Mark Finchem, playing fast and loose with the truth more often than any alleged public servant should

This post gets kind of convoluted and involved, so allow a lot of time to read it.

Rep. Mark Finchem has a bit of a “truth” problem.

Not the first time I've posited that, but even I didn't realize how bad it was.

Arizona's Financial Disclosure Forms for its elected and appointed officials are an exercise in vagueness and non-disclosure (name of the form notwithstanding).  In short, they are almost completely useless.

"Almost."

As it turns out, a little patience helps. :)

From Finchem's 2022 Financial Disclosure Form (covering the prior year of 2021) -

Of the four corporate ties that he discloses, three don't exist in AZ according to the ACC.

And that one, Pathway Research, has been administratively dissolved since November, well before he submitted the form.

One, Frontier Applied, form-given AZ address notwithstanding.*is* active.  In Nevada.

Another, United Precious Metals, is incorporated...in Utah.

The last one, Clean Power, is incorporated in Idaho.

To the best of my knowledge, him being part of corporations in other states is *not* a problem in and of itself.

However, he may run into issues with attesting under oath about him being part of a corporation that's been dissolved and further attesting to an AZ address for one that is not active in AZ.

He may also run into issues by not disclosing his ties to other active organizations.

The interesting one is the Prayer Caucus one; he's never disclosed that one even though it was incorporated in 2018 (so it should have been on his form submitted in 2019).

From his 2021 form -

From his 2020 form -

From his 2019 form -

It's been dissolved now, but maybe Finchem should re-establish the Prayer Caucus - and have them pray to God that he isn't indicted for his part in the January 6th insurrection.

Note: I came across this stuff while looking into another elected and that person's spouse.  While both state on their forms that one of their offspring works at an LLC with the same mail drop address as the elected official, but hasn't been incorporated in AZ according to the website of the Arizona Corporation Commission.

However, according to both the AZSOS and the FEC, no campaign funds have been directed to this LLC as yet.

Then I found the Finchem stuff.  With the lack of hard evidence regarding the first matter and me being unwilling to accuse someone of something without more than I have, I chose to set aside the first matter until I have more time to look into it.

Florida, the gift that keeps on giving...to wiseasses

Since 2000, when they screwed up counting ballots/running an election, Florida, home of the happiest place on Earth, has been known as the Stupidest Place on Earth.

And that's saying something, given that the Earth is the home of places like Texas and Arizona.

Still, every once in a while, something happens in FL that testifies to the incredible stupidity there.

From NBC -

Florida man asks police to test meth for authenticity

A Florida man was arrested after calling police and asking them to test his methamphetamine's authenticity, according to officials.

Thomas Eugene Colucci, of Spring Hill, Florida, called the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday, asking for officers to test meth he had recently purchased, according to a Facebook post by the Hernando County Sheriff's Office.

[snip]

Officers conducted a test on the substance Colucci provided and found that it was, in fact, meth.

Maybe Colucci should have realized that he was high when he thought that calling the police to test his meth was a bright idea.

Best TV theme music

For those who think that I'm "all politics, all the time". :)

I have some breadth. :) :)

Note: most of the links are to YouTube, so expect lots of ads.

For the record, I can only discuss/rate the music of TV shows from when I was alive and old enough to form an opinion.  For example, the TV show Mission:Impossible was on when I was alive, but I was too young to realize that the theme music was really good.  So, it gets an Honorable Mention here.

IMO, the best theme music came from the 1970s - The Rockford Files.  The 70s had many TV shows with outstanding theme music, including (but not limited to) Hawaii Five-O, The Jeffersons, Baa Baa Black Sheep/Black Sheep Squadron, Good Times, etc.  I would include WKRP in Cincinnati here, but only if we can ignore the song over the opening credits (it was more than a little lame) and keep the music over the end credits (the best ever song over the end credits).

80s - Hill Street Blues

90s - Renegade.  My nominee for the award for "Best Theme Song for a Bad TV Show".

And with that, we end the Mike Post period.  He created many fantastic theme songs over his long career..

2000s - Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  I know that the show (and music) started in the 90s, but this is my list, so I get to make the rules.  It was also great.

2010s - Rizzoli and Isles.

2020s - too soon to evaluate, but I don't hold out much hope for this decade - MBA types are already running TV shows, and are cutting out theme songs in order to air more ads.

Joe Arpaio 'fesses up and tells a conference of white supremacists that he's "the biggest racist in the country"

From the Phoenix New Times -

Arpaio Draws Cheers At Far-Right Conference For Saying He's "Biggest Racist In the Country"

When Joe Arpaio took the stage at the America First Political Action Conference in Orlando, Florida, on Friday, he told the crowd that he was often called the "biggest racist in the country."

The crowd of hundreds erupted in applause and cheered loudly.

Arpaio appeared taken aback by the clamoring response.

Arpaio may be 89 now and he lost the race for Maricopa County Sheriff in 2016, but he's not totally irrelevant politically - now he's running for mayor of Fountain Hills (he, Ginny Dickey, and Kelly Smith have filed statements of interest for the spot).

Interestingly, in the one campaign finance filing that he's submitted so far (filed 1/10/2022), he reports receiving over $206K in contributions, yet only $1200 are from in-state contributors.  And *none* of those contributions came from residents of Fountain Hills.

Of course, of the $206K, $200K was transferred from him sheriff reelection campaign committee.

Here's a wild thought:

Maybe he's not actually interested in representing the people of Fountain Hills.

Yes, we're still paying for Cheeto's lackeys

 Pointed to this by Taegan Goddard's Political Wire.

From AP -

US pays $2M a month to protect Pompeo, aide from Iran threat

The State Department says it’s paying more than $2 million per month to 

provide 24-hour security to former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and a

 

former top aide, both of whom face “serious and credible” threats from Iran.

The department told Congress in a report that the cost of protecting Pompeo 

and former Iran envoy Brian Hook between August 2021 and February

 

2022 amounted to $13.1 million. The report, dated Feb. 14 and marked

 

“sensitive but unclassified,” was obtained by The Associated Press

 

on Saturday.

Hmmmm....that's *really* expensive, but I think I have a money-saving solution to offer here, and since GOPers are all about saving the taxpayers money (just ask them!), they should jump at it.

From The Federal Register, dated 9/1/2021 -

Approximately $80,000 (for two people) for a year of two Trumpkins in a secure federal facility vs. $2 million per month to secure the same people outside of a federal facility (for comparison purposes, that's $24,000,000 per year).

And if we did it that way, Pompeo could give Cheeto a preview of life on the inside.

Win/win! :)

Legislative schedule - week starting 3/13/2022

Note: HHR refers to a hearing room in the House building; SHR refers to one in the Senate building.

Note2: Generally, I'll only specify bills that look to propagate propaganda.  Other bills may be more conventionally bad (think: corrupt or other misuses of public monies and/or authority.  My recommendation is that if an agenda covers an area of interest to you, read the entire agenda.

Note3: Each chamber's respective Rules Committee meets on Monday, the House's in HHR4 at 1 p.m. and the Senate's in Senate Caucus Room 1, also at 1 p.m.  Both committees serve as rubber stamps for bills leadership wants to be advanced and gatekeepers for measures that leadership wants stopped.

Note4: Meeting start times may be listed, but are flexible.  Before journeying to the Capitol or viewing the meeting online, verify the start time.

Note5: Watch for strikers, or strike everything amendments.  Those involve inserting language into the entirety of a bill.  Those can be introduced at any time and can make a previously harmless bill into a very bad one. 

Only 3 strikers this week, so far, but I expect that to increase over the next couple of weeks.

On Monday, 3/14 -

House Health & Human Services meets at 2 p.m. in HHR4.  10 bills on the agenda.

House Land, Agriculture & Rural Affairs meets at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  5 bills on the agenda.

House Military Affairs and Public Safety meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  3 bills on the agenda.

Senate Government meets at 2 p.m. in SHR1.  14 bills on a very bad agenda.

Senate Transportation and Technology meets at 2 p.m.in SHR109.  3 bills on the agenda.

On Tuesday, 3/15 -

House Commerce meets at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  7 bills on the agenda, including SB1166, barring public employers from compensating employees for union activities; SB1278, imposing some fiduciary guidelines/rules on labor unions; SB1459, reducing money and regulations available for sports betting and sports fantasy leagues; and SB1494, mandating unemployment insurance payments for folks who lost a job due to their refusing a Covid vaccination or booster.

House Natural Resources, Energy & Water meets at 2 p.m. in HHR1.  1 bill on the agenda.

Senate Appropriations meets at 2 p.m. in SHR109.  19 bills on the agenda,  including HB2255, adding the Hindu holiday of Diwali to the list of days where large municipalities cannot regulate the sale of use of fireworks; HB2317, appropriating $150,000,000 from the state's general fund to the construction of a border wall; HB2456, appropriating $3,980,000 for a "rural county interoperability communication system"; and HB2506, appropriating $30,000,000 from the state's general fund to the "local immigration enforcement reimbursement fund".  2 measures will have strikers offered - HB2132, appropriating $12,000,000 to the victim compensation and assistance fund, $10 million from monies given to AZ as part of the American Rescue Plan and $2 million from the state's general fund...and the reappropriating those funds to the Arizona criminal justice commission and to HB2201, relating to "Competitive grant program; technology solution; patient continuity of care; hospital interconnectivity; annual report".

Senate Education meets at 2 p.m. in SHR1.  9 bills on the agenda, including HB2161, expanding parents' rights to view educational records and HB2495, barring schools from referring a student to or using sexually explicit materials without parental permission, with certain, limited, exceptions.

On Wednesday, 3/16 -

House Government & Elections meets at 9 a.m. in HHR1.  7 bills on the agenda, including SB1255 and SCR1024, relating to the creation on a Lieutenant Governor's position and SB1260, well, from the Senate fact sheet for the bill, "Classifies, as a class 5 felony, knowingly providing a mechanism for another person who is registered in another state to vote. Requires a person who receives an early ballot of a former resident of the address to write "not at this address" on the envelope and place the envelope into a mail receptacle. Requires a county recorder, to cancel a person's registration and remove the person's name from the county's Active Early Voting List (AEVL) upon confirmation that a person has registered to vote in another county or upon receipt of a ballot envelope indicating the person has moved."

House Judiciary meets at 9 a.m. in HHR4.  12 bills on the agenda

House Ways & Means meets at 9 a.m. in HHR3.  4 bills on the agenda.

Senate Health and Human Services meets at 9 a.m. in SHR1.  7 bills on the agenda.

Senate Finance meets at 10 a.m. in SHR109.  11 bills on the agenda including HB2166, exempting guns, ammunition, and gun safety equipment from sales tax.  The JLBC fiscal note attached to this estimates that this red meat for the base measure will cost the state's general fund and other governmental entities more than $40 million in FY2024 and later.

House Appropriations meets at 1:30 p.m. or upon adjournment of the floor session in HHR1.  7 bills on the agenda.

House Transportation meets at 2 p.m. in HHR3.  7 bills on the agenda.

Senate Commerce meets at 2 p.m. in SHR1.  4 bills on the agenda.

Senate Natural Resources, Energy and Water meets at 2 p.m. in SHR109.  10 bills on the agenda, including a striker for HB2389, subject "River Water Transfer" (text not available as of this writing)

On Thursday, 3/17 -

Senate Judiciary meets at 9 a.m. in SHR1.  10 bills on the agenda, including HB2319, Rep. John Kavanagh's love letter to LEOs barring the recording of law enforcement activity from within 8 feet.

Madison Cawthorn may be Cheeto's "Mini-Me", but wait'll Cheeto sees him in a wheelchair

I mean, he's already got Cheeto's thing about sniffing Putin's farts and proclaiming "smells like roses" carrying Putin's water down pat.

From WRAL (North Carolina) -

US Rep. Madison Cawthorn calls Ukrainian president 'thug,' later says both Russia, Ukraine are 'very vile'

U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina told supporters he thought Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was a "thug"—a comment that runs counter to the overwhelming share of Republicans with a favorable view of the leader fending off a military invasion from Russia.

"Remember that Zelenskyy is a thug," Cawthorn said in a video obtained by WRAL News. "Remember that the Ukrainian government is incredibly corrupt and is incredibly evil and has been pushing woke ideologies."

It was unclear where the video was taken. Cawthorn had a number of events in the state over the weekend.

He's already got Cheeto's thing about how laws are there to be ignored down pat.

From CNN -

North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn charged with driving with revoked license

North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn is facing a charge of driving with a revoked license for the second time since 2017.

The Class 3 misdemeanor charge, which could carry a maximum penalty of up to 20 days in jail, is one of three pending traffic citations against the Republican congressman in his home state.

The charge was first reported by the Asheville Citizen-Times.

Oh, and Cheeto's vassals help him, much like Cheeto's father's vassals helped Cheeto.

From Salon -

Trump judge saves Madison Cawthorn, strikes down challenge against his election eligibility

A federal judge on Friday struck down a legal challenge against Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-N.C., who a group of North Carolina voters argued was ineligible for re-election due to his apparent role in fomenting the January 6 Capitol riot. 

The decision was handed down by Judge Richard Myers, a Trump-appointee in the eastern district of North Carolina, who rubber stamped Cawthorn's request for a preliminary injunction against the petitioners. 

Myers is a member of two conservative advocacy groups, including the Federalist Society and the National Rifle Association. He also serves as a faculty advisor for the Christian Legal Society, whose members profess to be "dedicated to serving Jesus Christ through the practice and study of law."

Verne Troyer would be jealous, if he was alive.

Federal Committee update

From the website of the Federal Election Commission -

Republican Gartrell is running for a Congressional seat in AZCD4.

Turns out that I was wrong again, but it wasn't there when I looked on Thursday.

State Committee update

From the website of the Arizona Secretary of State -

When I wrote last week that there wouldn't be any new committees formed, I was wrong. :)

Ummm...so who wants to tell him?

Mark Finchem seems to have a bit of a problem with the truth.  At least, with the telling of it.

First, he lied about his whereabouts at the January 6 insurrection.

From Jerod MacDonald-Evoy at the AZ Mirror -

Mark Finchem was much closer to the Jan. 6 insurrection than he claimed

Newly discovered footage taken during the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot shows Arizona GOP legislator Mark Finchem was much closer to the day’s violence than he has previously claimed. 

Finchem has insisted that he never got within 500 yards of the Capitol building, but Getty footage of the failed attempt to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s election that was recently discovered by activists on Twitter shows Finchem walking directly in front of the east steps at the Capitol after pro-Trump rioters had already broken through a series of barricades and police lines, and then smashed their way into the Capitol building.

Then, there's this (from Twitter) -

Yes, he seems to believe that the future? Arizona Secretary of State and the current Arizona Secretary of State (and future? Governor of Arizona are more responsible for skyrocketing gasoline prices than the people running Big Oil.

Or maybe he just wants others to believe it.

Townsend vs. Rogers, two far-right Rs, to face off in the LD7 State Senate primary [Updated]

From KPNX (Channel 12 in Phoenix) -

Kelly Townsend reelection bid sets up battle with Wendy Rogers

Two high-profile Republican state senators appear ready to go head-to-head in the August primary election after Kelly Townsend filed for reelection in the same district she and Wendy Rogers ended up in after new district maps were adopted.

Townsend's filing for the District 7 seat with the Arizona Secretary of State's Office on Monday night puts the Apache Junction Republican in the race against Rogers, who lives in Flagstaff.

In 2000 in MLB, the New York Yankees and the New York Mets faced off in the World Series.

This Red Sox fan hoped both would lose.

In 2022 in Arizona, crazy and crazier will face off in the Republican primary in LD7.

This Democrat hopes both lose.

Because if whoever emerges victorious from the R primary wins the general election, the people of that district and the people of Arizona will lose.

In the end, the Yankees won that WS but the folks in LD7 will have another option in the general - voting for the Democratic candidate.

I don't, as yet, know who that will be, but am willing to say here THAT PERSON WILL BE SIGNIFICANTLY SANER THAN EITHER OF THOSE TWO.

On the face of things, that seems unlikely, but it may be necessary if the voters of LD7 wish to avoid being laughed at by the rest of the state.

From the AZ Independent Redistricting Commission -

[Edit on 3/9 to add -

From the AZ Daily Sun -

Kyle Nitschke announces Clean Elections campaign for Arizona Senate

Kyle Nitschke -- an active member of the Coconino Democratic Party, a state committee member with the Arizona Democratic Party and co-chair for the Progressive Counsel of the Arizona Democratic Party -- announced over the weekend that he would run as a Clean Elections candidate for Legislative District 7.

As per the 1998 Citizens Clean Elections Act, Nitschke will work with the Citizens Clean Elections Commission and receive a limited amount of funding from the Commission after he has generated at least 200 $5 contributions and agrees to forgo high-dollar and special-interest contributions.

/end edit]

Well, we know what the standard attire will be in the reboot of the TV show Cops

From Twitter -

Full story, from NPR -

Enrique Tarrio, who led the Proud Boys, is arrested over the U.S. Capitol attack

Enrique Tarrio, who was the chairman of the far-right extremist group the Proud Boys, was arrested and charged with conspiracy for his alleged role in planning the Jan. 6 attack, the Justice Department announced on Tuesday.

He is one of the most prominent defendants yet to face charges over his alleged involvement in the insurrection.

The First Lady will visit AZ on Monday, so AZ's average IQ will go up Monday.

Actually, while I don't know that she is the most intelligent FLOTUS ever (there have been some very smart First Ladies), she is almost inarguably the best educated one ever.

From AZFamily (Channels 3 & 5 in Phoenix) -

First Lady Jill Biden visiting Phoenix, Tucson on Monday

The White House says First Lady Jill Biden is coming to Phoenix and Tucson on Monday to promote the President’s policies that were showcased during this year’s State of the Union address.

Officials say Biden is scheduled to arrive in Phoenix around 12:30 p.m. She will be joined by Angela Hanks, the Assistant Secretary of Employment & Training Administration at the U.S. Department of Labor. Biden and Hanks are scheduled to tour Intel’s campus in Chandler later that afternoon, where they are expected to talk about the company’s investment in community colleges to strengthen the workforce. Intel’s CEO, Pat Gelsinger, is slated to attend the news conference.

Mendoza looks to pick up the bigotry baton left by Russell Pearce

If she wins her race, and Wendy Rogers wins reelection, Rogers won't be the only anti-Semite in the Arizona legislature.

Actually, I'm pretty sure she isn't now, but Rogers is the only one who has been censured over it.

From CNN -

Speaker removed from RNC program after tweeting anti-Semitic conspiracy theory

A speaker who was scheduled to deliver remarks at the Republican National Convention on Tuesday was abruptly removed from the program after she retweeted a thread promoting an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory with ties to the fringe conspiracy theory, QAnon.

Mary Ann Mendoza, whose police officer son was killed by a drunk driver, had been included in a list of speakers sent by the Trump campaign earlier Tuesday evening. An updated rundown circulated before the convention, however, did not include Mendoza after her tweet garnered significant scrutiny following a report by The Daily Beast.

Mendoza had tweeted, "Do yourself a favor and read this thread" in reference to a string of conspiratorial tweets about a Jewish plan to control the world. She later deleted the tweet and claimed that she hadn't read "every post within the thread."

Pic from The Daily Beast

You've got to be *really* extreme to be too extreme for the RNC.

She's largely self-funding her campaign for legislature.  While she reported $450 in individual contributions, she's loaned her campaign $2000.

Note: The pic with Mendoza and Cheeto is from a 2019 anti-immigrant veto ceremony, and Mendoza isn't the only Arizonan in the pic.  Mark Lamb, the sheriff of Pinal County, is in the pic (2nd from right)

Normally, I don't write about legislative candidates/races at this point, but this was too much too ignore until ballots are finalized.

Russell Pearce was an infamously bigoted member of the Arizona legislature from Mesa.

How long before Andrew Cuomo becomes a Republican?

He's already got the "I'm a victim, so it must be someone else's fault" rhetoric down.

Pointed to this by Taegan Goddard's Political Wire.

From The Hill -

Andrew Cuomo blames 'cancel culture' for ouster from office

Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D), who resigned last year amid multiple accusations of workplace sexual misconduct, spoke out in public about his exit from office for the first time on Sunday and blamed "the cancel culture mentality" for his decision to leave.

While delivering remarks at the God’s Battalion of Prayer Church in Brooklyn, Cuomo acknowledged "a difficult period the past few months."

[snip]

In his remarks, he also called cancel culture "a new extremism."