by David Safier Florida's Crystal River Nuclear Power Plant is being shut down permanently. It's been closed since 2009 when it was discovered its concrete containment building was cracked, then the repair attempt opened new cracks. The site will still be around another 60 years — 3 generations — before it's completely decontaminated and dismantled. … Read more
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Editor's Note: You should attend this LD 9 Town Hall to ask Sen. Steve Farley "what were you thinking?" when he cosponsored SB 1387 with Sen. Bob Worsley (R-Mesa), a bill that would establish a pilot program in Arizona for online voting. Arizona senator proposes online voting for 2014 | Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required).
Many of you are active in the election integrity community and you know that there is no computer system that is secure from hackers. The election equipment companies use "trade secret proprietary software" that is not subject to inspection by state or federal agencies that certify election equipment (hence "black box" voting). And there is no paper trail of ballots to certify the vote by a hand-count audit or to conduct a recount – only an electronic record that is unverifiable. This bill is a bad idea that takes us in the opposite direction of transparency and verification in elections that the public demands.
On the other hand, kudos for your bill SB1265, to address "dark money" organizations like Americans for Responsible Leadership, based in Phoenix, that the state of California accused of money laundering in November. Calif. accuses Ariz. group of laundering $11M donation.
Time once again for The Farley Report from Sen. Steve Farley (D-LD 9):
First off tonight, I want to invite you to our first monthly District 9 Town Hall in Tucson this Saturday afternoon, featuring your entire District 9 bipartisan team: Victoria Steele and Ethan Orr in the House, and me in the Senate. We will share with you our thoughts on the first few weeks and where they may lead, and take your questions and comments. Think "Farley Report Live," from three hometown legislators instead of just one — it promises to be a great discussion.
Join us at the La Paloma Urgent Care Community Room, 4001 E. Sunrise Drive just west of Swan starting at 4:30pm and ending around 5:30pm, although we will be happy to stay later to continue the conversation if you are willing. I hope to see you there!
Posted by Bob Lord I read this post by Thomas Hedges at Truthdig because I've had a concern that Labor is getting complacent at the top. The post is a quick read, and more or less does bear out my concern. But what I learned was quite inspiring, at least for me. Hedges writes about … Read more
by David Safier Our own Daniel Hernandez, who played such a critical role in Gabby Giffords' survival on January 8, has published a Young Readers book through Simon & Schuster, They Call Me a Hero: A Memoir of my Youth. (More about the book at another time.) He's at the beginning of a book tour … Read more
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
A little more than a week after Senate Democrats decided not to weaken the filibuster,
Republicans are vowing to filibuster President Barack Obama's nominee
to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau unless its powers are substantially
reduced. So how's that filibuster deal working out for you, Harry Reid? GOP to Filibuster Obama's Consumer Watchdog Pick:
The CFPB was created as part of the 2010 financial regulation bill
specifically to prevent financial institutions from engaging in the kind
of exploitative practices that helped lead the country to the brink of
economic collapse in 2008. Since January 2012, when Obama appointed
former Ohio attorney general Richard Cordray to head the bureau, it
has done exactly that—reigning in unscrupulous mortgage lenders, credit card companies, and debt servicers.
But the CFPB has only been able to do those things because Obama, using
what's called a recess appointment, installed Cordray in his post while
most of Congress was on vacation—an attempt to bypass Senate
Republicans' efforts to block the nomination. Before Cordray was picked
and blocked, Republicans had vowed to filibuster Elizabeth
Warren, who came up with the idea for the bureau and helped found it,
too. That didn't go as well as they had hoped: Warren recently returned
to the chamber as the new Democratic Senator from Massachusetts.