Month: November 2012

Sonoran Alliance says ‘grassroots effort’ (not dark money) defeated Props 121 &204

by

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Sonoran Alliance— a conservative mouthpiece– has reported that a "strong grassroots effort" by staunch Arizona conservatives defeated Proposition 121 (open primaries) and Proposition 204 (permanent 1 cent sales tax to fund education) in the recent election.

The video accompanying the story features dark money king Robert Graham lauding volunteers for making phone calls, writing letters, and talking to their friends about the two propositions and thus triumphing on election day.

This a great fairy tale to make the base feel good. Too bad it's not true.

Both propositions were defeated by huge dark money donations by Americans for Responsible Leadership, who funneled $900,000 in out-of-state money into Arizona to defeat Prop 204 and $600,000 to defeat Prop 121. The same group also funneled $11 million worth of dark money into two California campaigns.  Talking Points Memo reported that Americans for Repsonsible Leadership admited to "campaign money laundering" related to the California donations. 

Former Arizona House Speaker Kirk Adams is the president of Americans for Responsible Leadership, and Graham is the director. Graham has a vested interest in making Arizona's Republicans feel all warm and fuzzy inside. He wants to be their next statewide chair. 

Having a dark money Koch Brothers puppet as head of the Arizona Republican Party– now that is scary. Watch the Graham video after the jump.

Election reform bills introduced in Congress

by

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Steve Benen reports on a pair of election reform bills introduced in Congress. Dems unveil 'FAST Voting Act':

In the days and weeks leading up to Election Day 2012, it became
painfully clear that voting problems have reached scandalous levels in
many parts of the country. The fear was, once the election was over,
attention would shift, policymakers would move on to other issues, and
memories of voters waiting seven hours to cast a ballot would fade.

Fortunately, it looks like some members of Congress are keeping the issue alive.

Yesterday, Sens. Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.)
unveiled a bill they're calling the "Fair, Accurate, Secure and Timely
(FAST) Voting Act." Under their proposal, states that "aggressively"
pursue election reforms would be rewarded with federal grants.

And
what kind of reforms are proponents looking for? It's not a short list,
but the Warner/Coons bill calls for flexible registration
opportunities, including same-day registration; expanding early voting;
"no-excuse" absentee voting; and "formal training of election officials,
including state and county administrators and volunteers."

As best as I can tell, because the FAST Act is roughly modeled after the Race to the Top education initiative — it's a competitive grant program, not a set of federal mandates.

Arizonans need to demand the resignation of Sen. John McCain

by

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Arizonans need to demand the resignation of Sen. John McCain. He has embarrassed us long enough. As I posted the other day, Arizonans to John McCain: 'In the name of God, go!'

Arizona's angry old man, still embittered by his loss to Barack Obama, actually said that the attack on the American consulate office in Benghazi Libya, where four Americans were killed, is “the worst national security
failure of my lifetime.” McCain has completely lost his mind if he believes that. He no longer possesses the mental faculties necessary to be competent to continue to serve in office.

His lifetime? There have been many intelligence failures during his lifetime. To name just a few, the Cuban missile crisis, the Vietnam War (you'd think he would remember that one since he was a guest in the Hanoi Hilton), the Iranian embassy hostage crisis, Iran-Contra, the Marine barracks terrorist bombing and CIA terrorist bombing in Beirut, the collapse of the Soviet Union, the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and the war in Iraq — for which McCain was a cheerleader.

According to Sen. McCain, U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice restating a CIA briefing on Face The Nation shortly after the Benghazi attacks based on the intelligence available at that time, GOP Rep. Peter King Admits CIA Approved U.N. Ambassador's Talking Points On Libya, that she somehow was "lying" to the American people. McCain asserts this is a cover-up worse than Watergate.  McCain: Obama Response To Libya Attack Is Worse Than Watergate.

Seriously? A classified briefing was held this week for the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, of which McCain is a member, but Grampy McCrankypants was too busy working his base, the Beltway media villagers, to complain that he is not getting enough information to actually attend that classified briefing, McCain Skipped A Briefing On Benghazi To Hold A Press Conference, where he would have gotten the information he claims he has not received. Most Republicans skipped the classified briefing, and John McCain threw a tantrum when a CNN reporter called him on it.

Think Progress has The Ultimate Guide To McCain's Smear Campaign Against Susan Rice.

McCain doesn't give a damn about what actually happened in Benghazi. What this is really all about is Sen. McCain trying to remain relevant. He is about to be termed out of his Senate Armed Services Committee position. And thanks to Willard "Mittens" Romney losing the election, this Neocon war monger no longer can look forward to his "four more wars!" that he advocated for at the GOP convention.

So McCain is advocating for a Watergate-style committee that would allow him to cochair a committee to engage in scandal mongering, much like what Darrell Issa does in the House — that revealed classified information in his haste to politicize Benghazi earlier, the real scandal — to try to embarrass the Obama administration out of ill will and spite, and his bitterness over losing to Obama. John McCain's Benghazi Committee Plan Would Give Senator New Relevance.

UA College of Ed study says MAS boosted student achievement

by

by David Safier Supporters of the Mexican American Studies program regularly cite evidence that student achievement and graduation rates rose for students who participated in the  MAS program. I've pretty much stayed clear of that assertion since I'm not much of a fan of education studies — they're rarely conclusive for a number of reasons … Read more

Border bust: Barking dog earns her kibble (video)

by

Ding-caliby Pamela Powers Hannley

When my dogs race out the doggie door at night and start barking at passers-by, I figure they're just doing their job–warning ne'er-do-wells to move along and not linger by my gate. After all, there are plenty of seedy characters wandering the dimly-lit streets of midtown and downtown Tucson at night. If you live near the US-Mexico border, the seedy characters your barking dog encounters could be much more dangerous than drunken students, hookers, or small-time dope dealers.

After the jump, watch what this Bisbee dog found outside of her fence.