Blake Masters is planning to do his part to make the 2024 R primary for US Senate more interesting

From Politico -

Blake Masters plans another Arizona Senate bid — this time for Sinema’s seat

Blake Masters is making plans to launch another Arizona Senate bid, potentially as soon as next week, according to three people familiar with the matter.

Masters did not reply to a request for comment. Masters won the GOP nomination last year but lost to Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly in a critical swing state.

Right now, I'm assuming that Kari Lake will get in the race, too, making the "Big 3" in the race for the R nomination Lake, Masters, and Mark Lamb, the sheriff in Pinal County.

Meaning that at least 3 Rs will be vying for the Bat Shit Crazy vote.

Unless one of them drops out or someone just as crazy as them gets in the race.  Both are possibilities.

Kari Lake thinks that lying about public officials is OK. Well, that explains her statements about Cheeto and the 2020 election

From AZ Mirror, written by Caitlin Sievers, dated 8/23/2023 -

Kari Lake says it doesn’t matter if she lied about Stephen Richer in bid to toss suit out

Failed Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake says that it doesn’t matter whether the statements she made about Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer are false and his defamation lawsuit against her should be tossed out of court because of a state law curtailing public officials from suing their critics. 

In a motion filed on Monday, Lake asked Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Jay Adleman to dismiss Richer’s suit because she says it violates Arizona’s Strategic Action Against Public Participation law, commonly referred to as an anti-SLAPP statute. 

Part of me actually hopes the court sides with her - I have a few things to say about certain legislators.

There have been too many bills that read like they were written by industry lobbyists and then given to a legislator to slap their name on as sponsor.

Of course, that's only part of me.  The other part of me thinks that she's full of it.

Criticism of a public official's job performance *is* protected (and should be), but lying about it isn't criticism of it.

Actually, equating lies to criticism serves only to devalue criticism.

Ron DeSantis just lost the general election

He may or may not be the R nominee for POTUS (OK, he probably won't be), but if he is, he'll be toast in the general.

From NBC -

Ron DeSantis booed at vigil for Jacksonville shooting victims

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was heckled and booed as he was introduced to speak at a vigil Sunday for the victims of the Jacksonville shooting at a Dollar General store where a white gunman shot and killed three Black people.

DeSantis, who is running for the GOP presidential nomination, said the state was looking to identify funds to help boost security at the historically Black college, Edward Waters University, where the gunman showed up before the attack but left without incident.

Mike Pence proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that when Cheeto dislikes someone, that someone may not be a decent human being

At least Pence can lump himself in with Jeff Bezos.

In this one area. anyway.

From CBSNews, emphasis added by me -

Transcript: Former Vice President Mike Pence on "Face the Nation," August 27, 2023

NANCY CORDES: We want to turn now to politics and former Vice President Mike Pence, who joins us from Indiana this morning. Mr. Vice President, thank you so much for being here.

FORMER VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE: Thank you, Nancy. Thanks for having me on.

[snip]

FORMER VICE PRESIDENT PENCE: Well, there's no place in America for racially inspired violence. And I condemn what occurred in Jacksonville in the strongest possible terms. That wasn't a criminal act. That was an act of evil. And- but I- and our prayers are with the families who lost loved ones and those that are injured, cared, and I prayed this morning for them. And as a Marine Corps family, we also prayed for the families of our Marines that were lost and injured in the Osprey crash. We believe in prayer at our house, Nancy. But- but look, I- this issue of mass shootings is one that I think we need leadership in this country, afresh. I will tell you that I believe that the- there's a series of steps that we can take. Providing law enforcement with the support that they need. Ending this- this long experiment of defunding the police by the American left. I think we need to provide federal funding to provide armed guards at all of our public and private schools. We need a commitment to institutional health care in this country that I've called for many months ago. But at the end of the day, I also believe that justice delayed is justice denied. And I'm calling for an expedited federal death penalty for anyone engaged in a mass shooting like took place in Jacksonville or frankly, like the shootings that took place at- at a baseball park and at a football game. We- we've got to send a message to anyone that has evil in their hearts, that there is no chance for them to spend the rest of their life behind bars. That they're going to meet their fate in months, not years. And I believe- I believe expedited due process of federal death penalty for those that engage in the kind of mass shootings that claim lives in Jacksonville. Yesterday is an idea whose time has come.

Nothing about eradicating institution racism in all of society, especially in, but not exclusively so, in police departments.

On the other hand, maybe expediting imposition of capital punishment for mass shootings will open people up to the idea of expediting capital punishment for mass treason.

Caveat: I'm personally opposed to capital punishment.

If Cheeto weighs 215 pounds, then I'm a Yankees fan

 Hint: I'm not.  Not even close. :)

I actually think he outweighs me, and I haven't seen 215 in decades.

And I'm not the only one who doesn't believe his self-reported height and weight.

From Salon -

"Lost 25 pounds and grew one inch": No one's buying Trump's self-reported 215-pound weight

“It doesn’t look like they put him on the scale," quipped CNN anchor Dana Bash

Former President Donald Trump's self-reported height and weight during his surrender to authorities in Georgia Thursday quickly sparked questions of their validity. The quadruple indictee listed his height as 6-foot-3 and weight as 215 pounds while being booked at the Fulton County Jail, digits that varied vastly from his previously reported numbers. During Trump's Manhattan arraignment earlier this year, he told police he stood at 6-foot-2 and weighed 240 pounds. The difference between the measurements would mean he "lost 25 pounds and grew one inch since his arraignment in April," noted Mediate's Aidan McLaughlin.

The self-reported figures also butt up against his last recorded weight during his presidency, according to The Messenger. The White House physician in 2019 listed his weight as 243 pounds, which was up by four pounds from his 2018 measurement. The outlet noted that Mark Meadows, Trump's former chief of staff who is two inches shorter than the former president, reported his weight at 240 pounds during his surrender, which would make him nearly 25 pounds heavier than Trump. MSNBC's Chris Hayes noted that Trump's self-reported measurements are identical to speedy star NFL quarterback Lamar Jackson.

Former mistress Stormy Daniels doesn't believe he weighs 215, either.

From the NY Daily News -

Stormy Daniels mocks Trump’s reported weight, explains why she knows ‘Tiny’ doesn’t weigh 215 lbs.

Stormy Daniels has joined the chorus of social media users who are skeptical of former President Donald Trump’s booking weight.

On Friday, the adult film actress and director took to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, to explain why she doesn’t believe the 77-year-old controversial politician was telling the truth when he claimed to stand at 6-foot-3 and weigh 215 pounds, according to the official paperwork from his booking at Fulton County Jail in Georgia.

Election deniers get rebuffed...again

From KJZZ, by Greg Hahne and Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services -

AZ Supreme Court tosses Scottsdale attorney election challenge

The Arizona Supreme Court has thrown out a bid to void the results of the entire 2022 election.

The justices said the appeal from a Scottsdale attorney was flawed in multiple ways.  

In a brief order Thursday, the majority of the justices noted that lawyer Ryan Heath had cited evidence already introduced by Kari Lake in another case this year.

Heath, who represented Cochise County Supervisor Tim Crosby, was asking the Supreme Court to order Maricopa County to redo its early ballot signature verification process.

 

A Scottsdale attorney repping a Cochise County supervisor wanting to void an election in Maricopa County?

Is that kind of geography lesson on Arizona's bar exam?

Is petulant a good campaign look for Cheeto?

If so, he's got the R nomination locked up.

From CNN (and I presume, the Fulton County Sheriff's Office) -

Maybe someone should send this pic to Mark Finchem, Kari Lake, and all of Cheeto's other sycophants/apologists in AZ.

For that matter, perhaps Kelli Ward and the other fake electors should be added to that list.

Prigozhin presumed to be dead; Cheeto wishes that he could deal with adversaries the same way that Putin does

If Vlad was responsible, at least he changed things up this time - it wasn't a spontaneous defenestration.

From AP -

Mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is presumed dead after a plane crash outside Moscow

Mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led a brief armed rebellion against the Russian military earlier this year, was presumed dead Wednesday after a plane crash north of Moscow that killed all 10 people on board.

Prigozhin was on the plane, according to Russia’s civil aviation agency, which cited the airline. The crash immediately raised suspicions since the fate of the founder of the Wagner private military company has been the subject of intense speculation ever since he mounted the mutiny.

Rudy, at his finest

Pic courtesy a Twitter user...and the Fulton County Sheriff's Office -

Wonder if Rudy farted during his photo session.

Hope that when Cheeto surrenders, his mugshot is also released.  He'll probably turn it into a grifting opportunity, offering autographed versions in exchange for a significant contributions to his campaign.

Short Attention Span Musing

...Public service is so much more enjoyable without, ya know, *the public*.  Just ask TN legislators

From AP -

In session reacting to school shooting, Tennessee GOP lawmaker orders removal of public from hearing

Families close to a Nashville fatal school shooting broke down in tears Tuesday after a Tennessee Republican leader ordered state troopers to remove them and others from a legislative hearing room while they waited to testify in favor of gun control measures.

The emotional scene was just one of several chaotic moments that erupted during the second day of Tennessee’s special legislative session. Republican Gov. Bill Lee initially called lawmakers back to the Capitol to consider his proposal to keep firearms away from dangerous people.

“I was supposed to speak, I was supposed to testify,” said Sarah Shoop Neumann, sobbing and shaking in front of the silent GOP-controlled House subcommittee room, which was cleared out after some clapping from the public gallery, even though she sat quietly and wasn’t holding any signs.

{snip}

Rep. Lowell Russell, the Republican subcommittee chairman, had also warned that he could order everyone out of the room.

My only question is this: Did the NRA have to crook its little finger to get Rep. Russell to stifle dissent or did he come up with this on his own?

...Am I the only one who believes that if Hurricane, then Tropical Storm, then something else, Hilary threatened Florida instead of California that Trumpkins would have another outlandish conspiracy theory to embrace?

...Got a new nickname for Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas -

Spina Mustela.

Per Google Translate, Spina Mustela is Latin for "spineless weasel."

It seems to work for other things, too :) -

The NRA and its elected chattel...errr...."apologists"... must be *so* proud

From Axios -

Gun deaths among U.S. children hit a new record high

Data: Pediatrics analysis of CDC data; Chart: Axios Visuals

Firearm deaths among children in the U.S. hit a new record high in 2021, according to a study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics.

Driving the news: The study, based on government data, points to the worsening of an already distressing trend, after guns became the leading cause of death for children for the first time in 2020.

Laura Pastor drops out of CD3 race

From AZ Family -

Phoenix councilwoman Laura Pastor drops out of congressional race

One of the leading Democratic names eyed to replace outgoing U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego has dropped out of the race. Gallego is now vying to replace Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s seat.

On Friday, Phoenix councilwoman Laura Pastor announced that she withdrew her name from a lengthy list of contenders, citing health reasons.

This story demonstrates two things:

1. There's a dire need for editors.  Even the two paragraphs/three sentences that I've quoted are poorly written.

"...[V]ying to replace Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s seat"?  Really??  That made it by someone?

2.  It's early.  People can still drop out of or enter races.

Pastor's withdrawal leaves Yassamin Ansari, another member of the Phoenix City Council, and Raquel Teran, a former member of the Arizona Legislature and a former chair of the Arizona Democratic Party, as the big "names" currently in the race.

If she's convicted of something, will Kelli Ward have to surrender her medical license?

Pointed at this by Taegan Goddard's Political Wire.

If not, maybe the Perryville prison complex (which houses women) needs a doctor.  The Perryville prison is in Goodyear.

From Rolling Stone (behind a paywall) -

Arizona Investigators ‘Aggressively’ Looking at Top Trump Ally Kelli Ward

Arizona’s criminal probe into the 2020 fake electors plot is heating up and investigators are now asking plenty of questions about a key Donald Trump ally involved in it: former state GOP chair Kelli Ward.

The Arizona probe has been accelerating in the past several weeks, two sources familiar with the matter tell Rolling Stone, with prosecutors gathering evidence and speaking with individuals with knowledge of how the fake electors scheme was carried out in the state. The fake electors plot was a core component of the then-president and his aligned lawyers’ plans to overturn his 2020 election defeat and stop the legitimate transfer of power to his Democratic successor Joe Biden.

She is still a licensed doctor.

From the website of the Arizona Board of Osteopathic Examiners in Medicine and Surgery -

That address goes to a weight loss place.

From the website of the Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce -

Just a guess here, but if she goes to prison, there probably won't be much demand for her weight loss knowledge.

Battling ballot measures...in CA

I realize that AZ Rs like to deride CA, but sometimes CA is ahead of us...which may be one of the reasons AZ Rs get their hate on for CA.

Much has been made about rift between Big Business and Republicans in the age of Cheeto, but they still share two things in common -

They both love money, and both hate democracy.

From Politico -

Businesses want to make it harder to raise California taxes. Democrats are pushing back

A tussle over tax hikes in California is intensifying. California Democrats have answered a tax-reform push by business groups with their own proposal to undercut it.

The escalating dispute over voters’ roles in approving or rejecting tax increases is a reflection of ballot initiatives’ outsize role in Sacramento and the game of cat and mouse that often plays out between opposing interests.

First, a business coalition qualified a measure for the 2024 ballot that would significantly raise the threshold for passing new state and local taxes by requiring voters to approve any increase passed by the Legislature. It would also impose a two-thirds vote requirement on local taxes — a change local governments and organized labor have condemned, warning it would starve cities and counties of vital revenue.

Now, a newly rewritten constitutional amendment backed by Democratic leaders would give the business coalition a taste of its own medicine. Under CA ACA13, any ballot measure that changes voter thresholds — such as the business group’s initiative — would need to pass by that same margin, which in this case would be a two-thirds vote.

CA's ACA13 is here.  "ACA" stands for "Assembly Constitutional Amendment".

The pro-business profits scheme isn't new to AZ - in 2022, voters barely approved Proposition 132, a measure sent to the ballot by the Rs in the legislature here that imposes a 60% approval requirement for ballot measures that create a tax.

The hypocritical measure wouldn't have passed under CA's proposed standard, and shouldn't have.

I believe that the proposed amendment to CA's constitution has to come to AZ.

Only it will be necessary for such a measure to be from a citizen's initiative or to turn the Republican majority in the lege into a Democratic one.

Comparisons of Cheeto to mob bosses? I can't think of a surer way to tick off...mob bosses

In a previous post, I likened Cheeto to some fictional mob bosses/members.

David Corn of Mother Jones has compared him to the real thing, as Cheeto has been indicted under Georgia's RICO law (RICO = "Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations").

From Mother Jones -

Donald Trump, Mob Boss—Then and Now

In yet another historic indictment, Donald Trump was charged by an Atlanta prosecutor with essentially being a mob boss.

With this expansive set of charges that accuses Trump and 18 others of mounting a wide-ranging and illegal conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election—emphasizing actions taken to fraudulently reverse the results in Georgia—Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis declared Trump the head of a “criminal enterprise.” The first of 41 counts in the indictment alleges Trump and his co-conspirators violated the state’s version of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a law that has been used by local and federal prosecutors—including defendant Rudy Giuliani, when he was a US attorney in the 1980s—to pursue Mafia chieftains who were often able to insulate themselves from the criminal deeds of their henchmen. Given Trump’s past ties with mobsters—a significant piece of his biography that has often been overlooked—the use of RICO has an especially sharp resonance.

There's an old saying about how all NYC real estate developers are at least a little mobbed up, and I figured that was the extent of Cheeto's ties to the mob.

Corn has disabused me of that notion.