Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

State Sen. "Don't make me angry" Frank(enstein) Antenori announced this morning that he is running in both the special election and November general election for the Giffords seat in CD 8. Antenori to seek Giffords' seat.

Whoever is elected to the Giffords seat should have the same temperament, character and judgment as Gabrielle Giffords and her sense of decency, fairness and willingness to work with all parties for what is best for Arizona. That clearly is not Antenori who has repeatedly demonstrated that he entirely lacks the temperament, character and judgment to serve in Congress, or any other elective office for that matter.

The Tucson Weekly reported yesterday that Antenori is already off terrorizing the villagers in his own Tea-Publican Party. Congressman Antenori? | The Range:

Rumor also has it that beaten CD8 candidate Jesse Kelly is looking to another run for Giffords’ seat — and Antenori had some harsh words for the man who within a percentage point of unseating Giffords in 2010, and then left Arizona for Texas.

“We went through a period of time in the state where there were a lot of political battles,” he said, citing the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission and the Tucson City Council. “Some of us stayed to fight those battles and work for the conservative cause in the party and some of us didn’t.”

“When the going gets tough, Jesse Kelly gets going,” he said.

Big talk for a guy who starts out trailing badly in a field poll, albeit by the Jesse Kelly camp (and just who paid for this poll - inquiring minds want to know). Jesse Kelly! He's Got a Poll! | The Range:

The beaten Republican candidate who limped off to Texas after nearly toppling Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in 2010 released a poll today which showed him out front of the pack of probable Republican candidates for the special election to replace Giffords.

According to the survey, Kelly has a combined 35 percent of definite and leaning voters. State Senator Frank Antenori pulls 15 percent of definite and leaning voters, and local sports broadcaster Dave Sitton gets 7 percent.

The poll was conducted on the 24th and 25th of January, 2012 and sampled 300 likely [GOP] primary voters from throughout the current Congressional District 8.

* * *

“What’s really astonishing is that he had no intentions of running in the normal election and he had already started cutting staff away, and all of a sudden Mr. opportunity is back in town,” Antenori said.

Grrrr! The Monster is angry and off terrorizing the villagers again -- more raw red meat!

by David Safier

I learned long ago, whenever anyone has lots of reasons why something is a good idea or a bad idea, usually none of the reasons given are the real reasons. There's something else going on. Rich Crandall is on my "Too many reasons, too many rationalizations" list.

Crandall is sponsoring the bill that would make participation in the federal free and reduced meals program optional. Here's his lastest argument, if you want to call it that.

“You’re trying to say, ‘Hey, this is the only way to feed kids.’ And I’m saying, no, it’s not. Our Arizona charter schools show that there are numerous ways to make sure kids are fed,” Crandall said.

Unbelievable. True, charter schools don't have to participate in the free/reduced meals program. But many of our charter schools simply don't feed their students. No cafeteria. No meals. The result is, kids from families who qualify for free or reduced meals don't attend those schools. That's not an option for students attending the local district school.

Crandall has also said, if a school district doesn't provide the service, the kids can always opt to attend another school. Of course, there may be no bus service provided. If it's a rural area, the next school may be 50 miles away, and it may not offer the service either. But Crandall doesn't give a damn.

So, if Crandall's too many reasons mean he's hiding his real agenda, what is it? He insists adamantly it has nothing to do with his Child Nutrition consulting and menu planning company. But in the words of the Immortal Bard, Crandall "doth protest too much, methinks."

by David Safier

From today's NY Times, an article about problems disposing of our radioactive waste:

Some nuclear power advocates argue that the United States should develop factories and reactors that will recycle some of the spent fuel. But the [Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future] said that no existing technology was adequate for that purpose, given cost considerations and the risk of nuclear proliferation.

I'm sure Al Melvin will poo-poo the quote, given the source. The NY Times is just another one of those Commie Environmental Watermelons he referred to in a recent tweet:

#azright To show the political agenda of  environmentalists, slice a water melon open. It has a thin veneer of green but is Commie red inside

Posted by AzblueMeanie:

The Arizona Daily Star unfortunately relies upon the AP and Howard Fischer of Capitol Media Services for its news content on state government. Cheap bastards! You have the money, hire your own capitol reporter and expand the number of eyes and ears watching our state government and add another perspective to reporting. Howard Fischer should not enjoy a monopoly, I don't care that he used to work for the Star.

Leaving this aside, the Arizona Daily Star has an editorial opinion today that is spot-on. Finger-wagging Brewer cast state in a bad light:

Gov. Jan Brewer likes to cast herself in the tough-leader role - and sticking her finger in President Obama's face and jawing at him makes for a handy visual message to her political base. What the rest of the state, along with the nation, sees is boorish behavior from Arizona's top official.

* * *

On Wednesday, Brewer handed Obama a handwritten letter, which she described as discussing immigration and inviting him to visit Arizona again and join her for a border tour. By all accounts, he told the governor her book mischaracterized their last meeting. Heated words were exchanged. Reporters [i.e., Howard Fischer] nearby described the two leaders talking over each other, and then Obama walked away. [Not true according to Mayor Scott Smith of Mesa]

Brewer, as governor, represents all Arizonans and should act as an ambassador for our state. Obama was in Phoenix to visit a major economic accomplishment - a new Intel plant - and the tiff on the tarmac was graceless.

* * *

After initially contending that the letter was not a public document because it was a personal handwritten note, Brewer's office released the letter late Thursday afternoon.

It is what one would expect from a governor to a president of another party - mentioning "hard choices" and balanced budgets, while neglecting to mention, however, the high cost Arizona's citizens have paid in recent years through draconian cuts to school funding, health-care coverage for kids of the working poor and more.

Brewer's digital gesticulation got attention, and that's what any politico trying to raise her profile wants - and sales of her memoir have jumped.

But Brewer's jab comes at the expense of Arizona's national reputation and image.

Text of the snarky and delusional stage prop letter from Arizona's "savior" is below the fold.

David Fitzsimmons once again nails it!

TEXT OF LETTER

Dear Mr. President:

Welcome to Arizona!

You've arrived in a state at the forefront of America's recovery - and her future. We were at the brink. We were at the bottom of the list in job creation. Today we have a balanced budget and we're in the Top 10 for job creation.

I'm proud of that hard-won recovery - the result of many tough decisions, courage and perseverance. My hope is while you are here you will have a chance to see our tremendous results first hand.

We both love this great country, but we fundamentally disagree on how to best make America grow and prosper once again. I'd love an opportunity to share with you how we have been able to turn Arizona around with hard choices that turned out to be right ones.

And of course, my offer to visit the border - and buy lunch - still stands!

With respect,

Jan

by David Safier

Muckety, a website whose mission, in its own words, is "Mapping the paths of power and influence," has posted a power map of Craig Barrett and his wife, Barbara.

Craig currently heads Brewer's A-Wreck (AREC: Arizona Ready Education Council). He's a big player in the conservative Choice/Education Reform movement here in Arizona. In case anyone was wondering, both he and Barbara are big Republican donors.

Interestingly, Craig's position as head of BASIS Charter Schools isn't mentioned here. But his connection with K12 Inc., the huge national cyber school corporation, is.

Craig is very proud of his affiliation with BASIS and brags regularly about how wonderful their elite charter schools are (Sure, they have to accept everyone, but the students who end up enrolling and staying on can be called, in Occupy parlance, the Academic One Percent. The Ninety-nine Percent need not apply).

But I would like to hear what he has to say about this. K12 Inc's Arizona school, Arizona Virtual Academy, is currently one of 27 AZ charter schools on academic probation. The schools have been given conditional renewals.

The conditional renewal requires them to be reviewed annually until they meet their goals. If they fail, the state could close one or more of their schools or revoke their contract.

Mr. Barrett, what's good for your One Percent School is good for your Ninety-Nine Percent School as well. Why haven't you put your considerable energies and influence behind fixing the problems with Arizona Virtual Academy, which apparently isn't doing the job for its 4,000-plus students?

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Can Howard Fischer fire himself from Capitol Media Services? His PR work for Governor Jan Brewer and her fictional biography "Scorpions for Breakfast" is an utter embarrassment to someone who is often referred to as the Dean of the Arizona press corps. What a way to tarnish a career.

We have been over this territory before. The wrong way and right way to report the abuse of power by Governor Brewer and her Star Chamber:

The Dean of Arizona's press corps did not quote them for his report, only Governor Brewer. Had he bothered to do his job as a reporter instead of his PR work for Governor Brewer's book, he would have learned what Nick Martin learned. Mayor Seems To Contradict Gov. Brewer’s Story On Obama Run-In | TPMMuckraker:

President Obama didn’t exactly walk away from Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (R) during their disagreement on Wednesday on an airport tarmac near Phoenix, said one of the only people to witness the exchange up close. The president simply began talking to the other two elected officials who were there to greet him.

Mayor Scott Smith of Mesa, Ariz., declined to say exactly what he heard Obama and Brewer talk about during their now-infamous tiffnext to Air Force One.

But the mayor said he was standing right next to the governor when the exchange took place and Obama didn’t seem to be in any kind of hurry to leave.

“There was no sense that he was running to or from anything,” Smith told TPM. In fact, he said, the president stayed and had a pleasant conversation with Smith, who’s a Republican, and Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton, a Democrat.

It was “just the four of us,” Smith said. “Mayor Stanton and I had a decent talk with him.”

The portrayal of a calm, friendly president seems to at least partly contradict what Brewer has said about the encounter in numerous interviews since Wednesday afternoon. She described the president as “tense” and said he walked away from her while she was in mid-sentence. She told a Phoenix television station she felt “a little bit threatened” by the encounter.

"Threatened"? Seriously? Why, because he is a black man and you're an itty-bitty white woman? Can you blow that dog whistle any louder, Guv? Brewer has been on every program on FAUX News Fraudcasting repeating the talking points issued by Roger Ailes that President Obama is "thin-skinned" and "overly sensitive." Which is interesting, because that is exactly how I would describe Jan Brewer after observing her over many years. I've seen it myself.

Fischer is back doing PR work for Governor Brewer's fictional biography again today. Brewer's book jumps over 285,000 places on sales list after Obama incident - East Valley Tribune. He again repeats his inaccurate account from Governor Brewer, and throws in the FAUX News Fraudcasting talking points:  "In fact, she has been fanning the flames a bit, telling Capitol Media Services on Thursday the president is 'a little thin-skinned and a little over sensitive.'''

Fischer never delves into the book sales numbers. The conservative publisher of this book has a long history of "purchases" to drive up "sales" numbers to move a book up on the best-seller list. Conservative publishers have engaged in this practice for many years to promote their stable of conservative politicians writing books. The books wind up as recycled pulp for the next faux "best seller." This mysterious surge in "sales" for a book that was already in the discount bin on the date of its release is highly suspect. I would look to the publisher.

But it's Howard Fischer's job to do PR work for Governor Brewer's book. I hope she is paying you well.

Posted by Michael Bryan

Looks like the black helicopter crowd has joined forces with the vaccination conspiracy theorists. Eddie Farnsworth is backing a bill to restrict Arizona's colleges and universities from requiring vaccinations.

Perhaps this is really a problem that is keeping Arizonans from getting post-secondary education, but I sincerely doubt it.

Farnsworth claims "the change is needed because parents of some students from kindergarten through high school decide against having their children vaccinated." This seems merely to be pandering to those irresponsible and wackadoodle parents who still believe, against all evidence and in the face of a major scientific malpractice scandal discrediting the original study linking vaccinations and autism, that children are harmed by vaccination.

Amazing to think that this urban myth delusion has been around long enough that those (surviving) children denied vaccinations may now be approaching college age. It's a testimony to the staying power of irrational beliefs.

Poor form, Farnsworth. And poor public policy in service to an irrational fringe constituency.

Posted by Michael Bryan

Looks like Rep. David Gowan (R-LD30) may be backing off the bill he dropped to cloak legislative commications in secrecy. As I pointed out in a previous post, exempting consistituent communications from public records requests is excessive and unnecessary. Apparently, Gowan decided to actually find out whether his bill is necessary: it's not.

David, why don't you actually learn a little bit about the law before you drop a bill next time?

by David Safier

From the Phoenix New Times:

Barack Obama T-Shirt (Apparently) Blasted by Arizona Kids, from Cop Facebook Page

Here's a screen shot of the Facebook page, which has since been changed.

If you can't see the picture well, 7 guys, many with guns, stand around a T shirt with Obama's picture on it which looks like it's been shot full of holes.

The Peoria Police Department hasn't decided what to do. Does this cross into the legal territory of a threat to the President?

by David Safier

A few days ago, I posted about a constituent letter Mark Stegeman sent, and I mentioned three of the books banned/removed from classrooms of former MAS teachers had previously been approved by the board (h/t to Three Sonorans for posting the document). Stegeman responded in the comments section of the post. You can read his entire comment beneath the post, as well as my comment in response to his.

Stegeman maintains the approval of the three books is "meaningless" because the Board didn't follow procedure.

The board "approved" the books in a long list of books for many different courses, in a routine consent agenda item with no attached information and no board discussion. It was meaningless from the viewpoint of oversight and very far from a proper curriculum approval, by the standards of either statute or TUSD policy.

So, it's an approval that's not an approval, according to Stegeman, even though it's there in black and white for all to see. I wonder, does the TUSD administration and the rest of the Board agree with Stegeman's assertion the approval is meaningless? Stegeman's authority rests on his one Board vote out of five, so his interpretation holds no weight by itself. I wonder if TUSD Supe Pedicone wants to weigh in on this, or if the Board wants to formally rescind its approval, which would mean the current District and Board doesn't stand behind past decisions and is willing to wipe them out retroactively. Either is possible, I suppose, but honestly, TUSD is running out of feet to shoot itself in. It should probably let the approvals stand, though that puts it in another difficult position, prohibiting certain teachers from using books it has already approved. The district can't seem to win for losing.

Later in his comments, Stegeman claims I was "factually incorrect" when I stated some of the banned texts are still being used in classes not run by former MAS teachers. My reply includes quotes from The Star and The Weekly backing up my assertion, plus a bonus quote from Huppenthal himself, who says, "The books aren't of concern at all." You can read my whole response in the comments beneath the post.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Quiz: Who said "I'm not going to let this freaking governor push me around"?

Answer: No, not this guy (pictured right). It was Sen. "Don't make me angry" Frank Antenori, when Gov. Brewer would not call a Special Session for his bill to repeal the AIRC.

President Obama was far more calm in dealing with our Governor. I mean look at this photo -- you can see the hint of an amused smile forming on his lips as Brewer throws a hissy fit wagging her boney finger at him.

Yes, Jan Brewer behaving badly, again (sigh). Stay classy, Jan.

Brewer wanted to engage in political theater to upstage the visit by the President of the United States to let him know that she is the Queen of Arizona. Brewer came prepared with prop in hand, allegedly a hand-written letter inviting the President to Arizona to meet with her to discuss border issues and to visit the border with her (a recurrent theme in Brewer's 2010 campaign). You can bet she will use this photo in the future: "Jan Brewer is standing up to the big bad Feds. Contribute now."

This would be the same president who has had more deportations in his administration than previous administrations. This would be the same president who has put more border agents and other federal law enforcement personnel on the border than previous administrations. This would be the same president who has seen a dramatic decline in the number of border crossings, detentions and related crime during his administration. He has done everything our pretentious Governor has demanded of him except one: participate in her political theater by meeting with her in Arizona and visiting the border with her, and thus play a subservient role to the Queen of Arizona. Ain't gonna happen.

President Obama knew that he had been set-up for political theater by our Governor. When she greeted him with her prop letter in hand asking him for a meeting and to visit the border with her, President Obama responded, in words to the effect, "you mean like the last meeting we had that you lied about in your fictional biography that you didn't even write?" Bwah! Bwah! Jan Brewer freaked out and threw her hissy fit finger-waving for the cameras. "Did you boys get the photo?" Golden! Brewer, Obama exchange tense words over book, immigration at airport:

"He was a little disturbed about my book, 'Scorpions for Breakfast,' " Brewer told a pool reporter who is a member of the traveling White House press corps shortly after her encounter with Obama. "I said to him that I have all the respect in the world for the office of the president. The book is what the book is. I asked him if he read the book. He said he read the excerpt."

Asked what aspect of the book disturbed him, Brewer said: "That he didn't feel that I had treated him cordially. I said I was sorry he felt that way, but I didn't get my sentence finished. Anyway, we're glad he's here."

Obama told Brewer that he [was here] to help Arizona's economy expand and that he'd be happy to meet with her, but that he felt Brewer gave an inaccurate portrayal of her previous Oval Office meeting in her 2011 book.

The official said their last meeting, in June 2010, was a cordial discussion in the Oval Office. At the time, Brewer also described the conversation as cordial, but in the book, she calls the president "patronizing" and said "he lectured me."

* * *

Brewer had given Obama a letter about immigration and invited him back to Arizona. Her office declined to release a copy, saying it was a personal, hand-written letter and not a public record. She later released a statement saying she and the president had discussed "this state's economic turnaround."

Yeah, I seriously doubt that. The exchange did not last long enough for any discussion about Arizona's alleged "economic turnaround." During her State of the State Address, Brewer claimed that she had "saved Arizona." As E.J. Montini observed in his column, Brewer is now not only our Queen but our "savior." Yes, she really is that delusional. 

Brewer has concocted a talking point about "The Arizona Comeback" -- a state which stands on the precipice of a fiscal train wreck at the end of May 2013. See her press release President Obama's Visit to Arizona (.pdf) in which she fantasizes about what she said to President Obama. This is how the Arizona Republic carried water for this fantasy. Manufacturing key part of Obama economic plan:

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, a Republican, caused a stir when she confronted Obama after Air Force One touched down at the East Valley's Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport. When he disembarked, Brewer handed him a handwritten note, her finger-wagging.

In a written statement later, Brewer said that she and Obama discussed "the 'Arizona Comeback' firsthand" and that she believes the president is taking the wrong economic path. Brewer contrasted her state regulatory moratorium with Obama's 2009 economic-stimulus package, suggesting hers was the better idea.

"This much is clear: Arizona is on the way back, with job growth over the last year rated seventh-best nationally," Brewer said in the written statement. "Our state budget is not only balanced, we have a surplus. Most important, we are putting in place the fundamentals for sustained economic growth: quality education, competitive tax policy and low regulation."

So Governor Brewer successfully upstaged the visit by the President of the United States. I am sure she is as giggly as a school girl. The media villagers all played into her staged political theater and her finger-waving photo is the only thing the media wants to talk about. I hope you're happy.

At least the East Valley Tribune published this photo which is far more typical of a presidential visit to one's  state. Enjoy.

by David Safier

Cheap shot. Couldn't help myself.

by David Safier

The evil scheme is out, everywhere. The feds want to make school meals better for students. Fewer calories. More fruits and vegetables. More whole grains. Less salt. No trans fat. The horror!

Rich Crandall, who runs a child nutrition consulting business that makes money by advising schools and other agencies on nutrition and menus -- though not in Arizona (currently, anyway) -- thinks all this is terrible. So he's got a bill to stop the evil feds, making participation in the free/reduced meals program optional. And even more important, he has to stop Michelle Obama, who has made nutrition her signature issue, from bossing our kids around. "You're not the boss of me, Bad Obama Woman!"

Let 'em overeat whatever the hell they want in school! School has no place educating kids in proper nutrition or looking out for their general health and well-being! Oops. Um, maybe they do. Forget I just said that.

If schools take federal money, they have to follow the fed's nutrition guidelines. If they don't take the money, they can ignore the guidelines. Free/reduced lunch programs have federal grants attached. Get rid of those, and you cut the connection. That's why Crandall is going after the free/reduced lunch program.

Speculation time: If the feds set the nutrition guidelines and basic menus, schools don't need outside nutrition consultants to help them. But if schools go conservative rogue and break free of federal interference, they are more likely to need nutrition and menu consulting from a company like, say, CN Resource, run by Rich Crandall. The "CN" stands for "Child Nutrition," and the company's mission, according to its website, is "to help organizations around the country feed children - whether at home, in day care, at school or after school." Why would they need help if the feds are already giving them all the guidelines they need?

Crandall is doing all this for the sake of the children, the schools and the state, he says. If he makes a little green off of putting fewer green vegetables and fruit on children's plates, what's the harm in that?

Posted by Michael Bryan

Our Governor is delusional. And very rude.

Jan Brewer explains her finger-wagging lecture of the President by claiming that "he just doesn't get it." Radio Interview of Brewer. Once again, Brewer has succeeded in making Arizona look foolish in the national press while garnering fawning right-wing press for herself.

Apparently, Brewer's presumptuous advice on how to bring her ridiculous, self-asserted 'Arizona Comeback' to the rest of America did not meet with a willing audience in our President. After Brewer poked her finger in the President's face because he had the temerity to express displeasure about her characterization in her book of him as 'patronizing' on the issue of immigration, he walked away from her mid-sentence in exasperation with her hectoring rudeness.

Obama has your number, Jan.

You are a blowhard, an embarrassment to our State, a no-class huckster attempting to hit way above your intellectual weight, and a wanna-be low-rent Palin (though it may be tautological to use such a phrase). Obama may have to be civil with you out of respect for your office and the people of Arizona whom you (to our great shame) represent, but he doesn't have any obligation to participate in your grand delusion of competence.

The Governor seems not to realize that her delusional belief that she has accomplished something here in Arizona that deserves to be emulated is not shared among all Arizonans, and certainly not by the rest of the United States. Her policies have made Arizona the laughingstock of America, and harmed our State's standing in just about any metric you care to use.

The sheer brass of Brewer seeking to 'advise' the President about anything is absurd. This is a Governor who allowed her own capitol buildings to be pawned to give tax breaks to the wealthy. A Governor who balanced her budgets on backs of the terminally ill, the poor, and our children. A Governor who stole the treasuries of her State's localities and still claimed not to have raised taxes. A Governor who embarrassed her State by enacting racist (and unconstitutional) legislation in order to get reelected.

Though I may be crediting Brewer with a certain low cunning she doesn't deserve, I suspect she planned this embarrassing public spat to enhance her standing among her Obama-derangement-syndrome-suffering supporters. I'll be very surprised if we don't soon discover her fund-raising using this image. Such antics may ultimately help Brewer politically. And that seems to be all Brewer is interested in.

by David Safier

This is what I like to see. I just got a Facebook note from Mitzi telling me what she and others are doing in LD20 to fight Crandall's Free/reduced lunches optional bill.

On their website, www.YesPublicEd.org [You had me at "Yes, Public Ed," Mitzi], their first item is:

Action:  Please  urge your  legislators  to  STOP  the School Lunch  Opt-Out bill.

Due to dialogue with community members in LD20,  Sen. John McComish and Rep. Bob Robson  have  asked Sen. Crandall to withdraw  SB1061.     Kudos to them for listening to the community to learn about an issue!   This Bad Bill  would allow AZ District schools  to opt out of the National School Lunch program.

[snip]

According to the ADE (AZ Dept. of Education)  in the committee hearing,  if this bill passes as it is,  500 very needy children or more will no longer be able to eat lunch for  free or for a reduced price.  We've heard adults who are now successful  describe the national lunch  program as the only opportunity they had for a full meal on many days when they were youngsters in school.  

From a human standpoint:  500 hungry children  is 500 too many.   Plus,  it could pave the was for many school districts to  no longer offer nutrition for children in need. 

From a taxpayer's  perspective: Hungry children cannot learn well.  The national program was developed because the  return on investment is huge.  If you  provide nutrition for the most vulnerable children,  they can achieve.

These folks in the Kyrene School District have gotten together to fight a bad bill, and what's more, they've gotten two of their Republican legislators to agree with them -- publicly.

Way to go, "Yes, Public Ed." Way to go, Kyrene.

by David Safier

Presente.org has put up a petition to be sent to TUSD about its decision to ban Mexican-American Studies and the books connected with the program. Its goal is to get 25,000 signatures. The meter on the site says it's already up to 22,383. Put them over the top! If they're already over the top, turn it into a landslide!

by David Safier

I had my 10 minutes of fame on Bill Buckmaster's radio show today, which leaves me 5 minutes more until I use up the entire 15 minutes Andy Warhol allotted me.

You can hear the show on Buckmaster's site. The whole show is an hour. If you want to skip to my portion, I start at just about the 30 minute mark. I found that if you start the audio, let the file load for a minute, then click in the white space where it says "Track #1" and move to the right until the number moves up to 30:00, you can get to the spot you want to start.

I should say, it was a hell of a lot of fun. Bill, I'll come back any time. Say the word.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The other day I posed the question, Will the 'Birther Queen' replace Scott Bundgaard in the Senate?

Survey says: Yes, she can! States' rights "nullifaction" teabagger and "Birther Queen" Rep. Judy Burges, Ahhh, the "Birther" Queen's bill dies in the Senate, was among the three individuals nominated by Tea-Publicans as potential replacements for Sen. Scott Bundgaard, who resigned this month during an ethics trial in the Senate.

The state of Maricopa Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the Birther Queen, who was sworn in as a senator. Supervisors appoint Burges to fill Bundgaard Senate seat:

The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors on Monday unanimously appointed state Rep. Judy Burges to the Legislative District 4 Senate seat to replace former state Sen. Scott Bundgaard.

Bundgaard abruptly resigned amid an ethics scandal.

* * *

Burges has become best known for her efforts in recent years to require presidential candidates to show proof of citizenship in order to qualify for the state's ballot. The Legislature last year passed her bill, but Gov. Jan Brewer vetoed it. She has proposed a version of the bill again this year.

That's just special. This is why we can't have nice things in Arizona -- no one in the state of Maricopa has the courage to stand up to crazy.

Burges' appointment to the senate now creates a vacancy in her House seat, which I am confident the state of Maricopa Board of Supervisors will fill with someone equally unqualified for public service. Thanks for nothing.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Just how authoritarian is our Tea-Publican legislature? This authoritarian. Shooter considering banning public testimony on budget bills - Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required):

The chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee said Tuesday he is considering banning all public testimony when lawmakers take up the state budget later this year.

Sen. Don Shooter told the Arizona Capitol Times that he was weighing that decision on the same day he took criticism for not taking public testimony during presentations by two government agencies.

“I’m not saying they will or won’t (testify). That decision hasn’t been made yet,” the Yuma Republican said. “It’s possible there’s no public testimony. It’s possible there will be some limited testimony or whatever.”

His decision not to hear public testimony during budget presentations by government agencies isn’t entirely unprecedented, but banning testimony during budget-bill debates is.

If he takes the more restrictive route, it will surely invite criticisms from Democrats and groups who expect to at least be heard in committee.

* * *

Shooter told the Capitol Times he wants to avoid “14-hour” hearings.

He added it’s not the most efficient use of time and it doesn’t serve anybody well, particularly if people are making decisions in the wee hours of the morning.

He also said he’s already hearing from the public even now.

“I get so much public input every day that I can’t keep up with it,” he said.

Well, maybe you should look for more suitable work.

Don "Tequila" Shooter is in the new LD 4 which now takes in parts of West Tucson and Western Pima County into Southern Yuma County (San Luis, Somerton, Yuma), largely an Hispanic Voting Rights Act district. If this guy can't be defeated, I don't know who can. Time for Democratic candidates to step up.

UPDATE: Mary Jo Pitzl at the Arizona Republic has more. Insider: Budget hearing won't have comments. Public comment? "I heard it last year," Shooter said.

UPDATE: More authoritarianism from Don "Tequila" Shooter. Republicans want IRC?to explain ‘overspending’ - Arizona Capitol Times:

The Arizona Constitution states, “The Legislature shall make the necessary appropriations” for the IRC. But some GOP lawmakers are wondering how much latitude they have in setting the IRC’s budget, especially when it comes to the supplemental funding request the IRC plans to make.

Sen. Don Shooter, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said that constitutional provision is subjective and vague.

“We decide what we think’s appropriate,” said Shooter, R-Yuma. “And since we seem to be the ones that are given the constitutional duties of appropriations, I think that would be our decision, not the activist courts and other clowns who like to interfere.”

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Don't say that I didn't give you fair warning. Watch out Alta Arizona! This carpetbagger has eyes for you.

That's right, former state senator Jonathan "Payday" Paton, the wannabe tinhorn dictator of Tucson, is going to run for Congress in the new CD 1. The Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) reports Paton to run in vast CD1, won’t seek Giffords’ seat:

Former state legislator Jonathan Paton is making another run for a congressional seat, but he won’t be seeking to replace U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who resigned her seat today a year after she was shot in the head in an assassination attempt.

* * *

Paton this morning announced on a Tucson conservative talk radio show that he will run for the new 1st Congressional District, which includes most of northern and eastern Arizona. It stretches from the Grand Canyon to the state’s eastern border, and south around the metro Phoenix area. It also includes communities northwest of Tucson that were previously in CD8.

The seat in CD1 became vacant earlier this month when U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Flagstaff, announced he would instead seek re-election in the heavily Republican 4th Congressional District instead of squaring off against Flagstaff Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick, whom he defeated in 2010.

Ann Kirkpatrick shows that she is a regular reader of this blog:

Kirkpatrick’s campaign wasted no time and resurrected an attack that the Arizona Democratic Party leveled at Paton during the 2010 campaign.

“Here in Congressional District One, the last thing we need is a payday-lending lobbyist or a carpetbagger representing us in Congress. Jonathan Paton is both,” said Kirkpatrick spokeswoman Jennifer Johnson.

First, the Arizona Democratic Party needs to revive its paydaypaton.com web page today. The campaign signs can be obtained from the Pima County Democratic Party HQ by our friends in Alta Arizona.

Second, and more importantly, "Payday" Paton should immediately submit his resignation from the Rio Nuevo District Board from which he has sought to subjugate the City of Tucson to the dictates of our colonial overlords from the state of Maricopa. Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out!

Finally, Jim Nintzel at the Tucson Weekly, who hosts the political week in review on Arizona Illustrated, needs to find another talking head from the GOP to replace "Payday" Paton. I suggest that you go back to having the Pima County political party chairs debate. No seconds!

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Disgraced former House Speaker and preeminent housing historian, Newt Gingrich, participated in a Univision candidate forum in Miami on Wednesday. Newt was asked about Willard "Mittens" Romney's immigration policy of "self-deportation" from Monday night's "Survivor - GOP Presdiential Primary" debate.

Newt had two responses which: (a) demonstrates that he is badly misinformed, and (b) he is trying to hard to be clever by half.

The AP reports Gingrich: Romney self-deportation plan a fantasy:

Republican Newt Gingrich says Mitt Romney’s call for self-deportation of illegal immigrants is an “Obama-level” fantasy that is inhumane to long-established families living in America.

And Newt slams Romney's world of Swiss bank accounts - Politico.com:

When asked about Romney's position on immigration, Gingrich said that deporting all undocumented immigrants is unrealistic.

"You have to live in a world of Swiss bank accounts and Cayman Island accounts and making $20 million for no work, to have some fantasy this far from reality," Gingrich said.

Sorry Newt, but that fantasy belongs to Arizona's Russell Pearce, not President Obama, and I am pretty confident that ol' Russell doesn't have any Swiss bank accounts and Cayman Island accounts, although the media may want to check just to be sure.

Newt Gingrich may be surging nationally in the GOP presidential primary, but this kind of "soft on immigriation" talk isn't going to win him any votes with Arizona's foaming-at-the-mouth rabid anti-immigrant Nativists.

NOTE: Romney has the backing of Kansas Secretary of State and anti-immigration zealot Kris Kobach (R), formerly with the legal arm of FAIR, and the author of both Arizona and Alabama’s anti-immigration laws.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Do we have any travel agents out there? I am curious what one of those 4 nights and three days in the Cayman Islands packages costs. I was thinking a "Visit Mitt's Money in the Caymans" raffle might make a good fundraiser for Democratic organizations. You need to bring back photos of his P.O. Boxes in the Caymans.

Americans United for Change's Romney-Gekko 2012 campaign, has a new parody ad highlighting Romney's use of an offshore tax haven in the Cayman Islands. The ad is a parody of the series of "Find your beach" ads for Corona Beer.

The ad opens with two men on the beach in suits, symbolizing "Mittens" Romney and Gordon Gekko. In the background two airplanes fly by with banners reading "Welcome to the Caymans -- Home of Mitt's Millions" and "'Cuz Paying Taxes Is 4 Poor People... Romney-Gekko 2012."

Text from Romney-Gekko 2012:

Cayman Islands – The Romney-Gekko 2012 campaign (a satirical project of Americans United for Change) unveiled the third in its series of mock campaign ads (web video) today called “Find Your Tax Haven. “ The ad, inspired by Corona’s “Find Your Beach” campaign, follows ABC News’ report last week that Mitt Romney is ‘Parking Millions in the Cayman Islands’ . The Wall Street Journal’s follow-up reporting found that the Romney campaign’s claims that this has no effect on the amount he pays in U.S. taxes “may be wrong or misleading” according tax experts who “said some of the offshore holdings are likely intended to help Mr. Romney avoid paying an obscure but hefty tax of as much as 35% on some of those investments, held in a tax-deferred retirement account.”

Corporate raider Gordon “Greed is good” Gekko rushed to the defense of his embattled running mate. “Paying your fair share in taxes is for wimps, not guys like Mitt and me” cackled Gekko via a Motorolo DynaTAC, coincidentally phoning in from an undisclosed Caribbean location. “So what if the malfunctioning corporation called the USA loses $100 billion in revenue each year with corporations and 1 percenters taking advantage of these offshore tax havens? Sure that leaves the average American stiff paying over $400 more, but it’s a zero sum game, sport. Somebody wins and somebody loses.”

As of press time, Gekko was still “laying low” in the Cayman Islands, riding out the bad publicity from the failed hostile takeover of Bluestar Airlines and his thwarted plot to dissolve the company, liquidate its assets, fire all the workers and raid the union’s pension fund. On that matter Gekko would only say: “You don’t win ‘em all, you keep on fighting, and if you need a friend, get a dog, it’s trench warfare out there. They can’t all be like GS Industries,” referring to the steel company his running mate Romney took over that ultimately went bankrupt, costing over 700 workers losing their jobs, health insurance and a part of their pensions, but not before Bain Capital partners paid themselves tens of millions of dollars in dividends.

“Now THAT’s how you ‘liberate’ a company, sport,” Gekko added. “And tell Mitt, if he needs to get away from the bad headlines for a few days, I’ll send the jet to pick him up. I’ve never seen a painting that captures the beauty of the ocean at this moment.”

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

There were tears all around as Rep. Gabrielle Giffords resigned from Congress this morning.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

What the ... When John McCain was vetting Mitt Romney for vice president, Romney turned over 23 years of tax returns. This year the American people are vetting Romney for president, and Romney has turned over one full year of his taxes. Ezra Klein writes, If Romney is nominated, 2012 will be about taxes - Wonkblog:

So let’s be clear: Romney hasn’t released his “taxes.” He has released a single tax return from a year in which he was already running for president for a second time. As Gov. George Romney — Mitt Romney’s father— said when he released 12 years of his taxes in 1968, “One year could be a fluke, perhaps done for show.” We don’t know all that much more about the taxes Romney has paid today than we did yesterday.

But even if this one year is a fluke, even if it was done just for show, the outline of the story is clear enough: Romney is a very rich man who pays a very low marginal tax rate. In the past, it’s possible that more agressive tax engineering drove his rate even lower. It’s possible that more use was made of loopholes, and offshore accounts, and tax shelters. But even without all that, we know that Romney paid an effective tax rate of 13.9 percent in 2010.

* * *

His taxes also contextualize what he would do as president. Romney’s tax return shows that the effective rates paid by the richest Americans are often pretty low. Romney’s tax proposals would reduce those rates further. And the cost of those proposals -- more than $6 trillion when all is said and done -- would be offset through cuts to domestic programs. Romney is saying, in effect, that people like him should pay less to finance the government, and low-income Americans and seniors -- the two groups that depend on government programs -- should be asked to cut back instead. Many Americans are likely to see that as unfair.

Steve Benen points out that Romney's 2010 tax return raises more questions than it answers. Political Animal - What we’ve learned from Romney’s returns:

Mitt Romney’s campaign, as promised, released the former governor’s 2010 tax returns, as well as an estimate for his 2011 returns, and we’re starting to get a sense of why the Republican candidate wasn’t eager to share these details.

Mitt Romney offered a partial snapshot of his vast personal fortune late Monday, disclosing income of $21.7 million in 2010 and $20.9 million last year — virtually all of it profits, dividends or interest from investments.

None came from wages, the primary source of income for most Americans. Instead, Romney and his wife, Ann, collected millions in capital gains from a profusion of investments, as well as stock dividends and interest payments. 

By any fair estimate, over $42 million in income over two years isn’t bad for a guy who jokes about being “unemployed.” Indeed, Romney would be in the top 1% based solely on the income he makes in one week. [He makes in one day what the average wage earner makes in one year.]

Romney said last week that his rate was “closer to 15%,” but as it turns out, despite his vast wealth, he actually only paid a 13.9% rate last year — lower than his political rivals who aren’t nearly as wealthy, and lower than most middle-class American workers.

And what about those overseas investments?

His 2010 return also showed that he had a financial account in Switzerland that was closed in 2010 and that he generated income from overseas investments. He also reported financial accounts in Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. 

A Reuters report added that Romney’s Swiss bank account was closed in 2010 “after an investment adviser decided it could be politically embarrassing to Romney.”

I suspect those with far more expertise in this area will subject these materials to considerable scrutiny, but at first blush, the disclosure appears to raise at least as many questions as it answers.

Why [how] did Romney set up $100 million trust funds for his sons without paying any gift taxes? Were his accounts in the Caymans and in Switzerland created to avoid paying taxes? Was the closing of the Swiss account related to this IRS investigation? And given all of the questions surrounding Romney’s Bain-era work, why does the Republican candidate continue to insist he won’t disclose returns from previous years? [As he did for the McCain campaign in 2008.]

What’s more, following up on a point from last week, even if Romney argues that he’s simply playing by the rules — taking advantage of existing tax loopholes to pay lower rates than much of the middle class — this doesn’t explain why Romney is eager to exacerbate issues on tax fairness with his tax plan that makes the problem worse.

In a debate over tax fairness and income inequality, Romney is practically a case study for What’s Gone Wrong... Romney, however, prefers to believe the problem doesn’t exist.

To be fair, it turns out that Newt Gingrich has some questions about his taxes as well. Daily Kos: Newt Gingrich avoided paying tens of thousands in Medicare taxes:

Turns out that Mitt Romney isn't the only Republican presidential candidate to exploit tax loopholes and pay far less than a wealthy patriot should. Seems that Newt Gingrich is a bit of a tax dodger, too.

Newt Gingrich avoided tens of thousands of dollars in Medicare payroll taxes in 2010 by using a technique the Internal Revenue Service has consistently and successfully attacked.  Republican Presidential candidate Gingrich and his wife, Callista, treated only $444,327 of what they got from Gingrich Holdings. Inc. and Gingrich Productions as compensation to them, while reporting a whopping $2.4 million of their earnings from these corporations as profits or dividends. Medicare taxes are levied at a rate of 2.9% on an unlimited amount of compensation and self-employment income (say, from a consulting contract, speeches or a book) but not on profits from a business.

“It appears that he is not paying his fair share of Medicare tax,’’ Robert E. McKenzie, a partner in the Chicago law firm of Arnstein & Lehr LLPconcluded, in an email to Forbes, after reviewing Gingrich’s 2010 tax return. McKenzie, a past chairman of the Employment Tax Committee of the American Bar Association Tax Section and a member of the IRS’ Advisory Council, added:  “There are a multitude of cases where the IRS has successfully challenged the improper tax strategy of this candidate and his accountants. Service businesses are only allowed to distribute a fair return on investment from an S corp. as profits exempt from Medicare taxes. The remainder of profits must be paid as salary subject to a 2.9% Medicare tax levy.”

Instead of "audit the Fed" we may want to first audit the candidates.

by David Safier

Once again, Republicans reveal their priorities, as if there were ever any questions.

A bill giving a tax break to University of Phoenix passed the Senate and is heading to the house. This bill is so wrong-headed, Brewer vetoed it last session, saying the state couldn't afford to lose the tax money. I guess now that we're swimming in surplus (that won't go to schools or children's health care), we can give U of P a tax break. [Note: It pains me to say Democrats David Schapira and Chad Campbell have joined 12 Republicans in co-sponsoring this bill. They have reasons, I'm sure. I'd like to hear them.]

The other bill says every student must pay at least $2,000 a year to attend UA or the other public AZ universities. No more poor kids bundling a bunch of scholarships and grants to attend to our universities tuition free. That even includes gifts. I guess if a benefactor decided to help a poor young man or woman attend UA, the student would still have to "personally contribute at least two thousand dollars."

There are two exceptions. One is for athletic scholarships, natch. Athletes don't have to kick in $2,000 of their own if they get a full ride. The other is for a student who receives an academic scholarship. But, if I read the academic scholarship section correctly, it has to be one scholarship for the entire tuition amount, not a collection of academic scholarships. That's how this sounds to me, when the bill states the $2,000 requirement doesn't apply to students who:

Receive a grant, award or scholarship that is based solely on academic merit or solely on a special aptitude, talent or ability from a competitive national program.

It specifies "a grant, award or scholarship," singular, not "grants, awards or scholarships," plural.

This bill, by the way, is sponsored by 24 Republicans, no Democrats.

by David Safier

Cage matches are a little too violent for my tastes, but I think I'll be watching the Frank Antenori-Jesse Kelly cage match primary, if they both climb into the Republican CD-8 primary ring, attentively, even obsessively. I've never known either of these guys to pull punches. It could be something to watch.

Can we look forward to Kelly sponsoring another gun shoot as a fundraiser? If so, expect Antenori to crash the party and proclaim his gun is bigger than Kelly's.

Antenori already said during the 2010 primary, Kelly is "just a brawler," and "a lot of people" -- Antenori didn't include himself, of course -- were looking forward to seeing Kelly "slap her [Giffords] around in the debate." Antenori didn't think whoever ran against Giffords could "pussyfoot around her."

No, I didn't cobble together those lines from a bunch of Antenori quotes. They all come from one answer in a Congressional Quarterly interview in 2010.

“Whichever one wins [Paton or Kelly], they need to go after her. They can’t pussyfoot around her,” said Antenori, who is not endorsing anyone in the primary. “Paton has more experience and because of that is more methodical. Kelly is just a brawler, and a lot of people just want to see him get through the primary so he can slap her around in the debate.”

Antenori has never been known to back away from a fight, but who knows, he may be a bit more gentlemanly if he's campaigning against another "gentleman." When it was Marian McClure he was running against, he said he wanted to "kick her ass" in the primary. Here's the quote.

"I would have rather spent that money [in the primary] to kick her ass than not spend that money and have her beat me," Antenori says.

But maybe I'm being unfair to Antenori to imply he's a misogynist -- though maybe not. After all, when he was running against Todd Camenisch in the 2010 LD-30 general, Antenori said he planned to "bury [Camenisch] like a freaking fish in the backyard." Then again, burying a fish is a reasonably passive act. Antenori doesn't demonstrate the same relish for the active slapping around and kicking ass when it comes to a male.

by David Safier

I'll be on Bill Buckmaster's show around 12:30pm today (Wednesday), for his Blogger Beat segment. The show is on from noon to one, KVOI AM 1030. You can live stream it at BuckmasterShow.com or listen to it there after it airs. Today's lineup:

"Washington Contributor Terry Bracy talks about the State of the Union address. Also, a newsmaker interview with Stuart McDaniel, Republican Candidate for Pima County Supervisor in District 1. Blogger Beat spotlights Blog for Arizona. Plus, the Assistance League's upcoming antiques appraisal Fundraiser."

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Time once again for The Farley Report from Rep. Steve Farley (D-Tucson):

Things don't always happen the way you want them to. We in Tucson know that all too well.

But as we move forward -- even from terrible events -- in a spirit of love and hope and empathy, and join together in our community as we have especially since January 8, 2011, we have shown we can rise above anything and be a beacon unto the nation. 

As my family and I watched the video on Sunday of Gabby telling us that she would resign her seat, we cried. We feel like she is a member of our family. My daughters have joined me at Giffords events -- and asked pertinent policy questions -- for years and years, and Gabby has always been our hero. 

I know, as we all do, that Gabby is capable of doing anything she wants. Even though we so powerfully wanted her to keep representing us in Congress and take up her office once more, she has made the obvious right decision: to focus on her recovery. 

We want her in office, but above all, we want her well. And once she is well, I know that she will lead us once again, in a bigger and better capacity, and even the sky will no longer be the limit for where she can go.

Many of you have emailed me since Sunday to urge me to consider a run for her seat to carry forward Gabby's legacy, and I will tell you that if Gabby asks me, I will run, and I will ask for your help so that we can win together. If she asks another person to run, I will support that person and I will ask for your help so that we can win together.

Meanwhile, there is a lot of work to be done at the Capitol, and I remain committed to help change the Arizona Legislature this November as the new State Senator for the new District 9. If that changes, you will be among the first to know. 

Today at the Capitol I hosted Arizona's first Distracted Driving Summit, organized by Shelly Camp and her students from Payson High School, and attended by 150 teenagers from high schools around the state. It gave me a huge infusion of hope for our future.

One of my favorite things to do is to share with high school students an inside view on how our government works, and how they can play a part. As I told them this morning, the future of our democracy depends upon their active engagement in public policy as involved citizens. 

They made appointments with legislators of all parties to advocate for bans on driving while texting (HB2512 from Steve Urie (R-Gilbert)), cellphone use by teen drivers (SB1056 from John McComish (R-Ahwatukee) and HB2311 from me), and distracted driving in general (HB2312 from me). 

Some of the best moments came as I stood with some of the students, pointed out legislators on the plaza as they walked by, and watched as they tried out their best elevator speeches about the bills. The students were really pumped up for this chance to make their case to the Senators and Representatives, and I definitely get the sense that their feeling of empowerment will not leave them as they seek to improve our state in the years to come.

Yesterday, I introduced a bill to further empower citizen lobbyists like these students by reducing the power of large corporate lobbyists to influence legislation -- HB2665, the ALEC Accountability Act of 2012, which I first described to you in the December Farley Report. 

Right now at the capitol, a back-door system of lobbyist-funded scholarships, not regulated or usually disclosed to the public, fund lawmaker participation in American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) conferences that promote an ideological agenda. This system also actively provides fancy accommodations, upscale dining and entertainment "networking" opportunities in cities around the country. 

ALEC lobbies lawmakers and it is quite effective in doing so. ALEC model legislation that has been promoted and adopted by the legislature is evidence of this -- you can read an excellent independent report exposing the connections between ALEC model legislation and Arizona bills here: http://site.pfaw.org/pdf/ALEC-IN-ARIZONA.pdf

Right now, ALEC operates outside the rules that limit lobbyist influence in Arizona. But these special interests clearly have a purpose for funding ALEC and ALEC clearly has an aggressive agenda it is actively promoting in states across the country. 

The public has the right to know who funds ALEC's activities, who funds legislators' costs associated with attending ALEC meetings and conferences around the country and which legislators are accepting those funds. 

Arizona's citizens also have a right to ensure that, as a lobbying entity, ALEC complies with the laws in place to limit the influence of lobbyists on Arizona's political process. The ALEC Accountability Act, HB2665, requires ALEC to adhere to the same laws that other lobbying entities must follow. 

It is time to shine the light on who funds this organization and who funds the travel and other participation costs of legislators active in groups like ALEC. It is also time that the public knows what legislators are taking “scholarship” or other funding to pay for travel and lodging costs for ALEC and other conferences, including NCSL and CSG, and what special interests are paying for those trips. 

Right now to get this information, a regular citizen must file a public records request. But I believe it should be easily be accessible via the Arizona Secretary of State’s website.

Lastly, there is a need to make sure any entity acting in a lobbyist capacity is required to register as a lobbyist and comply with the regulations and public disclosure laws applicable to lobbyists. 

Some special interest groups, such as the Goldwater Institute, define their regular testimony in front of legislative committees as “technical assistance” or “legal advice,” thus skirting the lobbyist registration requirements, while others like the Arizona Education Association forthrightly register themselves as lobbyists. These loopholes must be closed so that any person or entities acting as lobbyists are required to register as lobbyists.

This bill will help lawmakers be more effective for the actual people they are representing – the people of Arizona – instead of serving corporate special interests. 

I want to leave you with some good news that gives us hope that bad bills can be defeated -- albeit a year after they first passed. Loyal Farley Report readers may remember a bill first heard last year around this time in my Ways & Means committee establishing a "homeowner affidavit". 

It requires that counties mail a tiny postcard this March to all homeowners in their jurisdiction, informing them to fill out a notarized affidavit swearing that they are the resident owner. If the postcard gets chucked out with the junk mail, or we get too busy and forgot to go get the affidavit notarized and sent, we will be confronted with a $600 increase on our property tax bill this fall.

This is a brave new world for government intrusion -- for the first time, the basic legal assumption becomes that all taxpayers are guilty of tax fraud until proven innocent -- the opposite of what it should be and always has been. And a $600 penalty for losing a postcard is pretty harsh, especially in this economy.

I hammered the bill with these arguments in 2011, and it never arrived on the floor for a vote, but the bill reappeared buried in the Republican budget last year and was adopted by the majority.

This year that same majority, nudged along by strong opposition from the Arizona Association of Realtors, realized it would have been well served to listen to my arguments of last year. So Majority Leader Steve Court (R-Mesa) brought a bill before yesterday's Ways and Means committee to repeal the "homeowner affidavit" once again, and it seems fast-tracked to passage. At least on this topic we can breathe easy once again.

* * *

Thanks for your continuing faith in me as your Representative. 

Steve Farley

by David Safier

Rich Crandall is upset. Why would anyone think, with all the cuts Republicans have made to schools and health care for children and state parks and -- but why go on? -- that his bill to make school lunches optional could possibly hurt children or schools? Why don't people forget about all that other stuff and trust that Crandall's motives are pure?

And why would anyone think Crandall's ownership of a company that does work in school nutrition has anything to do with this bill? Just because people like Steve Yarbrough make money off the tuition tax credit bills he sponsors and other Republicans make money for themselves and their contributors by tailoring bills to their interests, why would anyone think Crandall would do that?

After all, his company does no work in Arizona. Yet. Would making school lunches optional bring business his way? Only Crandall and those he works with know for sure.

NOTE TO CRANDALL: I don't know if other blogs reported that you provide food to Arizona schools as you say, but this blog didn't report that. We here at BfA stick to the facts when we're reporting facts. We also state opinions like, the possibility of a conflict of interest with Crandall authoring this bill is huge. But that's just an opinion.

by David Safier

Yesterday I wrote about HB2368, a bill to limit the liability of companies sued for asbestos-related illnesses. It's a nearly exact copy of an ALEC model bill which has already passed in 11 other states. I said in the post, I don't know who the bill is designed to protect in Arizona, but it sure isn't the people affected by asbestos exposure.

I still don't know which corporations stand to benefit in Arizona, but commenter Gramiam sent me a link indicating the type of people who pour money into getting this kind of legislation passed. It's a Greg Palast article from October, 2011: The 4 Billionaire 'Vultures' Trying to Pick Our Next President. One of the "vultures" is Paul Singer, who Palast calls "the carrion king." He's a guy who buys up poor nations' debt after it has been forgiven by richer nations, then bleeds the nations dry by making them pay.

But that's not the asbestos story. It relates to his buying Owens Corning after it was sued for exposing its workers to asbestos when it was aware of the dangers. You can read the relevant passage after the jump.

And it's not just poor African carcasses that tempt Singer. Indeed, during my investigation for my new book, Vultures' Picnic, I discovered that Singer's first big vulture attack was on American asbestos victims.

Background:  The executives of three companies -- vermiculate mine operator WR Grace, wallboard manufacturer USG and building materials company Owens Corning -- knew that asbestos exposure in their respective operations was killing their workers. When caught and sued, the companies filed for bankruptcy, agreeing to pay almost all of their earnings to the people who were dying and injured by their asbestos.

But Singer had a better idea. These companies, as you can imagine, were worth next to nothing, and Singer bought Owens Corning for a song.

If he could cut the amount paid to the victims, Singer could boost Corning's value big time. So, a public relations campaign began, attacking the dying workers, saying they were all faking it.

One attacker was a guy named George W. Bush.

In January 2005, President Dubya held a televised meeting to promote an "expert" who pronounced that over half a million workers suing Singer's industry were liars. If workers couldn't breathe, he said to the grinning president, it wasn't the fault of asbestos.

The "expert" was not a doctor, but, notably, his "research" was partly funded by ... Paul Singer. And so was Bush. Since the death of Enron's Ken Lay, Singer and his vulture flock at Singer's hedge fund, Elliott International, had become the top contributors to the Republican National Committee. It's hard to measure his largess exactly because some of that help comes in through the side door. For example, Singer put money behind the Swift Boat smear on Bush's opponent, John Kerry.

The legal, political and public relations attacks on the dying workers chiseled away the compensation expected to be paid by the asbestos companies, boosting their net worth. Singer then flipped Corning, selling it for a neat billion-dollar profit.

It's legal. It's brilliant. It's sick. It's Singer.