Blog For Arizona

Mann and Ornstein on political gridlock

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The high priests of Beltway "centrism," political scientists Thomas Mann and Norm Ornstein, wrote an op-ed in April 2012 titled Let’s just say it: The Republicans are the problem.

We have been studying Washington politics and Congress for more than 40 years, and never have we seen them this dysfunctional. In our past writings, we have criticized both parties when we believed it was warranted. Today, however, we have no choice but to acknowledge that the core of the problem lies with the Republican Party.

The GOP has become an insurgent outlier in American politics. It is ideologically extreme; scornful of compromise; unmoved by conventional understanding of facts, evidence and science; and dismissive of the legitimacy of its political opposition.

When one party moves this far from the mainstream, it makes it nearly impossible for the political system to deal constructively with the country’s challenges.

A year later, the high priests of Beltway "centrism" are back with a new op-ed, Gridlock is no way to govern:

Larry Summers is a brilliant, award-winning economist. Monday, in his monthly op-ed column for The Post, he opined about politics and history [“Sometimes, gridlock is good for America,” April 15]. Our advice, as political scientists, is that Summers should stick to economics.

Our next Superintendent of Education?

by David Safier

Dr. David Garcia is exploring a run for Arizona's Superintendent of Education. I had the pleasure of sharing a radio studio with him last Saturday on Robin Hiller's State of Education program, and I was impressed. Dr. Garcia is very knowledgeable about education, as you would expect of someone who is an Associate Professor in the Teachers College at Arizona State University. But he also knows how to communicate without "talking like a professor," stating his ideas in clear, common-sense English. And he exudes the kind of enthusiasm and energy that makes you want to sit up and listen.

Dr. Garcia will be in Tucson for a discussion about education Saturday, April 20, 10am to noon, at the AEA Southern AZ offices, 6873 N. Oracle, in the back of the business complex. The event is hosted by Sen. Steve Farley and Rep. Victoria Steele. Because of space limitations, they ask that you RSVP Victoria at vsteele@azleg.gov if you plan to attend.

Some biographical information. Dr. Garcia is a native Arizonan who resides in Mesa and is a product of Arizona's public schools. Before he went to college, he served in the U.S. Army Infantry where he was awarded the Humanitarian Award and the Army Achievement Medal. Before his appointment at ASU, he served as the state Associate Superintendent of Public Instruction, a research analyst for the Arizona State Senate Education Committee and a peer consultant for the U.S. Department of Education. Along with his position at ASU, he is the director of the Arizona Education Policy Initiative and serves on the board of the Arizona Latino Research Enterprise.

Dr. Garcia and his wife, Lori Higuera, are the parents of two young daughters who attend public school.

If David Garcia is elected Arizona Superintendent of Education, my understanding is he will be the first educator to serve in that position in 30 years. I'm hoping he gets the support from teachers, parents and other community members he needs to convince him he can run a successful campaign. Arizona can use a man with his knowledge, experience and ideas to move our system of public education forward.

Comprehensive immigration reform battle lines are drawn

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Beltway media villager meme for months now has been that the GOP will agree to comprehensive immigration reform after losing three-fourths of the Hispanic vote in 2012. The GOP allegedly has learned its lesson and now realizes that its ability to win national elections in the future depends upon appealing to Hispanic voters and understands the changing demographics of America.

Silly reporters, you don't understand how deep nativism and racism runs in America. it is America's original sin.

The only reason there has not been hysterical anti-immigrant opposition to comprehensive immigration reform up to now is because there has not been an actual bill around which to rally the opposition of the nativists and racists -- timing is everything in politics.

That is about to change this week. The Senate's "Gang of Eight" is expected to unveil its comprehensive immigration reform bill this week.

The "Know Nothing Party" anti-immigrant nativists and the Dixiecrats-cum-"solid Republican South" racists are now gearing up for battle. Time to fire up the anti-immigrant hysteria of hate radio demagogues and FAUX News Fraudcasting.

GOP rebranding fail

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

After the 2012 election "autopsy," the GOP decided that it would rebrand itself with fancy "new and improved!" packaging and soft-sell messaging, all the while retaining its poisonous product inside the box that it is selling to an unsuspecting public. So how's that working out?

Just last week RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, the guy who told Republicans that they need to stop being stupid and to "tone down the language" about things like "legitimate rape," returned to the GOP war on women with another attack on Planned Parenthood and Democrats. Priebus suggests Obama, Democrats 'endorse infanticide'. This is "toning down the language"?

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus suggested that Democrats "endorse infanticide" by supporting women's health provider Planned Parenthood.

In an op-ed posted on the conservative site RedState, Priebus highlights movements made by state legislatures in North Dakota and Florida over the past week to restrict abortion rights. And he targets President Obama, congressional Democratic leaders and party officials over their support for Planned Parenthood.

Gov. Brewer rallies support for Medicaid (AHCCCS) restoration/expansion plan

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Gov. Jan Brewer held the latest in a series of rallies at the Capitol on Thursday to show she has broad support for her Medicaid (AHCCCS) restoration/expansion plan. Gov. Brewer rallies Medicaid allies:

A growing number of lawmakers in both parties believe the Legislature will pass Brewer’s expansion.

That’s a change from earlier this year, when the main voices heard in the debate were those of conservative Republicans opposed to the expansion, a signature part of President Barack Obama’s heath care overhaul law.

“It’ll get passed,” said Sen. Steve Pierce, R-Prescott, the most outspoken GOP supporter in the chamber. “She’s got the power of the veto and she will be there until she gets it.”

Democrats, who broadly support the expansion, hold 13 of the 30 seats in the Senate. Pierce believes the Senate vote could reach the required two-thirds majority, which would see at least eight Republicans vote in favor of the proposal.

“The governor’s sitting, as I see it, in the catbird’s seat, and she has tools at her command,” said Assistant Minority Leader Sen. Linda Lopez, D-Tucson.

The House, with 36 Republicans and 24 Democrats, may be tighter, but the push being led by Rep. Heather Carter, R-Cave Creek, is gaining traction.

“When we finally put together the package, I believe that we’ll have enough support to pass it,” Carter said Wednesday.

Obama's 3-pronged assault on the Party of No

by David Safier

Intentionally or not, Obama and the Democrats are putting the squeeze on Republicans in Congress, breaking down the GOP's united wall of resistance to everything a Democrat might support. Some not-too-crazy Republicans who are sick of being bullied by their batshit-crazy right wing are being peeled off with gun and immigration legislation. The next assault on the GOP's united front will likely be the confirmation fight over Sri Srinivasan who the Obama administration hopes will fill an open slot on the DC Circuit Court of Appeals. That's three battles the obstructionists have to fight simultaneously, fragmenting their efforts and diluting their message. Chances are, they're going to lose on some or all of the issues.

It's too early to say for sure, but it looks like the filibuster promised on any gun legislation by a bloc of Republican senators is going down. Enough Republicans are planning to join Democrats to get over the 60 vote mark. Meanwhile, immigration legislation is being pushed by Republicans who are -- gasp! -- working together with Democrats like Chuck Schumer to forge a bipartisan bill. Just the fact that Republicans are taking contrary positions on those two pieces of legislation is exposing cracks in the GOP wall of resistance. If legislation is voted on in the House and the Senate, Republicans will be forced to make public declarations of their positions on the issues which could sink their hopes of attracting voters in the middle who are for gun control legislation and comprehensive immigration reform. Whatever bills come to the floor will probably be far short of what we want -- they may even be voted down -- but Republicans are going to be weakened simply by allowing a vote.

UPDATED with New Events: Progressives, Mark Your Calendars for April Events!

April3 Update: New events have been added for April 6 and 9.

It’s only April 1, but already there is an impressive line-up of progressive events taking shape this month. In addition to these educational events, there are multiple fund-raisers for candidates, parties, and causes in April.  The list below is not meant to be all-inclusive. (Check out Facebook and the Pima County Democratic Party calendar or the calendar on Blog for Arizona for other events-- including multiple opportunities to donate.) The Tucson events included here are all free and are related to one or more Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) core policy issues: economic and social justice, universal healthcare, clean elections, ending corporate personhood, clean environment, or ending the wars.

April 2: Community Vision for the Ronstadt Bus Center

The Tucson Bus Riders Union and the Primavera Foundation are sponsoring a community forum to gather Tucsonans’ ideas on what should be done with the Ronstadt Transit Center on Congress Street. For several years, developers have been eyeing the Ronstadt Center for demolition and relocation out of downtown. If you believe that it is important for a sustainable city to have a bus terminal downtown—near restaurants, retail shops, major employers, and the new street car line—come to this meeting at the Rialto Theater, beginning at 5:30. For more information, call 624-0312 or email busriders@tucsonbusridersunion.com or go to the event’s Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/events/496939023698809/.

April 3: Solar Energy Efficiency vs the Status Quo

The Tucson Chapter of Drinking Liberally is sponsoring a joint presentation by Bruce Plenk, City of Tucson Solar Energy Coordinator, and Russell Lowes, Sierra Club Rincon Group Energy Chair and Research Director forwww.SafeEnergyAnalyst.org. The DL social hour begins at 6 p.m., with the speakers beginning around 7 p.m. on the patio of The Shanty. For more information, check out DL’s Facebook event http://www.facebook.com/events/104680899727634/.

More events after the jump.

Latinos to GOP: It's not your message, it's your policies

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The L.A. Times' Noam Levey reports today, "As Republican leaders try to woo Latino voters with a new openness to legal status for the nation's illegal immigrants, the party remains at odds with America's fastest-growing ethnic community on another key issue: healthcare."

It turns out that Latinos support "ObamaCare" (this is where the GOP's titular leader, Rush Limbaugh, claims it is because Latinos "depend on government for their prosperity.” ) Healthcare an obstacle as Republicans court Latinos:

Latinos, who have the lowest rates of health coverage in the country, are among the strongest backers of President Obama's healthcare law. In a recent national poll, supporters outnumbered detractors by more than 2 to 1. Latinos also overwhelmingly see guaranteeing healthcare as a core government responsibility, surveys show.

Yet congressional Republicans continue to make repeal of the 2010 Affordable Care Act a top agenda item and have renewed calls for deep cuts in health programs such as Medicaid, which are very popular with Latinos.

"Obamacare is a colossal mistake for our country," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said recently in a speech on the Senate floor. "It needs to be pulled out by its roots."

[A]ttacking the law risks undermining the RNC's planned minority outreach campaign, which party leaders said in a recent strategy blueprint must convince Latinos "we care about them."

"This is going to hurt Republicans," said Matt Barreto, cofounder of Latino Decisions, a nonpartisan national polling firm. "When Republicans keep saying they will repeal the health law, Latinos hear the party is going to take away their healthcare."

Obama, meanwhile, made upholding the Affordable Care Act a core part of his Latino strategy. A quarter of the president's advertising in Spanish focused on the law, said James Aldrete, who oversaw Spanish-language media strategy for Obama in 2008 and 2012. "We knew from the start that, if Latinos knew about the benefits of the law, they were going back the president," he said. "It was central to our messaging."

* * *

Surveys indicate that close to 30% of Latino citizens and legal permanent residents lack health insurance. By comparison, just 11% of white and 17% of black Americans are uninsured, according to the latest data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Starting next year, the health law will provide hundreds of millions of dollars in subsidies to low-income Americans and legal residents to help pay insurance premiums. Illegal immigrants cannot receive these subsidies.

Gerrymandered GOP Ghettos

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The gated country club communities of old white people occurs on a larger scale as well, the gerrymandered "GOP ghettos" of old white people in congressional districts. The New York Times' Charles Blow has an interesting commentary on this demographic problem. The G.O.P.’s Diversity Deserts:

Just a week ago, the Republicans issued their much-ballyhooed “autopsy” on why they lost the presidential election last year and how they might remedy their problems.

They concluded that their principles were fine; the problem was how they presented communicated those principles. Their witless wisdom is simply to tone down their rhetoric. They want to turn Teddy Roosevelt’s famous saying on its side: Talk softly but carry a big stigma.

The establishment Republicans’ push for a softer tone, however, is pure political scheming and has nothing to do with what most Republicans seem to fundamentally believe.

And many rank-and-file Republicans are adopting this two-faced tactic. A Pew Research Center report issued Thursday found that although most Republicans say that “illegal immigrants” should be allowed to stay in this country legally, most also believe that immigrants are a burden because they take jobs and health care, and they threaten American values.

Rep. Victoria Steele reflects on her mental health services bill

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Rep. Victoria Steele (D-LD 9) has a "My Turn" opinion in the Arizona Republic today reflecting on her mental health services bill recently killed in a Senate Health Committee by teabaggers opposed to "Gabby's bill." Tragedy speaks to need for more mental health first aid:

There are moments throughout the day when I am at the Arizona Capitol when my mind takes me home. I think of the people I’ve met since I began this public service. I think about our neighborhoods in Tucson. I remember how our community pulled together after a horrific tragedy that took the lives of many wonderful people and nearly took the life of our beloved congresswoman.

I had one of those moments when I learned that our efforts to help people get training so they would be better prepared to respond to those experiencing a mental crisis have failed — for now.

Tea-Publican Arizona Lege kills mental health services bill out of spite

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

While our Tea-Publican controled Arizona legislature is busy making idolatrous gun worship the official state religion of Arizona, it has refused to do anything to address mental health issues that are often at the heart of gun violence. The Tucson Weekly reported, Tucson Lawmakers' Bill to Boost Mental Health Services Dies:

A bill that aimed to give Tucson a sense of closure after the January 2011 shooting died last week . . .

HB 2570, by Rep. Ethan Orr (R-Tucson) and Rep. Victoria Steele (D-Tucson) aimed to increase community awareness of mental health issues by taking $250,000 from the general fund to expand the Arizona Department of Health Services’ Mental Health First Aid program.

The bill passed out of the House (54-4) smoothly, but it didn’t get on the agenda for the Senate Health and Human Services Committee in time because the committee's chair, Sen. Nancy Barto, R-Phoenix, didn't like the bill's cost. Orr said he met Barto, R-Phoenix, and chatted about her concerns. Orr said he was willing to amend the bill so that it was only a symbolic call to support for more mental health awareness in hopes of hammering out more funding for the program in coming budget talks.

The Doobie Brothers: Jason Rose and Constantin Querard

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Political consultants should stand on a street corner with a sign that reads "will sell my soul for cash." That's the only thing that really motivates them.

Stephen Lemons at the Phoenix New Times has this fun post about the supposed principles of political consultants, Russell Pearce's Pal Constantin Querard Pimps Medical Marijuana Industry:

Next, there's this little tidbit that I find eyepopping: Constantin Querard, Dark Prince of Sand Land's Far Right, supporter of recalled, disgraced ex-state Senate President Russell Pearce, and founder of the uber-conservative Arizona Family Project, is now pimping for the medical marijuana industry.

I could hardly believe it myself, but there it is, in black and white, on the Arizona Secretary of State's online guide to lobbyists, under Querard's name, the info that CQ is a "Lobbyist for Compensation" working on behalf of Arizona Organix, the state's first-ever duly licensed purveyor of medical Mary Jane, which opened for business December 6, in Glendale.

California election watchdog does what Arizona legislature refuses to do to protect its own GOP operatives

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Earlier this month, Cronkite News reported No state law on 'dark money' coming this legislative session:

For all of the controversy during the last election over the influence of so-called dark money in politics, the Arizona State Legislature is unlikely to produce any laws on the subject this session.

Sen. Steve Farley, D-Tucson, introduced the only bill addressing dark money, one that would have increased disclosure requirements for groups making such donations, but it didn’t receive a hearing.

Farley said that the “future of our democracy” depends on citizens knowing who is funding campaigns, something that certain corporations can keep secret because of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United ruling.

“I just think that we owe it to our voters to do everything we can to reveal as much as we can about where it comes from,” he said during a recent Senate Elections Committee session on Citizens United.

America to the GOP: 'We need to break up'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

"Baby, we need to talk. This relationship is unhealthy. We need to break up. It's not me baby, it's YOU -- you're freakin' scary nuts!"

And so America's dysfunctional relationship with the GOP comes to an end according to a new Pew Research poll. Andrew Kohut from Pew Research writes, The numbers prove it: The Republican Party is estranged from America:

In my decades of polling, I recall only one moment when a party had been driven as far from the center as the Republican Party has been today.

The outsize influence of hard-line elements in the party base is doing to the GOP what supporters of Gene McCarthy and George McGovern did to the Democratic Party in the late 1960s and early 1970s — radicalizing its image and standing in the way of its revitalization.

Tea Party temper tantrum: Arpaio 'Birthers' sue to stop Arpaio recall

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Earlier this week, Respect Arizona, the organization behind the recall of crazy uncle Joe Arpaio, announced that it is suspending its paid signature gathering campaign due to a shortage of funds (you can help alleviate this cash flow problem by using the link to contribute and to volunteer to circulate petitions).

This announcement from Respect Arizona caused The Arizona Republic(an), which first opposed the recall effort and then supported it, to have another manic depressive episode. Laurie Roberts clutched her pearls and reached for her smelling salts with a post assigned two doom and gloom captions. Joe Arpaio recall doomed by political miscalculation and Joe Arpaio recall in trouble:

Just 12 days after anti-Joe Arpaio forces announced that they had collected an impressive 120,000 signatures in the campaign to recall Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the campaign has taken a nosedive.

Lilia Alvarez, campaign manager of the Arpaio recall, confirmed the campaign is out of money and can no longer pay petition circulators. Instead, Respect Arizona will rely on volunteers to get to the promised land of 335,317 valid signatures by May 30.

Alvarez remains optimistic that it can be done.

Arizona Dems Split on 'Back to Work' Budget Vote

by Pamela Powers Hannley

On Wednesday, March 20, 2013, the US House of Representatives voted on a series of amendments to the Republican Majority Budget, penned by Rep. Paul Ryan. 

The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) amendment, dubbed the Back to Work Budget, was one of yesterday's votes. It lost 84 to 327, with no Republicans voting for it (not surprising) and 102 Democrats voting against it. 

How did Arizona's Democratic Party representatives vote on an amemdment spearheaded by one of their own-- Rep. Raul Grijalva? Not so good. Grijalva and Rep. Ed Pastor voted for the Back to Work Budget-- which would create jobs, reduce the debt, and protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. 

Representatives Ann Kirkpatirck, Ron Barber, and Kirsten Sinema voted against the Back to Work Budget-- despite letters and phone calls by members of the Arizona Chapter of the Progressive Democrats of America (PDA). Nationally, PDA hand delivered letters to 100 Congressional representatives and made 1000 phone calls. 

Frankly, I'm not surprised by Blue Dogs Kirkpatrick and Barber, but I am surprised and disappointed by Sinema. The three of them can expect to hear more from PDA.

Kozachik Kickoff Party: Pima Dems Love Fest (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Yesterday's re-election campaign kickoff for Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik was a Democratic Party love fest for the feisty Republican turned Democrat. 

There were nearly as many Pima County Democratic Party faithful in attendance at Borderlands Brewery as there were at the traditional St. Patrick's Day fundraiser a few days earlier. 

Kozachik told the crowd of Dems, Greens, Occupiers, Progressives, and, I believe, a few closet Republicans that his campaign has hit the ground running with 800 signatures in just a few weeks. The Pima County Republican Party has not announced a challenger to the iconoclastic Kozachik, who proved to be too independent minded for them, after he bucked a loyality pledge to Governor Jan Brewer, spoke out against the Arizona Legislature's multiple attempts to hurt Tucson and Pima County, endorsed Democrats Richard Carmona for US Senate and Ron Barber for Congress, partied with Pima Dems on Election Night 2012, and-- the last straw-- spearheaded a campaign for universal background checks at gun shows.

More photos and video after the jump.

The Hispanic voter stereotype shop

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Rachel Maddow did a segment on Tuesday night about the GOP's new $10 million outreach to minority voters, in particular, to Hispanic voters.

The village idiot Aqua Buddha, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), addressed the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in Washington D.C. on Tuesday, "and on his way there he apparently stopped off at the Hispanic voter stereotype shop."

Clip:

Republicans have been losing both respect and votes of a group of people who already identify with many of our beliefs in family, and faith, and conservative values. Hispanics should be a natural and sizeable part of the Republican base. Defense of the unborn, defense of traditional marriage, are Republican issues that should resonate with Latinos.

As Maddow commented, "Should they? Why do you think that? You know if you actually look at the data, more than half of all Hispanics think that gay people should be allowed to marry. On abortion about two-thirds of Latinos think abortion should be legal. So your stereotypes about what Latino voters think, hey, turns out they're wrong. Also, they're stereotypes."

Tucson Progressives & Democrats Back the 'Back to Work' Budget

The following guest commentary about the current budget battles in DC was submitted to the Arizona Daily Star for publication. Since the Star chooses to primarily publicize Republican budget plans-- and no other ideas, including those proposed by Southern Arizona Congressman Raul Grijalva-- they didn't publish this commentary about the Congressional Progressive Caucus' Back to Work Budget. So, here you go...

On Tuesday, March 12^th, the Congressional Progressive Caucus released its proposed federal budget. Dubbed the “Back to Work Budget”, it will be presented as an amendment to the already discredited Paul Ryan and Congressional Majority budget. The CPC budget will reduce the Federal Budget Deficit by more than $4.4 trillion over the next 10 years, will create 7 million new jobs in its first year, and preserve existing benefits for Social Security and Medicare. The Congressional Progressive Caucus’ “Back to Work” budget will also make public healthcare affordable to the nation by offering a public option.  

More after the jump.

Ryan GOP budget attacked by far-right radical Republican Study Committee

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

It appears that the crazy train has left the station. The GOP's alleged boy genius, Ayn Rand fanboy Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), has offered his dystopian Randian vision for America's future.

But Ryan's radical vision is not the most radical. There are crazy people in the House GOP who are even more radical, who don't think that the Flimflam Man does enough damage.

The Republican Study Committee (RSC) has jumped into the fray with their own budget proposal. Think Progress reports, The Most Radical Proposals In The House Conservative Budget:

The Republican Study Committee (RSC), helmed by Chairman Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) released an even more radical plan than the official House Republican budget, which disproportionately guts programs for low-income Americans while giving even bigger tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans. The RSC budget purports to eliminate the deficit in just 4 years and limit total discretionary spending to $950 billion, the lowest level since 2008. In order to achieve this goal, the RSC cuts non-defense spending by $6 billion over four years, while the GOP budget slows spending growth over the same period.

Budget Battle: Can the Rich Afford to Pay Higher Taxes?

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Since the Tea Party took over the House of Representatives after the disastrous 2010 election, you'd think the most pressing job facing the Congress was to lower taxes on the richest Americans. (Feather-bedding the 1% is right up there with squashing our civil liberties, suppressing voter turnout, grandstanding about cutting "entitlements" (AKA earned benefits), supporting Wall Street banksters, and protecting Citizens United and the obscene campaign finance system we have.

Just look how many marches, blog posts, letters to the editor, calls to representatives, and Occupations it took to overturn the Bush Era Tax Cuts on people who make more than $400,000 a few months ago. (And it still probably wouldn't have happened if it weren't for three percentages that changed public opinion-- 99%, 1%, and 47%.) More on taxes and budgets after the jump.

GOP introspection and analysis complete: We suck

Posted  by AzBlueMeanie:

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus gave his assessment of the GOP’s problems on Monday based on the results of a months-long review, and he called on the party to reinvent itself. RNC chairman gives blistering assessment of GOP’s problems:

Referring to the November election, Priebus said at a breakfast meeting: “There’s no one reason we lost. Our message was weak; our ground game was insufficient; we weren’t inclusive; we were behind in both data and digital; and our primary and debate process needed improvement.”

“So, there’s no one solution,” he said. “There’s a long list of them.”

Village idiot wins CPAC straw poll

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

"Tony: It's no use, the man is a complete idiot.

Village Idiot: If only. Now my father, he was a complete idiot. I'm still a half-wit."

- TV Mini-Series "The 10th Kingdom" (2000)

This is the only memorable line I ever remember from this TV show, but I am reminded of it every time I hear that village idiot Aqua Buddha, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) open his mouth and speak.

No surprise here: the conclave of conservative crackpots at CPAC conducted a straw poll, and the village idiot won. Winning the straw poll makes him the biggest loser. Rand Paul wins CPAC straw poll:

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul (R) has narrowly won the 2013 Conservative Political Action Conference straw poll, picking up where his father left off at the conservative confab.

* * *

The first-term senator’s win was widely expected, especially given his father’s past successes in the CPAC straw poll. Rep. Ron Paul (R-Tex.) regularly attracted huge crowds of devoted supporters at CPAC and won the straw poll in 2010 and 2011.

h/t Hot Air

Two votes demonstrate the new GOP is same as the old GOP

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

So this happened this week --

Greg Sargent reported that on Wednesday, "Senate Republicans on the Senate Budget Committee cast a vote that underscores the genuine nature of the differences between Republicans and Democrats on taxes in a fresh way. They voted unanimously against an amendment — to the Dem budget — that would seek to close loopholes that enable profitable corporations to pay nothing in taxes." Why compromise with Republicans on taxes is impossible, in one vote. The good news is that the amendment passed the committee with all Dems voting for it, though its future in the Senate budget legislation is anything but assured.

On Friday, House GOP Unanimously Votes Down Minimum Wage Hike. "House Republicans unanimously voted down a measure Friday that would have raised the federal minimum wage, from its current $7.25 per hour to $10.10 by 2015. Six Democrats joined 227 Republicans in voting it down; 184 Democrats voted yes. The legislation was proposed as a last-minute amendment upon passage of the SKILLS Act, which reauthorizes a jobs training program."

So corporations should pay no taxes, but we can't afford to improve the lives of the working poor by raising the minimum wage.

After months of soul-searching, the GOP discovered that it has no soul.

Circus sideshow CPAC Conference this week

Posted  by AzBlueMeanie:

The Beltway media villagers will be wasting a great deal of air time and ink over the next couple of weeks covering the circus sideshow of far-right fringe groups at the CPAC 2013 - Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C. March 14-16.

In fact, the Beltway media villagers have already wasted a great deal of air time and ink over the past month in anticipation of the circus coming to town.

Back in February, GOP political consultant Steve Schmidt was asked about the CPAC 2013 Conference. Steve Schmidt: CPAC is the 'Star Wars Bar Scene of the Conservative Movement':

[D]uring a discussion with Thomas Roberts and Jimmy LaSalvia of GOProud about why CPAC excludes gays and other groups from their conference the topic of New Jersey Governor Chris Christie came up, and his own lack of invitation to speak. Steve Schmidt, John McCain's campaign manager, had nothing good to say about CPAC, the Conservative Political Action Conference, the distilled fringiest of the right wing fringe:

The GOP's new strategy, same as the old strategy

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Garry Trudeau scoops the National Press Club on the GOP's "soul-searching" results. RNC Chairman Priebus to share future Republican strategy at the National Press Club on March 18: Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus will discuss the party's future strategy at National Press Club Speakers Breakfast at 8 a.m. Monday, March 18 in the Ballroom.

Doonesbury
By Garry Trudeau

Jeb Bush: the Goldwater Institute connection

by David Safier

Jeb Bush's presidential campaign is off and running with his new book, Immigration Wars: Forging an American Solution. He's doing the news and talk show circuit, saying No to a path to citizenship, unless an undocumented immigrant wants to go home and start over, and a hesitant Yes to legalized status, with a possibility of citizenship for young people brought here by their families.

The book is co-authored by Clint Bolick, Goldwater Institute's Vice President for Litigation. In the past, G.I. has been more libertarian -- more immigration-friendly -- than strictly conservative on the immigration issue. (I'll try to dig up statements made the Institute a number of years ago and post them.) G.I. stayed silent during the SB1070 debates. After the controversy died down a bit, G.I. claimed it was because there was disagreement in its ranks. I chalk it up to cowardice. G.I. lives on conservative contributions and it needs conservative legislators to carry its bills, so it decided silence was the safest way to keep its power and influence.

Jeb's connection with the Goldwater folks is nothing new. The previous Education Director, Matthew Ladner, was great friends with Jeb and now works for him at the Foundation for Excellence in Education, one of the conservative "education reform" groups pushing privatization. When he was governor, Florida and Arizona played educational leap frog, using legislation in one state to promote legislation in the other (You'll start with this bill, then I'll start with another bill, then you'll start . . .)

What does this mean? We'll see. It definitely means the Jeb/G.I. connection is worth watching to see the extent to which Jeb leans on Arizona's conservative/libertarian brain trust to craft his policies and strategies.

FLIP-FLOP-HALF-FLIP UPDATE: It looks like Jeb, who was for a path to citizenship before he was against it, is now kinda for it again, if it can be made to, you know, work without, um, encouraging, er, people to come here illegally, though we [cough] need to make sure we . . . Anybody know where I can find that bottle of water Mark Rubio left lying around?

I guess these guys didn't get the memo about how the GOP needs Latino voters

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I keep seeing reports that the GOP has learned its lesson from the 2012 election, and that it is now prepared to abandon its nativist/racist anti-immigrant bashing ways to appeal to the growing Latino electorate for future elections, or face extinction as a viable political party.

I guess these guys didn't get the memo. Willard "Mittens" Romney aka "Mr. Self-Deport," the GOP nominee for president in 2012, has not changed his position. Mitt Romney: No path to citizenship for illegal immigrants:

Mitt Romney, who blamed much of his loss in the 2012 presidential campaign on his and his party’s failure to connect with Latino voters, said Sunday that he remains opposed to providing a path to citizenship or even permanent residency to illegal immigrants.

“People who have come here illegally should not be given a special pathway to permanent residency or citizenship in this country merely because they’ve come here illegally,” Romney said in an interview with “Fox News Sunday” in his first public comments since the 2012 election.

Violence Against Women Act finally reauthorized

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The media's favorite story line is that Washington, D.C. is dysfunctional and broken and can't get anything done. But the media villagers rarely ever tell you why that is. The reason is the GOP leadership who employ the extra-constitutional "Hastert Rule" (a majority of the majority) in the House, and the extra-constitutional "Cloture Rule" (filibuster) in the Senate. When the GOP leadership waives their abuse of these procedural rules and members are permitted to vote their conscience the way that the Founders intended, work actually does get done in Congress.

Case in point: the TanMan, Weeper of the House John Boehner, for the third time this year waived the "Hastert Rule" at the request of 18 House Republican members to allow an up or down vote on renewal of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). The VAWA had already passed the Senate on a strongly bipartisan 78 to 22 vote earlier this month.

Today, the VAWA was finally reauthorized. Violence Against Women Act passed by House, sent to Obama for signature - The Washington Post:

The Republican-held U.S. House signed off on a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act that includes expanded protections for same-sex couples Thursday, ending a protracted political fight over the measure and sending the bill to President Obama to sign into law.

Why does Arizona tolerate the Koch brothers dictating public policy?

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

For years, the billionaire bastard Koch brothers have treated the Arizona legislature as a wholly owned subsidiary of the "Kochtopus" network of think tanks and political action committees that they and their wealthy friends fund. Several of these Kochtopus entities operate out of the state of Maricopa.

Tea-Publican members of the Arizona legislature are members of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), and they openly carry bills for other Kochtopus entities like the Goldwater Institute and Americans For Prosperity. The Koch brothers are also major financial backers of the Tea Party.

The Kochtopus is an an invidious malignant cancer in the body politic that has made Arizona a regressive backwater and the laughingstock of the nation, a spot previously reserved for states such as Mississippi and Alabama. As I have said before, we need to tear out the Kochtopus network in the state of Maricopa by their roots and salt the ground to make certain that it never grows back again. We need to treat this cancer on the body politic.

Pictures for peaceniks: Why the US military budget should be cut

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Remember the Super Congress? It was a gimmick that Congressional Republicans came up with after the huge debt ceiling and budget battle in August 2011.

The Super Congress was supposed to balance the US budget during the fall of 2011, but they failed to do so. As a result, the country is now facing "sequestration"-- a fancy name for automatic budget cuts and tax increases that were trigger by the Super Congress' failure and the regular Congress' failure to negotiate and agree on humane budget cuts coupled with revenue-generating and economy-growing measures.

Thanks to Congressional foot-dragging, sequestration is upon us. The biggest budget that is up for trimming is the military budget. Although hawks are wringing their hands over potential cuts, the US military budget is by far the largest in the world. In fact, in 2011, the US spent more on the military than the next 13 countries combined! Wonkblog has provided great charts and background information on military spending-- perfect ammunition for anyone who in more invested in peace than war. Check out it out after the jump.

Conservatives and fear response -- no surprise here

by David Safier

A Brown University study concludes that people with a genetic disposition to social fear are more likely to be anti-immigration and pro-segregation and are generally more conservative.

“It’s not that conservative people are more fearful, it’s that fearful people are more conservative. People who are scared of novelty, uncertainty, people they don’t know, and things they don’t understand, are more supportive of policies that provide them with a sense of surety and security,” [researcher Rose] McDermott said.

This conclusion isn't new. Other studies have indicated that conservatives have stronger fear responses and are more easily disgusted by unfamiliar sights and smells than people who have more progressive political views. These traits make conservatives feel more comfortable with a strong "daddy party" that promises to protect them and less comfortable with people who are different from them.

The study also concluded that people's experiences and education can lessen the influence of the genetic tendency.

“[T]he definition of unfamiliar may shift across time and location based on experience and education, and a genetically informed fear disposition is hardly permanent or fixed,” the researchers wrote.

The conclusions are tentative, of course, as they are in all studies, but they help explain phenomena like, say, Fox News, Wayne LaPierre, Dick Cheney . . .

GOP rebranding: 'new and improved!' packaging, but with the same poisonous product

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The GOP does not do introspection and reflection. Its answer to "What went wrong in 2012?" is not to question its policies that the public has rejected -- because that would be heresy on the right -- but rather to question its messaging and marketing strategies.

So the GOP turns to the "Madmen" of Madison Avenue to create an ad campaign based upon a "New and Improved!" packaging for its product, but with the same poisonous product.

RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said, "It's not the platform of the party that's the issue. In many cases, it's how we communicate about it. It is a couple dumb things that people have said."

Similarly Jim DeMint, the former senator and now head of the Heritage Foundation, believes his party simply needs better communication skills -- and nothing else.

And then there was Louisiana Governor bobby Jindal: “We’ve got to stop being the stupid party. It’s time for a new Republican Party that talks like adults,” he said. “We had a number of Republicans damage the brand this year with offensive and bizarre comments. I’m here to say we’ve had enough of that.”

(Of course, the King of Stupid in the GOP took exception because he resembled those remarks. Donald Trump: 'Stupid' for Bobby Jindal to warn GOP to 'stop being the stupid party'.)

AZ Dem reorganization meeting: Not a good day for incumbents (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Saturday, January 26, was a day of surprises-- a bad day for incumbent Democratic Party officers but a good day for activists and young Democrats. It was the culmination of the Arizona Democratic Party's (ADP) statewide reorganization, which began with the election of new precinct committee (PC) persons in August.

These last two years have been somewhat tumultuous for the ADP, after the stormy election and eventual resignation of Andrei Cherny (of No Labels fame) as party chair. Both the county and state parties came under fire from candidates and activists for playing favorites, endorsing candidates before the primary election, and, sometimes, and actively working for or against certain Democratic candidates. As a result, many unhappy campers grumbled on Facebook, on the blogs, and in person, and some even protested the headquarters in Phoenix. Multiple groups-- including progressives-- used the past few months to gain power in the local party structure-- with an eye on Saturday's state committee meeting. 

On Saturday, 400+ elected precinct committee people elected the chair, eight vice chairs (four of each gender from different counties), a secretary, a treasurer, a DNC representative, an education coordinator, and an affirmative action moderator. 

The first upset victory of the day was for first vice chair. Former Carmona campaign manager and long-time activist Alexis Tameron beat three-term vice chair Harriet Young handily. After the jump, watch a video of Tameron, as well as more details, photos, and election results.

Jindal: "We've got to stop being the stupid party"

Posted  by AzBlueMeanie:

'Bobby Jindal, the Exorcist' and governor of the state of Louisiana, exorted Tea-Publicans at the RNC Convention to exorcise their demons and to "stop being the stupid party."  "It's time for a Republican Party that talks like adults." "We've got to stop insulting the intelligence of voters. . . we've got to stop dumbing down our ideas and stop reducing everything to mindless slogans and taglines for 30 second ideas."

The sweet irony of Jindal's comments was entirely lost at the home for "mindless slogans and taglines for 30 second ideas," FAUX News Fraudcasting, in this video report below the fold.

Watered-down Filibuster Reforms Agreed to by Sen. Harry Reid

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid never fails to disappoint me. He has successfully managed to do so again.

Progressive Democrats have for months been working on reforms to the antiquated and arcane rules of the U.S. Senate that provide for a minority filibuster of bills supported by a clear majority of senators -- you know, majority rule in a democracy.

Tea-Publicans, led by the Septegenarian Ninja Turtle, Mitch McConnell, have engaged in an unprecedented abuse of the Senate filibuster rules in recent years, converting the Senate into a super-majoritarian body to conduct even the most mundane Senate business. It is a tyranny by an obstructionist minority that rendered the U.S. Senate a dysfunctional body incapable of doing the people's business.

The effort to reform the Senate filibuster rules by Progressive Democrats was an atempt to light a candle rather curse the darkness of Tea-Publican tyranny. To quote St. Matthew 5:15: "No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house." Harry Reid just doused the candlelit lamp of filibuster reform under a basket.

Of austerity and cookies (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

These days, you can't turn on the TV or radio without hearing a "news" story or pundit "analysis" about the battle over deficit reduction by budget cuts or revenue generation.

Republicans want to balance the budget on the backs of the middle class and the poor by cutting "entitlements" (ie, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment, Pel Grants, food stamps, and whatever programs are left of Johnson's War on Poverty). Heaven forbid that they would consider taxing the rich, taxing financial transactions, raising the income cap for Social Security benefits, or anything like that. 

Austerity is their battle cry. After the jump, watch this video featuring John Nichols of The Nation explaining the hoax of austerity.

Progressive values are not far-left, they are centrist American values

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

President Obama's Second Inaugural Address echoed themes from the Founding Fathers in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution,from Presidents Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt, and from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on his holiday.

The right-wing haters of the mighty Wurlitzer of the right-wing noise machine predictably clutched their pearls and reached for the smelling salts as they all got their panties in a twist. The right-wing haters dismissed the speech as a "far-left" liberal agenda that is "radical" and "extreme."

These right-wing haters are trying to convince the feckless "lamestream media" that America is a center-right country, which is funny, because what they are selling is not center-right at all but a radical and extreme dystopian vision. This is how propagandists move the fulcrum on the scale ever rightward to extremist positions, so that even a "conservative" president like Ronald Reagan would be dismissed by them today as a "socialist leftie."

The GOP's Gimmicks-R-Us shop latest gimmick

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The latest GOP Gimmicks-R-Us Shop gimmick is to suspend the debt limit, rather than raise it, until May 18th. This will get a vote tomorrow in the House, on the theory that this will be easier for Tea-Publicans to support than an actually hiking debt ceiling, even though this will functionally have the same effect. Greg Sargent reports on the GOP's self-delusion. Keep letting Boehner twist in the wind:

Ezra Klein and Steve Benen make the crucial substantive point that if we can suspend the debt ceiling temporarily, we should suspend it permanently, to prevent this kind of brinksmanship from going wrong and wreaking economic havoc in the future.

* * *

It’s hard to imagine House Republicans won’t be able to get the votes to pass this extension, but really, at this point, it’s impossible to be prepared for what they’ll do. This could be seen by House conservatives as yet another cave — one coming after the fiscal cliff surrender — and this time, Republicans get absolutely nothing in exchange for backing down. So who knows.

PDA Tucson's Phil Lopes runs for Dem Party Vice Chair

by Pamela Powers Hannley

On Saturday, January 26, 2013, the Arizona Democratic Party will hold its reorganization meeting in Phoenix. New state party officers will be elected by elected precinct committee (PC) people. If you are a progressive and an elected, please consider voting for Phil Lopes. If you are a PC and can't make the meeting, contact your legislative district chair and give someone your proxy vote. Here is the proxy form. 

Below is Lopes' candidate statement...

Phil Lopes for Vice Chair

Dear AZ State Democratic Committee member,

This letter is to ask for your vote for the position of Vice-Chair of the AZ Democratic Party. I would be honored to have your support and vote. I am running for Vice-Chair to:

• strengthen the party, especially in public policy advocacy, and,
• to improve the public’s perception of the Party

We elected Barack Obama to be the People's President (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Today, President Barack Obama, our 44th president, started his second term.

Last November, in overwhelming numbers, a diverse coalition of Americans said we want this black man to be our president for another four years-- not that hollow representative of the 1%, that child of privilege, that flip-flopping liar with the hidden corporatist agenda.

President Obama won the presidency by a larger majority than John Kennedy or Ronald Reagan, and he did so by inspiring a rainbow of Americans that he can better lead all of us through these challenging times to a better, stronger, fairer America. He continued the theme of togetherness in his inaugural address-- specifically calling for unity, while giving a nod to groups who elected him-- gays, Latinos, blacks, women, middle class workers.

We, the people, believe that induring security and lasting peace do not require perpetual war...

This morning during the mainstream media banter leading up to the inauguration ceremony, corporate talking heads-- one after another-- parroted their gloom-and-doom meme about Obama's second term. Don't believe them. We the people will build our future-- not the media talking heads, not the corporatists, not the Congress, not the state legislatures, not the courts. We the people must take responsibility to be the change we want to see in our country.

During the next four years, there will be times when we agree with President Obama and times when we don't. But we must remember that we the people chose him, and only we the people can help him be the best president he can be.

Our work is not over. This country faces many social and economic challenges. As the President said this morning, we must move forward together. In the coming years, let's help the President and our elected officials make the right choices-- choices that will further equality, justice, and liberty for all Americans. We elected Barack Obama to be the People's President. Let's help him earn that title during the next four years. Watch the video below and remember how hard we worked for today and how jubliant we were on the evening of November 6, 2012. 

1-22-13: D-Day for Filibuster Reform - Call Now

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid never fails to disappoint me. He cares more about the antiquated and arcane rules of the Senate than he does about the prime directive: "do the right thing." POLITICO reports Harry Reid seeks middle path on filibuster:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) doesn’t plan to advance a “talking filibuster” proposal envisioned by liberals who want sweeping changes to the stodgy Senate.

But he still may invoke what critics call the “nuclear option” to change Senate rules that would limit the use of the filibuster, force senators to hold the floor in certain situations and require those stalling legislation to deliver 41 votes, several people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

The contents of a filibuster reform package are not yet finalized, sources say, and Reid is still trying to cut a bipartisan deal with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to avert a partisan showdown on the floor [Tuesday].

Fracturing the Republican Coalition

Let’s consider recent bill to fund Superstorm Sandy relief. Let’s look at the process that led to its passage. The vote in the House was:

                yea  nay   total
  Republicans    49  179     228
  Democrats     192    1     193
  total         241  180     421

This is a clear violation of the so-called Hastert rule, which says that the Speaker of the House should use his power to prevent the House from passing (or even voting on) a measure unless it enjoys support from a “majority of the majority” i.e. a majority of the members of the majority party. The rule is named for former Speaker Dennis Hastert, even though he inherited it from his predecessor, Newt Gingrich.

This rule has been violated only twice in 15 years, which is also twice in 15 days: once for the “fiscal cliff” vote on New Year’s Day, and once for the Sandy relief vote on January 15th.

If these violations of the Hastert rule are the start of a trend, it has tremendous significance. Mr. Boehner could decide he would rather work with moderate Democrats than work with the extreme elements of his own party. This would give him tremendous (but not unlimited) power to decide what would and would not be enacted.

<...more...>

The debut of Organizing for Action

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Wondering what Organizing for America is going to do now that President Obama has been reelected and cannot run for another term? It is going to transform itself into Organization for Action, "a non-profit organization that will build on the volunteer network and infrastructure of President Obama's campaign apparatus to continue supporting his agenda over the course of his second term—and potentially beyond."

Jed Lewison reports at Daily Kos, Michelle Obama announces OFA's next phase: Organizing for Action:

First Lady Michelle Obama announces Organization for Action (video below the fold -- check out her new do!):

If we want to finish what we started and truly make that change we believe in, we can't stop now. And that's why today I'm proud that our friends and supports are launching Organizing for Action, the next phase of our movement for change. Supporters like you will be the heart of this organization, because for the past six years you've done something so much bigger than elect a president: you've given an ordinary people a place in our democrat process again.

The mission of the new organization, the first lady said, is "to build on the work we've already done by training and empowering the next generation of leaders and supporting the grassroots organizing that you want to do on the issues that matter most to your communities and our country."

GOP war on voting: REDMAP gerrymandering

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

In November, Democratic candidates for Congress collectively got 1.1 million more votes than their Republican opponents, and yet Tea-Publicans maintained a 33-seat Republican majority in the House through an aggressive and sophisticated gerrymandering strategy known as REDMAP. The GOP is now bragging about its success in thwarting the popular vote of the people through aggressive gerrymandering. The GOP's 'REDMAP' memo:

[T]he Republican State Leadership Committee is touting the effects of its Redistricting Majority Project, or REDMAP. They write:

President Obama won reelection in 2012 by nearly 3 points nationally, and banked 126 more electoral votes than Governor Mitt Romney.  Democratic candidates for the U.S. House won 1.1 million more votes than their Republican opponents.  But the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives is a Republican and presides over a 33-seat House Republican majority during the 113th Congress.  How? One needs to look no farther than four states that voted Democratic on a statewide level in 2012, yet elected a strong Republican delegation to represent them in Congress: Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

...

[T]he Republican firewall at the state legislative and congressional level held.

Last month ProPublica detailed exactly how REDMAP worked, with special emphasis on redistricting in North Carolina. If the REDMAP memo sounds like a sales pitch to donors, consider that the RSLC raised $30 million in 2010.

Pro Publica

DCCC ad: 'Kumbaya'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

"As the Tea Party House Republicans try to come together at their retreat this week in Williamsburg, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) today released a new web video reminding them just how hard that will be."

"The new video, 'Kumbaya,' makes the case of the dysfunction and extremism of the Tea Party House Republicans -- from the mouths of Republicans themselves. According to news reports, a majority of House Republicans pushing for default and a government shutdown. And that's just the latest chronic chaos from this Tea Party House Republican majority."

Video below the fold.

'The Koz' on The Last Word

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik, who recently switched his party registration from Republican to Democrat (see previous posts), was a guest on The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell on Tuesday to discuss his gun buy back program and his party switch.

Video below the fold.

Constituent letter from 'The Koz' explaining his party switch to Democratic Party

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik has belatedly come to the same conclusion as political scientists Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein in April 2012, Let’s just say it: The Republicans are the problem:

In our past writings, we have criticized both parties when we believed it was warranted. Today, however, we have no choice but to acknowledge that the core of the problem lies with the Republican Party.

The GOP has become an insurgent outlier in American politics. It is ideologically extreme; scornful of compromise; unmoved by conventional understanding of facts, evidence and science; and dismissive of the legitimacy of its political opposition.

When one party moves this far from the mainstream, it makes it nearly impossible for the political system to deal constructively with the country’s challenges.

Steve Kozachik's letter to his constituents (.pdf) explaining his party switch reflects Mann's and Ornstein's observations. Letter in full:

Open Letter to my Constituents:

In 2009, when I was first approached by the local Republican Party leadership to consider running for the Tucson City Council, there was a clear mutual understanding that my political inclinations are to the center. I committed to looking at each issue on a one-by-one basis,studying the merits of all sides and voting based on the set of facts, not on the basis of a rigid ideology. From the standpoint of being able to win cross-over votes, and drawing out the centerof the Republican Party, leadership felt my candidacy would be attractive to the voters. From a personal perspective, I entered the race comfortable believing that if elected, my role would be to demonstrate that bi-partisanship could work. My hope was to be a standard bearer for what I believed to be a large, centrist component of the party.

Carmona outperformed other Dems

by David Safier

The Capitol Times (subscription only) analysed the vote data in the Flake-Carmona senatorial race and found that Carmona did better than a generic Democrat could be expected to do. He actually won a number of Republican-majority areas.

Carmona defeated Flake, a six-term East Valley congressman, in competitive-but-Republican-leaning precincts across the state. In the Ahwatukee-based Windmere precinct, where Republicans have an 9-point registration edge over Democrats, Carmona beat Flake by more than six percentage points, based on 2-way registration figures and head-to-head performance. In south Scottsdale’s Pueblo precinct, which has a 4.6 percent GOP registration edge, Carmona won more than 54 percent of the vote.

Not only that, he did better than Barber in CD-2 and Sinema in CD-9. That's quite a showing for a first time candidate against Flake, a well-known politician.

If Carmona runs for governor, he'll be able to pick up where he left off, with statewide face-and-name recognition and a base of people who voted for him two years earlier. Will that be enough to beat Ken Bennett or some Republican candidate to be named later? No telling, but it sure gives Carmona a leg up over any other Democrat in the state.

Pima Dems elect Jorgensen, party slate by acclamation at reorg meeting

by Pamela Powers Hannley

The Pima County Democratic Party elected a slate of new officers-- including Don Jorgensen as chair-- by acclamation at Saturday's reorganization meeting. The whole election took about 30 minutes.

Although there were rumors about wild card candidates (from the business friendly Latinos who took over Legislative District 3) running against the suggested slate and although the Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) met with progressive precinct committee (PsC) people to encourage them to run for statewide or county offices, there were no surprises on Saturday. (The progressive faction and the business friendly Latino faction are represented on the Executive Committee and on the State Committee, making both groups more diverse in multiple ways.)  

Nearly 150 voting PCs attended the reorganization meeting at Amphi High School; 51 were needed for quorum.

Chair Jeff Rogers-- who led the local party with a strong hand through two, often-contentious terms-- called the meeting to order and ran it. He started by congratulating the Dem foot soldiers for helping to elect President Barack Obama and a Democratic majority of Congressional seats-- Ron Barber, Raul Grijalva, Ann Kirkpatrick, Kyrsten Sinema, and Ed Pastor.

Arizona State Senator Steve Farley nominated Jorgensen (pictured at left), a candidate who he said "has blue blood, in a good way".

In a short speech after his speedy, uncontested election, Jorgensen-- dressed in the Dem Party Chair "uniform" of blue jeans, cowboy boots, and a blue blazer-- came across as smart, friendly, inclusive, and spot-on with the issues that reflect Democratic values.

"I know that it is wrong to have more laws to regulate a woman's vagina, than assault weapons; more laws that support prisons more than public education; and laws that allow you to be pulled over because of the color of your skin," Jorgensen said, alluding to multiple right-wing bills passed in recent years by the Arizona Legislature.

"We need to work smarter and speak louder," Jorgensen continued. "We are not going to be complacent as we were in 2010. The work starts tomorrow." More about the elections after the jump.