Talked with a friend while she filled out her mail-in ballot tonight, and it was eye-opening.
She voted for the Democratic candidates including Harry Mitchell. Turns out she lives in one of Chandler's CD5 precincts . (Whooo hooo!)
I expected that, however, since while she's not as politically active as I am, she does have a pretty liberal view on life.
She generally voted the 'liberal' way on the ballot propositions, except for most of the ones related to illegal immigrants. She was in a car accident caused by an illegal immigrant, and still has medical issues related to that accident. Issues that aren't covered by any insurance or health plan, because she didn't have health coverage, and the driver that caused the accident didn't have auto insurance.
Hence, she's still pissed.
I knew about the accident and while I disagreed with her choices (and told her so), I could understand her motivation.
That wasn't the 'eye-opening' part that I mentioned at the beginning of this post.
What was eye-opening was her primary motivation for voting, and voting early, this time.
Prop 107.
When she pulled out her ballot, before looking at any of the races for office or at any of the other ballot questions, she immediately sought out Prop 107. In fact, it was all she talked about, and talked about "colorfully," at that.
Turns out that she loves her big brother more than anything in the world, and he's very openly gay.
And NOBODY gets to mess with him.
So far, it's only anecdotal evidence, but she's not the first person that I've met that is similarly focused on Prop 107, just the one that I know best.
Perhaps the theo-cons will realize they made a mistake with this measure.
It *will* draw out their base on Election Day (whether it will do a better job of "drawing out" than their ethical issues and Iraq do of "turning off" their base remains to be seen) , but it seems to be motivating a number of heretofore disinterested but otherwise liberal people to vote this year.
And, after the election, when Len Munsil looks back to try to figure out where it all went wrong, he's going to look at his measure, the one attacking same-sex marriage and unmarried couples of any combination, and say
"Oops."
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Hayworth (R-Coward) and Renzi (R-Mantech): The Growing Fame Edition
In case you've been living under a cactus and haven't heard yet, Rick Renzi in under investigation by the feds for some "creative" land deals, and for possibly introducing legislation in Congress to benefit his father's company, defense contractor Mantech International.
WaPo has it...
Tucson Citizen has it...
UPI/Washington Times has it...
The Phoenix New Times may have started the ball rolling...
and Lofty Donkey is still ALL OVER it... [Gotta give credit where it's due - great job LD!]
In fact, most of the blogosphere has it. Except for political blogs with a *certain* bent...
Anyway, when contacted, a spokesman for the Ellen Simon for Congress campaign had no comment, as they are still learning about it at the same time as everyone else.
The press office for Rick Renzi has not responded to a phone message as of this writing. (I left the message a couple of hours ago.)
As for our JD?
The story of last week's fiasco at Temple Beth Israel doesn't have legs anymore.
It has wings. [And not the Red Bull variety, even though there is a lot of 'bull' in the air when JD is around.]
Arutz Sheva, IsraelNationalNews.com has it,
as does JTA.com (Jewish Telegraphic Agency).
Oh, and *still* no apology from JD and his campaign.
Go Harry!
Later!!
WaPo has it...
Tucson Citizen has it...
UPI/Washington Times has it...
The Phoenix New Times may have started the ball rolling...
and Lofty Donkey is still ALL OVER it... [Gotta give credit where it's due - great job LD!]
In fact, most of the blogosphere has it. Except for political blogs with a *certain* bent...
Anyway, when contacted, a spokesman for the Ellen Simon for Congress campaign had no comment, as they are still learning about it at the same time as everyone else.
The press office for Rick Renzi has not responded to a phone message as of this writing. (I left the message a couple of hours ago.)
As for our JD?
The story of last week's fiasco at Temple Beth Israel doesn't have legs anymore.
It has wings. [And not the Red Bull variety, even though there is a lot of 'bull' in the air when JD is around.]
Arutz Sheva, IsraelNationalNews.com has it,
as does JTA.com (Jewish Telegraphic Agency).
Oh, and *still* no apology from JD and his campaign.
Go Harry!
Later!!
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
The Renzi indictment is still a rumor, but the investigation isn't...
From AP (via KOLD in Tucson):
Serious props to Lofty Donkey for being on this well before anyone else, and also to Tedski, both for being on it early on and for the info about Grant Woods being his defense attorney, confirmed here.
Side note: JD has tried to make political hay against Harry Mitchell because he was endorsed by the same Grant Woods that Renzi has hired. Will JD support his embattled, soon-to-be-ex colleague, or is he going to throw Renzi under the bus?
Inquiring minds want to know. :)
Either way, expect the AZ blogosphere to erupt into dancing in the cyber-streets over this confirmation from AP. Whooooo Hooooo!!
On edit: I called both the Mitchell and Hayworth campaigns to see if they had any comment about the story.
Seth Scott, spokesman for Harry Mitchell, said that they have no comment about the story.
A spokesman/phone answerer for the Hayworth campaign declined comment stating that they did not know anything about any story, and he also declined to give his name, citing the same reason.
End edit.
A land deal involving Arizona Congressman Rick Renzi reportedly is being scrutinized by the U-S attorney's office in Arizona.
A law enforcement official in Washington says the inquiry is ongoing, the investigation has been under way for a few months and is still in its very early stages.
Serious props to Lofty Donkey for being on this well before anyone else, and also to Tedski, both for being on it early on and for the info about Grant Woods being his defense attorney, confirmed here.
Side note: JD has tried to make political hay against Harry Mitchell because he was endorsed by the same Grant Woods that Renzi has hired. Will JD support his embattled, soon-to-be-ex colleague, or is he going to throw Renzi under the bus?
Inquiring minds want to know. :)
Either way, expect the AZ blogosphere to erupt into dancing in the cyber-streets over this confirmation from AP. Whooooo Hooooo!!
On edit: I called both the Mitchell and Hayworth campaigns to see if they had any comment about the story.
Seth Scott, spokesman for Harry Mitchell, said that they have no comment about the story.
A spokesman/phone answerer for the Hayworth campaign declined comment stating that they did not know anything about any story, and he also declined to give his name, citing the same reason.
End edit.
Google Bomb time
Just doing my part on the GoogleBomb detail, plus this is a really good, though not comprehensive, summary of why the Republicans are in serious trouble.
--AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl
--AZ-01: Rick Renzi
--AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth
--CA-04: John Doolittle
--CA-11: Richard Pombo
--CA-50: Brian Bilbray
--CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave
--CO-05: Doug Lamborn
--CO-07: Rick O'Donnell
--CT-04: Christopher Shays
--FL-13: Vernon Buchanan
--FL-16: Joe Negron
--FL-22: Clay Shaw
--ID-01: Bill Sali
--IL-06: Peter Roskam
--IL-10: Mark Kirk
--IL-14: Dennis Hastert
--IN-02: Chris Chocola
--IN-08: John Hostettler
--IA-01: Mike Whalen
--KS-02: Jim Ryun
--KY-03: Anne Northup
--KY-04: Geoff Davis
--MD-Sen: Michael Steele
--MN-01: Gil Gutknecht
--MN-06: Michele Bachmann
--MO-Sen: Jim Talent
--MT-Sen: Conrad Burns
--NV-03: Jon Porter
--NH-02: Charlie Bass
--NJ-07: Mike Ferguson
--NM-01: Heather Wilson
--NY-03: Peter King
--NY-20: John Sweeney
--NY-26: Tom Reynolds
--NY-29: Randy Kuhl
--NC-08: Robin Hayes
--NC-11: Charles Taylor
--OH-01: Steve Chabot
--OH-02: Jean Schmidt
--OH-15: Deborah Pryce
--OH-18: Joy Padgett
--PA-04: Melissa Hart
--PA-07: Curt Weldon
--PA-08: Mike Fitzpatrick
--PA-10: Don Sherwood
--RI-Sen: Lincoln Chafee
--TN-Sen: Bob Corker
--VA-Sen: George Allen
--VA-10: Frank Wolf
--WA-Sen: Mike McGavick
--WA-08: Dave Reichert
--AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl
--AZ-01: Rick Renzi
--AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth
--CA-04: John Doolittle
--CA-11: Richard Pombo
--CA-50: Brian Bilbray
--CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave
--CO-05: Doug Lamborn
--CO-07: Rick O'Donnell
--CT-04: Christopher Shays
--FL-13: Vernon Buchanan
--FL-16: Joe Negron
--FL-22: Clay Shaw
--ID-01: Bill Sali
--IL-06: Peter Roskam
--IL-10: Mark Kirk
--IL-14: Dennis Hastert
--IN-02: Chris Chocola
--IN-08: John Hostettler
--IA-01: Mike Whalen
--KS-02: Jim Ryun
--KY-03: Anne Northup
--KY-04: Geoff Davis
--MD-Sen: Michael Steele
--MN-01: Gil Gutknecht
--MN-06: Michele Bachmann
--MO-Sen: Jim Talent
--MT-Sen: Conrad Burns
--NV-03: Jon Porter
--NH-02: Charlie Bass
--NJ-07: Mike Ferguson
--NM-01: Heather Wilson
--NY-03: Peter King
--NY-20: John Sweeney
--NY-26: Tom Reynolds
--NY-29: Randy Kuhl
--NC-08: Robin Hayes
--NC-11: Charles Taylor
--OH-01: Steve Chabot
--OH-02: Jean Schmidt
--OH-15: Deborah Pryce
--OH-18: Joy Padgett
--PA-04: Melissa Hart
--PA-07: Curt Weldon
--PA-08: Mike Fitzpatrick
--PA-10: Don Sherwood
--RI-Sen: Lincoln Chafee
--TN-Sen: Bob Corker
--VA-Sen: George Allen
--VA-10: Frank Wolf
--WA-Sen: Mike McGavick
--WA-08: Dave Reichert
The story of JD Hayworth's (R-Coward) fiasco at Temple Beth Israel has legs
The New York Times has it now, through CQPolitics (scroll down through the "Battleground Dispatches" until you reach AZ-05.)
BTW - still no apology from Hayworth or his campaign.
If JD has been trying to mend fences with the Jewish community in his district, this event has probably permanently undermined that effort.
At least according to AIPAC, which has condemned the remarks.
Later!
BTW - still no apology from Hayworth or his campaign.
If JD has been trying to mend fences with the Jewish community in his district, this event has probably permanently undermined that effort.
At least according to AIPAC, which has condemned the remarks.
Later!
Monday, October 23, 2006
Tonight's D17 ABIL forum
concerning health care and other disability-related issues.
Held at the Westside Community Center in Tempe, all four House candidates and both Senate candidates from D17 discussed a number of topics in a forum moderated by Edward L. Myers III, an attorney from the Arizona Center for Disability Law.
The event was sponsored by the Arizona Bridge to Independent Living (ABIL) and was facilitated by Amina Kruck, ABIL's Advocacy Unit Director.
The forum started with the two Senate candidates, Democrat Meg Burton-Cahill and Republican Rose Crutcher squaring off.
For most of their part of the forum, "squaring off" may be overstating the situation somewhat.
While their positions on the issues had slight differences, the differences were mostly in minor details, not basic substance.
Both support increased mental health crisis intervention training for law enforcement personnel; both say that AHCCCS doesn't properly cover oral health care for developmentally disabled adults; both support increased incentives for employment of people with disabilities - both spoke of infrastructure changes/improvements to facilitate this; Rose Crutcher mentioned improvements to Dial-A-Ride, Meg Burton-Cahill talked about housing near light rail. (This statement isn't meant to minimize their consideration of this and the other issues, but it does highlight the relatively minor differences in their positions in regards to disability issues.)
When asked about expanding independent living assistance to reduce institutionalization and dependency, both candidates feel it's a "quality of life issue" and strongly support it. They both spoke about family members and their experiences with institutionalizations due to health problems.
On the question of their opinions of the importance of voting, both candidates, actually, all 6 candidates tonight, support it.
What a shock!
Breaking News: Elected officials and wannabes support voting.
Stop the presses! :)
In her closing, Burton-Cahill called for incentives for caregivers and service workers for the disabled, saying "we expect so much" from caregivers and "give so little." She also spoke of her passion for the work, and how she has grown and matured from her tribulations as a passionate Democrat in a Republican-dominated legislature.
Crutcher closed by agreeing with Burton-Cahill on the topic of expanding programs for caregivers. She also cited her strong advocacy for children in the past and promised that would strongly advocate for the entire district when she is elected.
There was time left in the schedule, so the moderator accepted a few questions from the audience.
The first questioner asked if the candidates knew if there is anyone who is DDD-eligible but doesn't qualify for Arizona long-term care. Both candidates thought yes, but when asked "how many", neither one was sure, but both thought that "one is too many."
On the next question, Meg Burton-Cahill's fire came out a little. A questioner asked for clarification on the "oral health care" issue. In their original answers, both candidates focused on care for children. The questioner was curious about their thoughts on oral health care for developmentally disabled adults.
Crutcher's answer focused on "gaps" in coverage.
Burton-Cahill's answer showed some of the passion and outspokenness that she mentioned earlier.
She observed that while there has been advocacy on this issue in the past, nothing is in place right now because too many in the legislature won't make small investments that yield long-term benefits. [Note - Think 'penny-wise, pound-foolish,' Arizona-style.]
The part of the forum for the candidates for State Representative was somewhat more low-key than their previous forums, but they still found opportunities for "shots across the bow," statements that clearly defined the candidates as partisan candidates.
Both Republicans, Laura Knaperek and Dale Despain, tailored their openings to the audience/sponsors of the forum. Knaperek spoke about her experiences (prior to entering the lege) as director of the Arizona Consortium for Children with Chronic Illness; Despain spoke of his mother-in-law and two grandchildren with disability issues and the associated difficulties.
Democrat Ed Ableser opened with a more conventional general statement of his background and reasons that he is running.
His Democratic ballotmate David Schapira, like the Republicans, spoke of his personal experiences with disability issues, as he was born with cancer, and was well into his teens before the treatments cleared him. He admitted that he was fortunate to have the health insurance coverage that paid for those treaments, but decried the fact that so many Arizonans don't have coverage.
On this one, Schapira wasn't really tailoring his message, as he has spoken of this in other forums. Also, I'm not criticizing either of the Reps for tailoring their openings to the audience, nor am I criticizing Ableser for sticking to a more general bio in his. Both choices are legit rhetorical tactics. One assumes that the audience is a "single-issue" audience; the other assumes not. I couldn't get a read on which was correct.
On the issue of mental health crisis intervention training for law enforcement, Knaperek sounded sympathetic, but since she answered the question as she read from the agenda/info packet that was handed out at the beginning of the forum, she also sounded like she was making it up on the fly.
Sometimes, the best answer is "I don't know, let me look into that."
IMO, anyway.
The other candidates gave varied answers, but all basically supported expanding crisis intervention training.
On the oral care for developmentally disabled adults question, all of the candidates basically supported this, though the Republican candidates were a little ambiguous about it, and focused on preventative care -
Despain: We should "provide as much preventative care as possible."
Knaperek: Noted that "for too long" the state has not covered developmentally disabled adults' preventative dental care.
Schapira thought that covered dental care should be more than "pulling teeth," and that changes are needed.
On this issue, though, Ableser was the most passionate. He used this question as the opportunity to call on the state to strive for comprehensive health care in the state.
[Note: in this answer, he cited Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. For the first time since I started taking classes at SCC, a general education class (Psych101) actually benefitted me. I understood the reference. Whooo hooo!! :) ]
Regarding the issue of incentives for employing persons with disabilities, all of the candidates supported them, but the distinction between the Democrats and Republicans became very visible here.
Ableser stated that the disabled aren't treated fairly, something that should be addressed.
Despain actually illustrated the mindset that is at the root of this in his answer.
Despain thought that Basha's and Fry's do a good job of accomodating disabled employees.
[I could be wrong about this (I don't read minds), but I'm pretty sure that the disabled community and their advocates aspire for careers for the disabled other than "bagger", "courtesy clerk" and "mop jockey" . ]
Knaperek chimed in with "the legislature is more receptive than ever on disability issues."
[Personal comment: Yup, they are. Help for the disabled community is high on the lege's list of priorities. Right after tax cuts for the wealthy, tax cuts for corporations, passing unfunded mandates like requiring all public classrooms to have American flags in them, and going to lunches paid for by lobbyists.]
Schapira observed that 72.6% of the disabled are unemployed, yet we have billions of dollars in subsidies for oil companies, but bupkas for this.
Partisan differences were also in evidence in the candidates' answers to the question about expanding independent living assistance to the disabled.
Knaperek noted that Arizona isn't "institutionalizing" any longer, and supports providing services at the home and neighborhood levels.
Ableser supports Centers for Independent Living. Echoing something said by Meg Burton-Cahill during the first part of the evening, he thinks that "investing" in the community is a better long-term choice than short-sighted tax cuts.
Despain responded in the taxes vein, stating that the economy should be strong before spending money on this.
Schapira, also on taxes, thought that the tax cuts of the last legislative session should have been temporary rebates, not permanent cuts.
On the importance of voting question, the candidates for State Rep gave fairly similar answers, with a couple of exceptions:
Ableser cited Clean Elections, saying that is allowed "anyone to run" for office, affording the opportunity to turn the less reasoning members of the lege [my words, not Ed Ableser's] out of office.
He cited the example of Russell Pearce. It seems that during a hearing about funding for elevators at ASU, the benefit to disabled students was cited as a reason to support the funding proposal.
Rep. Pearce responded by suggesting that any classes with disabled students be held on the first floor.
Knaperek took the opportunity during her answer period to defend Pearce as someone who has helped the disabled community during his time as chair of the Appropriations Committee.
The candidates' closings were pretty straightforward -
Despain cited his family background as reason that the issues of the disabled community are "not abstract" to him.
Schapira assured the audience that the issues affecting them will be at the "forefront of his legislative agenda."
Knaperek launched into a long bit about why everybody should vote for her. For a moment, I thought she was going to fall into her habit (from previous campaigns) of throwing the other Rep candidate under the bus, but she closed with a strong appeal to those present to vote for both her and Despain.
Ableser called for a change in the priorities of the legislature, that investments in the community now will reap great rewards in the future. He finished by asking to vote for both him and Schapira.
Overall impressions:
None of the candidates screwed up at the forum, though I held out hope when Laura Knaperek started with her defense of Russell Pearce. Unfortunately, she kept the defense specific to the area of disability issues. :(
The differences between the two slates of candidates was best highlighted by the Democrats' call to "invest now" versus the Republicans' call to "wait until the economy is stronger."
So far as the candidates know, and so far as I know, this was the last D17 forum scheduled for this cycle. If you are interested in viewing a general forum online, Clean Elections has theirs available here.
Later!
Held at the Westside Community Center in Tempe, all four House candidates and both Senate candidates from D17 discussed a number of topics in a forum moderated by Edward L. Myers III, an attorney from the Arizona Center for Disability Law.
The event was sponsored by the Arizona Bridge to Independent Living (ABIL) and was facilitated by Amina Kruck, ABIL's Advocacy Unit Director.
The forum started with the two Senate candidates, Democrat Meg Burton-Cahill and Republican Rose Crutcher squaring off.
For most of their part of the forum, "squaring off" may be overstating the situation somewhat.
While their positions on the issues had slight differences, the differences were mostly in minor details, not basic substance.
Both support increased mental health crisis intervention training for law enforcement personnel; both say that AHCCCS doesn't properly cover oral health care for developmentally disabled adults; both support increased incentives for employment of people with disabilities - both spoke of infrastructure changes/improvements to facilitate this; Rose Crutcher mentioned improvements to Dial-A-Ride, Meg Burton-Cahill talked about housing near light rail. (This statement isn't meant to minimize their consideration of this and the other issues, but it does highlight the relatively minor differences in their positions in regards to disability issues.)
When asked about expanding independent living assistance to reduce institutionalization and dependency, both candidates feel it's a "quality of life issue" and strongly support it. They both spoke about family members and their experiences with institutionalizations due to health problems.
On the question of their opinions of the importance of voting, both candidates, actually, all 6 candidates tonight, support it.
What a shock!
Breaking News: Elected officials and wannabes support voting.
Stop the presses! :)
In her closing, Burton-Cahill called for incentives for caregivers and service workers for the disabled, saying "we expect so much" from caregivers and "give so little." She also spoke of her passion for the work, and how she has grown and matured from her tribulations as a passionate Democrat in a Republican-dominated legislature.
Crutcher closed by agreeing with Burton-Cahill on the topic of expanding programs for caregivers. She also cited her strong advocacy for children in the past and promised that would strongly advocate for the entire district when she is elected.
There was time left in the schedule, so the moderator accepted a few questions from the audience.
The first questioner asked if the candidates knew if there is anyone who is DDD-eligible but doesn't qualify for Arizona long-term care. Both candidates thought yes, but when asked "how many", neither one was sure, but both thought that "one is too many."
On the next question, Meg Burton-Cahill's fire came out a little. A questioner asked for clarification on the "oral health care" issue. In their original answers, both candidates focused on care for children. The questioner was curious about their thoughts on oral health care for developmentally disabled adults.
Crutcher's answer focused on "gaps" in coverage.
Burton-Cahill's answer showed some of the passion and outspokenness that she mentioned earlier.
She observed that while there has been advocacy on this issue in the past, nothing is in place right now because too many in the legislature won't make small investments that yield long-term benefits. [Note - Think 'penny-wise, pound-foolish,' Arizona-style.]
The part of the forum for the candidates for State Representative was somewhat more low-key than their previous forums, but they still found opportunities for "shots across the bow," statements that clearly defined the candidates as partisan candidates.
Both Republicans, Laura Knaperek and Dale Despain, tailored their openings to the audience/sponsors of the forum. Knaperek spoke about her experiences (prior to entering the lege) as director of the Arizona Consortium for Children with Chronic Illness; Despain spoke of his mother-in-law and two grandchildren with disability issues and the associated difficulties.
Democrat Ed Ableser opened with a more conventional general statement of his background and reasons that he is running.
His Democratic ballotmate David Schapira, like the Republicans, spoke of his personal experiences with disability issues, as he was born with cancer, and was well into his teens before the treatments cleared him. He admitted that he was fortunate to have the health insurance coverage that paid for those treaments, but decried the fact that so many Arizonans don't have coverage.
On this one, Schapira wasn't really tailoring his message, as he has spoken of this in other forums. Also, I'm not criticizing either of the Reps for tailoring their openings to the audience, nor am I criticizing Ableser for sticking to a more general bio in his. Both choices are legit rhetorical tactics. One assumes that the audience is a "single-issue" audience; the other assumes not. I couldn't get a read on which was correct.
On the issue of mental health crisis intervention training for law enforcement, Knaperek sounded sympathetic, but since she answered the question as she read from the agenda/info packet that was handed out at the beginning of the forum, she also sounded like she was making it up on the fly.
Sometimes, the best answer is "I don't know, let me look into that."
IMO, anyway.
The other candidates gave varied answers, but all basically supported expanding crisis intervention training.
On the oral care for developmentally disabled adults question, all of the candidates basically supported this, though the Republican candidates were a little ambiguous about it, and focused on preventative care -
Despain: We should "provide as much preventative care as possible."
Knaperek: Noted that "for too long" the state has not covered developmentally disabled adults' preventative dental care.
Schapira thought that covered dental care should be more than "pulling teeth," and that changes are needed.
On this issue, though, Ableser was the most passionate. He used this question as the opportunity to call on the state to strive for comprehensive health care in the state.
[Note: in this answer, he cited Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. For the first time since I started taking classes at SCC, a general education class (Psych101) actually benefitted me. I understood the reference. Whooo hooo!! :) ]
Regarding the issue of incentives for employing persons with disabilities, all of the candidates supported them, but the distinction between the Democrats and Republicans became very visible here.
Ableser stated that the disabled aren't treated fairly, something that should be addressed.
Despain actually illustrated the mindset that is at the root of this in his answer.
Despain thought that Basha's and Fry's do a good job of accomodating disabled employees.
[I could be wrong about this (I don't read minds), but I'm pretty sure that the disabled community and their advocates aspire for careers for the disabled other than "bagger", "courtesy clerk" and "mop jockey" . ]
Knaperek chimed in with "the legislature is more receptive than ever on disability issues."
[Personal comment: Yup, they are. Help for the disabled community is high on the lege's list of priorities. Right after tax cuts for the wealthy, tax cuts for corporations, passing unfunded mandates like requiring all public classrooms to have American flags in them, and going to lunches paid for by lobbyists.]
Schapira observed that 72.6% of the disabled are unemployed, yet we have billions of dollars in subsidies for oil companies, but bupkas for this.
Partisan differences were also in evidence in the candidates' answers to the question about expanding independent living assistance to the disabled.
Knaperek noted that Arizona isn't "institutionalizing" any longer, and supports providing services at the home and neighborhood levels.
Ableser supports Centers for Independent Living. Echoing something said by Meg Burton-Cahill during the first part of the evening, he thinks that "investing" in the community is a better long-term choice than short-sighted tax cuts.
Despain responded in the taxes vein, stating that the economy should be strong before spending money on this.
Schapira, also on taxes, thought that the tax cuts of the last legislative session should have been temporary rebates, not permanent cuts.
On the importance of voting question, the candidates for State Rep gave fairly similar answers, with a couple of exceptions:
Ableser cited Clean Elections, saying that is allowed "anyone to run" for office, affording the opportunity to turn the less reasoning members of the lege [my words, not Ed Ableser's] out of office.
He cited the example of Russell Pearce. It seems that during a hearing about funding for elevators at ASU, the benefit to disabled students was cited as a reason to support the funding proposal.
Rep. Pearce responded by suggesting that any classes with disabled students be held on the first floor.
Knaperek took the opportunity during her answer period to defend Pearce as someone who has helped the disabled community during his time as chair of the Appropriations Committee.
The candidates' closings were pretty straightforward -
Despain cited his family background as reason that the issues of the disabled community are "not abstract" to him.
Schapira assured the audience that the issues affecting them will be at the "forefront of his legislative agenda."
Knaperek launched into a long bit about why everybody should vote for her. For a moment, I thought she was going to fall into her habit (from previous campaigns) of throwing the other Rep candidate under the bus, but she closed with a strong appeal to those present to vote for both her and Despain.
Ableser called for a change in the priorities of the legislature, that investments in the community now will reap great rewards in the future. He finished by asking to vote for both him and Schapira.
Overall impressions:
None of the candidates screwed up at the forum, though I held out hope when Laura Knaperek started with her defense of Russell Pearce. Unfortunately, she kept the defense specific to the area of disability issues. :(
The differences between the two slates of candidates was best highlighted by the Democrats' call to "invest now" versus the Republicans' call to "wait until the economy is stronger."
So far as the candidates know, and so far as I know, this was the last D17 forum scheduled for this cycle. If you are interested in viewing a general forum online, Clean Elections has theirs available here.
Later!
Quick Impressions of the Get Out The Vote Rally with Barack Obama
I could go on about how well Harry Mitchell did (very, very, well), or how much Jim Pederson has improved as a public speaker (a freakin' LOT!), or even how Mayor Phil Gordon of Phoenix killed (that's a good thing, and a little surprising to me. the only time I've ever seen him speak before was last month at Temple Emanuel when he subbed for Governor Napolitano. He was spectacularly ok there.)
I could even write about David Waid,the Chairman of the Arizona Democratic Party, who had a great line -
But I won't. Well, not more than I already have. :)
This was Senator Obama's day.
Perhaps he truly hasn't decided if he is declaring for President in 2008, but if he does decide to run, he's already in mid-campaign form. He knows how to move a crowd, and he had us in the palm of his hand from the first word.
The erstwhile candidates for both parties should know that he's going to be damn near impossible to beat on the stump or in debates. He can energize a crowd for 15 minutes, and he can do it off the cuff or from memory - I spoke to David Schapira at tonight's ABIL D17 forum, and he told me that Sen. Obama spoke without any notes.
As someone who can't give a one-minute presentation at work without notes, that may be what impresses me the most.
Oh, by the way - he was the only politician on the stage smart enough to take off his jacket on the sun-drenched stage. That alone would warrant his consideration for President (Hey - after nearly 6 years of the current occupant, maybe we should consider intelligence to be a prerequisite for the job.)
Anyway, KVOA has good coverage of the event here; EV Trib coverage here.
More on the ABIL forum later.
I could even write about David Waid,the Chairman of the Arizona Democratic Party, who had a great line -
Here in the state of Arizona, you can see we have a good contrast.
They have Len Munsil, we have Janet Napolitano.They have J.D. Hayworth, we have Harry Mitchell.
They have Jon Kyl, we have Jim Pederson.
They have George Bush, we have Barack Obama.
But I won't. Well, not more than I already have. :)
This was Senator Obama's day.
Perhaps he truly hasn't decided if he is declaring for President in 2008, but if he does decide to run, he's already in mid-campaign form. He knows how to move a crowd, and he had us in the palm of his hand from the first word.
The erstwhile candidates for both parties should know that he's going to be damn near impossible to beat on the stump or in debates. He can energize a crowd for 15 minutes, and he can do it off the cuff or from memory - I spoke to David Schapira at tonight's ABIL D17 forum, and he told me that Sen. Obama spoke without any notes.
As someone who can't give a one-minute presentation at work without notes, that may be what impresses me the most.
Oh, by the way - he was the only politician on the stage smart enough to take off his jacket on the sun-drenched stage. That alone would warrant his consideration for President (Hey - after nearly 6 years of the current occupant, maybe we should consider intelligence to be a prerequisite for the job.)
Anyway, KVOA has good coverage of the event here; EV Trib coverage here.
More on the ABIL forum later.
Reminder - GOTV Rally with Sen. Barack Obama TODAY!
10:30 - 11:15 a.m. at Tempe City Hall/6th St. Park.
Join Special Guest Senator Barack Obama of Illinois as he's welcomed by Jim Pederson, Harry Mitchell, Terry Goddard, Ellen Simon, Rano Singh, Israel Torres and a host of other candidates and luminaries for the Get Out The Vote rally...
Be there or be governed by Republicans (hey - what it lacks in 'catchy' it makes up for in 'accuracy'. lol)
See you there!
Join Special Guest Senator Barack Obama of Illinois as he's welcomed by Jim Pederson, Harry Mitchell, Terry Goddard, Ellen Simon, Rano Singh, Israel Torres and a host of other candidates and luminaries for the Get Out The Vote rally...
Be there or be governed by Republicans (hey - what it lacks in 'catchy' it makes up for in 'accuracy'. lol)
See you there!
Saturday, October 21, 2006
The Republic finally deigns to notice the antics of JD Hayworth's (R-Coward) surrogate.
Of course, they buried it in the Scottsdale Republic insert of their Saturday edition, and "buried" is the key word here.
My favorite line from the article:
Couple of possibilities here -
Either JD's spokesman is incapable of telling the truth, or JD is incapable of telling the truth.
Of course, these aren't mutually exclusive possibilities. :)
Thanks to Zelph for the heads-up on this one...
G'night everyone!
My favorite line from the article:
Asked about the comments, Hayworth said he has been unable "to get an accurate accounting of what transpired" even though his campaign spokesman, Brian Hummell, was there.
Couple of possibilities here -
Either JD's spokesman is incapable of telling the truth, or JD is incapable of telling the truth.
Of course, these aren't mutually exclusive possibilities. :)
Thanks to Zelph for the heads-up on this one...
G'night everyone!
Friday, October 20, 2006
Upcoming events...
Saturday, October 21 -
Harry Mitchell, Meg Burton-Cahill and others will be at the East Valley Democrats Breakfast Club at the Ranch House Restaurant, 2155 S Dobson Rd. Mesa. Festivities start at 7:30, tickets are $8.
Harry Mitchell, Meg Burton-Cahill, Ed Ableser and others are having a HUGE neighborhood walk day. Launches start at 9 a.m. from Mitchell Park in Tempe (Mitchell Drive and 9th St). Contact the campaign at 755-3343 if you have questions.
Monday, October 23 -
Harry Mitchell and JD Hayworth debate at the Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry in Scottsdale. The event is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. at The Hilton Scottsdale Resort and Villas. It's too late to RSVP, but if anyone is interested, you can try calling the Chamber at 602-248-9172 and see if they have space for more attendees.
At 10:30 a.m., the Arizona Democratic Party is welcoming Sen. Barack Obama to Tempe for a Get Out The Vote Rally at Tempe City Hall. Candidates scheduled to appear include Attorney General Goddard, U.S. Senate Candidate Jim Pederson, and Congressional Candidate Harry Mitchell, as well as 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 and others. If you go, be aware that Mill Avenue will be closed to traffic, so an alternate route is suggested.
At 6:00 p.m., the Arizona Bridge to Independent Living (ABIL) and the Arizona Disability Advocacy Coalition (AZDAC) will be holding a forum for LD17 Legislative candidates focusing on health care and disability issues. The event will be held at the Tempe Westside Community Center (Near Hardy & Fifth Street).
Wednesday, October 25 -
The AZDems will be holding a GOTV Unity Rally with Senator John Edwards in Tucson from noon until 1:30 p.m. The event will be at Presidio Plaza Park, 175 West Alameda Street.
Besides special guest Senator Edwards, Congressman Raul Grijalva, Gabrielle Giffords, Jim Pederson, and many others will be in attendance.
Harry Mitchell, Meg Burton-Cahill and others will be at the East Valley Democrats Breakfast Club at the Ranch House Restaurant, 2155 S Dobson Rd. Mesa. Festivities start at 7:30, tickets are $8.
Harry Mitchell, Meg Burton-Cahill, Ed Ableser and others are having a HUGE neighborhood walk day. Launches start at 9 a.m. from Mitchell Park in Tempe (Mitchell Drive and 9th St). Contact the campaign at 755-3343 if you have questions.
Monday, October 23 -
Harry Mitchell and JD Hayworth debate at the Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry in Scottsdale. The event is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. at The Hilton Scottsdale Resort and Villas. It's too late to RSVP, but if anyone is interested, you can try calling the Chamber at 602-248-9172 and see if they have space for more attendees.
At 10:30 a.m., the Arizona Democratic Party is welcoming Sen. Barack Obama to Tempe for a Get Out The Vote Rally at Tempe City Hall. Candidates scheduled to appear include Attorney General Goddard, U.S. Senate Candidate Jim Pederson, and Congressional Candidate Harry Mitchell, as well as 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 and others. If you go, be aware that Mill Avenue will be closed to traffic, so an alternate route is suggested.
At 6:00 p.m., the Arizona Bridge to Independent Living (ABIL) and the Arizona Disability Advocacy Coalition (AZDAC) will be holding a forum for LD17 Legislative candidates focusing on health care and disability issues. The event will be held at the Tempe Westside Community Center (Near Hardy & Fifth Street).
Wednesday, October 25 -
The AZDems will be holding a GOTV Unity Rally with Senator John Edwards in Tucson from noon until 1:30 p.m. The event will be at Presidio Plaza Park, 175 West Alameda Street.
Besides special guest Senator Edwards, Congressman Raul Grijalva, Gabrielle Giffords, Jim Pederson, and many others will be in attendance.
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Getting to the homestretch...
I tried to do a complete writeup of the Tuesday night's forum, as well as the 2nd Pederson/Kyl debate and the Scottsdale Republic CD5 debate, both of which aired last night. However, due to some Blogger issues, I lost everything, and since I wasn't smart enough to composed the post offline first, lost means *lost.*
Oops. :)
Since the events, other than the already covered issue with JD's surrogate, Jonathan Tratt, were fairly uneventful (though interesting), I'm not going to try and do a complete writeup tonight.
However, I can give a few of my impressions of some of the goings-on.
On the Pederson/Kyl front, I have to say that Jim Pederson has made great strides as a public speaker, even in the 6+ weeks since I last saw him speak, at the AFL-CIO Labor Day picnic in Tempe. He will never be an 'electric' speaker, but he's now a decent one.
At both the Scottsdale forum and the Tucson debate (aired on KAET in the Phoenix area), he stayed animated and on message.
The "on message" part was never a problem, but the "animated" part was.
He's learned that the communication style that works with a small group of people that are working toward a common goal is very different than the style that works with large groups of strangers with disparate, even opposing, agendas.
[And I have to compliment all three candidates (Libertarian Richard Mack was at the Tucson debate, too], they may have differed on most issues and criticized each other frequently, but the disagreements were civil ones.]
He still has an uphill battle, but he now has the tools necessary to put him over the top.
Jon Kyl is a rigidly extreme ideologue with insane positions on Iraq and personal freedom, and he is actively working to bring about an imperial presidency in this country. [Other than those minor foibles, he's a great guy, really. :))] However, I will give him credit on one thing - he was openly jeered at Tuesday night's forum, and he handled it professionally and smoothly.
Now, that may be the only nice thing I ever say about him, so mark this date on your calendar. :)
On the negative side of the ledger for Kyl (other than his dogmatic, unrealistic positions), at the forum Tuesday night, the candidates were asked if they thought that the President's No Child Left Behind program lead to our schools "teaching to the test."
In his response, Sen. Kyl kept talking about "testing to the test."
I cut him some slack on this at the time, because it seemed to be an honest slip of the tongue.
Then I watched the second of the three televised debates between Jim Pederson and Jon Kyl.
During one part of the debate, Kyl criticized Pederson as someone who "would vote with John Kerry and John Kennedy."
Ummm...I'm beginning to think that maybe Jon is too close to President Bush, and that whatever Bush has is contagious. Jon needs to distance himself before he loses any more brain cells. :)
On the Harry/JD front, well, I've already covered the goings-on Tuesday night, but the Scottsdale Republic forum was interesting in its own right.
The gloves were definitely off between Harry and JD.
JD was on the attack, bringing up a lot of the stuff that he did press releases about this summer.
Stuff that has already been refuted, over and over. (Charlie Keating, again? C'mon JD...)
Dan Nowicki wrote in the AZ Republic that JD kept Harry "off balance."
I'm not so sure of that. During the "Horizon" debate last month, Harry was too tolerant of JD's rhetorical bullying. On Tuesday, he called JD on it whenever JD stepped out of line.
And he called JD on a LOT. :)
My personal favorite "JD-ism" came during the immigration part of the debate. At one point, Harry was making a point about JD's record, and JD piped in with "there you go again" Harry.
That quote was a straight up rip off of Ronald Reagan from a 1980 debate with Jimmy Carter.
That's not necessarily a problem, speakers quote other speakers all the time.
However, this quote was unattributed. Pretty typical for JD, though.
Last month at the forum at Temple Emanuel in Tempe, JD had a M*A*S*H moment, one where he ripped off a line from an early episode of M*A*S*H.
I guess that he considers this progress. Instead of ripping off liberals like Larry Gelbart, now he's ripping off conservatives like Ronald Reagan.
The debate will be aired on Scottsdale's CityCable11 all weekend and might be replayed on CSPAN. I recommend catching an airing if you can.
Overall, Harry did a good job this week. At the Tuesday night forum, he maintained his professionalism and composure during the fiasco that was JD's surrogate. During the Scottsdale Republic forum, he was much more aware of the camera than he was during the Horizon debate.
He didn't play to the camera like JD, but he did present himself, his positions, and why he's a better choice to represent CD5 than JD. And he did it very well.
Anyway, I've got more stuff, like a bit on the tonight's LD8 meeting that featured Israel Torres and an LD17 candidate forum coming up on Monday, but I'll cover that tomorrow.
G'night everyone!
Oops. :)
Since the events, other than the already covered issue with JD's surrogate, Jonathan Tratt, were fairly uneventful (though interesting), I'm not going to try and do a complete writeup tonight.
However, I can give a few of my impressions of some of the goings-on.
On the Pederson/Kyl front, I have to say that Jim Pederson has made great strides as a public speaker, even in the 6+ weeks since I last saw him speak, at the AFL-CIO Labor Day picnic in Tempe. He will never be an 'electric' speaker, but he's now a decent one.
At both the Scottsdale forum and the Tucson debate (aired on KAET in the Phoenix area), he stayed animated and on message.
The "on message" part was never a problem, but the "animated" part was.
He's learned that the communication style that works with a small group of people that are working toward a common goal is very different than the style that works with large groups of strangers with disparate, even opposing, agendas.
[And I have to compliment all three candidates (Libertarian Richard Mack was at the Tucson debate, too], they may have differed on most issues and criticized each other frequently, but the disagreements were civil ones.]
He still has an uphill battle, but he now has the tools necessary to put him over the top.
Jon Kyl is a rigidly extreme ideologue with insane positions on Iraq and personal freedom, and he is actively working to bring about an imperial presidency in this country. [Other than those minor foibles, he's a great guy, really. :))] However, I will give him credit on one thing - he was openly jeered at Tuesday night's forum, and he handled it professionally and smoothly.
Now, that may be the only nice thing I ever say about him, so mark this date on your calendar. :)
On the negative side of the ledger for Kyl (other than his dogmatic, unrealistic positions), at the forum Tuesday night, the candidates were asked if they thought that the President's No Child Left Behind program lead to our schools "teaching to the test."
In his response, Sen. Kyl kept talking about "testing to the test."
I cut him some slack on this at the time, because it seemed to be an honest slip of the tongue.
Then I watched the second of the three televised debates between Jim Pederson and Jon Kyl.
During one part of the debate, Kyl criticized Pederson as someone who "would vote with John Kerry and John Kennedy."
Ummm...I'm beginning to think that maybe Jon is too close to President Bush, and that whatever Bush has is contagious. Jon needs to distance himself before he loses any more brain cells. :)
On the Harry/JD front, well, I've already covered the goings-on Tuesday night, but the Scottsdale Republic forum was interesting in its own right.
The gloves were definitely off between Harry and JD.
JD was on the attack, bringing up a lot of the stuff that he did press releases about this summer.
Stuff that has already been refuted, over and over. (Charlie Keating, again? C'mon JD...)
Dan Nowicki wrote in the AZ Republic that JD kept Harry "off balance."
I'm not so sure of that. During the "Horizon" debate last month, Harry was too tolerant of JD's rhetorical bullying. On Tuesday, he called JD on it whenever JD stepped out of line.
And he called JD on a LOT. :)
My personal favorite "JD-ism" came during the immigration part of the debate. At one point, Harry was making a point about JD's record, and JD piped in with "there you go again" Harry.
That quote was a straight up rip off of Ronald Reagan from a 1980 debate with Jimmy Carter.
That's not necessarily a problem, speakers quote other speakers all the time.
However, this quote was unattributed. Pretty typical for JD, though.
Last month at the forum at Temple Emanuel in Tempe, JD had a M*A*S*H moment, one where he ripped off a line from an early episode of M*A*S*H.
I guess that he considers this progress. Instead of ripping off liberals like Larry Gelbart, now he's ripping off conservatives like Ronald Reagan.
The debate will be aired on Scottsdale's CityCable11 all weekend and might be replayed on CSPAN. I recommend catching an airing if you can.
Overall, Harry did a good job this week. At the Tuesday night forum, he maintained his professionalism and composure during the fiasco that was JD's surrogate. During the Scottsdale Republic forum, he was much more aware of the camera than he was during the Horizon debate.
He didn't play to the camera like JD, but he did present himself, his positions, and why he's a better choice to represent CD5 than JD. And he did it very well.
Anyway, I've got more stuff, like a bit on the tonight's LD8 meeting that featured Israel Torres and an LD17 candidate forum coming up on Monday, but I'll cover that tomorrow.
G'night everyone!
Maybe JD thinks any publicity is good publicity
because if he does, then his no show/surrogate ploy at Tuesday's candidate forum at Temple Beth Israel was a brilliant one.
Some of the local bloggers have picked up on it..
Tedski at Rum, Romanism, Rebellion....
Lofty Donkey chimed in...
Geo at Geo's Precinct 134 in Chandler is staying on top if this, too...
Stacy at AZ Congress Watch got in on it, too...
And, of course, the Mitchell for Congress campaign had something to say about it, too.
Now, national bloggers are picking up on it...
Wonkette is all over it this morning...
Who's next?
One positive note for JD - it seems to have driven his recognition by Radar Magazine as one of the 10 Dumbest Congressman right out of the news...
Note: in my original post on this topic on Tuesday night, I called on JD to apologize.
He hasn't done so yet.
I wasn't going to go the the Chamber of Commerce debate between Harry and JD on Monday (it's at 8:30 a.m., and with my work schedule, that's a little early for me) but I am reconsidering that plan. Maybe a direct appeal for an apology would inspire JD to do the right thing.
No, I'm not holding my breath waiting for it to happen. :)
Later!
Some of the local bloggers have picked up on it..
Tedski at Rum, Romanism, Rebellion....
Lofty Donkey chimed in...
Geo at Geo's Precinct 134 in Chandler is staying on top if this, too...
Stacy at AZ Congress Watch got in on it, too...
And, of course, the Mitchell for Congress campaign had something to say about it, too.
Now, national bloggers are picking up on it...
Wonkette is all over it this morning...
Who's next?
One positive note for JD - it seems to have driven his recognition by Radar Magazine as one of the 10 Dumbest Congressman right out of the news...
Note: in my original post on this topic on Tuesday night, I called on JD to apologize.
He hasn't done so yet.
I wasn't going to go the the Chamber of Commerce debate between Harry and JD on Monday (it's at 8:30 a.m., and with my work schedule, that's a little early for me) but I am reconsidering that plan. Maybe a direct appeal for an apology would inspire JD to do the right thing.
No, I'm not holding my breath waiting for it to happen. :)
Later!
Don't forget -
Tonight's LD8 Dems meeting is at a special place with a special guest.
It will be held at the Civic Center Branch of the Scottsdale Library, and will feature Israel Torres, the Democratic candidate for Secretary of State.
Refreshments start at 6:15 p.m.; the meeting starts at 6:45.
Later!
It will be held at the Civic Center Branch of the Scottsdale Library, and will feature Israel Torres, the Democratic candidate for Secretary of State.
Refreshments start at 6:15 p.m.; the meeting starts at 6:45.
Later!
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Republicans whistling in the dark
As the elections draw near, mounting evidence suggests that the Republicans see their gravy train coming untracked and are desperately trying anything to keep that from happening.
Exhibit A:
Darth Novak has pronounced from on high that the Democratic Party has given up on Harry Mitchell.
Umm...not so much.
This distortion has been refuted by Tedski at Rum, Romanism, Rebellion and by Tim at The Word from Arizona's Fifth District.
It's also refuted by the Mitchell campaign's announcement of a fundraiser/barbeque on the 24th (next Tuesday) in Tempe with House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland and Ambassador Joe Wilson.
If the national Democratic Party thought Harry, why on Earth would a high-ranking member of the House Democratic leadership and presumptive candidate for Speaker or Majority Leader in the next session of Congress visit him? Steny Hoyer has a LOT on his plate right now, including his own re-election campaign.
He wouldn't visit and raise money for a candidate who he thought had no chance of victory, especially two weeks before a hotly-contested general election that has 40 - 50 competitive races.
He would visit with and work with a candidate who should be in a position to vote for him for Speaker, though.
Oh, and there's an almost poetic symmetry at work here - Robert Novak is trying to undermine Harry, and the victim of one of Novak's past political hatchet jobs masquerading as journalism (Valerie Plame, anyone?) is helping Harry.
'Nuff said on that subject.
[BTW - if you are interested in the attending the fundraiser, contact Erin at the Mitchell campaign, 755-3343. Hot food, Hot topics of discussion and Cool Arizona evenings are a great combination. It should be a blast.]
Exhibit B:
JD's press releases and ads are steadily becoming more strident, less truthful, and just plain uncreative.
And they were already strident and distorted propaganda.
His latest ad rehashes a number of lies and distortions he told over the summer, that have been thoroughly refuted and even turned around on him already. Charlie Keating again, JD?
He also started in on factcheck.org's criticism of his ad that claims that Harry supports giving Social Security benefits to illegal immigrants. Factcheck.org simply pointed out that under S2611, legalized immigrants who paid into Social Security would be eligible for benefits in the same way as anyone else who paid SS taxes.
Exhibit C:
Last night's meltdown by his chosen surrogate at a candidate forum, already chronicled here.
Related to this is the fact that while JD didn't have time to meet with some of his constituents, he did have time to issue a press release lauding the suspension of habeas corpus and the legalization of torture.
He even had the time to post a statement excoriating the Democrats' questions and criticisms over this issue on The Hill's Congress Blog.
And today, also in the Hill's Congress Blog, he had the time to issue what is basically a campaign press release touting the economic results of Republican tax policies.
- - - He lauded "lower gas prices." That's great, except for the minor fact that they are still a helluva lot higher than just a few years ago. Actually, according to the Department of Energy, the average price per gallon ("all grades, all formulations") has risen from $1.127/gallon when JD took office in 1995 to $2.274 today.
Republicans have controlled Congress for that entire time. If JD wants to take credit for gas prices more than doubling, he can.
- - - He stated that "housing starts are up."
Ummm....where? Not in the Phoenix area.
- - - He stated that the unemployment rate is "historically low."
Yup. And employment at WalMart, McDonald's and other low-wage, low-ceiling businesses is historically high. The Republicans have led the efforts to send high-paying jobs overseas, forcing people into any job that is available to provide for their families. The unemployment rate is lower, but the number of people working multiple lousy jobs to make ends meet seems to be correspondingly higher.
That's not something that most people consider to be an "accomplishment" worth boasting about.
Of course, the reality is that JD has nothing else to brag about, and it worries him that people are realizing that.
On edit: While I was writing this post, JD's campaign posted a press release claiming victory in the debate scheduled to be shown on CSPAN tonight, and Scottsdale's CityCable11 later this week and weekend. This press release is mostly a rehash of previous press releases, and those have already been refuted. I'll watch the actual debate before dissecting it.
Later!
End edit.
Exhibit A:
Darth Novak has pronounced from on high that the Democratic Party has given up on Harry Mitchell.
Umm...not so much.
This distortion has been refuted by Tedski at Rum, Romanism, Rebellion and by Tim at The Word from Arizona's Fifth District.
It's also refuted by the Mitchell campaign's announcement of a fundraiser/barbeque on the 24th (next Tuesday) in Tempe with House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland and Ambassador Joe Wilson.
If the national Democratic Party thought Harry, why on Earth would a high-ranking member of the House Democratic leadership and presumptive candidate for Speaker or Majority Leader in the next session of Congress visit him? Steny Hoyer has a LOT on his plate right now, including his own re-election campaign.
He wouldn't visit and raise money for a candidate who he thought had no chance of victory, especially two weeks before a hotly-contested general election that has 40 - 50 competitive races.
He would visit with and work with a candidate who should be in a position to vote for him for Speaker, though.
Oh, and there's an almost poetic symmetry at work here - Robert Novak is trying to undermine Harry, and the victim of one of Novak's past political hatchet jobs masquerading as journalism (Valerie Plame, anyone?) is helping Harry.
'Nuff said on that subject.
[BTW - if you are interested in the attending the fundraiser, contact Erin at the Mitchell campaign, 755-3343. Hot food, Hot topics of discussion and Cool Arizona evenings are a great combination. It should be a blast.]
Exhibit B:
JD's press releases and ads are steadily becoming more strident, less truthful, and just plain uncreative.
And they were already strident and distorted propaganda.
His latest ad rehashes a number of lies and distortions he told over the summer, that have been thoroughly refuted and even turned around on him already. Charlie Keating again, JD?
He also started in on factcheck.org's criticism of his ad that claims that Harry supports giving Social Security benefits to illegal immigrants. Factcheck.org simply pointed out that under S2611, legalized immigrants who paid into Social Security would be eligible for benefits in the same way as anyone else who paid SS taxes.
Exhibit C:
Last night's meltdown by his chosen surrogate at a candidate forum, already chronicled here.
Related to this is the fact that while JD didn't have time to meet with some of his constituents, he did have time to issue a press release lauding the suspension of habeas corpus and the legalization of torture.
He even had the time to post a statement excoriating the Democrats' questions and criticisms over this issue on The Hill's Congress Blog.
And today, also in the Hill's Congress Blog, he had the time to issue what is basically a campaign press release touting the economic results of Republican tax policies.
- - - He lauded "lower gas prices." That's great, except for the minor fact that they are still a helluva lot higher than just a few years ago. Actually, according to the Department of Energy, the average price per gallon ("all grades, all formulations") has risen from $1.127/gallon when JD took office in 1995 to $2.274 today.
Republicans have controlled Congress for that entire time. If JD wants to take credit for gas prices more than doubling, he can.
- - - He stated that "housing starts are up."
Ummm....where? Not in the Phoenix area.
- - - He stated that the unemployment rate is "historically low."
Yup. And employment at WalMart, McDonald's and other low-wage, low-ceiling businesses is historically high. The Republicans have led the efforts to send high-paying jobs overseas, forcing people into any job that is available to provide for their families. The unemployment rate is lower, but the number of people working multiple lousy jobs to make ends meet seems to be correspondingly higher.
That's not something that most people consider to be an "accomplishment" worth boasting about.
Of course, the reality is that JD has nothing else to brag about, and it worries him that people are realizing that.
On edit: While I was writing this post, JD's campaign posted a press release claiming victory in the debate scheduled to be shown on CSPAN tonight, and Scottsdale's CityCable11 later this week and weekend. This press release is mostly a rehash of previous press releases, and those have already been refuted. I'll watch the actual debate before dissecting it.
Later!
End edit.
C-Span Schedule alert
According to C-SPAN's schedule, tonight at 7 p.m. (AZ time) they will air a debate between Harry Mitchell and JD Hayworth, immediately followed by a replay of Sunday's debate between Jim Pederson and Jon Kyl.
If you have time, tune in to one or both.
Later!
If you have time, tune in to one or both.
Later!
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