From now on, that's how I will refer to JD Hayworth (R-Coward).
[Note - I'll do a more detailed report on the Pederson/Kyl part of the forum, as well as a general report, later.]
There was a candidate forum tonight at Temple Beth Israel in north Scottsdale.
A number of candidates from LD7, LD8, the McDowell Mountain Justice Precinct JP race, CD5, and the U.S. Senate race were there.
JD wasn't there, though.
He sent a surrogate in his place.
He wasn't the only candidate to do that. Michele Reagan, a Republican LD8 candidate for the state house, sent her mother in her stead. Donna Reagan expressed her daughter's regrets at her inability to attend due to a scheduling conflict and did a fine job of representing her daughter.
The same cannot be said about JD's surrogate, Jonathan and Irit Tratt. (I may have the names incorrect here. No disrespect intended. I'll be happy to correct it if someone has the correct spelling. Thx.)
[On edit: Thanks to the Lofty Donkey for the correct names. I've updated where appropriate.]
This was not a predominantly friendly crowd toward the likes of JD and Jon Kyl, but at least Kyl handled the boos and outbursts from the audience smoothly.
One of JD's surrogates, Mrs. Tratt, did alright. Mostly she just read campaign literature.
However, JD's other surrogate, Mr. Tratt, was unprepared, combative and hostile, speaking down to the audience.
And that is far and away the best thing that I can say about his performance.
In what should have been JD's "introduction" speech, he spoke almost entirely about Israel and JD's support for it. He also ranted for a while about "Islamofascism" and terrorism.
He ignored every other issue.
Worse still, he started driving the audience toward the exits with an reference to murdered reported Daniel Pearl. Many of the people present found his use of the brutal killing of Mr. Pearl in a campaign speech to be offensive in the extreme.
However, many people stood fast and tried to stay through the rest of the program, if only to listen to Harry.
Mr. Tratt was frequently jeered when he spoke. And to be fair, he provoked most of it with his style, demeanor and disdain for the facts.
For instance, he lied about Harry Mitchell attending a CAIR fundraiser.
Also, his insistence on ignoring most issues besides Israel won him no supporters in this audience, even though many were members of the temple. Continued support for Israel is an important issue, but it's far from the only issue, and this audience wanted more.
The audience's steadfastness lasted until the 'closing' part of the program, when Mr. Trapp proclaimed from the stage that, practically speaking, JD "is a more observant Jew" than most of the people in the room.
At that point, most of a now very angry audience rose from their seats and left the room.
I joined them, as I found Mr. Tratt's presentation to be almost painful, and since I'm not a professional journalist, I'm not getting paid to listen to that garbage.
On the plus side, the attendees *were* rewarded with a presentation by Harry that defined why he is the best choice to represent CD5. He spoke about specific issues facing the district and the country, and had specific ideas to address those issues.
He also showed that he is an experienced speaker, remaining unfazed by the carnival sideshow that represented JD. He also did not let the moderator's (AZ Rep society columnist Kathy Shayna Shocket) personal bias in favor of JD affect his performance.
If there were any undecided voters in the audience (and judging from the number of candidate stickers that people wore, there weren't too many :) ), they would have been impressed by Harry's professional demeanor, if nothing else.
As for JD?
...Perhaps he truly had someplace better to be tonight.
Even though Jim Pederson and Jon Kyl have a televised debate in Tucson tomorrow night and they could *both* be there.
Even though a most of the other candidates had other meetings to attend, they could be there.
...Perhaps he didn't want to face questions about his idolization of Henry Ford.
...Perhaps he didn't want to face questions about his ideological (and intellectual) twin Russell Pearce and Mr. Pearce's emailed links to the website of neo-Nazi group the National Alliance.
Even though Sen. Kyl was able to face an unfriendly audience.
The bottom line is that JD grossly insulted the organizers of the forum, the congregation of Temple Beth Israel, the other candidates, the audience, and the voters of CD5 when he blew off the forum and sent Mr. Trapp to harangue us in his place.
He should apologize for that insult. Now.
At every forum that I have attended where a candidate had need to send a surrogate in his/her stead, the surrogate spoke about their candidate's positions and records. In short, they did a good job of representing their candidate.
The worst part of all of this for JD?
Most of the audience may have left thinking the same thing about Mr. Tratt.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Monday, October 16, 2006
Proposition Mail Call
Received some interesting material in the mail box over the last few days...
...a nice little card (6X11?) from the people in favor of Prop 101. It would limit property taxes to a level based on 2005 tax rates.
It's got a nice picture of a smiling family, and another of a happy older couple. It's got nice list of reasonable-sounding bullet points highlighting the benefits of the proposition.
Too bad they quoted Sen. Dean Martin as supporting the measure. See page 6 of the arguments submitted for the ballot publicity pamphlet.
Asking Dean Martin about finance is like asking Russell Pearce about race relations.
'Nuff said about Prop 101.
...A full page card opposed to Prop 202, the minimum wage increase. They don't bother to state an actual objection to raising the minimum wage, they just don't like that it has an enforcement mechanism. The primary funding for this effort comes from some restaurant and farm owner associations and other specialists in providing low wage employment.
...Then were duelling pieces on Props 105 and 106.
The anti-105/pro-106 card is pretty straightforward. They state how 106 is better than 105, and lists a number of quotes from a bipartisan group of politicians supporting it.
The other one, the anti-Prop 106 flier, was easily the class of the entire group. Though that sentence will be the only time I use the word 'class' to describe it. :)
It's a sheet of thick, glossy paper (I'm sure there's a trade name for it, but I'm just as sure that I'm not in the printing business and don't know the name :) ) that unfolds to a 10X14 page headline by a faux news article. The "article" implies that the AZ Supreme Court has found something illegal with the proposition.
This is misleading, because it hasn't.
Below that is a list of "educators, ranchers, taxpayers and concerned citizens" as well as some organizations that oppose Prop 106. It's a fun list, with moderate luminaries such as Sen. Jack Harper, Rep. Laura Knaperek, Rep. Russell Pierce [sic - like misspelling his name will make people think that there's another Rep named 'Russell' that supports garbage like this. LOL], Jean McGrath and others.
And then, the capper.
The whole thing unfolds into a 20X28 poster showing the text of the proposition with sections highlighted and lines running to apocryphal comments in the margins. Comments with copious quantities of 'hot-button' words and phrases like "lawyer", "land grab", and "special interests."
All in all, a very professionally done if thoroughly misleading piece of propaganda.
Today's mail, however, had the piece de resistance.
A letter from JD.
Whooo hoooo!!
My Congressman has sent me a personal letter!
OK, so the envelope was addressed to my full name, which is used only on voter registration rolls, and it opens with "Dear Friend". And the signature is printed, not handwritten.
Hey - at least the sig is in blue. :)
In his letter, he talks about his "record" after 12 years in Congress, he talks about illegal immigration (a lot!), he talks about tax cuts, and he even mentions alternative sources of energy in the last paragraph.
Funny, but for all of his talk about his record, he doesn't talk about his record of ethical missteps.
Funny, but for all of his talk about what he will do in the future, he doesn't mention stem cell research even once.
He also reiterates the lie that Harry Mitchell ("my opponent" in the letter) supports giving Social Security benefits to illegal aliens that has already been refuted. (JD's campaign website has a refutation of the refutation up today, but I'll cover that later.)
Later!
...a nice little card (6X11?) from the people in favor of Prop 101. It would limit property taxes to a level based on 2005 tax rates.
It's got a nice picture of a smiling family, and another of a happy older couple. It's got nice list of reasonable-sounding bullet points highlighting the benefits of the proposition.
Too bad they quoted Sen. Dean Martin as supporting the measure. See page 6 of the arguments submitted for the ballot publicity pamphlet.
Asking Dean Martin about finance is like asking Russell Pearce about race relations.
'Nuff said about Prop 101.
...A full page card opposed to Prop 202, the minimum wage increase. They don't bother to state an actual objection to raising the minimum wage, they just don't like that it has an enforcement mechanism. The primary funding for this effort comes from some restaurant and farm owner associations and other specialists in providing low wage employment.
...Then were duelling pieces on Props 105 and 106.
The anti-105/pro-106 card is pretty straightforward. They state how 106 is better than 105, and lists a number of quotes from a bipartisan group of politicians supporting it.
The other one, the anti-Prop 106 flier, was easily the class of the entire group. Though that sentence will be the only time I use the word 'class' to describe it. :)
It's a sheet of thick, glossy paper (I'm sure there's a trade name for it, but I'm just as sure that I'm not in the printing business and don't know the name :) ) that unfolds to a 10X14 page headline by a faux news article. The "article" implies that the AZ Supreme Court has found something illegal with the proposition.
This is misleading, because it hasn't.
Below that is a list of "educators, ranchers, taxpayers and concerned citizens" as well as some organizations that oppose Prop 106. It's a fun list, with moderate luminaries such as Sen. Jack Harper, Rep. Laura Knaperek, Rep. Russell Pierce [sic - like misspelling his name will make people think that there's another Rep named 'Russell' that supports garbage like this. LOL], Jean McGrath and others.
And then, the capper.
The whole thing unfolds into a 20X28 poster showing the text of the proposition with sections highlighted and lines running to apocryphal comments in the margins. Comments with copious quantities of 'hot-button' words and phrases like "lawyer", "land grab", and "special interests."
All in all, a very professionally done if thoroughly misleading piece of propaganda.
Today's mail, however, had the piece de resistance.
A letter from JD.
Whooo hoooo!!
My Congressman has sent me a personal letter!
OK, so the envelope was addressed to my full name, which is used only on voter registration rolls, and it opens with "Dear Friend". And the signature is printed, not handwritten.
Hey - at least the sig is in blue. :)
In his letter, he talks about his "record" after 12 years in Congress, he talks about illegal immigration (a lot!), he talks about tax cuts, and he even mentions alternative sources of energy in the last paragraph.
Funny, but for all of his talk about his record, he doesn't talk about his record of ethical missteps.
Funny, but for all of his talk about what he will do in the future, he doesn't mention stem cell research even once.
He also reiterates the lie that Harry Mitchell ("my opponent" in the letter) supports giving Social Security benefits to illegal aliens that has already been refuted. (JD's campaign website has a refutation of the refutation up today, but I'll cover that later.)
Later!
Reminder - CD5 Forum tomorrow night
This was covered in last week's calendar post, but it's worthy of another mention...
Straight from the Mitchell For Congress campaign website:
Note: I don't know if Warren Severin, the Libertarian candidate for CD5, will be there along with Harry and JD. I'll try to find out and will update later.
Gotta go!
Straight from the Mitchell For Congress campaign website:
October 17: National Council of Jewish Women Candidate ForumCome on out to see Harry show why he is a better choice for CD5 than JD Hayworth.
Where: Temple Beth Israel, 10460
N. 56th Street, Scottsdale
When:
Meet us ahead of time at 7:00 p.m, debate is from 7:30 - 9:00 p.m
Cost: FREE!
Details: For more information call Lauren at
480-755-3343.
Note: I don't know if Warren Severin, the Libertarian candidate for CD5, will be there along with Harry and JD. I'll try to find out and will update later.
Gotta go!
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Campaign finance reports are up
at the FEC's website.
JD has a press release on his campaign website touting his numbers and pooh-poohing how much support Harry is receiving. The finance reports weren't up until today (Sunday) and since I like to work with the actual numbers, I waited to do a post on the subject.
Damn, I'm glad I waited. :)
For the period from 8/24/2006 through 9/30/2006, JD Hayworth outraised Harry Mitchell by by over $161,000.
That means he outraised Harry by $32,000 per week for the period.
Pretty discouraging, right?
Until you look at a breakdown of the numbers.
All of JD's money advantage is in contributions from PACs.
All of it.
He picked up $256,450.38 from PACs during the period; Harry received $91,543. That's a difference of $164,907.38.
If JD's obvious and utter sellout to corporations and industry PACs doesn't open up the eyes of his remaining supporters, how about this -
In the area of contributions from individuals, Harry raised $225,803.04; JD raised $222,474.10.
JD, the "vaunted" campaigner, was outraised (in $$$) and outhustled (in raw number of contributors) in outreach to individuals by Harry Mitchell.
Those numbers speak of the kind of grassroots support that turns incumbents out of office.
Recent polls have given hope, but while JD Hayworth and Rick Renzi are poor excuses for Congressmen, they are very good campaigners.
Now is the time to redouble our efforts.
I don't normally do this, but tonight I'm asking everyone in AZ to donate to the campaigns of Harry Mitchell, Gabrielle Giffords and/or Ellen Simon.
And whether or not you can contribute money, if you live in one of the districts, volunteer for one of the campaigns.
Talk to your friends and neighbors.
Display a yard sign or bumper sticker.
And above all, VOTE!
We have a chance, no guarantees here, but we have a fighting chance, to turn the AZ Congressional delegation on its ear.
We could have 5!! Arizona Democrats in the next Congress. Six months ago, we'd have been ecstatic at 3; now, three weeks from the election, only 3 would be a disappointment.
No more shrugging our shoulders and saying that we "fought the good fight".
No more hoping for the FBI or FEC to take down the more corrupt members of the AZ delegation for us.
Let's do it ourselves.
All it will take is 3 more weeks of effort from all of us.
Good night!
JD has a press release on his campaign website touting his numbers and pooh-poohing how much support Harry is receiving. The finance reports weren't up until today (Sunday) and since I like to work with the actual numbers, I waited to do a post on the subject.
Damn, I'm glad I waited. :)
For the period from 8/24/2006 through 9/30/2006, JD Hayworth outraised Harry Mitchell by by over $161,000.
That means he outraised Harry by $32,000 per week for the period.
Pretty discouraging, right?
Until you look at a breakdown of the numbers.
All of JD's money advantage is in contributions from PACs.
All of it.
He picked up $256,450.38 from PACs during the period; Harry received $91,543. That's a difference of $164,907.38.
If JD's obvious and utter sellout to corporations and industry PACs doesn't open up the eyes of his remaining supporters, how about this -
In the area of contributions from individuals, Harry raised $225,803.04; JD raised $222,474.10.
JD, the "vaunted" campaigner, was outraised (in $$$) and outhustled (in raw number of contributors) in outreach to individuals by Harry Mitchell.
Those numbers speak of the kind of grassroots support that turns incumbents out of office.
Recent polls have given hope, but while JD Hayworth and Rick Renzi are poor excuses for Congressmen, they are very good campaigners.
Now is the time to redouble our efforts.
I don't normally do this, but tonight I'm asking everyone in AZ to donate to the campaigns of Harry Mitchell, Gabrielle Giffords and/or Ellen Simon.
And whether or not you can contribute money, if you live in one of the districts, volunteer for one of the campaigns.
Talk to your friends and neighbors.
Display a yard sign or bumper sticker.
And above all, VOTE!
We have a chance, no guarantees here, but we have a fighting chance, to turn the AZ Congressional delegation on its ear.
We could have 5!! Arizona Democrats in the next Congress. Six months ago, we'd have been ecstatic at 3; now, three weeks from the election, only 3 would be a disappointment.
No more shrugging our shoulders and saying that we "fought the good fight".
No more hoping for the FBI or FEC to take down the more corrupt members of the AZ delegation for us.
Let's do it ourselves.
All it will take is 3 more weeks of effort from all of us.
Good night!
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Mail-in ballot problems in Colorado
Breaking news from DenverPost.com:
Oops.
Their vendor was the one responsible for the instructions. Now, they will have to reimburse the post office for any shortfall in postage. If all of the 44,000 affected ballots are returned, that comes to over $10,000, and that's not counting the effects of the bad PR come contract renewal time.
Their vendor? Sequoia Voting Systems. The very same Sequoia Voting Systems that is so well-trusted here in AZ.
The only good note is that Denver's elections commission has assured everyone concerned that "No ballot will be refused."
The return envelope sent out with Denver's absentee ballots instructs voters to affix postage that's 24 cents less than the mailing actually costs.
{snip}
As of Wednesday, the Denver Election Commission said about 44,000 ballots went out to residents. Each of those had a return envelope that instructed voters to include postage for 63 cents.
But the 2.3 ounce package costs 87 cents to mail - 24 cents more than the instructions indicate.
Oops.
Their vendor was the one responsible for the instructions. Now, they will have to reimburse the post office for any shortfall in postage. If all of the 44,000 affected ballots are returned, that comes to over $10,000, and that's not counting the effects of the bad PR come contract renewal time.
Their vendor? Sequoia Voting Systems. The very same Sequoia Voting Systems that is so well-trusted here in AZ.
The only good note is that Denver's elections commission has assured everyone concerned that "No ballot will be refused."
At least we know that the ever-vigilant Jan Brewer is on the case here, right?
Later!Upcoming events....
I haven’t done a calendar post for a couple of weeks, so it’s time for another (most info culled from campaign websites and other online sources):
Tonight, Jim Pederson will be speaking at the Har Zion Congregation in Scottsdale at 7:00 p.m. Former Congressman Sam Coppersmith will be making the opening remarks.
On Saturday, October 14, Jim Pederson will be making a number of appearances in the Tucson area with luminaries such as Congressman Raul Grijalva, Governor Janet Napolitano, and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.
Also in Pederson news, the debates with Jon Kyl will be televised on Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Contact the Pederson campaign for details on these events at (602) 262-2006 (Phoenix) or (520) 903-2006 (Tucson).
On Sunday, October 15 –
The GEMDEMS and LD19 Dems are holding a picnic/rally/fundraiser at Riverview Park in Mesa. Candidates scheduled to appear include Govenor Janet Napolitano, Harry Mitchell, Israel Torres, Rano Singh, Mark Manoil, Ric Boyer, Jason Williams, Donna Gratehouse,Steven Zachary, Lara Wibeto, Napoleon Pisano, Glenn Ray, Phil Hettsmansperger and more!
Festivities start at 1 p.m. Contact GEMDEMS at 480-924-3367 for more details and ticket information.
Harry Mitchell is busy on Tuesday, October 17 –
He has a house party at the home of writer/activist Joanie Flatt. The special guest is Governor Janet Napolitano. Festivities run from 6 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. Contact the campaign at 755-3343 for details.
Immediately after that, there’s a forum sponsored by the National Council of Jewish Women at Temple Beth Israel at 10460 N. 56th Street in Scottsdale. The debate starts at 7:30 p.m. Again, contact the campaign at 755-3343 for more details.
Thursday, October 19 –
There is a Go Vote 2006 Concert with Jimmy Eat World, The Format, Monique Reagan and Stiletto Formal at the Clubhouse Music Venue at 1320 E. Broadway Road in Tempe. Doors open at 6 p.m.; the show starts at 7. Tickets are $22. Contact the Mitchell campaign at 755-3343 for details.
The LD8 Dems welcome Israel Torres as their guest at their meeting in the Scottsdale Civic Center Library auditorium. Refreshments start at 6:15 p.m.; the program starts at 6:45. Contact the LD8 office at 480-596-8350 for more information.
In the latest stop on his Raging Hypocrisy/Pre-Presidential Candidate Tour, Newt Gingrich will be in town at a fundraising luncheon for JD at the Westin Kierland in Scottsdale. Glad-handing and back-slapping from 11:00 a.m. until 1 p.m. Contact the Farewell to JD campaign for more details. [What?!? You think that the language sounds a little biased? Like you’re shocked that I’m partisan. lol. ]
Later!
Tonight, Jim Pederson will be speaking at the Har Zion Congregation in Scottsdale at 7:00 p.m. Former Congressman Sam Coppersmith will be making the opening remarks.
On Saturday, October 14, Jim Pederson will be making a number of appearances in the Tucson area with luminaries such as Congressman Raul Grijalva, Governor Janet Napolitano, and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.
Also in Pederson news, the debates with Jon Kyl will be televised on Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Contact the Pederson campaign for details on these events at (602) 262-2006 (Phoenix) or (520) 903-2006 (Tucson).
On Sunday, October 15 –
The GEMDEMS and LD19 Dems are holding a picnic/rally/fundraiser at Riverview Park in Mesa. Candidates scheduled to appear include Govenor Janet Napolitano, Harry Mitchell, Israel Torres, Rano Singh, Mark Manoil, Ric Boyer, Jason Williams, Donna Gratehouse,Steven Zachary, Lara Wibeto, Napoleon Pisano, Glenn Ray, Phil Hettsmansperger and more!
Festivities start at 1 p.m. Contact GEMDEMS at 480-924-3367 for more details and ticket information.
Harry Mitchell is busy on Tuesday, October 17 –
He has a house party at the home of writer/activist Joanie Flatt. The special guest is Governor Janet Napolitano. Festivities run from 6 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. Contact the campaign at 755-3343 for details.
Immediately after that, there’s a forum sponsored by the National Council of Jewish Women at Temple Beth Israel at 10460 N. 56th Street in Scottsdale. The debate starts at 7:30 p.m. Again, contact the campaign at 755-3343 for more details.
Thursday, October 19 –
There is a Go Vote 2006 Concert with Jimmy Eat World, The Format, Monique Reagan and Stiletto Formal at the Clubhouse Music Venue at 1320 E. Broadway Road in Tempe. Doors open at 6 p.m.; the show starts at 7. Tickets are $22. Contact the Mitchell campaign at 755-3343 for details.
The LD8 Dems welcome Israel Torres as their guest at their meeting in the Scottsdale Civic Center Library auditorium. Refreshments start at 6:15 p.m.; the program starts at 6:45. Contact the LD8 office at 480-596-8350 for more information.
In the latest stop on his Raging Hypocrisy/Pre-Presidential Candidate Tour, Newt Gingrich will be in town at a fundraising luncheon for JD at the Westin Kierland in Scottsdale. Glad-handing and back-slapping from 11:00 a.m. until 1 p.m. Contact the Farewell to JD campaign for more details. [What?!? You think that the language sounds a little biased? Like you’re shocked that I’m partisan. lol. ]
Later!
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Rick Renzi (R-Mantech) under the ethics microscope yet again
And it's not just the FEC this time.
The Phoenix New Times has an article by Sarah Fenske exposing Rick Renzi's shady land dealings in his district.
Part of the scam included the 1992 sale of 1/2 of his real estate investment company to a partner for $200,000, followed by the sale of the rest of the business for between $1 million and $5 million to the same partner, after he was in Congress.
Later, he pushed legislation that benefited the same man, James Sandlin.
The article is a good one, and I strongly recommend reading it.
The best quote is from Mr. Sandlin.
Mr. Sandlin needs to get out more. Other people who know the good Congressman have a somewhat different opinion.
The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington rates our Rick as one of the "20 most corrupt members of Congress."
Plugged In's take on the take on the news is here.
AZ Congresswatch's coverage here.
A Sierra Vista Herald article on a proposed land swap that's dissected by Fenske in her article is here. (Thanks to anisozet at DailyKos for the link.)
Anisozet's diary entry at DailyKos on the subject is here.
Nothing on the Ellen Simon for Congress website as yet, but I expect that to change soon.
Nothing on the AZDems website, but I expect that to change soon.
Nothing on the Renzi for Congress website, and I *don't* expect that to change anytime soon. :))
Kudos to Ms. Fenske on her story. Maybe there's hope for investigative reporting in the state even after the loss of John Dougherty.
Later!
On edit: I may have spoken too soon. I checked my email a few minutes ago. The Simon campaign is already on it. :)
End edit.
The Phoenix New Times has an article by Sarah Fenske exposing Rick Renzi's shady land dealings in his district.
Part of the scam included the 1992 sale of 1/2 of his real estate investment company to a partner for $200,000, followed by the sale of the rest of the business for between $1 million and $5 million to the same partner, after he was in Congress.
Later, he pushed legislation that benefited the same man, James Sandlin.
The article is a good one, and I strongly recommend reading it.
The best quote is from Mr. Sandlin.
"Rick Renzi is one of the most honest and ethical people I've ever met in my life."
Mr. Sandlin needs to get out more. Other people who know the good Congressman have a somewhat different opinion.
The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington rates our Rick as one of the "20 most corrupt members of Congress."
Plugged In's take on the take on the news is here.
AZ Congresswatch's coverage here.
A Sierra Vista Herald article on a proposed land swap that's dissected by Fenske in her article is here. (Thanks to anisozet at DailyKos for the link.)
Anisozet's diary entry at DailyKos on the subject is here.
Nothing on the Ellen Simon for Congress website as yet, but I expect that to change soon.
Nothing on the AZDems website, but I expect that to change soon.
Nothing on the Renzi for Congress website, and I *don't* expect that to change anytime soon. :))
Kudos to Ms. Fenske on her story. Maybe there's hope for investigative reporting in the state even after the loss of John Dougherty.
Later!
On edit: I may have spoken too soon. I checked my email a few minutes ago. The Simon campaign is already on it. :)
End edit.
Yes on 201, No on 206
I was a little bit on the undecided side, but science rocks my world (let's see...that's reason number 1,485 on the list of "Reasons why I will never be a Republican" LOL.)
Later!
Later!
Rally with Barack, Janet, Harry, Jim, Israel, Rano, et. al.
From the AZ Dem website (links added by me):
It'll be a great way to kick off the homestretch of the election drive (2 weeks at that point) and if you've got an hour to spare, turn out to welcome Sen. Obama to Arizona and cheer on a great group of candidates.
The Arizona Democratic Party is pleased to welcome Senator Barack Obama of Illinois to our great state.
RSVP to attend our Get Out the Vote Rally with Sen. Obama, Governor Napolitano, Attorney General Goddard, U.S. Senate Candidate Jim Pederson, and Congressional Candidate Harry Mitchell. This exciting event will take place at Tempe City Hall/Sixth Street Park on Monday, October 23rd from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
Also joining us are Congressional candidates Ellen Simon, Herb Paine, and John Thrasher, Legislative District 17 Candidates Meg Burton-Cahill, Ed Ableser, and David Schapira, and statewide candidates Israel Torres and Rano Singh, as well as other dignitaries.
Tempe City Hall is located on 31 East 5th Street. In order for us to accurately project attendance, your RSVP is required by Friday, October 20th.
To RSVP or if you have any questions about the event please contact the Arizona Democratic Party headquarters at 602-298-4200.
It'll be a great way to kick off the homestretch of the election drive (2 weeks at that point) and if you've got an hour to spare, turn out to welcome Sen. Obama to Arizona and cheer on a great group of candidates.
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Hobson's choice in LD18
Pity the poor residents of LD18.
They have a fine candidate for state legislature in Tammie Pursley. She's smart and practical and hard working and deeply cares about the district. She'll be a great addition to the state house of representatives.
Unfortunately, there are *two* seats in the lege for LD18, which leaves the voters of the district in a bind, one that they cannot escape. They will be stuck with at least one representative who is an embarrassment to civil people everywhere. Even if they don't vote for either one.
On the one hand, they could get Mark Anderson, an incumbent who actively worked against a bill that made spousal rape a crime on the same severity and penalty level as any other rape.
On the other hand, they could send Russell Pearce back to the legislature.
The same Russell Pearce who wants to start up Operation Wetback.
The same Russell Pearce who quotes neo-Nazis in his campaign emails.
The same Russell Pearce who is so embarrassing that the normally shameless JD Hayworth has withdrawn his endorsement of Pearce.
I know that sometimes we have to hold our noses while we pick the lesser of two evils, but what if there's no 'lesser' evil to select? Just 'different'?
Is it too late to start up a write-in campaign in LD18?
They have a fine candidate for state legislature in Tammie Pursley. She's smart and practical and hard working and deeply cares about the district. She'll be a great addition to the state house of representatives.
Unfortunately, there are *two* seats in the lege for LD18, which leaves the voters of the district in a bind, one that they cannot escape. They will be stuck with at least one representative who is an embarrassment to civil people everywhere. Even if they don't vote for either one.
On the one hand, they could get Mark Anderson, an incumbent who actively worked against a bill that made spousal rape a crime on the same severity and penalty level as any other rape.
On the other hand, they could send Russell Pearce back to the legislature.
The same Russell Pearce who wants to start up Operation Wetback.
The same Russell Pearce who quotes neo-Nazis in his campaign emails.
The same Russell Pearce who is so embarrassing that the normally shameless JD Hayworth has withdrawn his endorsement of Pearce.
I know that sometimes we have to hold our noses while we pick the lesser of two evils, but what if there's no 'lesser' evil to select? Just 'different'?
Is it too late to start up a write-in campaign in LD18?
Whatthehell is CAWCD?
In my travels, I keep running across signs for races for offices that I've never heard of, much less where I knew anything about any of the candidates.
One of those races is the one for "CAWCD." Not knowing what that stands for, I did a quick search, and found out that CAWCD is the acronym for "Central Arizona Water Conservation District."
Those elected to it serve as the board of directors for the Central Arizona Project (CAP).
For those of you who live under a rock, or in another state, CAP is a canal built to bring water from the Colorado River to central and southern Arizona. The CAWCD was formed to administer and operate the infrastructure needed to do that.
According to the Maricopa County Recorder's office, there are 11 candidates for 5 open spots on the 15-member board.
I decided to write up a listing of the official candidates, with a brief bio culled from online sources. While I will mention party affiliation where known, this is a non-partisan board, and the party affiliation info is only for a little context. I won't be endorsing any of the candidates until I learn more about them.
On edit2: I've decided on my votes, though they are subject to change. I haven't met any of them in person, so my evaluations are based on their backgrounds. The list of the candidates that I'll be voting for at the end of the post.
Oh, and for the record, I believe that any candidate who believes that water management in our desert is a partisan issue is not qualified for the office. Period.
The Arizona Republic's recommendations here. The Rep states that they interviewed 12 candidates. If anyone knows who the 12th is, let me know, and I'll update this post.
Note: I was pondering this post before I knew that the Rep had done any pieces on this race.
Candidates, listed in alphabetical order:
Lisa Atkins. Incumbent. Ran for the Republican nomination for the CD2 Congressional seat in 2002, later won by Trent Franks. Currently employed by the County Supervisors Association of Arizona as Executive Director. She was/is also a member of a number of boards in the area.
Frank Barrios. Incumbent. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Now retired from a career working with water resources (he has a civil engineering degree), he is currently very active with charitable, historical, and cultural organizations in Maricopa county.
George Brooks. Incumbent. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Currently employed by the Gila River Indian Community, among other places. He is very actively involved in environmental management, as his education background would indicate - BS, Zoology; MS, Biology; PhD, Wildlife and Fisheries resources.
Gayle Burns. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Wife of State Senator Bob Burns. Most of the search hits for her came back as some variation on the "spouse of Bob Burns" theme. Her questionnaire lists 'property management and investments' as her occupation. She is active in some merchants' organizations in Glendale.
Sam George. I'm having trouble doing a search for info. He's got a profoundly lousy name to use in search parameters. He did get the most signatures on his nominating petitions of all of the candidates, even the incumbents. He had 1064; of the other candidates, only Lisa Atkins had more than 500. That speaks well for his organization, if nothing else. While the Rep didn't endorse him, they didn't trash him either. They listed him in the "Several of the challengers have done their homework and would be credible additions to the board " paragraph of their editorial.
I'll continue to look for info on him.
On edit: I drove by one of Mr. George's signs today, and noted that there was a website listed on it, AZWater.org. While the website is listed on his campaign signs, it doesn't read like a campaign site. There's no candidate bio, no donations page, no 'vote for me' request.
There *is* a lot of information on water issues in AZ, though.
end edit.
Ed King. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Retired farmer and former member of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors. Active in GPEC and other local organizations.
Jean McGrath. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Former Republican legislator in the AZ House. Currently owns a nursery and a self-storage business. Active with the Salvation Army and other charitable organizations.
Richard Morrison. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Campaign website here. Currently an attorney and heavily involved with family agricultural businesses (farming and ranching.) Also has served with many local civic organizations.
William Perry. Not The Fridge. :) Incumbent. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Currently serves as president of CAWCD. Lists his occupation as farmer. His educational background includes a degree in agribusiness. He has served/is active in a number of organizations.
Pam Pickard. Currently an elementary school administrator in the Littleton Elementary School District. A strong supporter of Jon Kyl. [Hey, it seems that everything that comes back on her search is either related to her job, or to Republican politics. I didn't want to include it, but it's what I have available.]
George Renner. Incumbent. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Retired from insurance and real estate sales. Former mayor and city councilmember in Glendale. Active in a number of civic organizations.
Janie Thom. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Campaign website here. Lists occupation as investor. Former member of the Mesa City Council. She was something of a controversial figure while she was a member of the council. Very active in local civic organizations and the Republican party.
Note: most of the information above was culled from the AZ Rep questionnaires that I linked to, or from the CAWCD bios of incumbents that I also linked to. Any factual errors are either from the sources, or were from my own attempts at brevity. I apologize now for any that are my responsibility.
If any of the candidates or their supporters wish to correct any info given here, please leave a comment or contact me at cpmaz at yahoo.com.
Note2: I did a quick search through the Maricopa County Recorder's Office campaign finance reporting database on most of these candidates. I didn't find anything really interesting in terms of the contributions that they have received, but haven't had time for a really thorough search as yet.
On edit2 (continued from above): I'll be voting for the following candidates:
Frank Barrios and George Brooks are no-brainers. The educational and professional backgrounds that they bring to the board are different but both have focused on water resource management for their entire professional lives. If those two aren't qualified for the job, no one in Arizona is.
Lisa Atkins' background is a little less strong, but is still more than enough to qualify her for a job where part of the job it to negotiate water allocations with other western states. Perhaps she's more of a pure politician than the others, but that can be useful.
The next two choices are tougher. George Renner, Sam George, and Richard Morrison all have their strengths, but none of them is overwhelmingly qualified, at least based on what I can find online. When it comes time to fill out my ballot, two of those three will get my vote.
As for most of the rest, they're ok, but not better than the ones I've named.
I do think that three candidates stand out for their utter lack of qualifications for the position.
Janie Thom was noted for bringing partisanship to a non-partisan body when she was a member of the Mesa City Council. There's no reason to think that she would be any different here, and that's not was the CAWCD or the state needs.
Gayle Burns is most notable, at least based on what I can find, for being married to Bob Burns. Ummm...it's the 21st century. It's OK for a woman to be recognized for who she is more than who she's married to.
Jean McGrath..hmmm. How do I put this? When she was in the lege, her crowning achievement was to propose a bill to ban opposite sex visitation in the dorms of Arizona's public universities. See the link in the above blurb on her.
With apologies to some of the legislators and candidates for the lege that I have come to know and respect over the past few months, we can ignore that kind of stuff from our legislature. It's pretty much a playpen for overgrown Republican infantilists. So long as the Governor's veto is protected, the damage they can do is limited.
However, the CAWCD deals with our *water*. That's a serious subject that affects all of us, and it requires serious people to address it.
Jean McGrath? Not. Even. Close.
End edit2.
Gotta go. Later!
One of those races is the one for "CAWCD." Not knowing what that stands for, I did a quick search, and found out that CAWCD is the acronym for "Central Arizona Water Conservation District."
Those elected to it serve as the board of directors for the Central Arizona Project (CAP).
For those of you who live under a rock, or in another state, CAP is a canal built to bring water from the Colorado River to central and southern Arizona. The CAWCD was formed to administer and operate the infrastructure needed to do that.
According to the Maricopa County Recorder's office, there are 11 candidates for 5 open spots on the 15-member board.
I decided to write up a listing of the official candidates, with a brief bio culled from online sources. While I will mention party affiliation where known, this is a non-partisan board, and the party affiliation info is only for a little context. I won't be endorsing any of the candidates until I learn more about them.
On edit2: I've decided on my votes, though they are subject to change. I haven't met any of them in person, so my evaluations are based on their backgrounds. The list of the candidates that I'll be voting for at the end of the post.
Oh, and for the record, I believe that any candidate who believes that water management in our desert is a partisan issue is not qualified for the office. Period.
The Arizona Republic's recommendations here. The Rep states that they interviewed 12 candidates. If anyone knows who the 12th is, let me know, and I'll update this post.
Note: I was pondering this post before I knew that the Rep had done any pieces on this race.
Candidates, listed in alphabetical order:
Lisa Atkins. Incumbent. Ran for the Republican nomination for the CD2 Congressional seat in 2002, later won by Trent Franks. Currently employed by the County Supervisors Association of Arizona as Executive Director. She was/is also a member of a number of boards in the area.
Frank Barrios. Incumbent. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Now retired from a career working with water resources (he has a civil engineering degree), he is currently very active with charitable, historical, and cultural organizations in Maricopa county.
George Brooks. Incumbent. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Currently employed by the Gila River Indian Community, among other places. He is very actively involved in environmental management, as his education background would indicate - BS, Zoology; MS, Biology; PhD, Wildlife and Fisheries resources.
Gayle Burns. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Wife of State Senator Bob Burns. Most of the search hits for her came back as some variation on the "spouse of Bob Burns" theme. Her questionnaire lists 'property management and investments' as her occupation. She is active in some merchants' organizations in Glendale.
Sam George. I'm having trouble doing a search for info. He's got a profoundly lousy name to use in search parameters. He did get the most signatures on his nominating petitions of all of the candidates, even the incumbents. He had 1064; of the other candidates, only Lisa Atkins had more than 500. That speaks well for his organization, if nothing else. While the Rep didn't endorse him, they didn't trash him either. They listed him in the "Several of the challengers have done their homework and would be credible additions to the board " paragraph of their editorial.
I'll continue to look for info on him.
On edit: I drove by one of Mr. George's signs today, and noted that there was a website listed on it, AZWater.org. While the website is listed on his campaign signs, it doesn't read like a campaign site. There's no candidate bio, no donations page, no 'vote for me' request.
There *is* a lot of information on water issues in AZ, though.
end edit.
Ed King. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Retired farmer and former member of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors. Active in GPEC and other local organizations.
Jean McGrath. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Former Republican legislator in the AZ House. Currently owns a nursery and a self-storage business. Active with the Salvation Army and other charitable organizations.
Richard Morrison. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Campaign website here. Currently an attorney and heavily involved with family agricultural businesses (farming and ranching.) Also has served with many local civic organizations.
William Perry. Not The Fridge. :) Incumbent. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Currently serves as president of CAWCD. Lists his occupation as farmer. His educational background includes a degree in agribusiness. He has served/is active in a number of organizations.
Pam Pickard. Currently an elementary school administrator in the Littleton Elementary School District. A strong supporter of Jon Kyl. [Hey, it seems that everything that comes back on her search is either related to her job, or to Republican politics. I didn't want to include it, but it's what I have available.]
George Renner. Incumbent. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Retired from insurance and real estate sales. Former mayor and city councilmember in Glendale. Active in a number of civic organizations.
Janie Thom. AZ Rep questionnaire here. Campaign website here. Lists occupation as investor. Former member of the Mesa City Council. She was something of a controversial figure while she was a member of the council. Very active in local civic organizations and the Republican party.
Note: most of the information above was culled from the AZ Rep questionnaires that I linked to, or from the CAWCD bios of incumbents that I also linked to. Any factual errors are either from the sources, or were from my own attempts at brevity. I apologize now for any that are my responsibility.
If any of the candidates or their supporters wish to correct any info given here, please leave a comment or contact me at cpmaz at yahoo.com.
Note2: I did a quick search through the Maricopa County Recorder's Office campaign finance reporting database on most of these candidates. I didn't find anything really interesting in terms of the contributions that they have received, but haven't had time for a really thorough search as yet.
On edit2 (continued from above): I'll be voting for the following candidates:
Frank Barrios and George Brooks are no-brainers. The educational and professional backgrounds that they bring to the board are different but both have focused on water resource management for their entire professional lives. If those two aren't qualified for the job, no one in Arizona is.
Lisa Atkins' background is a little less strong, but is still more than enough to qualify her for a job where part of the job it to negotiate water allocations with other western states. Perhaps she's more of a pure politician than the others, but that can be useful.
The next two choices are tougher. George Renner, Sam George, and Richard Morrison all have their strengths, but none of them is overwhelmingly qualified, at least based on what I can find online. When it comes time to fill out my ballot, two of those three will get my vote.
As for most of the rest, they're ok, but not better than the ones I've named.
I do think that three candidates stand out for their utter lack of qualifications for the position.
Janie Thom was noted for bringing partisanship to a non-partisan body when she was a member of the Mesa City Council. There's no reason to think that she would be any different here, and that's not was the CAWCD or the state needs.
Gayle Burns is most notable, at least based on what I can find, for being married to Bob Burns. Ummm...it's the 21st century. It's OK for a woman to be recognized for who she is more than who she's married to.
Jean McGrath..hmmm. How do I put this? When she was in the lege, her crowning achievement was to propose a bill to ban opposite sex visitation in the dorms of Arizona's public universities. See the link in the above blurb on her.
With apologies to some of the legislators and candidates for the lege that I have come to know and respect over the past few months, we can ignore that kind of stuff from our legislature. It's pretty much a playpen for overgrown Republican infantilists. So long as the Governor's veto is protected, the damage they can do is limited.
However, the CAWCD deals with our *water*. That's a serious subject that affects all of us, and it requires serious people to address it.
Jean McGrath? Not. Even. Close.
End edit2.
Gotta go. Later!
Monday, October 09, 2006
Buck O'Neil, 1911 - 2006
I would love to say that I saw him play, or even met him in his coaching days with the Cubs, but I'm not that old. [Not even close. :) ]
I'd love to say that I knew who he was before he was a major part of "Ken Burns' Baseball," but I didn't.
I'd love to say that his appearance in "Baseball" made me appreciate his many contributions to baseball, but I've never even seen all of the miniseries.
Nope, I had barely heard of him when I was at a baseball card show in 1995 in Phoenix where he was signing autographs. I could see that everyone near him was smiling and laughing and was intrigued. [Baseball card show? Yup, it's true. I was, am, and will forever be, a geek. :) ]
He was signing for $5 each, and since I had a few bucks to spare that day, I bought a ticket and stood in a pretty short line.
He was one of the nicest human beings that I have ever met.
He was funny and smart, and he listened to stories from...no...he got the people around him to tell their stories, and he listened to those stories as diligently as we listened to his. And he made us feel that our stories about Little League and high school ball with our friends were just as fascinating as his recollections of playing with and coaching some of the greatest ever.
There have been, and will be, many stories written about his accomplishments in baseball; those accomplishments are secondary to his accomplishments with people.
SI.com's Alex Belth has a great column here.
Funeral services are private, but there will be a public tribute in Kansas City, KS on Saturday.
John McCain's steady descent into puppethood continues...
Senator McCain seems to be following Colin Powell's playbook...
As reported in many places, including the AZ Daily Star, John McCain has endorsed David Duke's favorite candidate, Randy Graf, in CD8.
Now comes the news, touted by the Hayworth campaign, that he has endorsed JD.
Right now he seems to be reading the chapter titled "How to win your party's support by pissing away your credibility with everyone else."
As reported in many places, including the AZ Daily Star, John McCain has endorsed David Duke's favorite candidate, Randy Graf, in CD8.
Now comes the news, touted by the Hayworth campaign, that he has endorsed JD.
Right now he seems to be reading the chapter titled "How to win your party's support by pissing away your credibility with everyone else."
Old friends in the news...
OK, so maybe "friends" is too strong a word. :)
Thanks to Desert Beacon in Nevada for the heads-up.
It looks like Nathan Sproul and the purveyors of his ideology-fueled public fraud are back at it.
From Tennessean.com:
For those of you who need it, a little refresher about Liberty Consultants, also from the same article:
Good ol' Nathan has a long record of fraudulent voter registrations, and of fraudulently suppressing voter registrations, for the Republican Party. Here's a good example from the Baltimore Chronicle and Sentinel. Desert Rat Democrat has a good writeup about him too.
Blog for Arizona did a piece in July on his more recent activities, including his ties to Len Munsil and the folks behind Prop 107.
My question:
Doesn't Arizona have anything better to export than the likes of Nathan Sproul and JD Hayworth?
Well, unless that 'exporting' is a permanent thing and they become some other state's headaches. In that case, I'm all for it.
:)
Later!
Thanks to Desert Beacon in Nevada for the heads-up.
It looks like Nathan Sproul and the purveyors of his ideology-fueled public fraud are back at it.
From Tennessean.com:
A canvassing group hired by the Republican National Committee is responsible for 12 potentially phony voter-registration forms found in Davidson and Williamson counties, election officials said Friday.
Liberty Consultants also worked in Rutherford County...
For those of you who need it, a little refresher about Liberty Consultants, also from the same article:
Liberty Consultants workers were banned from Tennessee Wal-Marts in late August because of the group's partisan nature, namely its connection to former Arizona GOP leader and Christian Coalition activist Nathan Sproul.
Good ol' Nathan has a long record of fraudulent voter registrations, and of fraudulently suppressing voter registrations, for the Republican Party. Here's a good example from the Baltimore Chronicle and Sentinel. Desert Rat Democrat has a good writeup about him too.
Blog for Arizona did a piece in July on his more recent activities, including his ties to Len Munsil and the folks behind Prop 107.
My question:
Doesn't Arizona have anything better to export than the likes of Nathan Sproul and JD Hayworth?
Well, unless that 'exporting' is a permanent thing and they become some other state's headaches. In that case, I'm all for it.
:)
Later!
Friday, October 06, 2006
Plenty of finger-pointing going on...
But no one is taking responsibility.
Let's see....
So far the victimizer has blamed the following for his behavior, either directly or by implication:
The Republican Congressional leadership has blamed the following for their coverup, either directly or by implication:
Some have gone so far as to blame:
These lists are not complete, but you get the point.
Who have Foley and the Republican leadership *not* blamed?
You'd think that after spending years making Bill Clinton squirm because he wasn't willing tell the truth about his affair with Monica Lewinsky, they'd have learned the lesson of Clinton's folly.
Stand up.
Face up.
Shut up.
As in Stand up to scrutiny of what has happened.
As in Face up to what you have done, or should have done but didn't.
As in Shut up and take your medicine.
If I could speak to Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, respectively the House and Senate minority leaders, I would give them this advice -
On November 8th, probably one of you, and possibly both of you, is going to wake up as the leader of one of the houses of Congress.
Learn and apply the lessons that the Republicans have ignored. Do what is needed to regain the public trust that has been lost.
Give the Ethics Committee its teeth back.
Let it do its job.
And when a Democrat, inevitably, is involved in behavior that is unethical or even criminal, let him or her face the music.
There have been unethical Congressmen for as long as there has been a Congress; there always will be. That's just an unfortuate part of human nature.
However, so long as there is an honest, effective, and open system for dealing with them, public trust in Congress can be restored.
One other observation, as the big brother to two baby sisters (OK, so they aren't "babies" any more. Some instincts die hard. :) )
Does anyone believe that if the victims had been 16-year old girls that the uproar would be what it is today? Does any disbelieve that the furor has been primarily fueled by the fact that he was preying on boys?
If the victims were girls, the Reps and theo-cons, and even many Dems, would "tut-tut" about the whole affair, saying many of the same words they are saying now, but those words would be accompanied by winks and nudges.
And high fives once the TV cameras were off.
That pisses me off almost as much as the actual scandal.
Good night everyone.
Let's see....
So far the victimizer has blamed the following for his behavior, either directly or by implication:
Booze.
Priests.
The Republican Congressional leadership has blamed the following for their coverup, either directly or by implication:
Bill Clinton.
George Soros.
Nancy Pelosi.
Democrats in general.
Kirk Fordham.
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW).
Some have gone so far as to blame:
The victims.
Gays in general.
These lists are not complete, but you get the point.
Who have Foley and the Republican leadership *not* blamed?
Mark Foley and the Republican leadership.
You'd think that after spending years making Bill Clinton squirm because he wasn't willing tell the truth about his affair with Monica Lewinsky, they'd have learned the lesson of Clinton's folly.
Stand up.
Face up.
Shut up.
As in Stand up to scrutiny of what has happened.
As in Face up to what you have done, or should have done but didn't.
As in Shut up and take your medicine.
If I could speak to Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, respectively the House and Senate minority leaders, I would give them this advice -
On November 8th, probably one of you, and possibly both of you, is going to wake up as the leader of one of the houses of Congress.
Learn and apply the lessons that the Republicans have ignored. Do what is needed to regain the public trust that has been lost.
Give the Ethics Committee its teeth back.
Let it do its job.
And when a Democrat, inevitably, is involved in behavior that is unethical or even criminal, let him or her face the music.
There have been unethical Congressmen for as long as there has been a Congress; there always will be. That's just an unfortuate part of human nature.
However, so long as there is an honest, effective, and open system for dealing with them, public trust in Congress can be restored.
One other observation, as the big brother to two baby sisters (OK, so they aren't "babies" any more. Some instincts die hard. :) )
Does anyone believe that if the victims had been 16-year old girls that the uproar would be what it is today? Does any disbelieve that the furor has been primarily fueled by the fact that he was preying on boys?
If the victims were girls, the Reps and theo-cons, and even many Dems, would "tut-tut" about the whole affair, saying many of the same words they are saying now, but those words would be accompanied by winks and nudges.
And high fives once the TV cameras were off.
That pisses me off almost as much as the actual scandal.
Good night everyone.
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