And the first ones out of the gate are...

The 2025 legislative session has started; sitting legislators are "pre-filing" before the session starts (there are limits on the number of measures that any legislator can introduce *during* the session.  Before the session?  No limits.

Anyway, I digress.

Next year's HB2001 was introduced by Republican Rep. Matt Gress and is about the temporary licensing of college graduates in behavioral health.  I'm not going to take a position on this one (there may be a problematic clause or two in it) but this is the sort of topic our legislators should be discussing.

Om the other hand, next year's SB1001, introduced by Republican Sen J.D. Mesnard is a bunch of proposed restrictions on voters, particularly on early voters.  Its clauses amend 17 pages of AZ law, and most of the clauses are garbage.

IMO, a couple of the sections stand out in terms of  his express of hatred of voters -

From the bill (the blue text indicates Mesnard's proposed changes):

As is, this section would encourage county recorders and/or elections directors to decline to do their jobs and to impose restrictions on others (early voters) if they don't do their jobs.

Maybe this clause would be more palatable if it was amended to include a provision where county recorders and election directors who did such a thing (or, more to the point, *failed* to do such a thing) were deemed to have committed malfeasance in office and were removed from that office and permanently barred from any sort of public employment.

Of course, that wouldn't make another part more palatable.

Also from the bill:

With this language, Mesnard proposes to end both dropping off an early ballot at a voting location other than in the voter's own precinct and that early ballots that were dropped off per Mesnard's language would have to be delivered to the county recorder by 7 p.m. on election day.

As polling place don't close until 7 p.m., that could be a problem.

Well, at least Mesnard has demonstrated his giving spirit, perhaps in commemoration of Thanksgiving.

Of course, he's demonstrating that spirit by delivering a turkey to the people of Arizona.

Can a crime drama be done as a reality TV show?

Or at least a docudrama?

Cheeto seems to have cast one.

From CNN -

Fox hosts, cable news regulars and entertainment pros: Trump is casting a made-for-TV Cabinet

A common thread weaves through many of Donald Trump’s picks for his incoming administration, a quality the president-elect values as highly as loyalty and perhaps even more than conventional qualifications: a flair for television.

He has plucked two Fox News stars from their airwaves – Sean Duffy for Transportation secretary and Pete Hegseth to lead the Pentagon. For the agency overseeing Medicare and Medicaid, Trump has turned to Dr. Mehmet Oz, the celebrity physician known for his health show that aired for 13 seasons. His pick for the Department of Education, meanwhile, is Linda McMahon, who co-founded and built a professional wrestling and entertainment empire alongside her husband.

Trump’s choice for ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, had a six-year run hosting a Fox News show. Tulsi Gabbard, his selection for director of national intelligence, was a contributor on the conservative network after she left Congress and once subbed for its former primetime host Tucker Carlson.

Well, nobody will be surprised when Cheeto installs a casting couch in the Oval Office.

Elon Musk is the embodiment of Cheeto's hatred of "the little people"

From The Verge -

Elon Musk is directing harassment toward individual federal workers

Elon Musk is, in addition to many other things, now the co-lead of the currently nonexistent Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) advisory group. Now, before it even gets rolling, he has begun singling out individual government employees he says are emblematic of the government’s bloat and posting about them to his hundreds of millions of followers on X.

Earlier this week, as first reported by The Wall Street Journal, the X user “datahazard” shared a screenshot on X highlighting the role of Ashley Thomas, the Director of Climate Diversification at the US International Development Finance Corporation, saying, “I don’t think the US Taxpayer should pay for the employment” of that role. Musk reposted it, adding the comment “so many fake jobs” in a post with more than 33 million views.

Cheeto's picks for his Cabinet/coterie of advisors seem to exhibit two character traits (and neither speaks well of their characters) -

1. Personal, and great, loyalty to Cheeto himself; and 

2. Pettiness.

Musk may have failed with Twitter/X (to be fair, he's been successful with it in one area - he turned it into a hate-filled right-wing echo chamber.  People may be abandoning Twitter/X in droves, but Musk and Trump supporters rule the roost there.)

Legislative schedule - week starting 11/24/2024

There's one meeting scheduled for Thanksgiving week.

Joint Ad Hoc Study Committee on Water Security meets Monday at 1 p.m. in HHR1.  On the agenda: presentations, mostly from industry representatives, about water department (Arizona Department of Water Resources) rules regarding water in AZ.  Since industry loyalists Sine Kerr and Gail Griffin are co-chairs of this committee, the people of Arizona should expect to be stuffed, cooked, and served up on a platter.

In honor of Cheeto, I've got a word of the day for you: embolden

From Merriam Webster -

Allow me to provide an example of this already starting.  From WSYX (OH), dated 11/17. via KOMONews (note: KOMO is an affiliate of Sinclair Inc. an organization that could give Fox News right wing shill lessons.  If they're reporting this, it had to be pretty bad.) -

Governor DeWine, others condemn Neo-Nazi march in Ohio community

Columbus Police on Saturday responded to a group of Neo-Nazis carrying flags with swastikas on them while walking through the Short North.

Social media posts began circulating around 1 p.m., showing about a dozen people marching wearing all black with masks that featured a red skull. Columbus Police told WSYX that no arrests were made as of 8 p.m. that same day.

Governor Mike DeWine released a statement condemning the Neo-Nazis, stating that "We will not tolerate hate in Ohio."

Mayor Andrew Ginther released a statement condemning the actions, and ensuring the "Columbus community stands squarely against hatred and bigotry."

Maybe it'll help if I use "embolden" in a sentence.

It seems that Cheeto's win has served to embolden other scum.

Fasten your seat belts folks - the ride is going to get bumby.

Is Vlad picking Cheeto's national defense nominees?

Or are they being chosen by Vlad, but with Cheeto's input?

I'm leaning toward the 2nd possibility as these folks are Trump loyalists one and all, but I don't rule out the first.

From AP -

Gabbard’s sympathetic views toward Russia cause alarm as Trump’s pick to lead intelligence services

Tulsi Gabbard, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to lead the U.S. intelligence services, in 2022 endorsed one of Russia’s main justifications for invading Ukraine: the existence of dozens of U.S.-funded biolabs working on some of the world’s nastiest pathogens.

Moscow claimed Ukraine was using the labs to create deadly bioweapons similar to COVID-19 that could be used against Russia, and that Russian President Vladimir Putin had no choice but to invade neighboring Ukraine to protect his country.

In fact, the labs are public and part of an international effort to control outbreaks and stop bioweapons.

From DefenseOne -

‘Extraordinarily dangerous’: Intelligence community insiders warn against Trump’s DNI pick

Former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for director of national intelligence, lacks experience, and her record of Russia-aligned public statements could undermine the ability of the United States to acquire intelligence from allies and partners, current and former intelligence officials say. 

Trump on Wednesday announced his intention to put Gabbard, who served in Congress as a Democrat from Hawaii, in charge of the national intelligence office. The office coordinates intelligence efforts across the entire government, forges intelligence-sharing relationships with other countries, and shapes the way the public and the White House understand threats to U.S. interests. The office takes a leading role in assembling the daily brief for the president, which  the White House uses to understand how adversaries are working against the United States, and in telling the public about threats Americans face.

 

I would liken the picks of her, Pete Hegseth (Defense Secretary) Marco Rubio (Secretary of State) and others to the Keystone Kops, except the antics of the Keystone Kops brought laughter and joy to a lot of Americans.

The only people who will enjoy the antics of Cheeto's bunch will be Russian.

Time for a rerun: Cheeto as Paul von Hindenburg

This is a post that I wrote nearly eight years ago before Cheeto took office the first time.  

Re-running it, given the utter venality of the people to Cabinet positions and other jobs within his new administration, seems appropriate.

"

Trump analogy time: Less "Hitler" and more "pre-Hitler"

Godwin's Law, courtesy UrbanDictionary.com:

A term that originated on Usenet, Godwin's Law states that as an online argument grows longer and more heated, it becomes increasingly likely that somebody will bring up Adolf Hitler or the Nazis. When such an event occurs, the person guilty of invoking Godwin's Law has effectively forfeited the argument.

For the purposes to discussing the president-elect, Donald Trump, and/or his administration and advisors, I'm going to have to violate Godwin's Law, or simply consider it suspended for the duration.

The comparisons are too obvious to ignore.



The comparisons of Donald Trump to Adolph Hitler seem to me to be both a case of overreach and being premature.  He hasn't even taken office yet.

Nope.  While it's not a perfect analogy (any analogy is an imperfect comparison between two entities), right now he looks to most closely resemble Paul von Hindenburg.

Paul von Hindenburg, courtesy EncyclopediaBrittanica.com

Von Hindenburg was the second president of Germany (after WWI).

He wasn't Hitler (in fact, he died in 1934, years before the Nazis' greatest evils were fully realized).

However, he was the one who welcomed Hitler into the mainstream of German politics by making him Chancellor of Germany in 1933.

Unlike Trump (who was basically a draft dodger), von Hindenburg was a former field marshal in the German army in WWI.

Like Trump, he was reluctant to accept the responsibilities of his office.

Unlike Trump, he apparently cared about the country he was charged with leading.

Like Trump (who will be 70 on Inauguration Day in January), he wasn't exactly a young man when he first took office (76 years old).

No where did I find evidence of von Hindenburg being held responsible for the rise to power of Hitler and the Nazis; what he did was give them access to the levers of power in the early and middle 1930s.

Fast forward to 2016:

Trump is bringing in some utterly vile people around him, people like Mike Pence, Kris Kobach, Jeff Sessions, Michael Flynn, and others, all people who shouldn't be allowed near a position of public responsibility much less one of public trust.

Right now, none of them appear to be Hitler-like (though at least a couple of them look like wannabes), but when Trump leaves office over his ethical issues (of course, given his age, the term "medical issues" may serve as the preferred euphemism) look for one of them to at least try to assume dictatorial powers.


To critics:

Yes, I know this was (and is) a quick, almost superficial, look at one, very specific, part of the entire ugly situation.

Which is all that it is intended to be; in 50 years or so, historians will produce some very erudite and intellectual treatises that will use many more words to say the same thing."

Hey, Cheeto supporters! This may be the first step in getting what you wanted when you voted for him.

You wanted people to work for free, right?

From Reuters -

US judge strikes down Biden overtime pay rule

A federal judge in Texas on Friday permanently blocked a Biden administration rule that would have made about 4 million more salaried U.S. workers eligible for overtime pay.

U.S. District Judge Sean Jordan in Sherman, Texas, said the U.S. Department of Labor rule that took effect in July improperly bases eligibility for overtime pay on workers' wages rather than their job duties.

[snip]

Jordan, who was appointed by Republican President-elect Donald Trump in his first term, struck down the rule after saying in June that it was likely invalid and temporarily blocking it from being applied to Texas state employees.

The rule would have required employers to pay overtime premiums to salaried workers who earn less than $1,128 per week, or about $58,600 per year, when they work more than 40 hours in a week, beginning Jan. 1, 2025, and it had temporarily raised the threshold to about $44,000 per year on July 1

.

This may be a backdoor way for Cheeto to keep one of his campaign promises.

Of course, his supporters thought they'd still get overtime, it just wouldn't be taxed.

They were wrong.

Legislative schedule - week starting 11/17/2024

Nada, as in there is nothing scheduled at the legislature at this point.  

However, that's subject to change.  Last week, I reported that no meetings were on the schedule.  And at the time, that was true.  

However, the Joint Committee on Capital Review (JCCR) met on Wednesday, so keep an eye out - right now, there's nothing scheduled, but something could be placed there at a moment's notice.

What's the Russian for "Chernobyl this, you people who copulate with your female parental figures!"

We may hear it sooner or later, and with Trump's "dream team" of Cabinet and adviser picks, it'll probably be sooner.

People like RFK, Jr, Tulsi Gabbard, Matt Gaetz, Marco Rubio, Elon Musk, and Pete Hegseth (et. al.) shouldn't be allowed within even sniffing distance of a national office yet Cheeto has nominated/named them to seats at the big table.

Yet, as rancid as his personnel choices may be, his plan to purge the U.S. military of senior officers may be worse.

From Reuters -

Exclusive: Trump's team drawing up list of Pentagon officers to fire, sources say

Members of President-elect Donald Trump's transition team are drawing up a list of military officers to be fired, potentially to include the Joint Chiefs of Staff, two sources said, in what would be an unprecedented shakeup at the Pentagon.

The planning for the firings is at an early stage after Trump's Nov. 5 election victory and could change as Trump's administration takes shape, said the sources, who are familiar with the Trump transition and requested anonymity to speak candidly about the plans.

[snip]

The second source said the incoming administration would likely focus on U.S. military officers seen as connected to Mark Milley, Trump's former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Milley was quoted in the book "War" by Bob Woodward, which was published last month, calling Trump "fascist to the core" and Trump's allies have targeted him for perceived disloyalty to the former president.

"Every single person that was elevated and appointed by Milley will be gone," the second source said.

This scheme seems, well, *familiar.*

Some observers consider Cheeto's picks to be a "dream", but the linked observer at WaPo was probably being sarcastic.  She's a bit of a wiseass. 

Especially since my first reaction to this list was "it's a nightmare".

My next reaction was "the only person who has dreams like this is Vlad...and only if those dreams are wet."

Speaking of Vlad, his initial plan if Cheeto ever became POTUS again may have been to invade the western U.S.  That may still be the plan, but he's frittered away so much of Russia's military on his invasion of Ukraine that may no longer be an option.

He still has nukes, so he may simply turn the western U.S. into a radioactive slag heap.

It's not like Cheeto would do anything about it.  He might say "well, I have bone spurs" while thinking "well, most of them didn't vote for me."

Election postmortem

Yes, I realize that this benefits from 20/20 hindsight.

1. Joe Biden should have stepped well before any Democratic primary/caucus.  The eventual nominee (who I will presume would have been Vice President Kamala Harris) would have benefited from getting their campaign and messaging in order *before* the general election period.  As it was, the campaign seemed rushed.

2. Speaking of messaging, abortion rights wasn't the wrong message, but making it the *only* message was.  America is a complicated place that faces many issues and ceding economic and immigration issues to Republican-generated lies was a mistake.  Ruben Gallego was the only Democrat to win a high-profile race in AZ, and it helped him to define himself before his opponent, Kari Lake, started spreading lies about him (of course, it also helped that everyone who meets her intensely dislikes her).  She did lie, a LOT, but the message was already out.

Going forward, that might be something for Democratic candidates (and their consultants) to keep in mind.

3. None of this changes the most disheartening fact - there are literally millions of Americans who would rather support, and vote for, an utterly vile human being, so long as the vile person is male, and his opponent is female.

Even if they're being lied to, and know it.  So long as the lies are what to hear, they'll choose to believe the lies,

I don't have a "should" to address this.

Legislative schedule - week starting 11/10/2024

Nada, as in there is nothing scheduled at the legislature at this point.

Someone should get a message to Kari Lake

And the gist of that message should be: "Please go away."

Over the last couple of days, I've received four email messages from Kari Lake.

The voters have spoken, twice (in 2022 and 2024), and both times, they have thoroughly rejected her. 

Yet, she still insists that her shortfall in votes is due to illegal votes, and only "legal" ones are counted, she'll win.

She doesn't define "legal", but one thing is clear.  She want lots of money.

From one email -

From another -

She's rapidly devolving to "perennial candidate" status, and she'll go there if she feels that's the best way for her to keep the grift going.

Is deputy dog catcher an elected position?

Statewide Ballot questions

There were 13 statewide questions in total on this year's ballot in AZ; 11 were referred by the Republicans in the legislature, two were referred by the people.

Eight failed - seven legislative questions, and one from the people

There were five election related questions; all failed, including the one intended to remove retention elections for judges.

It failed spectacularly, with more than 75% of voters voting it down.

One that passed: Proposition 139, amending the state's constitution to protect access to abortion which passed by more than 550,000 votes/21 percentage points.

It's not ALL bad news: most school district-related ballot questions passed

...At least in Maricopa County.  I didn't look at the other counties in AZ.

There were 40 school district questions here; 31 passed.  That's more than 75%.

Note: All listed vote totals are current; the totals will change as late ballots are counted.  However, none of them look close enough for the outcome to change.