A possible future career for John Huppenthal that utilizes his current skill set...

This has not been a good week for AZ Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal (but it's been a GREAT week for the writers at Blog for Arizona!).

The news, broken by Bob Lord at BfA, that Huppenthal used pseudonyms like Thucydides and Falcon9 to post comments on blogs went all MSM and national -

Phoenix channel 3 (KTVK)

Tucson channel 9 (KGUN)

Phoenix channel 5 (KPHO)

Arizona Republic

Arizona Daily Sun

Phoenix New Times

Talking Points Memo

Sacramento Bee (via AP)

Boing Boing

Crooks & Liars

DailyKos

Education Week

 ...and many more.

The story seems to have legs, as other blogs find comments by Huppenthal, many of which make his BfA comments (i.e. - poor people are "lazy pigs", etc.) look mild, almost endearing.

It also seems to be hurting him where it counts (for an R facing a primary challenge, anyway) - with other conservatives, many of whom are trying to distance themselves from him.  And they're not being subtle about it.


I'm not going to predict that his political career is all but over (he's weaseled out of tight situations before), but he's facing some strong electoral headwinds in 2014, and may be looking for work in 2015.

As such, I have an oh-so-humble suggestion -

When he's out of work next year, he should join with other similarly embattled (currently) elected officials and form a "think tank" dedicated to espousing conservative positions.

The principals of the "think tank":

Scott Walker, current governor of Wisconsin, and alleged "capo di tutti capi" of a major criminal conspiracy centered on illegal coordination of campaign fundraising.  Ostensible head of the "think tank"

Tom Horne, current attorney general in Arizona, who has his own (alleged) experience with campaign finance misdeeds (he can serve as the "think tank's" lawyer)

John Huppenthal, current superintendent of public instruction in Arizona.  He can serve as the "think tank's" "Director of Online Propaganda Communications" (because "Sock Puppet" doesn't look good on a resume)

Rick Scott, current governor of Florida.  He can serve as "Director of Whiz Quizzes For Fun And Profit"

Rick Snyder, current governor of Michigan.  He would be the "Director of Disenfranchising Minorities"

Chris Christie, current governor of New Jersey.  He will be the chief enforcer/bully.

Paul Lepage, current governor of Maine.  Deputy bully.

Constantin Querard, political consultant.  Talking head.  Not an elected official, but with Al Melvin's campaign for governor of Arizona circling the drain, he finds himself in need of a paycheck.

Eric Cantor, current majority in the US House of Representatives.  Chief of Governmental Relations (aka - head lobbyist)

Rick Perry, current governor of Texas - Director of Insight on Social Issues


The chief funders of the "think tank"?  The Koch brothers, of course.

Short Attention Span Musing: Primary Upsets and Petition Challenges

OK - this is mostly about primaries and petition challenges, but there will be some other material...

...First, the big news, and it's out of Virginia, not Arizona:  Ultra-conservative Republican Congressman Eric Cantor, Majority Leader in the U.S. House, lost in the R primary in his district to a tea party type.  Who didn't think Cantor was conservative enough.

The district, Virginia's 7th, is a heavily Republican one, and seems likely to remain in their control.

However, the upset of Cantor means that Jack Trammell, the Democratic nominee in the district, just went from having no chance at all to having a snowball's chance in hell of winning.

Note: in Arizona, there are three Democrats in tough races - Ann Kirkpatrick, Kyrsten Sinema, and Ron Barber - and they need your love (aka - $$$), but if you have anything to spare, consider helping out Trammell.

...Steve at Arizona Eagletarian has been providing outstanding coverage of challenges to candidates' ballot status so I won't go into depth here, but I will comment on one, because it was embarrassingly inept and amateurish.

Earlier this week, a "supporter" of Mary Rose Wilcox, a Democratic candidate in CD7, filed a lawsuit challenging the candidacy of Ruben Gallego, another Democratic candidate in CD7 (and the frontrunner in the estimation of most observers, including me).

She...errr..."he" (Mike Snitz, a former legislative candidate and part of the Wilcox machine), claimed that Gallego was using a name that wasn't his own in an attempt to deceive the voters of the district.

The only problem?

Gallego had legally changed his name years ago, not in an attempt to deceive anyone, but to honor his mother.

She was a single mom who raised him and his siblings alone after his father abandoned all of them.

She did that well, and to honor her, he legally changed his name to her maiden name.

Snitz' lawsuit claimed that the name change wasn't done legally, but his allegations were refuted quickly (whoever did the research into court records did so in a slipshod manner) and the lawsuit was dropped, almost immediately.

However, that action may have come too late for Wilcox - she has been almost-universally criticized for the abortive attack on Gallego.


 - The full list of state-level (including Congressional) candidates who have withdrawn/been removed from the ballot is here.  The full list of state-level challenges can be found here.


...In non-ballot related news, but definitely falling into the category of "elections have consequences", Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery announced that he isn't going to bring charges against a deputy with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office who killed someone in a car accident.

From the Arizona Republic, written by Megan Cassidy -

Maricopa County sheriff's Deputy Sean Pearce will not be held criminally responsible in the death of Glendale resident John Edward Harding, despite traveling more than twice the speed limit moments before the fatal crash.

County Attorney Bill Montgomery delivered the long-awaited announcement Wednesday morning, saying he weighed the specific circumstances of the crash, which occurred while Pearce was on duty.

Sounds somewhat straightforward, except for a few *other* circumstances -

1.  Sean Pearce is the son of Russell Pearce, the disgraced, but still influential, former president of the Arizona State Senate.

2.  He works for Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, a long-time ally of Russell Pearce.

3.  In 2010, between illegal campaign expenditures and fines for the expenditures, Arpaio dropped approximately three-quarters of a million dollars to put Montgomery in office.

Montgomery is developing a credibility problem; he's taken to squawking that his critics are "amateurs".

Well, I *am* an amateur, in that I am not paid for this, but even an unpaid amateur like me knows that if something waddles like a duck, quacks like a duck, and smells like a duck, that something may be a duck.

And this situation smells...reeks...of favoritism and corruption.

- Wouldn't it be poetic justice if Bowe Bergdahl - a POW for five years, tortured, returned to American authorities only to face withering criticism from fellow service members and others - moved to Arizona and ran against John McCain?  Would love to see McCain and his handlers/hangers-on try to spin that resume into something that disqualifies Bergdahl for office...

So...should my 2016 run be as Barry Goldwater or Ronald Reagan?

This story blew up all over the internet today, but it's too juicy not to chime in now that my workday is over...

From the Arizona Capitol Times, written by Evan Wyloge -

Two-time GOP loser changes party to Democrat, name to Cesar Chavez for new congressional bid

Scott Fistler didn’t have much luck as a Republican candidate. He lost a 2012 write-in campaign against U.S. Rep. Ed Pastor, then lost a 2013 bid for a Phoenix city council seat now held by Laura Pastor, Ed’s daughter.

All that could change, though, just like Fistler’s name and party registration.

After petitioning a state superior court last November and paying $319, Fistler now legally shares the name of the celebrated labor movement icon, Cesar Chavez. Earlier this year, Chavez (formerly Fistler) became a Democrat, and – before Ed Pastor announced his retirement from Congress – filed to run in the heavily Hispanic 7th Congressional District.
In his petition for a name change, Fistler wrote that he had “experienced many hardships because of my name.”

Note:  For those who are unclear on the concept, the title is sarcasm.  I'm not running for any office in 2016 under *any* name, whether my own or someone else's*.

* = Though if we could get someone to run as Ayn Rand...and someone else as William Buckley...and Margaret Thatcher...and... :)

Election 2014: Well, sigs are in and the races are set*

* = Except for the inevitable petition challenges, of course.  However, since I haven't heard about any yet, and most of them fail anyway, this post is going up.  I'll update if/when something significant changes.

In primary races, both R and D, I will make no predictions unless one or more of the candidates looks to be toast already.

Full list of primary candidates here; full list of candidates going directly to the general election ballot here.

CD1 R primary - Gary Kiehne, Adam Kwasman, and Andy Tobin will be fighting tooth-and-nail for the dubious privilege of (probably) losing to Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick in the general election.

CD2 R primary - Shelley Kais, Chuck Wooten, and Martha McSally will be fighting to challenge Democrat Ron Barber in the general.  McSally has been the highest-profile candidate in the race, however, incumbent Barber is considered to be facing an uphill fight to hold onto the seat.  The R primary could get "energetic".  :)

CD7 D Primary - Ruben Gallego, Mary Rose Wilcox, Cesar Chavez, Jarret Maupin, Randy Camacho, and Johnnie Robinson are contending for the opportunity to win the seat held by the soon-to-be-retired Ed Pastor.  Gallego and Wilcox are considered to be the front runners.

CD9 R Primary - Wendy Rogers and Andrew Walter are facing off for the chance to challenge Democratic incumbent Kyrsten Sinema.


Gov R Primary - Doug Ducey, Christine Jones, Ken Bennett, Al Melvin, Andrew Thomas, Scott Smith, and Frank Riggs are running.  Even if I wanted to make predictions for R primaries, on this one I wouldn't - got no clue here.

LD6 State Senator - No primary, and no Democrat challenging incumbent R Chester Crandell, but this could be a race to watch.  Former Republican legislator Tom O'Halleran submitted enough signatures to appear on the general election ballot.

LD7 State Senator - No Rs, 3 Ds - Appointed incumbent Carlyle Begay, current state representative Jamescita Peshlakai, and Eric Descheenie (don't know anything about him).

LD8 State Senator - Three Rs, Irene Littleton, Alan Pease, and Harold Vangilder, are squaring off for the chance to unseat incumbent Barbara McGuire.

LD11 State Senator R Primary - State rep Steve Smith and Scott Bartle will face off for a chance at replacing Al Melvin (running for governor) in the state senate.

LD13 State Senator R Primary - Incumbent Don Shooter is facing a challenge from Toby Farmer.

LD15 State Senator R Primary - Incumbent Nancy Barto is facing a challenge from David Ryan.

LD16 State Senator R Primary - Appointed incumbent David Farnsworth is facing Taylor McArthur.

LD18 State Senator R Primary - Open seat (incumbent John McComish is running for a different office); current state rep. Jeff Dial and former chair of the AZGOP Tom Morrissey are facing off.

LD20 State Senator R Primary - Incumbent Kimberly Yee is facing a challenge from Justin Henry (he's a veteran and she opposed a study that would look into whether the use of medical marijuana could ameliorate the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD).

Note: the general election here could be very interesting - former Republican legislator Doug Quelland filed enough signatures to qualify for the general election ballot as an Independent.


LD23 State Senator R Primary - Open seat (incumbent Michele Reagan is running for a different office); current state rep. John Kavanagh and Scottsdale businessman Jeff Schwartz.  Kavanagh is from Fountain Hills, but the bulk of the district is in north Scottsdale.  Kavanagh has also become something of an ideological embarrassment to the chamber of commerce Republicans that dominate north Scottsdale politics.  May be a primary to watch.

LD25 State Senator R Primary - Incumbent Bob Worsley is facing a challenge from Ralph Heap, an ally of the man that Worsley defeated in 2012, Russell Pearce.

LD26 State Senate - No primaries here, but a possible example of the Republicans trying to get cute in their quest to unseat incumbent Democrat Ed Ableser - officially, there isn't a Republican candidate in the race, but one Dale Eames filed enough signatures to make it on to the general election ballot as an Independent.

Have you heard of "RINOs/DINOs" (Republicans/Democrats In Name Only)?

Eames is an IINO (Independent In Name Only).


LD27 State Senator D Primary - Open seat (incumbent Leah Landrum Taylor is term-limited); current state rep. Catherine Miranda and Afghanistan veteran Aaron Marquez are the candidates here.

LD29 State Senator D Primary - Open seat (incumbent Steve Gallardo is running for another office); the district's two current state reps, Lydia Hernandez and Martin Quezada, are contending for the seat.


LD1 State Representative R Primary - Noel Campbell, Frank Englund, Karen Fann, and Linda Gray are contending for the two nominations here.  Fann is an incumbent; Gray was formerly a legislator from the Phoenix area.

 LD4 State Representative D Primary - Lisa Otondo, Charlene Fernandez, and Jose Suarez are facing off.  Otondo is an incumbent.

LD5 State Representative R Primary - Sonny Borrelli, Jennifer Jones, Regina Cobb, Sam Medrano, and George Schnittgrund are running for the two nominations here.  Borrelli is an incumbent..

LD7 State Representative D Primary - Jennifer Benally, Joshua Butler, and Albert Hale are on the ballot here, and Arlando Teller has registered as a write-in candidate.  Hale is an incumbent.

LD8 State Representative R Primary - Wayne Bachmann, Darla Dawald, TJ Shope, and Frank Pratt are on the ballot here.  Pratt and Shope are the incumbents.

LD11 State Representative R Primary - Mark Finchem, Jo Grant, and Vince Leach are on the ballot here.  The two incumbents, Steve Smith and Adam Kwasman, are seeking other offices.

LD13 State Representative R Primary - Diane Landis, Darin Mitchell, and Steve Montenegro are on the ballot here.  Mitchell and Montenegro are incumbents.

LD14 State Representative R Primary - David Stevens, David Gowan, and Susan Syfert are contending here.  Stevens and Gowan are incumbents.

LD15 State Representative R Primary - Heather Carter, John Allen, and David Burnell Smith are on the ballot here.  Carter and Allen are the incumbents; Smith is a former legislator with a "colorful" history. 

LD16 State Representative R Primary - Doug Coleman, John Fillmore, Adam Stevens, and Kelly Townsend are vying for the two nominations here.  Coleman and Townsend are incumbents; Fillmore is a former legislator.

LD18 State Representative R Primary - John King, Jill Norgaard, Bob Robson, and David Pheanis are on the ballot here; Robson is an incumbent.  Scott Ryan has filed to run as an Independent on the general election ballot.

LD20 State Representative R Primary - Paul Boyer, Bill Adams, Thurane Aung Khin, Aaron Flannery, Anthony Kern, and Carl Seel are on the ballot.  Seel and Boyer are incumbents.

LD21 State Representative R Primary - Rick Gray, Tony Rivero, and Bryan Hackbarth are vying for the two nominations here; Gray is an incumbent.

LD22 State Representative - No contested primaries here, but one Fred Botha filed to run on the general election ballot as an "Independent New Dude".

LD23 State Representative R Primary - Effie Carlson, Jay Lawrence, Bob Littlefield, and Michelle Ugenti are on the ballot here.  Ugenti is an incumbent; Littlefield is a member of the Scottsdale City Council.

LD24 State Representative D Primary - Lela Alston, Richard Bauer, and Ken Clark are vying for the two nominations here.  Alston is an incumbent.

LD25 State Representative R Primary - Rusty Bowers, Michelle Udall, Justin Olson, Jerry Walker and Haydee Dawson are on the ballot here.  Olson is an incumbent, Bowers is a former legislator, and Walker is an ally of Russell Pearce who is known for having temperament issues.

LD27 State Representative D Primary - Reginald Bolding, Norma Munoz, Marcelino Quinonez, and Rebecca Rios are on the ballot here.  Munoz is an incumbent; Rios is a former legislator from Pinal County.

LD28 State Representative R Primary - Shawnna Bolick, Kate Brophy McGee, and Mary Hamway are contending for the two nominations here.  Brophy McGee is an incumbent.

LD29 State Representative D Primary - Richard Andrade, Steve Chapman, Denice Martha Garcia, and Ceci Velasquez are on the ballot here.


AZSOS R Primary - Wil Cardon, Justin Pierce, and Michele Reagan are vying for the R nod here.  Cardon is a businessman and Pierce and Reagan are sitting legislators.

AZAG R Primary - Mark Brnovich and Tom Horne are contending here.  Horne is the incumbent here, but carries some heavy ethical baggage in the race.

AZ Treasurer R Primary - Jeff Dewit, Hugh Hallman, and Randy Pullen are on the ballot here. 

AZ Superintendent of Public Instruction - Primaries on both sides of the ballot.  David Garcia and Sharon Thomas are vying for the D nod; Diane Douglas and John Huppenthal are contending for the R nod.  Huppenthal is the incumbent.

AZ Corporation Commission R Primary - Tom Forese, Doug Little, Lucy Mason, and Vernon Parker are on the ballot here.

Campaign finance reports: Lies, damn lies, and statistics

Because of a special election in Tempe, candidates for city council there had to file campaign finance reports early.

That has led to some misleading reporting, some cherry-picking of the numbers to try to put a positive spin on things.

So here are the numbers, taken from the summary pages of the reports:




So based on cash on hand, it looks like candidate Matt Papke is doing great with more than $49K on hand, but...

He loaned his own campaign $51K, or more than 77% of his total funds raised.

In other words, he may have more than $49K on hand, but he is $2K (and counting) in the hole personally.  Not a huge issue in itself (he's hardly the first candidate to self-fund); trying to deceive people as to the nature of his funding is an issue - the practice gives possible insight into how he would conduct himself in office if he actually wins.


In contrast, candidate Lauren Kuby, a newcomer to running for office (but not to community, environmental, or political activism), raised more than $41K, with the vast majority (more than 99%) of the money coming from people not named "Lauren Kuby"*.

Otherwise, the numbers reported by the candidates aren't surprising - sitting council members Shana Ellis and Robin Arredondo-Savage had solid fundraising efforts, to be expected from incumbents.  Challengers David Schapira and Dick Foreman had late starts, which shows in their totals this time.  Ernesto Fonseca is a total political newbie and got a late start, with both factors seeming to impact his fundraising so far.

* - Full disclosure time: I am one of the many people who have contributed to Kuby's campaign.

2014 Gubernatorial Candidate Forum Next Friday

Save the date -

Bob Stump, chair of the Arizona Corporation Commission, getting his "snippy*" on...

...* = read "snippy", think "dismissive asshole".  However, since I didn't want to use that word** in the title of the post, I went with "snippy".

** = "dismissive", of course.  :)

It's easy to tell when a Republican elected isn't running for office in a particular year - they don't bother even pretending to have any regard for people who dare to disagree with them.

Case in point:  Bob Stump, chair of the Arizona Corporation Commission.

Over the last few weeks, Stump has engaged in some Twitter conversations regarding topics of interest to many Arizonans.

That part, engaging with average people (OK, people who aren't industry lobbyists) is a good thing.

However, the part where he became contemptuous and dismissive of people is most assuredly NOT a good thing.

First up, a conversation with LD26 state representative Andrew Sherwood.  The basic conversation regarded the shrinking solar industry in AZ, shrinking as a result of policies from the Stump-led ACC.

The rest of the conversation, which doesn't exactly put Stump in a positive light -

"Impolitic"?  Nice word,

I think "snippy" is more appropos, but "impolitic" is a pretty good description of Stump's demeanor, too.

On the other hand, it doesn't even come close to describing Stump's attitude toward Nancy LaPlaca, a former staffer at the ACC and an expert on sustainable energy and policies -

Meditation to diminish worries about Arizona's future?  Pretend that the pollution from coal stacks is *incense*?

That attitude, beside being utterly insulting toward LaPlaca, goes a long way toward explaining the actions and policies of the Stump-led ACC.


Note: Stump is term-limited and his seat is up for election in 2016.  If he intends to run for another (higher profile) office in 2016, his outward demeanor will improve; if not, it won't.

Tom Horne should NOT withdraw from the AG's race

Tom Horne, Arizona's Attorney General, is a transcendentally unethical man -

- Before becoming a lawyer, the SEC permanently banned Horne from securities trading for many reasons, not least of which was fraud

- Failed to report a bankruptcy when required

- After becoming AZAG, hired an alleged girlfriend to a taxpayer-funded position for which she was considered, ummm..."underqualified"

- During his campaign for AZAG in 2010, allegedly violated campaign finance laws by coordinating activities with an independent PAC; he denied wrongdoing, but after becoming AZAG, he hired the head of the PAC to a taxpayer-funded job with his office (the case is still ongoing)

- Committed a hit-and-run accident while leaving an alleged nooner at his alleged girlfriend's home.  We know this because the FBI had him under surveillance at the time as part of the investigation into his alleged campaign violations

- Per a complaint, and a lawsuit, from a now-former staffer, has required employees of the AG's office to work on his reelection campaign while on state time


In short, he's the most ethically-challenged attorney general in Arizona's history (so far as I can find).


In 2010, I thought that Democratic nominee Felecia Rotellini was far more qualified for the job, and Horne has done absolutely nothing in the years since to alter that opinion.

IMO, he wasn't qualified for the job to begin with, should have resigned when his bad behavior brought disgrace to the office, and shouldn't have sought reelection even if he adamantly refused to resign.


Now, some big-name Republicans are on board with the "should not run for reelection" part.

- Congressman Matt Salmon personally asked Horne to drop his reelection bid.

- US Senator Jeff Flake has publicly called on Horne to withdraw from the race.

- Even former state legislator Frank "Don't Make Me Mad" Antenori, not exactly the epitome of professionalism when he was in office, is calling on Horne to step aside -

Of course, these Rs (and others) aren't bothered by cheating to win an office, or by the misuse and corruption of the office once in it.

Nope, their problem with Horne is that they believe that if he wins the Republican nomination, he probably will lose to Felecia Rotellini in the general election.

In that regard they are correct, of course. 

In 2010, a horrible year for Democratic candidates, no matter how well-qualified, Rotellini stood out.

Intelligent, accomplished, dedicated, and with a long and documented history of public service; more than one voter, including some Republicans, told me that while they voted for Horne in the end, Rotellini thoroughly impressed them.

In spite of the Republican tidal wave in 2010, Rotellini nearly defeated Horne, and 2014 isn't shaping up to be a "wave" year, for either major party.

Now, my first response when the big-name Rs started calling for Horne to step aside "Finally!  Even the Rs have had enough of Tom Horne!".

Then I started thinking about it.

People like Flake, Salmon, and Antenori are always wrong on any significant issue.

The facts that they are always wrong and yet agree with me suggest that perhaps I should reevaluate my position.

So I have.

Horne should NOT withdraw from the race, but his opponent in the Republican primary, Mark Brnovich, should.

The reasons for this are simple.

1.  Horne has thoroughly "poisoned the waters" in the race for Republican candidates.  While he has rendered himself all but un-reelectable, his presence casts a deep shadow over any other R who might win the nomination.  While another R will have a better chance of defeating Rotellini, he/she will still face some major electoral headwinds.

2.  If Brnovich stays in the race and loses the general election, or worse, the primary, he will be seen as "damaged goods".  If he withdraws now, he can come back in 2018 as a stronger candidate

The reality in AZ politics is that a Democrat can lose a significant race and come back stronger (witness: Rotellini).

A Republican?  Not so much (witness: JD Hayworth).

Just a few thoughts...

Special session on tap for the legislature

From KVOA (Tucson channel 4), written by Faye DeHoff - 

The Arizona Legislature has been called into Special Session on Tuesday, May 27 by Governor Jan Brewer, who today signed a Proclamation.

Governor Brewer called the Special Session to pass her critical child safety reform proposal to fundamentally overhaul the state's child safety system.

Addressing the top priority highlighted in Governor Brewer's 2014 State of the State policy agenda, this reform proposal statutorily creates and funds the Department of Child Safety - a new, stand-alone agency whose sole focus is the safety of Arizona's children.

Actually, using the word "written" may be problematical - other than the first sentence, the story is the governor's press release.

And that first sentence was just reworded.

However, I digress... :)

The expectation, based on conversations with a couple of Capitol denizens, is that the outcome will be funding of a bare bones agency with few, if any, real changes.  Mostly, the new agency will be the old agency with a new name but the same old culture and procedures.

Anything substantive will be left to the new governor and legislature in 2015 to craft and enact...or not.

The Arizona Attorney General's office is already on record as opposed to at least one provision in the legislation that will be considered during the special session.  Apparently, part of the proposal would grant authority to the "new" agency to seek legal advice from sources independent of the AZAG's office.

From a letter sent to Charles Flanagan, director of the new agency, by Eric Bistrow, Chief Deputy -

A few days ago, this office received proposed legislation relating to the new agency that
you are to lead. Specifically, I reviewed proposed A.R.S. §8-454(G). You and I previously discussed the matter covered in the statute. The AGO strongly opposes the statute as written.

The AGO opposes this piece of legislation because it is harmful to the State and
undercuts the traditional role of the Attorney General to act as an independent legal advisor for all state agencies and departments. Though the AGO understands that some agencies employ administrative counsel, this proposed statute strikes at the authority of the AGO.

More updates as they become available...

Election 2014 - Dominoes: Gallardo out of CD7 race, into Maricopa County SD5 race

From the Arizona Republic, written by Rebekah L. Sanders -

Democratic state Sen. Steve Gallardo announced Tuesday that he will drop out of the race for Congress in the 7th District, leaving only two major candidates competing for the heavily Hispanic seat -- Maricopa County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox and former state Rep. Ruben Gallego.

He also announced that he will be running for the seat on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors currently held by Wilcox.

This all started when Congressman Ed Pastor announced that he would retire after this term in Congress, opening up that race.

Wilcox, Gallego, and Gallardo announced their intentions to run for the CD7 seat. 

That, in turn, led to Marie Lopez Rogers, mayor of Avondale, and Anna Tovar, Democratic leader in the state senate, announcing their intents to run for Wilcox' seat on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors.

Gallardo is a good senator and a good candidate, but the CD7 race quickly became a two horse race, with Gallego and Wilcox garnering most of the big-name endorsements and almost all of the campaign contributions.

Last week, Tovar announced that she was withdrawing from that race and not seeking any any office this year. opening up that race for another entry.

This close to the filing deadline, there probably won't be any more serious dominoes falling in these races, but I've been wrong before.

In other words, keep paying attention.

Election 2014: Dropping off sigs and dropping the gloves

...It's getting on toward the filing deadline for candidates, the date when they have to file their signed nominating petitions.

Felecia Rotellini, Democratic candidate for Attorney General, filing more than 13000 signatures.  Picture courtesy her campaign Facebook page.

This week will see most campaigns file their signatures, mostly so that they can use Memorial Day weekend as the last bit of "down" time available to them before the August primary elections (except for the candidates, most of whom will be at Memorial Day events).

The full list of candidates who have submitted their sigs to the AZ SOS is here.  The list will be updated daily.

The Maricopa County list can be found here (click on "2014 Primary Candidate Listing").


 ...Just about the time sigs are dropped off, gloves are dropped (that's a hockey reference for you folks who grew up in the desert :) ).

In the CD1 Republican primary, one candidate, Andy Tobin, has called on another candidate, Gary Kiehne, to withdraw from the race.  Kiehne made some comments at a debate, blaming Democrats for 99% of mass shootings.

Tobin says that Kiehne isn't "level-headed" enough to represent Arizona. 

Which is kind of ironic, given that Tobin led the legislature in passing SB1062 during this past session of the lege.  It was their attempt to legalize discrimination based on religious "beliefs".

Kiehne didn't take it well, calling Tobin "scandal plagued" and a "carpetbagger"

Expect this just to be the first salvo; this race is going to be entertaining one.

GOPer candidate for Congress politicizes mass shootings

...Not in a "let's examine gun laws and the culture of violence in the U.S." sort of way, but in a "let's blame the Democrats" sort of way...

From the Arizona Star, written by Becky Pallack (emphasis added) -

Congressional District 1 candidate Gary Kiehne made extreme comments about gun rights at a Republican primary debate Saturday.

Asked how he would protect gun rights, Kiehne said he owns more guns and ammunition than the other candidates and said everyone should own a gun.

When it comes to mass shootings, “if you look at all the fiascos that have occurred, 99 percent of them have been by Democrats pulling their guns out and shooting people,” Kiehne said to an audience of about 60 people. “So I don’t think you have a problem with the Republicans.”

Audio of his comments is here.

It would be easy to dismiss the rantings of Kienhe as just that, rantings.

Of someone who doesn't have a snowball's chance in Phoenix...in July...of winning.

Except for two points:

1.  He's a Republican, and this guff appeals to a large part of their base.

2.  His opponents, just as extreme as him, have a major detail working against their success - they are sitting Republican legislators.  I can think of only two such sitting R legislators who have moved on to higher office* during a year in which they were members of the lege -

John Huppenthal, former state senator and current State Superintendent of Public Instruction (no observer can figure out how someone as nearly-universally disliked can keep winning elections, but he does)

Matt Salmon, who moved from the lege to the US House, but did it during the 1990s when the lege wasn't as much a punchline as it is today.

Of course, out of fairness to Kiehne, I should point out that at least he is consistent.


* - For purposes of this post, "higher office" refers to federal or statewide (line of succession) office.  Many legislators have moved on to other offices - county BOS, mayor/city council, even Arizona Corporation Commission.  However, I cannot find any more recent examples of Republican legislators moving directly from the lege to higher profile federal or state office.

Manny Cruz and Bob Drye: RIP

Over the last couple of weeks, I've been taking an unscheduled hiatus from blogging due to the fact that it's an even-numbered year (meaning that campaign-related activities have eaten up a lot of my time recently).

The hiatus is coming to an end because of two pieces of sad news - the passings of Manny Cruz on May 12 and Bob Drye on April 29.

Cruz was the 2010 Democratic nominee for State Mine Inspector and was planning a second run for the office when he was diagnosed with cancer.  He withdrew from the race late in 2013 in order to focus on fighting the disease.

While he gained notice as a candidate in 2010, he was far more than that.

More importantly, he was an advocate for improving the safety of Arizona by closing abandoned mines.

Most importantly, he was a beloved husband and son (and one of the warmest, most genuine people that folks who knew him had ever met).

His funeral services are tomorrow, Friday, May 16.

The funeral (both service and burial) will be at noon at Greenwood Memory Lawn, 719 N 27th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85009.

There will be a reception after at Bitzee Mama's, 7023 N 58th Avenue, Glendale, AZ 85301.

I didn't know Manny as well as some, so here are some words about him from Terry Goddard (via Facebook) - 

"Very early this morning, Arizona lost Manny Cruz -- a big man in soul and heart, a champion for mine safety and for more responsive, responsible government. Manny, a fighter to the end, is at rest after a courageous battle with cancer. In politics and in the field closing abandoned mines, Manny made things happen. He liked to do things with a bang. But most of us will remember his great smile and gentle persistence. Truly, a happy warrior. He lived a remarkable life. We miss him already. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife, Valerie, and his mother, Sally, and all his family whose love surrounded him through the hard months. They are heroes."

The other tragic loss that hit our community recently was the passing of Bob Drye.

 
Most of us knew him as a dedicated and ever-present activist in Tempe, volunteering his wisdom, time, and energy to support Democratic candidates, the Democratic Party, and the community in any way he could. 

Long before he came to Arizona he was a family man (seven children, 18 grandchildren, and five [and counting] great-grandchildren) and an accomplished psychiatrist.

A service will he held Saturday at 10 a.m. at University Presbyterian Church, 139 E Alameda Drive, Tempe, AZ 85282.

Via email, from Phil Amorosi, one of Bob's many friends and someone that Bob mentored:

"Long time PC Robert Drye passed away on Tuesday, April 29. He was 86. Dr. Drye was one of the people that believed in me when I became chair and was instrumental in turning Dist. 27 (at the time) blue. He was the district secretary for many years, got signatures, always canvassed, a State Committeeman. He did whatever was asked. He was a life long Democrat from Vermont. He was very smart, started MIT when he was 16! He was a military man and as a psychiatrist helped set up the evaluation forms to recognize mental illness in troops. In his younger day he was a featured speaker at many forums."

My deepest condolences go out to the families and friends of both Manny and Bob.

Mocking victims of violence? That's low, even for Constantin Querard and other Republican "opinion makers"

Edit: I've received responses from both the original tweeter mentioned in the post and the retweeter, responses that include a threat of a lawsuit if I don't take the post down.  Not going to happen.

However, out of fairness, I will post those responses and my reply at the bottom of this post.

End edit.

Once in a while, something comes along that reminds me (and I hope, all of us), of the profound difference between the "opinion makers" in the GOP and the members of civil society (aka - the rest of us)...

On Tuesday night, EMILY's List, an organization dedicated to helping Democratic women win elections, held its annual awards dinner.  The highlight of the event was an appearance by former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords of Arizona.

In 2011, she was a victim in a mass shooting in Tucson, one that killed six people and injured nearly 20 more (including Giffords).

The shooting occurred at a supermarket where she had just begun a "Congress On Your Corner" event, meeting and talking with her constituents.

While she did survive the shooting, she suffered a severe head wound, and has spent the last three years working to recover from the damage to her brain and body.

Her appearance Tuesday illustrated just how far she has progressed in that recovery.

Giffords (center) with AZ congresswomen Ann Kirkpatrick (left) and Kyrsten Sinema (right).  Picture courtesy CNN

It was a triumphant moment for Giffords and her friends, family, and everyone else who has followed her incredible efforts.

Many of the event's attendees tweeted during the festivities, so many that I almost missed this one -

At first, I didn't understand the reference - Tuesday was the night of the botched execution in Oklahoma, and most of my attention was focused on news coverage of that.

While at work Wednesday. the tweet popped into my head, with the realization that it was a mocking reference to the events of the Tucson shooting, when the Congress On Your Corner event ended so abruptly, and tragically.

My next thought:

That is seriously fucked up.

Before writing this, I ran the tweet by someone who has a cooler head than me, and even that person saw the reference right away, and agreed with my evaluation of the situation ("That is seriously f-ed up").

The originator of the tweet, Mr. Wurtzel, is someone I do not know personally, nor do I follow him on Twitter.

My guess, and it is only a guess at this point, is that he is one of the myriad mean people who use the relative anonymity of the internet to spew the most repugnant rhetoric.

Still, he's relatively small time and not especially influential (and, if by chance he should read this, that's not an insult - I'm relatively small time too; I'm just so wordy it takes me more than 140 characters to spout off :) ).

On the other hand, the person who I follow on Twitter who retweeted the posting (hence its appearance in my feed), is most definitely *not* small time.

He's Constantin Querard, a "player", so to speak, in Arizona politics.  He's a political consultant who has advised many candidates through the years.  He specializes in fringy, tea party-type candidates, but he'll take a retainer from any pretty much any Republican.

He should know better, and unless he advises his clients to mock victims of violence, he shouldn't do so either.

And if he's still tempted to do so, he should consider this question first:

Are you brave enough to look the families of Christina Taylor-Green, John Roll, Gabe Zimmerman, Dorothy Morris, Phyllis Schneck, and Dorwin Stoddard in the eyes and mock their loved ones?  If not, don't do it in a cowardly way either.


Please note:  I am not tarring all Republicans with the same brush here.  I know many Republicans, and am even related to a few, and most are fine human beings.

...Fine human beings who have absolutely no chance of winning a Republican primary; they are not, nor do they kiss up to, GOP "opinion makers".

Edit to add responses from Mr. Wurtzel and Mr. Querard:

 Quoted as text:

Wurtzel - @cpmaz It's an abortion joke, you fucking idiot. What is Davis known for? Take down your post or I sue your ass. You have one hour.

Querard2 - @cpmaz Irony? You laud Emily's List whose purpose is 2 ensure that babies can legally continue 2b victims of violence. Real #WarOnWomen

Querard1 - @cpmaz Fail! The author was referencing the 1st Trimester abortions that Emily's List is so very very fond of. Better luck next smear.

My response to the responses:

They claim that the original tweet was about abortion, and I have no evidence that they are lying when they state that.  However, there are two issues with their assertion, not definitive evidence of falseness, but that undercut their credibility IMO.

1.  In the original tweet, there was no indication that the tweet referenced abortion; usually hashtags or something similar are used.

2. The tweet went up shortly after Giffords took the stage, making her the most likely object of the tweeter's (and retweeter's) derision.

3.  My original post was, and remains, critical of the tweet.  However, there is no threat in it, not even an implied one.  Mr. Wurtzel's threat in response to the further undermines his credibility, IMO.

The post is staying up.

Rich Crandall: Out of a job in Wyoming, coming back to Arizona

Hey, I'm impressed that he lasted an entire winter in WY...

From the Arizona Republic - 

A former Arizona state senator who headed Wyoming's education department before a court reinstated that state's school superintendent as head of the agency says he's returning home to Arizona.

Rich Crandall was chosen for the Wyoming job by Gov. Matt Mead last summer, but he left last week after the state's superintendent reclaimed her responsibilities.

{snip}

Crandall says he's using up vacation days and officially leaves Wyoming state service May 1. He plans to return to Arizona in June and focus on running his family companies, possibly teaching and eventually looking for another job in education.

Crandall, a Republican from the Phoenix suburb of Mesa, said he has no plans to run again for a seat in Arizona's Legislature.

"Definitely not the Legislature, the time commitment's too much," Crandall said. "But maybe a school board. I love the community college system. Who knows?"

Amazingly, Crandall was the *better* option compared to Cindy Hill, the person he replaced in Wyoming (and who, in turn, replaced him).

According to this report from the Huffington Post, when she was previously in charge of the Wyoming state education department, she created an environment of physical fear and mismanaged the department so badly that even her fellow Rs felt she had to go.

Based on the article, he's not interested in becoming a state legislator again, but he *has* been a member of a school board in the past.  It may be too late in the cycle for him to seek a seat on one this time around (especially with logistics of moving from WY), but a 2016 run could be within his sights.

If he doesn't do something else before then (like go to work on an R presidential campaign - he is noted for having ties to the Jeb Bush camp).