I'm not a betting man, and I'm most definitely not a bookie, but there are a few things that are all but certain to happen in the near future. The only real question is "how much?", "how many?" or "when?".
The following is for entertainment purposes only - no betting allowed.
...Percentage of the new Republican members of Congress who survive redistricting to win a second term? 75 percent.
...Percentage of the new Republican members of Congress who will face an investigation, indictment or an outright perp walk by the end of a second term? 15 percent (hey, when you elect a bunch of people who thing public service is a dirty, even contemptible, business, many will use that belief to rationalize being dirty and contemptible themselves).
...How long before failed tea party Senate candidate Christine "I am not a witch" O'Donnell appears on "Dancing With The Stars"? 1.5 years.
...How long before "Tea Party Senate President-Elect Russell Pearce" changes the dress code at the Capitol to require members of the Senate to wear sheets and hoods during floor sessions and committee hearings? 2 weeks into the session.
...How long before failed tea party Senate candidate Christine "I am not a witch" O'Donnell receives an offer to appear in the pages of Playboy? 2.5 years.
...How long before Jan Brewer, citing health concerns, resigns from office, leaving Ken Bennett as Arizona's governor? 3 years.
...How long before failed tea party Senate candidate Christine "I am not a witch" O'Donnell *accepts* the offer to appear in the pages of Playboy? 3.5 years.
...How long before there is a widespread grassroots movement supporting a new law to requre registration and licencing of broomsticks? 3.01 years.
...How long before Russell Pearce bursts out in laughter before killing any bill creating such a law and muttering something about the free market taking care of the problem by offering access to petroleum jelly for those who can pay? 3.02 years.
Anybody want to add their own?
Friday, November 05, 2010
Keith Olbermann "suspended" for donating to Democratic candidates
Time to boycott MSNBC.
Not for their suspension of Olbermann for violating what could be a legitimate company policy.
Boycott them for it NOT being a legitimate and equitably applied company policy.
Earlier in the decade, noted Republicans and MSNBC personalities Joe Scarbrough and Pat Buchanan made contributions to Republican candidates.
They got a free pass from MSNBC brass.
Fox News uses fabricated stories to attack Democrats and other public servants; MSNBC now uses the power of the paycheck to silence people who tell the truth.
So be it.
CNN is now my cable TV source for news.
Especially since when I called MSNBC to urge them to un-suspend Olbermann, the operator shunted me to a recorded line, and did so without even letting me know she was doing it.
Boycott MSNBC.
Not for their suspension of Olbermann for violating what could be a legitimate company policy.
Boycott them for it NOT being a legitimate and equitably applied company policy.
Earlier in the decade, noted Republicans and MSNBC personalities Joe Scarbrough and Pat Buchanan made contributions to Republican candidates.
They got a free pass from MSNBC brass.
Fox News uses fabricated stories to attack Democrats and other public servants; MSNBC now uses the power of the paycheck to silence people who tell the truth.
So be it.
CNN is now my cable TV source for news.
Especially since when I called MSNBC to urge them to un-suspend Olbermann, the operator shunted me to a recorded line, and did so without even letting me know she was doing it.
Boycott MSNBC.
Blue Dogs not getting it
One of the few Blue Dogs who survived Tuesday's carnage can't do math - he's looking at the fact that the Blue Dog Democrats in Congress took it on the chin while most of the Progressives turned back challengers as a sign that Nancy Pelosi is too liberal and shouldn't be part of Democratic leadership in the new Congress.
From NewsOK -
By opposing things like real health care reform, strong Wall Street regulation, and an effective economic stimulus package, they freely allied themselves with the Republican obstructionists and terminally undermined the ability of the Democrats to make real progress in addressing the economic woes facing the United States.
And all of the polling that I've seen says that frustration with the economy, not a liking for the Republicans, was the main motivator behind the independent voters' swing toward the Rs.
Boren and the rest of his BD associates can blame Nancy Pelosi all that they want, but if they want to assess blame, they should first blame those that they see in the mirror.
BTW - did anyone notice Boren's use of the word "Democrat" where anybody but a Republican would have used "Democratic"?
He's changing parties, probably during the 2011 session of Congress.
More on the Blue Dogs' decimation from Joe Klein of Time here.
From NewsOK -
U.S. Rep. Dan Boren, D-Muskogee, joined a growing chorus of conservative Democrats who want a new leader in the House in the wake of the party’s devastating losses in the House. Some conservative Democrats who survived on Tuesday have been quoted publicly as saying that they don’t want Speaker Nancy Pelosi, of California, to be the House minority leader next year. Boren agrees.I am deeply saddened to see Harry Mitchell. a Blue Dog himself, lose on Tuesday (he has always been about "good governance" and working for his constituents), but many of the Blue Dogs who lost brought this on themselves.
He released this statement this morning:
“I cannot in good conscience support Nancy Pelosi as Leader. I intend to support a more conservative Democrat alternative.”
By opposing things like real health care reform, strong Wall Street regulation, and an effective economic stimulus package, they freely allied themselves with the Republican obstructionists and terminally undermined the ability of the Democrats to make real progress in addressing the economic woes facing the United States.
And all of the polling that I've seen says that frustration with the economy, not a liking for the Republicans, was the main motivator behind the independent voters' swing toward the Rs.
Boren and the rest of his BD associates can blame Nancy Pelosi all that they want, but if they want to assess blame, they should first blame those that they see in the mirror.
BTW - did anyone notice Boren's use of the word "Democrat" where anybody but a Republican would have used "Democratic"?
He's changing parties, probably during the 2011 session of Congress.
More on the Blue Dogs' decimation from Joe Klein of Time here.
To those voters who voted for the Republicans because they believe that the Rs are better for the economy -
Private sector job growth, courtesy Washington Monthly
The red bars indicate the private sector growth/shrinkage during the Bush administration; the blue bars indicate the same during the Obama administration.
Talk about voting against your own self-interest...
Thursday, November 04, 2010
Psst! I gots a proposition for you...
Everybody knows about the Republican gains in Tuesday's elections, but there hasn't been significant coverage of the ballots propositions. There's been a little, but...
Anyway, on to the results.
Note: all numbers have been rounded, and the final margins could change due to early and provisional ballots.
Proposition 106, the anti-health care reform amendment to the AZ Constitution: Approved by the voters 705,000 to 569,000. Benefitted from more than $2 million in funding, mostly from the health insurance industry.
Proposition 107, the anti-affirmative action amendment to the AZ Constitution: Approved by the voters 752.000 to 511,000.
Proposition 109, the amendment to the AZ Constitution to create a right to hunt and fish equal to other constitutionally-protected civil rights like free speech and freedom of religion. Also would have prevented voters from passing any ballot questions that would have effected wildlife management. Failed 569,000 - 724,000.
Proposition 110, an amendment to the AZ Constitution that would allow the exchange of state trust lands near military bases for other lands. Failing right now, but at 625,000 - 631,000, it's still close enough to flip once all ballots are counted.
Proposition 111 - an amendment to the AZ Constitution that would have changed the job title of the Secretary of State to "Lieutenant Governor" and compelled the primary winners from each party for Governor and Lt. Governor to run as a ticket. Sloppily written - also would have disenfranchised independent candidates and voters. Failed 522,000 to 745,000.
Proposition 112 - an amendment to the AZ Constitution that would have reduced the amount of time available to collect signatures to put a question on the ballot. Failing by approximately 1600 votes as of this writing.
Proposition 113 - an anti-union amendment to the AZ Constitution. Heavily funded by secretive industry groups. Passed 775,000 - 502,000.
Proposition 203 - legalizing Medical Marijuana. Still close, but leading at this point by approximately 7000 votes.
Proposition 301 - ending the voter-mandated and -protected Land Conservation Fund and sweeping the monies into the state's general fund so the lege can give them to corporations in the form of tax breaks. Failed 329,000 - 934,000.
Proposition 302 - ending the voter-mandated and -protected First Things First, an early childhood education and health program. Failed 393,000 - 895,000.
Summary: the demonization measures (anti - healthcare, affirmative action, and unions) passed easily, while the ones that reduce the influence of the voters (Lt. Gov. signature deadlines, overriding previously approved voter initiatives) have failed or are failing. Medical Marijuana is passing, as it has passed many times before, but by the closest margin in its history. It may still flip as provisional ballots and late arriving early ballots are counted.
Bottom line: while demagoguery worked for the Rs in terms of the candidate races and the three demonization amendments, when it came to practical issues of governance, the voters haven't toed the R party line. There's a lesson there.
Some local ballot questions (mostly Scottsdale, with a few others thrown in for fun):
Scottsdale bond question #1 (transportation infrastructure) - Failed 25,000 - 33,000
Scottsdale bond question #2 (public safety infrastructure) - Failed 24,000 - 34,000.
Scottsdale question 411 (restricting the City's use of eminent domain, pushed by American Water to prevent any possible takeover of its operations in Scottsdale, no matter how much contaminated water it pumps to its customers here) - Passed 26,000 - 23,000.
Scottsdale question 412 (keeping the City from expending money on an organization like the Scottsdale Area Chamber of Congress) - Passed 26,000 - 24,000.
Scottsdale 413 (removing the Charter requirement that the City Council address citizen petitions in a timely manner) - Failed 23,000 - 26,000.
Scottsdale 414 (clarifying the status of the City's charter officers, including requiring that the City Treasurer's position be filled independently and not by another Officer, such as the City Manager) - Passed 24,000 - 23,000.
Scottsdale 415 (relating to clarifying which City employees are subject to direct Council control) - Passed 25,000 - 23,000.
Scottsdale 416 and 417 (housekeeping measures mostly, that clarified unclear language in the charter) - Passed comfortably.
Mesa 420 (a new spring training facility for the Chicago Cubs) - Passed 51,000 - 30,000.
As for school-related questions, generally speaking, budget overrides (even those that were just continuations of long-standing overrides) failed while bond questions for infrastructure improvements passed. In other words, the voters in those areas voted to have schools with pretty exteriors and little substance inside of them.
Later...
Anyway, on to the results.
Note: all numbers have been rounded, and the final margins could change due to early and provisional ballots.
Proposition 106, the anti-health care reform amendment to the AZ Constitution: Approved by the voters 705,000 to 569,000. Benefitted from more than $2 million in funding, mostly from the health insurance industry.
Proposition 107, the anti-affirmative action amendment to the AZ Constitution: Approved by the voters 752.000 to 511,000.
Proposition 109, the amendment to the AZ Constitution to create a right to hunt and fish equal to other constitutionally-protected civil rights like free speech and freedom of religion. Also would have prevented voters from passing any ballot questions that would have effected wildlife management. Failed 569,000 - 724,000.
Proposition 110, an amendment to the AZ Constitution that would allow the exchange of state trust lands near military bases for other lands. Failing right now, but at 625,000 - 631,000, it's still close enough to flip once all ballots are counted.
Proposition 111 - an amendment to the AZ Constitution that would have changed the job title of the Secretary of State to "Lieutenant Governor" and compelled the primary winners from each party for Governor and Lt. Governor to run as a ticket. Sloppily written - also would have disenfranchised independent candidates and voters. Failed 522,000 to 745,000.
Proposition 112 - an amendment to the AZ Constitution that would have reduced the amount of time available to collect signatures to put a question on the ballot. Failing by approximately 1600 votes as of this writing.
Proposition 113 - an anti-union amendment to the AZ Constitution. Heavily funded by secretive industry groups. Passed 775,000 - 502,000.
Proposition 203 - legalizing Medical Marijuana. Still close, but leading at this point by approximately 7000 votes.
Proposition 301 - ending the voter-mandated and -protected Land Conservation Fund and sweeping the monies into the state's general fund so the lege can give them to corporations in the form of tax breaks. Failed 329,000 - 934,000.
Proposition 302 - ending the voter-mandated and -protected First Things First, an early childhood education and health program. Failed 393,000 - 895,000.
Summary: the demonization measures (anti - healthcare, affirmative action, and unions) passed easily, while the ones that reduce the influence of the voters (Lt. Gov. signature deadlines, overriding previously approved voter initiatives) have failed or are failing. Medical Marijuana is passing, as it has passed many times before, but by the closest margin in its history. It may still flip as provisional ballots and late arriving early ballots are counted.
Bottom line: while demagoguery worked for the Rs in terms of the candidate races and the three demonization amendments, when it came to practical issues of governance, the voters haven't toed the R party line. There's a lesson there.
Some local ballot questions (mostly Scottsdale, with a few others thrown in for fun):
Scottsdale bond question #1 (transportation infrastructure) - Failed 25,000 - 33,000
Scottsdale bond question #2 (public safety infrastructure) - Failed 24,000 - 34,000.
Scottsdale question 411 (restricting the City's use of eminent domain, pushed by American Water to prevent any possible takeover of its operations in Scottsdale, no matter how much contaminated water it pumps to its customers here) - Passed 26,000 - 23,000.
Scottsdale question 412 (keeping the City from expending money on an organization like the Scottsdale Area Chamber of Congress) - Passed 26,000 - 24,000.
Scottsdale 413 (removing the Charter requirement that the City Council address citizen petitions in a timely manner) - Failed 23,000 - 26,000.
Scottsdale 414 (clarifying the status of the City's charter officers, including requiring that the City Treasurer's position be filled independently and not by another Officer, such as the City Manager) - Passed 24,000 - 23,000.
Scottsdale 415 (relating to clarifying which City employees are subject to direct Council control) - Passed 25,000 - 23,000.
Scottsdale 416 and 417 (housekeeping measures mostly, that clarified unclear language in the charter) - Passed comfortably.
Mesa 420 (a new spring training facility for the Chicago Cubs) - Passed 51,000 - 30,000.
As for school-related questions, generally speaking, budget overrides (even those that were just continuations of long-standing overrides) failed while bond questions for infrastructure improvements passed. In other words, the voters in those areas voted to have schools with pretty exteriors and little substance inside of them.
Later...
Wednesday, November 03, 2010
Polishing the crystal ball...
In the least surprising news rising from the aftermath of Tuesday's elections, Russell Pearce (R-National Alliance) was elected by the R caucus to be the president of the Arizona State Senate. A couple of other senators (Yarbrough, Pierce) were mentioned as being interested, but the only thing that would have prevented Pearce from taking over the Senate would have been if he accepted a patronage job from Jan Brewer.
However, while an agency head gets a bigger paycheck than a legislator (at least, more pay that's "on the books"), in practical political terms, the only person with more political juice in the state right now is Jan Brewer, and she owes him BIG.
She'll spend the next two years signing some of the biggest pieces of garbage to ever pass any legislature.
What could those bills look like?
...SB2001 - changing the state's motto from "Ditat Deus" to "Sieg Heil"
...SB2002 - the new state jobs program: Anyone on any kind of public assistance has to serve time on a work gang at the border with Mexico, installing a line of kerosene-soaked crosses along the entire border
...SB2003 - the new state energy program: Turn burning crosses at the border into power generation stations
...SB2004 - legalizing corporate sponsorship of government offices and facilities. Look for the "Highground Inc. Foyer" on the 9th floor of the Executive Tower and the Corrections Corporation of America Senate Republican Caucus Room" shortly after the new lege is seated in January
---SCR2001 - Rescinding the Arizona Constitution in its entirety and seceding from the United States of America
...SB2101 - Making the act of asking one's employer for a raise a class six felony
...SCR2002 - Ending the constitutional requirements to have and support public education in Arizona
...SCR2003 - Specifying that eligibility for voting is confined to registered Republicans and to those who can pass a civics test - written in pig Latin
...SCR2004 - Specifying that English is the only language allowed to be spoken in Arizona. Tourists and Natives not welcome
...SB2178 - A new "Employer Sanctions" bill, this one penalizing employers who pay their employees a livable wage and/or fringe benefits
...SB2255 - Specifying that presidential candidates on the AZ ballot cannot have skin any darker than Russell Pearce's after a day spent speechifyin' and back-slappin' at a tea party or neo-Nazi rally at the Capitol
...SB2284 - Requiring that members of the Senate from the minority caucus serve as the butlers and maids for the members of the majority caucus
...SCR2005 - Creating a special class of citizens called "corporations" and granting them tax-exempt status
Note: the above is thoroughgoing wiseass-ery. None of the listed bills are real.
Yet.
Other lege-related notes: Congratulations go out to LD17's own David Schapira, the newly-elected leader of the Democratic caucus in the state senate. Senators Leah Landrum Taylor and Paula Aboud were elected as Assistant Minority Leader and Democratic Whip, respectively.
However, while an agency head gets a bigger paycheck than a legislator (at least, more pay that's "on the books"), in practical political terms, the only person with more political juice in the state right now is Jan Brewer, and she owes him BIG.
She'll spend the next two years signing some of the biggest pieces of garbage to ever pass any legislature.
What could those bills look like?
...SB2001 - changing the state's motto from "Ditat Deus" to "Sieg Heil"
...SB2002 - the new state jobs program: Anyone on any kind of public assistance has to serve time on a work gang at the border with Mexico, installing a line of kerosene-soaked crosses along the entire border
...SB2003 - the new state energy program: Turn burning crosses at the border into power generation stations
...SB2004 - legalizing corporate sponsorship of government offices and facilities. Look for the "Highground Inc. Foyer" on the 9th floor of the Executive Tower and the Corrections Corporation of America Senate Republican Caucus Room" shortly after the new lege is seated in January
---SCR2001 - Rescinding the Arizona Constitution in its entirety and seceding from the United States of America
...SB2101 - Making the act of asking one's employer for a raise a class six felony
...SCR2002 - Ending the constitutional requirements to have and support public education in Arizona
...SCR2003 - Specifying that eligibility for voting is confined to registered Republicans and to those who can pass a civics test - written in pig Latin
...SCR2004 - Specifying that English is the only language allowed to be spoken in Arizona. Tourists and Natives not welcome
...SB2178 - A new "Employer Sanctions" bill, this one penalizing employers who pay their employees a livable wage and/or fringe benefits
...SB2255 - Specifying that presidential candidates on the AZ ballot cannot have skin any darker than Russell Pearce's after a day spent speechifyin' and back-slappin' at a tea party or neo-Nazi rally at the Capitol
...SB2284 - Requiring that members of the Senate from the minority caucus serve as the butlers and maids for the members of the majority caucus
...SCR2005 - Creating a special class of citizens called "corporations" and granting them tax-exempt status
Note: the above is thoroughgoing wiseass-ery. None of the listed bills are real.
Yet.
Other lege-related notes: Congratulations go out to LD17's own David Schapira, the newly-elected leader of the Democratic caucus in the state senate. Senators Leah Landrum Taylor and Paula Aboud were elected as Assistant Minority Leader and Democratic Whip, respectively.
Ugh.
Chalk one up for the politics of demonization. A big one...
Last night was definitely ugly.
Many good people, and at least one great one, lost their jobs last night.
The results page on the AZ Secretary of State's website is here.
First, the genuinely ugly - Harry Mitchell, the icon of public service, lost the CD5 race to real estate vulture David Schweikert. Apparently, the majority of voters in CD5 have decided that they don't want a public servant to represent them in Congress, instead giving their nod to a public predator (geez, can ya tell I'm still pissed over this one? ).
The entire Schweikert campaign platform can be summed up thusly: Obamacare!
Seriously, that was it.
I was on sign detail for one of the down ballot candidates here, and every polling place had at least 5 - 8 little signs that had one word on them - "Obamacare." Sometimes they were placed at random, sometimes they were placed next to Mitchell signs, and at least once, place *in* a Mitchell sign.
More on this race in the next few days, after I decompress.
...There was lots of bad (some really bad) on Tuesday.
- The Rs swept the statewide races. Some of the D losses were expected, but to elect two people who have long records of being crooks to positions of great public trust like Attorney General and Treasurer?
As noted above, last night was a triumph of the politics of demonization, but "willful ignorance" also ran wild in Arizona on Tuesday.
- The Rs also increased their majority in the legislature, mostly by knocking off a number of Democratic women.
Former State Representative Jackie Thrasher (LD10) lost her bid to return to the House, down by almost 3000 votes.
State Representative Rae Waters (LD20) is down 1400 votes in her reelection bid.
State Senator Rebecca Rios (LD23) is down almost 5000 votes her race.
State Representative Barbara McGuire (LD23) is down almost 7000 votes.
State Senator Amanda Aguirre (LD24) is down more than 3000 votes in her race.
State Representative Pat Fleming (LD25) is down more than 3000 votes.
State Representative Nancy Young Wright (LD26) is down slightly less than 900 votes in her race.
In keeping with the Rs' anti-woman theme, Dirty Scottsdale writer and "chip off the ol' potatoe" Ben Quayle won the CD3 seat being vacated by John Shadegg. His opponent ran as a Republican dressed up in a Democrat's clothing. Turns out that didn't inspire the D base to turn out. Who knew?
The politics of demonization was effective on a number of ballot propositions, too.
Prop 106 (anti-healthcare reform), Prop 107 (anti-affirmative action), and Prop 113 (anti-union) were all approved by the voters.
...There were a few nuggets of good in yesterday's carnage. OK, less "good" than "not horrificly bad" -
- Prop 301 (ending and sweeping the monies from the Land Conservation Fund) and Prop 302 (ending First Things First, the early childhood education program that was created by the voters in a previous election) have been turned away by the voters. The Rs in the lege will use this as a rationalization to further gut education and social infrastructure programs in the name of "balancing the budget," but they were going to that anyway. They just would have found a different excuse if the Props had passed.
- In out-of-state results that may have a direct impact on Arizona, Kris Kobach, the nativist lawyer who wrote SB1070 for fellow traveller Russell Pearce, won his election as Secretary of State in Kansas. He'll be overseeing elections there. He ran on a anti-immigrant platform, and has pledged to work to minimize the number of immigrants voting there. God help Kansas. On the plus side, we can always hope that his duties/schemes in KS serve to distract him from Arizona.
- Also turned away were R challenges to U.S. Reps. Gabrielle Giffords (CD8) and Raul Grijalva (CD7) (however, CD8 remains close, so there is a chance that one will change, though Giffords is ahead by approximately 2000 votes as of this writing.)
- In my home LD, District 17, State Rep. David Schapira has fended off what had appeared to be a strong challenger for the LD17 Senate seat. Wendy Rogers was touted as the kind of conservative who could win in a Democratic-leaning swing district. Turns out she was actually just a polished version of her ticketmate, Don Hawker. House candidate Hawker was the epitome of the "single issue" candidate, literally blaming all that ails Arizona (and the country) on abortion.
Both were wrong for the community, wrong for the district, and wrong for the state, and voters in D17 saw that. One of the advantages of living in a district with a lot of university professors and students in it.
- In some of the down ballot races, there was some good news -
Retiring State Senator Meg Burton Cahill defeated a retired barber for the Justice of the Peace spot in the University Lakes Justice Precinct. Some ugly robocalls funded by the Arizona Multihousing Association failed to defeat the popular Tempean.
Dana Saar of Fountain Hills defeated embarrassment Jerry Walker of Mesa for Walker's seat on the Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District. Walker has shamed his constituents and the District a number of times with his thuggish behavior. Saar taking the seat will help restore the credibility of this embattled board.
...The one spark of hope, in Arizona and across the nation, that I can find from yesterday's results (and I had to dig deep to find this one) -
In 1994, that national R wave occurred two years *after* redistricting took place.
In 2010, the wave took place two years *before* redistricting. The Rs, especially the tea baggers, won't have time to entrench themselves before having to run in radically different districts in 2012.
More later, on CD5 and some of the local races and ballot questions...
Last night was definitely ugly.
Many good people, and at least one great one, lost their jobs last night.
The results page on the AZ Secretary of State's website is here.
First, the genuinely ugly - Harry Mitchell, the icon of public service, lost the CD5 race to real estate vulture David Schweikert. Apparently, the majority of voters in CD5 have decided that they don't want a public servant to represent them in Congress, instead giving their nod to a public predator (geez, can ya tell I'm still pissed over this one? ).
The entire Schweikert campaign platform can be summed up thusly: Obamacare!
Seriously, that was it.
I was on sign detail for one of the down ballot candidates here, and every polling place had at least 5 - 8 little signs that had one word on them - "Obamacare." Sometimes they were placed at random, sometimes they were placed next to Mitchell signs, and at least once, place *in* a Mitchell sign.
More on this race in the next few days, after I decompress.
...There was lots of bad (some really bad) on Tuesday.
- The Rs swept the statewide races. Some of the D losses were expected, but to elect two people who have long records of being crooks to positions of great public trust like Attorney General and Treasurer?
As noted above, last night was a triumph of the politics of demonization, but "willful ignorance" also ran wild in Arizona on Tuesday.
- The Rs also increased their majority in the legislature, mostly by knocking off a number of Democratic women.
Former State Representative Jackie Thrasher (LD10) lost her bid to return to the House, down by almost 3000 votes.
State Representative Rae Waters (LD20) is down 1400 votes in her reelection bid.
State Senator Rebecca Rios (LD23) is down almost 5000 votes her race.
State Representative Barbara McGuire (LD23) is down almost 7000 votes.
State Senator Amanda Aguirre (LD24) is down more than 3000 votes in her race.
State Representative Pat Fleming (LD25) is down more than 3000 votes.
State Representative Nancy Young Wright (LD26) is down slightly less than 900 votes in her race.
In keeping with the Rs' anti-woman theme, Dirty Scottsdale writer and "chip off the ol' potatoe" Ben Quayle won the CD3 seat being vacated by John Shadegg. His opponent ran as a Republican dressed up in a Democrat's clothing. Turns out that didn't inspire the D base to turn out. Who knew?
The politics of demonization was effective on a number of ballot propositions, too.
Prop 106 (anti-healthcare reform), Prop 107 (anti-affirmative action), and Prop 113 (anti-union) were all approved by the voters.
...There were a few nuggets of good in yesterday's carnage. OK, less "good" than "not horrificly bad" -
- Prop 301 (ending and sweeping the monies from the Land Conservation Fund) and Prop 302 (ending First Things First, the early childhood education program that was created by the voters in a previous election) have been turned away by the voters. The Rs in the lege will use this as a rationalization to further gut education and social infrastructure programs in the name of "balancing the budget," but they were going to that anyway. They just would have found a different excuse if the Props had passed.
- In out-of-state results that may have a direct impact on Arizona, Kris Kobach, the nativist lawyer who wrote SB1070 for fellow traveller Russell Pearce, won his election as Secretary of State in Kansas. He'll be overseeing elections there. He ran on a anti-immigrant platform, and has pledged to work to minimize the number of immigrants voting there. God help Kansas. On the plus side, we can always hope that his duties/schemes in KS serve to distract him from Arizona.
- Also turned away were R challenges to U.S. Reps. Gabrielle Giffords (CD8) and Raul Grijalva (CD7) (however, CD8 remains close, so there is a chance that one will change, though Giffords is ahead by approximately 2000 votes as of this writing.)
- In my home LD, District 17, State Rep. David Schapira has fended off what had appeared to be a strong challenger for the LD17 Senate seat. Wendy Rogers was touted as the kind of conservative who could win in a Democratic-leaning swing district. Turns out she was actually just a polished version of her ticketmate, Don Hawker. House candidate Hawker was the epitome of the "single issue" candidate, literally blaming all that ails Arizona (and the country) on abortion.
Both were wrong for the community, wrong for the district, and wrong for the state, and voters in D17 saw that. One of the advantages of living in a district with a lot of university professors and students in it.
- In some of the down ballot races, there was some good news -
Retiring State Senator Meg Burton Cahill defeated a retired barber for the Justice of the Peace spot in the University Lakes Justice Precinct. Some ugly robocalls funded by the Arizona Multihousing Association failed to defeat the popular Tempean.
Dana Saar of Fountain Hills defeated embarrassment Jerry Walker of Mesa for Walker's seat on the Governing Board of the Maricopa County Community College District. Walker has shamed his constituents and the District a number of times with his thuggish behavior. Saar taking the seat will help restore the credibility of this embattled board.
...The one spark of hope, in Arizona and across the nation, that I can find from yesterday's results (and I had to dig deep to find this one) -
In 1994, that national R wave occurred two years *after* redistricting took place.
In 2010, the wave took place two years *before* redistricting. The Rs, especially the tea baggers, won't have time to entrench themselves before having to run in radically different districts in 2012.
More later, on CD5 and some of the local races and ballot questions...
Monday, November 01, 2010
Didja hear??? There's an election tomorrow...
Who knew?!?
Seriously, the polling place locator function of the Maricopa County Recorder's website is here.
The polls here will be open from 6 a.m. until 7 p.m., and if you are in line by 7, you will get to vote.
Seriously, the polling place locator function of the Maricopa County Recorder's website is here.
The polls here will be open from 6 a.m. until 7 p.m., and if you are in line by 7, you will get to vote.
The MSM isn't getting it...
Last weekend, Josh Brodesky wrote a piece for the Arizona Daily Star that excoriated blogs, particularly political blogs like Blog for Arizona (full disclosure: I'm a guest writer at BfA), for being biased and unprofessional.
Blogs? Biased and unprofessional?
Blogs????
No sh!t, Sherlock.
To its credit, the Star has published the insightful response of Michael Bryan, the blog "owner" of BfA.
David Safier of Blog for Arizona has an equally insightful, and more direct, rebuttal of Brodesky's diatribe.
My take:
I started writing my own insightful and sharp response. It was also long and boring, even pedantic.
That response has been deleted.
The bottom line is that blogs are exactly what the writers want them to be - outlets for partisan commentary, observations on life (or just a part of it), places to rant (this blog was started as a vent for all of the frustration that had built up from watching the insanity that is the Arizona political scene) or outlets for cooking tips or whatever.
While some, like this one, make occasional forays into areas that used to be the exclusive territory of "professional" media (covering public meetings and legislative developments), nearly all of us are more like columnists than street-level reporters.
Mr. Brodesky criticizes blogs, which he admits he doesn't read often, for not being like his newspaper, yet he doesn't even allude to the fact that many blogs break stories that MSM reporters don't want to touch (like David Safier's coverage of the misuse of tuition tax credit $), many times because of their own biases or even because they're afraid that writing something that could offend one of the people they need as a source.
Anyway, I can see that I'm already getting pedantic again, so let me close this with an open question for Mr. Brodesky and anyone else who cares to answer:
If the "traditional" media should be held up as an example of integrity and professionalism that all bloggers should aspire to (and be ashamed for not achieving), why is it that ABC News, ostensibly a mainstream media organization, has brought Andrew Breitbart on board to be part of their election coverage?
You know, the same Breitbart who selectively edited video to smear Shirley Sherrod, a career employee of the Department of Agriculture?
You know, the same Breitbart who seems to have done the same thing in Alaska over the weekend, editing a garbled recording of some reporters into a conspiracy against tea party/GOP Senate candidate Joe Miller?
I'm openly partisan, as are the other writers at BfA, as are the writers of the other political bloggers in AZ (left and right).
Most of us do NOT play with the facts.
Unlike folks like Andrew Breitbart, who is about to become part of Mr. Brodesky's mainstream media.
Blogs? Biased and unprofessional?
Blogs????
No sh!t, Sherlock.
To its credit, the Star has published the insightful response of Michael Bryan, the blog "owner" of BfA.
David Safier of Blog for Arizona has an equally insightful, and more direct, rebuttal of Brodesky's diatribe.
My take:
I started writing my own insightful and sharp response. It was also long and boring, even pedantic.
That response has been deleted.
The bottom line is that blogs are exactly what the writers want them to be - outlets for partisan commentary, observations on life (or just a part of it), places to rant (this blog was started as a vent for all of the frustration that had built up from watching the insanity that is the Arizona political scene) or outlets for cooking tips or whatever.
While some, like this one, make occasional forays into areas that used to be the exclusive territory of "professional" media (covering public meetings and legislative developments), nearly all of us are more like columnists than street-level reporters.
Mr. Brodesky criticizes blogs, which he admits he doesn't read often, for not being like his newspaper, yet he doesn't even allude to the fact that many blogs break stories that MSM reporters don't want to touch (like David Safier's coverage of the misuse of tuition tax credit $), many times because of their own biases or even because they're afraid that writing something that could offend one of the people they need as a source.
Anyway, I can see that I'm already getting pedantic again, so let me close this with an open question for Mr. Brodesky and anyone else who cares to answer:
If the "traditional" media should be held up as an example of integrity and professionalism that all bloggers should aspire to (and be ashamed for not achieving), why is it that ABC News, ostensibly a mainstream media organization, has brought Andrew Breitbart on board to be part of their election coverage?
You know, the same Breitbart who selectively edited video to smear Shirley Sherrod, a career employee of the Department of Agriculture?
You know, the same Breitbart who seems to have done the same thing in Alaska over the weekend, editing a garbled recording of some reporters into a conspiracy against tea party/GOP Senate candidate Joe Miller?
I'm openly partisan, as are the other writers at BfA, as are the writers of the other political bloggers in AZ (left and right).
Most of us do NOT play with the facts.
Unlike folks like Andrew Breitbart, who is about to become part of Mr. Brodesky's mainstream media.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Campaign superlatives
Inspired by Laurie Roberts of the Arizona Republic, who has a column up with the title "My picks for the most memorable performances of this campaign season."
Mostly her column is a series of criticisms of the effors of some of the campaigns. I can do that, and will, but I've got a few compliments, too.
Toward the end of the high school year, yearbooks come out, with picks (and pics) of the "the most" whatever or "the class" blah. Now that we are nearing the end of the campaign cycle, it's time for campaign superlatives.
...The "Least Likely To Have A Future On American Idol" Award: Rodney Glassman, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate. His video performance of "Sweet Home Arizona" was easily the most entertaining video of the season, and it was energetic. Other than that...?
...The "Truth? We don't need no stinking truth! " Award: Many worthy nominees, but this one goes to the Yes on Prop 302 folks. They've got signs all over the state pimping the proposition with "Stop Wasteful Government Spending." They've also go signs up saying the Prop 302 is "for the kids" or some such tripe.
Prop 302 would defund and destroy First Things First, a program for early childhood education and health care. The money set aside for it via a voter-approved dedicated tax would then go into the state's General Fund and be subject to appropriation by the lege. The expectation is that the lege would use the revenue as an excuse for more corporate tax cuts, and then use the resulting reduction in revenue as an excuse for cutting education and children's health care programs even more than they already have been.
...The "Most Expensive Campaign By A Candidate Who Isn't Even On The Ballot" Award: Maricopa County's own Joltin' Joe Arpaio. The nativist sheriff isn't up for reelection until 2012, but he spent over $700K on TV spots targeting Rick Romley, a candidate for Maricopa County Attorney, and incurred a fine of $150K more for his illegal "in-kind" contribution.
...The "Most Likely To Be Cursing Poor Timing" Award: Joe Hart, the incumbent Arizona Mine Inspector. Hart looks to be openly in the pocket of the industry he's supposed to regulate (he takes lots of campaign contributions from them, and they help create laws to specifically increase his job security).
He started the campaign season well-funded and bunkered legally, and looked to be cruising to an easy reelection. Then 33 miners in Chile became trapped in an unsafe mine, and even worse, had the audacity to survive for more than two months underground before being rescued.
The world's, and Arizona's attention became focused on the drama in Chile, and unfortunately for Hart, on all things mining.
Including Hart's dearth of qualifications for the job, and the wealth of experience in the safe operation of mines on the part of his opponent Manny Cruz.
...The "Most Likely To Wish That The Election Was Held The Day After She Signed SB1070" Award: Who else? Jan "Brain Freeze" Brewer. She started out the real election cycle (i.e. - after the other major R candidates dropped out of their primary) with a huge lead over Terry Goddard. Right now, however, the short calendar between the primary and general elections is her best friend.
Between...
- Nationally ridiculed false claims of headless bodies in the Arizona desert...
- The aforemention "brain freeze" during her one and only debate with Goddard...
- National coverage of the ties between private prisons, SB1070, and her circle of lobbyists/advisers
- and other missteps, she has since allowed Goddard to close the gap with her, turning the contest into one that will be won by the organization with the stronger GOTV effort. She still leads in recent polling, but Tuesday can't come soon enough for her.
..."Most Likely To Be A Chip Off The Old Block" Award: Ben Quayle. Dad can't spell "potato" correctly; son doesn't know history, calling Barack Obama the "worst president in history" in a TV spot, ignoring the fact that his deep-pocketed well-connected daddy used to work for the deep-pocketed well-connected daddy of the one of the "worst presidents in history," the one who was the worst in well over a century.
Later...
Mostly her column is a series of criticisms of the effors of some of the campaigns. I can do that, and will, but I've got a few compliments, too.
Toward the end of the high school year, yearbooks come out, with picks (and pics) of the "the most" whatever or "the class" blah. Now that we are nearing the end of the campaign cycle, it's time for campaign superlatives.
...The "Least Likely To Have A Future On American Idol" Award: Rodney Glassman, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate. His video performance of "Sweet Home Arizona" was easily the most entertaining video of the season, and it was energetic. Other than that...?
...The "Truth? We don't need no stinking truth! " Award: Many worthy nominees, but this one goes to the Yes on Prop 302 folks. They've got signs all over the state pimping the proposition with "Stop Wasteful Government Spending." They've also go signs up saying the Prop 302 is "for the kids" or some such tripe.
Prop 302 would defund and destroy First Things First, a program for early childhood education and health care. The money set aside for it via a voter-approved dedicated tax would then go into the state's General Fund and be subject to appropriation by the lege. The expectation is that the lege would use the revenue as an excuse for more corporate tax cuts, and then use the resulting reduction in revenue as an excuse for cutting education and children's health care programs even more than they already have been.
...The "Most Expensive Campaign By A Candidate Who Isn't Even On The Ballot" Award: Maricopa County's own Joltin' Joe Arpaio. The nativist sheriff isn't up for reelection until 2012, but he spent over $700K on TV spots targeting Rick Romley, a candidate for Maricopa County Attorney, and incurred a fine of $150K more for his illegal "in-kind" contribution.
...The "Most Likely To Be Cursing Poor Timing" Award: Joe Hart, the incumbent Arizona Mine Inspector. Hart looks to be openly in the pocket of the industry he's supposed to regulate (he takes lots of campaign contributions from them, and they help create laws to specifically increase his job security).
He started the campaign season well-funded and bunkered legally, and looked to be cruising to an easy reelection. Then 33 miners in Chile became trapped in an unsafe mine, and even worse, had the audacity to survive for more than two months underground before being rescued.
The world's, and Arizona's attention became focused on the drama in Chile, and unfortunately for Hart, on all things mining.
Including Hart's dearth of qualifications for the job, and the wealth of experience in the safe operation of mines on the part of his opponent Manny Cruz.
...The "Most Likely To Wish That The Election Was Held The Day After She Signed SB1070" Award: Who else? Jan "Brain Freeze" Brewer. She started out the real election cycle (i.e. - after the other major R candidates dropped out of their primary) with a huge lead over Terry Goddard. Right now, however, the short calendar between the primary and general elections is her best friend.
Between...
- Nationally ridiculed false claims of headless bodies in the Arizona desert...
- The aforemention "brain freeze" during her one and only debate with Goddard...
- National coverage of the ties between private prisons, SB1070, and her circle of lobbyists/advisers
- and other missteps, she has since allowed Goddard to close the gap with her, turning the contest into one that will be won by the organization with the stronger GOTV effort. She still leads in recent polling, but Tuesday can't come soon enough for her.
..."Most Likely To Be A Chip Off The Old Block" Award: Ben Quayle. Dad can't spell "potato" correctly; son doesn't know history, calling Barack Obama the "worst president in history" in a TV spot, ignoring the fact that his deep-pocketed well-connected daddy used to work for the deep-pocketed well-connected daddy of the one of the "worst presidents in history," the one who was the worst in well over a century.
Later...
Friday, October 29, 2010
GOTV time...
Due to there only being 24 hours in a day, blogging will be intermittent through the elections on Tuesday.
Some posts will go up, but no guarantees on the scheduling.
Stay updated on the latest AZ political news at Blog for Arizona, Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion, Democratic Diva, Dry Heat Democrat, or any of the blogs listed on the sidebar.
After you catch up on your reading, sign up for GOTV efforts at your nearest Democratic Party office here.
Hope to see you out canvassing!
Some posts will go up, but no guarantees on the scheduling.
Stay updated on the latest AZ political news at Blog for Arizona, Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion, Democratic Diva, Dry Heat Democrat, or any of the blogs listed on the sidebar.
After you catch up on your reading, sign up for GOTV efforts at your nearest Democratic Party office here.
Hope to see you out canvassing!
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Brewer keeping an innocent man in jail; Arizona politics as usual?
I know I get a little worked up sometimes, questioning the motives, integrity, and even the humanity of many of the players in AZ's political circles. Usually, however, I can step back, take a deep breath, and regain my perspective and civility.
However, Jan Brewer has utterly beaten me.
She's soulless. Purely. Simply. Unequivocally.
Soulless.
ABC News has the story (KNXV-TV, the local affiliate of the network, has a written story here) of how our unelected governor has refused to release a man who was unanimously granted clemency by the board *she* appointed.
William Macumber, age 75, inmate number 033867, has been in prison for over 35 years for a murder that someone else has confessed to committing.
The Arizona Executive Board of Clemency took a look at the facts of the case last year, and citing the case as a "miscarriage of justice," recommended that Macumber be released.
Jan Brewer denied the recommendation for clemency, without explanation.
Since then, the victim's son, Ronald Kempfer, has sought both his father's release and a clear explanation for Brewer's intransigence.
The closest thing to an explanation that he has received was something about how his father's release would endanger public safety and that she has made her decision and "it's final."
Now I would like an explanation of something.
Governor Brewer, I realize that you don't read blogs, but people on your staff do, so maybe one of them will bring this question to you.
Pray tell, how does an arthritic 75-year-old man with heart problems who *didn't* commit a crime constitute a threat to public safety?
Hell, with that description ("an arthritic 75-year-old man with heart problems") all they'd have to do is give him a golf cart and a place to live in Sun City. He'd blend in perfectly. (I'd make a crack about the dangers of the denizens of Sun City driving golf carts, but that's a fight I don't want to get in right now. :) )
As more than a few of the stories suggested, Brewer's concerns with the clemency may be rooted in election year politics - she doesn't want to appear to be soft on crime (the fact that he didn't actually commit the crime is irrelevent to Brewer's reasoning.)
Only in Arizona would keeping an innocent man in jail be considered a good political move.
However, Jan Brewer has utterly beaten me.
She's soulless. Purely. Simply. Unequivocally.
Soulless.
ABC News has the story (KNXV-TV, the local affiliate of the network, has a written story here) of how our unelected governor has refused to release a man who was unanimously granted clemency by the board *she* appointed.
William Macumber, age 75, inmate number 033867, has been in prison for over 35 years for a murder that someone else has confessed to committing.
The Arizona Executive Board of Clemency took a look at the facts of the case last year, and citing the case as a "miscarriage of justice," recommended that Macumber be released.
Jan Brewer denied the recommendation for clemency, without explanation.
Since then, the victim's son, Ronald Kempfer, has sought both his father's release and a clear explanation for Brewer's intransigence.
The closest thing to an explanation that he has received was something about how his father's release would endanger public safety and that she has made her decision and "it's final."
Now I would like an explanation of something.
Governor Brewer, I realize that you don't read blogs, but people on your staff do, so maybe one of them will bring this question to you.
Pray tell, how does an arthritic 75-year-old man with heart problems who *didn't* commit a crime constitute a threat to public safety?
Hell, with that description ("an arthritic 75-year-old man with heart problems") all they'd have to do is give him a golf cart and a place to live in Sun City. He'd blend in perfectly. (I'd make a crack about the dangers of the denizens of Sun City driving golf carts, but that's a fight I don't want to get in right now. :) )
As more than a few of the stories suggested, Brewer's concerns with the clemency may be rooted in election year politics - she doesn't want to appear to be soft on crime (the fact that he didn't actually commit the crime is irrelevent to Brewer's reasoning.)
Only in Arizona would keeping an innocent man in jail be considered a good political move.
Well, that took long enough - National media finally notices the SB1070/private prison lobbyists connection
...and in case that title makes me sound like a jerk, let me say this up front: NPR did a great and thorough job with this.
NPR has released the results of its investigation into the behind-the-scenes machinations during the crafting and passage of Arizona's infamous SB1070. And the relationship between Jan Brewer's staff, many of whom are lobbyists for private prison companies
From the report -
To sum up: the seed of Pearce's SB1070 may have been planted by his unrelenting hatred for people with brown skin, but it was germinated in the hothouse of corporate ideology known as ALEC.
Still, the scheme needed to be nurtured before it could bloom.
As in J. Charles "Chuck" Coughlin, Jan Brewer's campaign manager and "former" policy adviser.
Consider it nurtured and bloomed.
Also on Brewer's staff and CCA's payroll? Communications Director Paul Senseman. He "used" to lobby for CCA; now, his wife is the Senseman household's "official" CCA lobbyist.
For his part, Russell Pearce has denied that ALEC or CCA played any part in the development of SB1070, claiming that he has proposed the bill many times before the ALEC conference late last year.
Granted, that *could* be interpreted to mean that he hatched his scheme free of undue or improper outside influence.
It could also very reasonably be interpreted to mean that he has been in the pockets of the private prison industry for many years, or just that he is a shameless opportunist, using the corruption indicated by industry lobbyists running the governor's office as a catalyst for turning the darkest of his private hatred into the vilest of public policy.
It may take a federal investigation, indictment, and trial, and a few years, but something tells me that in a generation, Arizonans will snicker at the words "Jan Brewer" the same way they do when the hear the words "Ev Mecham."
NPR has released the results of its investigation into the behind-the-scenes machinations during the crafting and passage of Arizona's infamous SB1070. And the relationship between Jan Brewer's staff, many of whom are lobbyists for private prison companies
From the report -
Prison Economics Help Drive Ariz. Immigration Law
{snip}
NPR spent the past several months analyzing hundreds of pages of campaign finance reports, lobbying documents and corporate records. What they show is a quiet, behind-the-scenes effort to help draft and pass Arizona Senate Bill 1070 by an industry that stands to benefit from it: the private prison industry.
The law could send hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants to prison in a way never done before. And it could mean hundreds of millions of dollars in profits to private prison companies responsible for housing them.
Arizona state Sen. Russell Pearce says the bill was his idea. He says it's not about prisons. It's about what's best for the country.
{snip}
It was last December at the Grand Hyatt in Washington, D.C. Inside, there was a meeting of a secretive group called the American Legislative Exchange Council. Insiders call it ALEC.
It's a membership organization of state legislators and powerful corporations and associations, such as the tobacco company Reynolds American Inc., ExxonMobil and the National Rifle Association. Another member is the billion-dollar Corrections Corporation of America — the largest private prison company in the country.
It was there that Pearce's idea took shape.
"I did a presentation," Pearce said. "I went through the facts. I went through the impacts and they said, 'Yeah.'"
The 50 or so people in the room included officials of the Corrections Corporation of America, according to two sources who were there.
Pearce and the Corrections Corporation of America have been coming to these meetings for years. Both have seats on one of several of ALEC's boards.
To sum up: the seed of Pearce's SB1070 may have been planted by his unrelenting hatred for people with brown skin, but it was germinated in the hothouse of corporate ideology known as ALEC.
Still, the scheme needed to be nurtured before it could bloom.
As soon as Pearce's bill hit the Arizona statehouse floor in January, there were signs of ALEC's influence. Thirty-six co-sponsors jumped on, a number almost unheard of in the capitol. According to records obtained by NPR, two-thirds of them either went to that December meeting or are ALEC members.The "powerful new lobbyist" hired by CCA in early January? Highground Inc., operated by one J. Charles Coughlin.
That same week, the Corrections Corporation of America hired a powerful new lobbyist to work the capitol.
The prison company declined requests for an interview. In a statement, a spokesman said the Corrections Corporation of America, "unequivocally has not at any time lobbied — nor have we had any outside consultants lobby – on immigration law."
At the state Capitol, campaign donations started to appear.
Thirty of the 36 co-sponsors received donations over the next six months, from prison lobbyists or prison companies — Corrections Corporation of America, Management and Training Corporation and The Geo Group.
By April, the bill was on Gov. Jan Brewer's desk.
As in J. Charles "Chuck" Coughlin, Jan Brewer's campaign manager and "former" policy adviser.
Consider it nurtured and bloomed.
Also on Brewer's staff and CCA's payroll? Communications Director Paul Senseman. He "used" to lobby for CCA; now, his wife is the Senseman household's "official" CCA lobbyist.
For his part, Russell Pearce has denied that ALEC or CCA played any part in the development of SB1070, claiming that he has proposed the bill many times before the ALEC conference late last year.
Granted, that *could* be interpreted to mean that he hatched his scheme free of undue or improper outside influence.
It could also very reasonably be interpreted to mean that he has been in the pockets of the private prison industry for many years, or just that he is a shameless opportunist, using the corruption indicated by industry lobbyists running the governor's office as a catalyst for turning the darkest of his private hatred into the vilest of public policy.
It may take a federal investigation, indictment, and trial, and a few years, but something tells me that in a generation, Arizonans will snicker at the words "Jan Brewer" the same way they do when the hear the words "Ev Mecham."
Spin, Half-truths and Lies: Schweikert campaign running on empty
...but that's all they have left...and "half-truths" may be giving them too much credit...
Early yesterday, the Schweikert campaign breathlessly sent out an email press release, touting a police report in Tempe concerning a Tempe resident who "pushed down" two anti-Mitchell signs.
The one piece of truth? Such an incident did, in fact, occur, at least according to this police report (courtesy the Arizona Capitol Times).
After that, the press release gets more than a little light on facts.
The press release starts by conflating this incident with a 2000 incident where Mitchell was accused of stealing some signs.
The press release pontificates on that one with "[t]here was no question that Congressman Mitchell broke the law then."
The problem with that?
The charges were dismissed, and that dismissal was upheld on appeal. No matter how often Rs like to bring up the incident from 2000, they always seem to forget to mention that a judge ruled that no crime occurred.
Call this one the "half-truth, barely" part.
The press release then goes on to include a picture of some signs with "the kind of damage that has been occurring."
The problem with that?
The picture included in the press release wasn't of the signs that were part of the incident detailed in the police report. It was of some of the unsightly "insult" signs that Schweikert has carpetbombed CD5 with. The pic looks to have been staged in a parking lot, perhaps outside of Schweikert's campaign headquarters (I don't actually know where it was staged, just that it definitely looks staged).
Call this one the "spun into an outright lie" part, but at least it gave them an excuse to push their lies about Harry Mitchell one more time.
The Arizona Capitol Times has a story up that refutes the Schweikert campaign's spin and press release.
In it, the writer points out that neither the alleged "damager" nor the complainer involved in the incident are directly involved in either the Mitchell or the Schweikert campaigns other than in expressing support for the respective candidates. Speaking personally, I've been a frequent visitor to the Mitchell campaign office in Tempe, and I've never heard of the man accused of damaging the signs.
The Schweikert supporter, however, is a somewhat different story.
I've never heard of him by name, but he is quoted in the police report saying that he "has a company called Jet Media."
The Cap Times' story quotes Jim Torgeson, the owner of Jet Media, as claiming that the signs weren't commissioned by the Schweikert campaign.
From the story -
The press release claims very specifically that the signs involved in the Tempe incident *are* the property of the Schweikert campaign.
From the press release -
It also means that someone is violating campaign finance laws.
Either the complainer owns them and is engaging in political advocacy without filing campaign finance paperwork with the AZ Secretary of State (which he hasn't), or Schweikert owns them and needs to put the appropriate "paid for by" on the signs (which he hasn't, apparently, because there isn't one on the signs.)
Other issues -
Mr. Torgeson is a Republican operative of long standing, using his sign company to harass Democratic candidates in Tempe for years now.
Mr. Torgeson's company, Jet Media, received over $7400 worth of sign business from the Schweikert campaign just between late August and late September, according to Schweikert's FEC filings. I don't know if the signs that the Schweikert campaign purchased from Torgeson were the ones involved in the above incident, but that's a lot of money going to a small sign company relatively late in the cycle.
Mr. Torgeson is listed with the Arizona Corporation Commission as President of Jet Media Promotions, Inc. That corporation was administratively dissolved by the ACC earlier this year because of its failure to file an annual report. Not sure how/if that impacts the legal operation of the sign business, but it's definitely sloppy on Mr. Torgeson's part.
Still, given that we are now less than five days from Election Day, this is just a meaningless distraction. Any proceedings stemming from the above incident will take weeks or even months to run to completion; any possible campaign finance violations could take *years* to resolve.
Time to do a little canvassing.
Later...
Early yesterday, the Schweikert campaign breathlessly sent out an email press release, touting a police report in Tempe concerning a Tempe resident who "pushed down" two anti-Mitchell signs.
The one piece of truth? Such an incident did, in fact, occur, at least according to this police report (courtesy the Arizona Capitol Times).
After that, the press release gets more than a little light on facts.
The press release starts by conflating this incident with a 2000 incident where Mitchell was accused of stealing some signs.
The press release pontificates on that one with "[t]here was no question that Congressman Mitchell broke the law then."
The problem with that?
The charges were dismissed, and that dismissal was upheld on appeal. No matter how often Rs like to bring up the incident from 2000, they always seem to forget to mention that a judge ruled that no crime occurred.
Call this one the "half-truth, barely" part.
The press release then goes on to include a picture of some signs with "the kind of damage that has been occurring."
The problem with that?
The picture included in the press release wasn't of the signs that were part of the incident detailed in the police report. It was of some of the unsightly "insult" signs that Schweikert has carpetbombed CD5 with. The pic looks to have been staged in a parking lot, perhaps outside of Schweikert's campaign headquarters (I don't actually know where it was staged, just that it definitely looks staged).
Call this one the "spun into an outright lie" part, but at least it gave them an excuse to push their lies about Harry Mitchell one more time.
The Arizona Capitol Times has a story up that refutes the Schweikert campaign's spin and press release.
In it, the writer points out that neither the alleged "damager" nor the complainer involved in the incident are directly involved in either the Mitchell or the Schweikert campaigns other than in expressing support for the respective candidates. Speaking personally, I've been a frequent visitor to the Mitchell campaign office in Tempe, and I've never heard of the man accused of damaging the signs.
The Schweikert supporter, however, is a somewhat different story.
I've never heard of him by name, but he is quoted in the police report saying that he "has a company called Jet Media."
The Cap Times' story quotes Jim Torgeson, the owner of Jet Media, as claiming that the signs weren't commissioned by the Schweikert campaign.
From the story -
"But Jet Media owner Jim Torgeson said that Sanders’ signs were not commissioned by the Schweikert campaign, and that they personally belonged to Sanders, not the company."That opens up a big can of worms for the Schweikert campaign.
The press release claims very specifically that the signs involved in the Tempe incident *are* the property of the Schweikert campaign.
From the press release -
"The signs in question are the property of David Schweikert’s campaign."That's pretty unequivocal.
It also means that someone is violating campaign finance laws.
Either the complainer owns them and is engaging in political advocacy without filing campaign finance paperwork with the AZ Secretary of State (which he hasn't), or Schweikert owns them and needs to put the appropriate "paid for by" on the signs (which he hasn't, apparently, because there isn't one on the signs.)
Other issues -
Mr. Torgeson is a Republican operative of long standing, using his sign company to harass Democratic candidates in Tempe for years now.
Mr. Torgeson's company, Jet Media, received over $7400 worth of sign business from the Schweikert campaign just between late August and late September, according to Schweikert's FEC filings. I don't know if the signs that the Schweikert campaign purchased from Torgeson were the ones involved in the above incident, but that's a lot of money going to a small sign company relatively late in the cycle.
Mr. Torgeson is listed with the Arizona Corporation Commission as President of Jet Media Promotions, Inc. That corporation was administratively dissolved by the ACC earlier this year because of its failure to file an annual report. Not sure how/if that impacts the legal operation of the sign business, but it's definitely sloppy on Mr. Torgeson's part.
Still, given that we are now less than five days from Election Day, this is just a meaningless distraction. Any proceedings stemming from the above incident will take weeks or even months to run to completion; any possible campaign finance violations could take *years* to resolve.
Time to do a little canvassing.
Later...
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