender. The JP pushing for this, Lester Pearce of the North Mesa Justice Court in Maricopa County and brother of Senate President Russell Pearce, is noted for his belief that the Maricopa County Attorney's Office is too lenient. And that the amendment to the U.S. Constitution granting the right to vote to women is a violation of states' rights.
SB1174, barring the establishment or operation of a charter school in an age-restricted community.
SB1231, decreasing the state's revenue expenditure limit
SB1403, barring conditioning the award of public works projects on the use of union labor
SB1406, allowing the governor to enter into interstate compacts/New Confederacy treaties regarding the creation of a fence along the border with Mexico
SB1465, barring the acceptance of consular-issued identification cards as legally valid identification
SB1525, restricting a municipality's ability to assess development fees
SB1530, creating the most important appointed position in the state, that of "Poet Laureate."
SCR1024, asserting state sovereignty over "intrastate water resources." A "federal government GO AWAY!" postcard to D.C.
SCR1025, a proposed amendment to the Arizona Constitution to eliminate public funding for candidates for public office (aka - end Clean Elections)
...On the House side of the Capitol -
- Rules will meet on Monday in HHR4 at 1 p.m. Long agenda, lots of bad bills, rubber stamp.
- Energy and Natural Resources will meet on Monday in HHR4 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Education will meet on Monday in HHR3 at 2 p.m. or upon adjournment of the House floor session. Looks quiet so far, but sometime bills are "sneaky bad."
- Banking and Insurance will meet on Monday in HHR5 at 2 p.m. On the agenda: SB1094, "requires a legislative committee of reference to examine data from multiple sources and evaluate effectiveness when considering a legislative proposal regarding mandated health coverage"; SB1122, exempting faith-based "health care sharing ministries" from insurance regulations.
- Government will meet on Tuesday in HHR4 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Employment and Regulatory Affairs will meet on Tuesday in HHR3 at 2 p.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Military Affairs and Public Safety will meet on Wednesday in HHR3 at 9 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Health and Human Services will meet on Wednesday in HHR4 at 9:30 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Commerce will meet on Wednesday in HHR5 at 10 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Technology and Infrastructure will meet on Thursday in HHR1 at 9 a.m. On the agenda (possibly): SB1171, allowing a municipality to force a county to transfer a wastewater treatment facility to the municipality.
- Judiciary will meet on Thursday in HHR4 at 9 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
- Agriculture and Water will meet on Thursday in HHR5 at 9 a.m. Looks quiet so far.
Monday's Third Read calendar hasn't been posted for the House yet, but the calendar (agenda) for the Committee of the Whole, or COW session has been. COW is the last chance to debate or amend bills on the floor of a chamber of the legislature.
There are fourteen bills on the House COW calendar, but two are certain to grab most of the attention, both at the Capitol and in the media.
HB2384 and HB2416, both attacking women's reproductive rights.
From the legislative summary of HB2384: "HB 2384 prohibits the use of public funds for abortion procedures to any person or entity that provides, pays for, promotes, provides coverage of or referrals for abortion and training related to abortion procedures that are paid by tuition or fees for students at an Arizona university or community college.
From the legislative summary of HB2416: "HB 2416 specifies an abortion shall not be performed without voluntary and informed consent by the woman receiving an abortion and prohibits the use of telemedicine to perform an abortion.
Note: Given the length of the floor calendars for Monday, both Third Read and COW, no one should expect Monday's (non-Rules) committee meetings to start on time.
Breaking: Sen. Scott Bundgaard involved in a domestic violence incident
From the Arizona Republic -
More details as they become available...
Scott Bundgaard, R-Peoria, the majority leader of the Arizona state Senate, was briefly taken into custody with marks on his body Saturday, indicating he had been involved in a fight, an act of domestic violence, Phoenix police officers said.Bundgaard invoked his legislative immunity to avoid arrest and incarceration, However the woman in the car, who also had marks on her body indicating involvement in a fight, Aubry Ballard, was arrested on an assault charge.
Sgt. Tommy Thompson said police responded to a call of a man pulling a woman out of a gold vehicle, which was stopped northbound next to the median on Arizona 51, just south of Cactus Road.
More details as they become available...
Friday, February 25, 2011
Arizona Legislature: week in review
...and a sneak peek at next week...
- Signed into law this week: HB2167, banning "Spice," a dangerous synthetic version of marijuana. Passed both chambers and all commitees in those chambers unanimously. Because of an "emergency" clause, this law goes into effect immediately.
- Controversial bills that passed one or the other chamber this week -
...HB2558, allowing landlords to require larger, utility-related, deposits from tenants. Passed committee and the entire House on party line votes. Slated for Senate committee consideration on Wednesday.
...HB2443, banning abortions intended for race or gender selection. Passed by a mostly party line vote. Scheduled for Senate committee consideration on Wednesday. Arizona Capitol Times coverage here.
...SB1225, makes forgery in connection with the purchase, lease or renting of a dwelling that is used as a drop house as a class 3 felony. All Republicans and approximately 1/2 of the Democrats in the Senate voted for this. Not assigned to a House committee as yet.
...SB1306, relating to landlords; tenants; bedbud control. Passed the Senate by a truly split vote - of the twelve who voted against it, six were Democrats and six were Republicans. Not assigned to a House committee as yet.
...SB1470, the dissolution of the Mohave County Water Authority. Barely passed the Senate (16 - 14). All Democrats and five Republicans voted against the measure. Not assigned to a House Committee as yet.
- Bills passing committee this week, and thus are still alive:
...Senate Appropriations held a marathon meeting starting Tuesday afternoon and continuing into the wee hours of Wednesday morning. They passed a number of bad bills, relating to immigration, birthright citizenship, dissolving the Arizona Board of Regents, implementing drug testing for welfare recipients and, oh year, ending AHCCCS. Full summary of the meeting here. One of the many lowlights was the passage of SB1611, Russell Pearce's latest anti-immigrant bill. Summary here.
...SB1609, making extensive changes to the state''s public employee pension plans. Passed Senate Finance 3 - 1, 3 not voting. Scheduled for Rules Committee consideration on Monday; probable floor consideration later in the week.
...SB1167, another bill to make extensive changes to the state's public employee pension plans. Passed House Employment and Regulatory Affairs by a 5 - 4 vote. Next up: Rules Committee, but not scheduled as yet.
...HB2070, establishing the "state guard," an armed force outside of the National Guard that is only answerable to the governor, and funded by monies redirected from the National Guard, passed House Appropriations on a party line vote. Next up: Rules Committee, not yet scheduled.
...HB2301, requiring school districts to spend at least 50% of their Maintenance and Operations budgets on teacher salaries, and lift the restriction on "soft capital" (books and desks and so on) money that required that such money be expended on soft capital, passed House Appropriations on a mostly party line vote. Next up: Rules Committee on Monday.
- Other news at the legislature:
...Senate President has evidently created a "blacklist," barring from the Senate building certain critics. This resulted in the arrest of Latino activist Sal Reza on Thursday. He went to the Senate to meet with his Senator, Sen. Steve Gallardo. Upon entering the building, Reza was asked to leave. When he refused to do so, he was arrested, even after Gallardo informed the police that Reza was there to meet him.
Pearce has denied the existence of such a list, but Senate Democratic Leader David Schapira (D-LD17) tweets otherwise.
Prediction: Lots of lawsuits, most/all of which the state will lose, and all of which will be paid for by taxpayer funds.
...The four members of the new Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (AIRC) met Thursday to interview candidates and select the fifth member of the AIRC. They conducted the interviews, but delayed the selection of the fifth member, who will also serve as chair of the AIRC, until Tuesday.
Sneak peek at next week: The agenda for Thursday's meeting of the Senate Border Security, Federalism, and States Sovereignty Committee (9 a.m., SHR109) includes the following -
- New bill introduced this week: SCR1059, declaring the legislature's support for the governor of Wisconsin in his Koch-fueled quest to roll back collective bargaining rights for public employees in his state. Not on an agenda as yet, but sure to be fast-tracked. It'll probably pass the Senate by the end of the week.
Later...
- Signed into law this week: HB2167, banning "Spice," a dangerous synthetic version of marijuana. Passed both chambers and all commitees in those chambers unanimously. Because of an "emergency" clause, this law goes into effect immediately.
- Controversial bills that passed one or the other chamber this week -
...HB2558, allowing landlords to require larger, utility-related, deposits from tenants. Passed committee and the entire House on party line votes. Slated for Senate committee consideration on Wednesday.
...HB2443, banning abortions intended for race or gender selection. Passed by a mostly party line vote. Scheduled for Senate committee consideration on Wednesday. Arizona Capitol Times coverage here.
...SB1225, makes forgery in connection with the purchase, lease or renting of a dwelling that is used as a drop house as a class 3 felony. All Republicans and approximately 1/2 of the Democrats in the Senate voted for this. Not assigned to a House committee as yet.
...SB1306, relating to landlords; tenants; bedbud control. Passed the Senate by a truly split vote - of the twelve who voted against it, six were Democrats and six were Republicans. Not assigned to a House committee as yet.
...SB1470, the dissolution of the Mohave County Water Authority. Barely passed the Senate (16 - 14). All Democrats and five Republicans voted against the measure. Not assigned to a House Committee as yet.
- Bills passing committee this week, and thus are still alive:
...Senate Appropriations held a marathon meeting starting Tuesday afternoon and continuing into the wee hours of Wednesday morning. They passed a number of bad bills, relating to immigration, birthright citizenship, dissolving the Arizona Board of Regents, implementing drug testing for welfare recipients and, oh year, ending AHCCCS. Full summary of the meeting here. One of the many lowlights was the passage of SB1611, Russell Pearce's latest anti-immigrant bill. Summary here.
...SB1609, making extensive changes to the state''s public employee pension plans. Passed Senate Finance 3 - 1, 3 not voting. Scheduled for Rules Committee consideration on Monday; probable floor consideration later in the week.
...SB1167, another bill to make extensive changes to the state's public employee pension plans. Passed House Employment and Regulatory Affairs by a 5 - 4 vote. Next up: Rules Committee, but not scheduled as yet.
...HB2070, establishing the "state guard," an armed force outside of the National Guard that is only answerable to the governor, and funded by monies redirected from the National Guard, passed House Appropriations on a party line vote. Next up: Rules Committee, not yet scheduled.
...HB2301, requiring school districts to spend at least 50% of their Maintenance and Operations budgets on teacher salaries, and lift the restriction on "soft capital" (books and desks and so on) money that required that such money be expended on soft capital, passed House Appropriations on a mostly party line vote. Next up: Rules Committee on Monday.
- Other news at the legislature:
...Senate President has evidently created a "blacklist," barring from the Senate building certain critics. This resulted in the arrest of Latino activist Sal Reza on Thursday. He went to the Senate to meet with his Senator, Sen. Steve Gallardo. Upon entering the building, Reza was asked to leave. When he refused to do so, he was arrested, even after Gallardo informed the police that Reza was there to meet him.
Pearce has denied the existence of such a list, but Senate Democratic Leader David Schapira (D-LD17) tweets otherwise.
Prediction: Lots of lawsuits, most/all of which the state will lose, and all of which will be paid for by taxpayer funds.
...The four members of the new Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (AIRC) met Thursday to interview candidates and select the fifth member of the AIRC. They conducted the interviews, but delayed the selection of the fifth member, who will also serve as chair of the AIRC, until Tuesday.
Sneak peek at next week: The agenda for Thursday's meeting of the Senate Border Security, Federalism, and States Sovereignty Committee (9 a.m., SHR109) includes the following -
4. PresentationsWhat? David Duke wasn't available??
Attorney General Tom Horne -- Update on the Arizona Lawsuit
David & Donna Lamoreaux -- Drug & Human Smuggling Route Affecting Farmers
Richard Valdemar -- The Unholy Trinity: American Street Gangs, Mexican Drug Cartels, & Radical Islamic Terrorists
- New bill introduced this week: SCR1059, declaring the legislature's support for the governor of Wisconsin in his Koch-fueled quest to roll back collective bargaining rights for public employees in his state. Not on an agenda as yet, but sure to be fast-tracked. It'll probably pass the Senate by the end of the week.
Later...
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Redistricting update: not much to update
Today, the four partisan members of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (AIRC) met to interview the five Independent candidates for the final, and chair's, spot on the AIRC, but after the interviews, they chose to delay the selection until Tuesday.
The meeting start a few minutes late, at approximately 2:35 p.m. (the time listed on the agenda was 2:30 p.m.)
After a brief explanation of the history of the room - it used to be the meeting room of the Arizona Supreme Court and was the home of many decisions, including the famous Miranda decision. Not relevant, but OK...until he went on with a somewhat odd recounting of that decision and the future activities of the principals), Bennett proceeded to swear in the four AIRC members who have been appointed by the legislative leadership.
Richard Stertz, Scott Freeman, Secretary of State Ken Bennett, Jose Herrera, and Linda McNulty
Things proceeded a little faster than expected - because the published agenda indicated that the first interview would start at 3 p.m., they had to recess the meeting for a few minutes. After that, however, the interview part of the meeting proceeded efficiently.
As should have been expected for a group of applicants who have already been thoroughly researched, interviewed, and screened, they all did a good job at their interviews. While each exhibited a couple of "weak" answers to the questions posed by the panel, each them was thoughtful and polished and appeared to be eminently qualified. Even without the political pressures on the current AIRC foursome, they'll have a tough time making their choice.
And have no doubt, they're already feeling some *heavy* pressure.
A member of the public, Norris Nordvold, speaking on behalf of candidate Ray Bladine, issued a not-too-thinly veiled threat to the AIRC.
Some concerns over the AIRC's budget cropped up during the afternoon. The original AIRC had approximately $6 million to use; the new AIRC currently has $500K.
Nordvold mentioned the possibility of the Legislature appropriating significantly less money for the next fiscal year if they don't like the choice for chair.
Call it a "don't you dare pick Paul Bender" moment.
Nordvold addressing the panel
The next speaker, Jim Huntwork, a Republican member of the original AIRC, spent his entire time railing about native tribes, in an attempt to influence the members of the new AIRC to nullify the recent decision of the Arizona Supreme Court to allow Professor Bender's candidacy to continue in spite of the same objections from Russell Pearce and Kirk Adams, the Senate President and Speaker of the House, respectively.
Other than that, however, things seemed pretty straightforward today.
We'll see what the next meeting, as well as the next few months, look like.
I hope this isn't jinxing things, but I predict the next lawsuit will be rooted in today's discussions - if the current members of the AIRC surrender to Pearce and Adams on the selection of the chair, they'll be opening themselves up to litigation from the other candidates as well as others. If they don't surrender and the lege tries to use its budgetary powers to retaliate, interfering with the redistricting process, court actions from the feds and from other groups who are affected by redistricting.
And that doesn't even begin to address what the U.S. Department of Justice could do to Arizona if they believe that Pearce and Adams are trying to corrupt the process.
I'll let attorneys speak more on this; they know far more than I do.
Anyway, candidates under consideration are:
Kimber Lanning
Colleen Mathis
Ray Bladine
Paul Bender
Margarita Silva
The next meeting, at which the selection will presumably be made, will be Tuesday at 1 p.m. in the conference room of the Arizona State Library (the same location as today's meeting.)
Steve Muratore of the blog The Arizona Eagletarian has coverage here.
Some pics from the meeting:
The members of the AIRC and Ken Bennett speaking during the first recess of the committee. On the far left: Jim Barton of the Arizona Attorney General's Office, present to provide legal advice, when necessary.
Professor Paul Bender thanking the members of the panel after his interview.
candidate Ray Bladine during his interview
candidate Colleen Mathis during her interview
candidate Kimber Lanning during her interview
candidate Margarita Silva during her interview
During Kimber Lanning's interview, from left to right: Bennett, Herrera, McNulty, and Lanning. I'm not sure who the man in the corner is; he was photographing the proceeding for an MSM outlet, I think.
The meeting start a few minutes late, at approximately 2:35 p.m. (the time listed on the agenda was 2:30 p.m.)
After a brief explanation of the history of the room - it used to be the meeting room of the Arizona Supreme Court and was the home of many decisions, including the famous Miranda decision. Not relevant, but OK...until he went on with a somewhat odd recounting of that decision and the future activities of the principals), Bennett proceeded to swear in the four AIRC members who have been appointed by the legislative leadership.
Richard Stertz, Scott Freeman, Secretary of State Ken Bennett, Jose Herrera, and Linda McNulty
Things proceeded a little faster than expected - because the published agenda indicated that the first interview would start at 3 p.m., they had to recess the meeting for a few minutes. After that, however, the interview part of the meeting proceeded efficiently.
As should have been expected for a group of applicants who have already been thoroughly researched, interviewed, and screened, they all did a good job at their interviews. While each exhibited a couple of "weak" answers to the questions posed by the panel, each them was thoughtful and polished and appeared to be eminently qualified. Even without the political pressures on the current AIRC foursome, they'll have a tough time making their choice.
And have no doubt, they're already feeling some *heavy* pressure.
A member of the public, Norris Nordvold, speaking on behalf of candidate Ray Bladine, issued a not-too-thinly veiled threat to the AIRC.
Some concerns over the AIRC's budget cropped up during the afternoon. The original AIRC had approximately $6 million to use; the new AIRC currently has $500K.
Nordvold mentioned the possibility of the Legislature appropriating significantly less money for the next fiscal year if they don't like the choice for chair.
Call it a "don't you dare pick Paul Bender" moment.
Nordvold addressing the panel
The next speaker, Jim Huntwork, a Republican member of the original AIRC, spent his entire time railing about native tribes, in an attempt to influence the members of the new AIRC to nullify the recent decision of the Arizona Supreme Court to allow Professor Bender's candidacy to continue in spite of the same objections from Russell Pearce and Kirk Adams, the Senate President and Speaker of the House, respectively.
Other than that, however, things seemed pretty straightforward today.
We'll see what the next meeting, as well as the next few months, look like.
I hope this isn't jinxing things, but I predict the next lawsuit will be rooted in today's discussions - if the current members of the AIRC surrender to Pearce and Adams on the selection of the chair, they'll be opening themselves up to litigation from the other candidates as well as others. If they don't surrender and the lege tries to use its budgetary powers to retaliate, interfering with the redistricting process, court actions from the feds and from other groups who are affected by redistricting.
And that doesn't even begin to address what the U.S. Department of Justice could do to Arizona if they believe that Pearce and Adams are trying to corrupt the process.
I'll let attorneys speak more on this; they know far more than I do.
Anyway, candidates under consideration are:
Kimber Lanning
Colleen Mathis
Ray Bladine
Paul Bender
Margarita Silva
The next meeting, at which the selection will presumably be made, will be Tuesday at 1 p.m. in the conference room of the Arizona State Library (the same location as today's meeting.)
Steve Muratore of the blog The Arizona Eagletarian has coverage here.
Some pics from the meeting:
The members of the AIRC and Ken Bennett speaking during the first recess of the committee. On the far left: Jim Barton of the Arizona Attorney General's Office, present to provide legal advice, when necessary.
Professor Paul Bender thanking the members of the panel after his interview.
candidate Ray Bladine during his interview
candidate Colleen Mathis during her interview
candidate Kimber Lanning during her interview
candidate Margarita Silva during her interview
During Kimber Lanning's interview, from left to right: Bennett, Herrera, McNulty, and Lanning. I'm not sure who the man in the corner is; he was photographing the proceeding for an MSM outlet, I think.
Russell Pearce bringing Senate Judiciary to heel
Over the last couple of weeks, Senate President Russell Pearce and his "associates" have been thoroughly embarrassed by the failure of his Sen. Ron Gould's anti-birthright citizenship and other anti-immigrant bills to pass the Senate's Judiciary Committee.
In successive weeks, SB1308, SB1309 (anti-14th Amendment/birthright citizenship) and SB1405 (turning hospitals into immigration checkpoints) had to be pulled from the committee because it was evident that the measures didn't have enough support on the committee to pass.
Specifically, Republican Sens. Adam Driggs and John McComish joined the Democratic members of the committee, Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Steve Gallardo, in questioning the legality of the measures.
As a result, all three bills were removed from Judiciary and given to the Appropriations Committee, which is a larger committee (13 instead of 8 members) and has only one Republican with a conscience (Sen. Rich Crandall of East Mesa). Those bills, and more, were passed by Appropriations after a marathon system
Given that the committee had eight members, that meant the best possible outcome for the measures was failure on a 4 - 4 tie vote. A measure needs five out of eight members to support it in order for it to go forward.
Note the use of the past tense "had" in the last sentence.
Pearce could have simply removed Driggs or McComish, or both, from the committee. That's his privilege as Senate President.
However, internal politics make such a peremptory move problematical - McComish and Driggs are both incredibly conservative and cannot be attacked as "RINOs". In addition, McComish was Pearce's chief rival for the Senate presidency, and arbitrarily removing him from a committee could smack of unwarranted retribution. Pearce's position atop the Senate pecking order, while not exactly "tenuous," is based in no small part on a promise to complete the budget before pushing through his pet anti-immigrant bills.
A promise that he has thoroughly broken.
So he has now done the next best thing - he has simply added another, more pliable, member to the committee, bringing its membership count to nine.
Wednesday, he added Sen. Scott Bundgaard to the committee without removing anyone else.
By handling things in this manner, Pearce kept the number of votes necessary to pass a bill at "five" but also was able to add a fifth reliable vote to the committee. He also was able to bring the committee back under control without appearing to be vindictive (he may, in fact, *be* vindictive, but this doesn't make him *look* that way).
With Judiciary (presumably) back with the program, look for more "bad" bills to be assigned to Judiciary and to actually gain the committee's approval.
Off to the meeting where the fifth member and chair of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (AIRC) will be selected...
In successive weeks, SB1308, SB1309 (anti-14th Amendment/birthright citizenship) and SB1405 (turning hospitals into immigration checkpoints) had to be pulled from the committee because it was evident that the measures didn't have enough support on the committee to pass.
Specifically, Republican Sens. Adam Driggs and John McComish joined the Democratic members of the committee, Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Steve Gallardo, in questioning the legality of the measures.
As a result, all three bills were removed from Judiciary and given to the Appropriations Committee, which is a larger committee (13 instead of 8 members) and has only one Republican with a conscience (Sen. Rich Crandall of East Mesa). Those bills, and more, were passed by Appropriations after a marathon system
Given that the committee had eight members, that meant the best possible outcome for the measures was failure on a 4 - 4 tie vote. A measure needs five out of eight members to support it in order for it to go forward.
Note the use of the past tense "had" in the last sentence.
Pearce could have simply removed Driggs or McComish, or both, from the committee. That's his privilege as Senate President.
However, internal politics make such a peremptory move problematical - McComish and Driggs are both incredibly conservative and cannot be attacked as "RINOs". In addition, McComish was Pearce's chief rival for the Senate presidency, and arbitrarily removing him from a committee could smack of unwarranted retribution. Pearce's position atop the Senate pecking order, while not exactly "tenuous," is based in no small part on a promise to complete the budget before pushing through his pet anti-immigrant bills.
A promise that he has thoroughly broken.
So he has now done the next best thing - he has simply added another, more pliable, member to the committee, bringing its membership count to nine.
Wednesday, he added Sen. Scott Bundgaard to the committee without removing anyone else.
By handling things in this manner, Pearce kept the number of votes necessary to pass a bill at "five" but also was able to add a fifth reliable vote to the committee. He also was able to bring the committee back under control without appearing to be vindictive (he may, in fact, *be* vindictive, but this doesn't make him *look* that way).
With Judiciary (presumably) back with the program, look for more "bad" bills to be assigned to Judiciary and to actually gain the committee's approval.
Off to the meeting where the fifth member and chair of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (AIRC) will be selected...
UFO and tea party conventions in metro Phoenix this weekend: Coincidence?
Arizona's wingnuts are going to spend the weekend trying to be in two places at one time this weekend.
- Beginning yesterday at the Ft. McDowell Casino and Resort just outside of Fountain Hills and extending through the weekend, the 2011 International UFO Congress is taking place. Full brochure here.
- Beginning tomorrow at the Phoenix Convention Center in downtown Phoenix and extending through the weekend, the Tea Party Patriots will be holding their "American Policy Summit."
No word on where confabs' lists of attendees and speakers will overlap (Fife Symington? Karen Johnson?), though it should be noted that Joe Arpaio is listed on the tea party folks' website, while he *lives* in Fountain Hills, a mere few miles from the Ft. McDowell Casino.
Jus' sayin'....
- Beginning yesterday at the Ft. McDowell Casino and Resort just outside of Fountain Hills and extending through the weekend, the 2011 International UFO Congress is taking place. Full brochure here.
- Beginning tomorrow at the Phoenix Convention Center in downtown Phoenix and extending through the weekend, the Tea Party Patriots will be holding their "American Policy Summit."
No word on where confabs' lists of attendees and speakers will overlap (Fife Symington? Karen Johnson?), though it should be noted that Joe Arpaio is listed on the tea party folks' website, while he *lives* in Fountain Hills, a mere few miles from the Ft. McDowell Casino.
Jus' sayin'....
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Short Attention Span Musing...
Mostly because I need to decompress after yesterday's events...
....Part of the AZGOTP's "dream" society - "2nd Amendment remedies" for business disputes
From the Arizona Republic -
From The Independent (UK) -
However, I'm human, and humans have emotions.
And the emotional side of me isn't bothered by the verdict or the sentence. Not in the least.
...Daniel Scarpinato, late of the AZ Daily Star and Jonathan Paton's abortive 2010 campaign for Congress, is nowthe press guy for Kirk Adams' Congressional campaign communications director for the AZ House Republican caucus, is known for his interesting press releases, where "interesting" means "gets creative with the facts."
The latest release distributed by Scarpinato crowing about HB2718, a bill earmarking $5 million for "border security operations" to the Pinal County Sheriff's Office, headed by Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu.
Among other things, the reasons for earmarking the money to Pinal County listed in the press release include "...its unique border security operations and because it receives less federal funding than areas directly on the border."
Pinal County must have some truly "unique" border security operations - at no point does it border Mexico. another country, or even another state.
Arizona has 15 counties, and four of them have a border with Mexico - Yuma, Pima, Santa Cruz, and Cochise.
If Adams and the other Republicans are so concerned with border security, why no funds for those counties?
Could it be because three of the counties - Yuma, Pima, and Santa Cruz - had the audacity to elect Democrats as sheriff? Could be, but...
While as much as I'm sure the partisan factor played a part in Adams' decision to send "border security" money to a non-border county, the fundamental reason behind Adams' move to siphon $5 million in public funds to one specific county may be far more base than that.
Most Capitol watchers believe that Adams is running for Congress next year, and as a rising star in Republican circles, Babeu is being wooed by R candidates from all over the state. The candidates will come looking for his endorsement next year.
$5 million makes a helluva "quid" in a "quid pro quo" arrangement.
...On a related note, Scarpinato may have spent a little too much time at the Daily Star. The last line of his press release (emphasis mine) -
Just for giggles, I sent a test email to that addy. It bounced back almost immediately. :(
I *so* wanted to write something about the Daily Star no longer bothering to hide its "in the pocket status," but all I can do is poke a little fun at him over the typo. :)
...Finally, look for a run on brown shirts at your local Wal Mart.
Today, House Appropriations passed HB2070, creating an armed force answerable only to the Governor and outside the National Command Authority, and funded by money siphoned from the Arizona National Guard. You know, the organization that answers to the President.
Just another day in Sand Land...
....Part of the AZGOTP's "dream" society - "2nd Amendment remedies" for business disputes
From the Arizona Republic -
An argument between a Phoenix homeowner and a roofer regarding the quality of the work left the roofer with a life-threatening gunshot wound, Phoenix police said....There's a little justice in the world, no matter how much certain people want to downplay that fact.
At about 1:15 p.m., a three-man crew was working on the roof of a home near 59th Avenue and Encanto Boulevard. The homeowner, a 68-year-old man, was not satisfied with the work that the crew had done, police said. The homeowner began to argue with the crew's 42-year-old foreman, said Sgt. Tommy Thompson, spokesman for the Phoenix Police Department.
From The Independent (UK) -
A jury has sentenced the leader of an anti-immigrant group to death for the murder of a young girl and her father, in what prosecutors said was an attempt to steal drug money to fund the group's activities.I should be clear here, I am opposed to capital punishment, for a variety of very rational reasons, and could never have imposed the death penalty on her (or anyone else.
Shawna Forde, the leader of the Minutemen American Defence, has become the third woman on death row in the state of Arizona. The 43-year-old was convicted earlier this month of first-degree murder and other charges related to a raid on a home in Arivaca, a desert community about 10 miles north of the Mexican border, in May 2009. Raul Flores, 29, and his nine-year-old daughter, Brisenia, were killed in the raid.
However, I'm human, and humans have emotions.
And the emotional side of me isn't bothered by the verdict or the sentence. Not in the least.
...Daniel Scarpinato, late of the AZ Daily Star and Jonathan Paton's abortive 2010 campaign for Congress, is now
The latest release distributed by Scarpinato crowing about HB2718, a bill earmarking $5 million for "border security operations" to the Pinal County Sheriff's Office, headed by Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu.
Among other things, the reasons for earmarking the money to Pinal County listed in the press release include "...its unique border security operations and because it receives less federal funding than areas directly on the border."
Pinal County must have some truly "unique" border security operations - at no point does it border Mexico. another country, or even another state.
Arizona has 15 counties, and four of them have a border with Mexico - Yuma, Pima, Santa Cruz, and Cochise.
If Adams and the other Republicans are so concerned with border security, why no funds for those counties?
Could it be because three of the counties - Yuma, Pima, and Santa Cruz - had the audacity to elect Democrats as sheriff? Could be, but...
While as much as I'm sure the partisan factor played a part in Adams' decision to send "border security" money to a non-border county, the fundamental reason behind Adams' move to siphon $5 million in public funds to one specific county may be far more base than that.
Most Capitol watchers believe that Adams is running for Congress next year, and as a rising star in Republican circles, Babeu is being wooed by R candidates from all over the state. The candidates will come looking for his endorsement next year.
$5 million makes a helluva "quid" in a "quid pro quo" arrangement.
...On a related note, Scarpinato may have spent a little too much time at the Daily Star. The last line of his press release (emphasis mine) -
For more information or to schedule interviews, contact Daniel Scarpinato at 602-926-3233 or dscarpinato@azstarnet.com
Just for giggles, I sent a test email to that addy. It bounced back almost immediately. :(
I *so* wanted to write something about the Daily Star no longer bothering to hide its "in the pocket status," but all I can do is poke a little fun at him over the typo. :)
...Finally, look for a run on brown shirts at your local Wal Mart.
Today, House Appropriations passed HB2070, creating an armed force answerable only to the Governor and outside the National Command Authority, and funded by money siphoned from the Arizona National Guard. You know, the organization that answers to the President.
Just another day in Sand Land...
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