Dr. Richard Carmona is ‘Zeus… a political Greek god’
May 25, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Who said this? Jason Rose, Arizona GOP political strategist. No, really.
Pema Levy reports at Talking Points Memo A ‘Political Greek God’: Even Republicans Think Carmona Has a Chance In Arizona:
“Political Greek god,” “amazing” and “tremendous” are all words used to describe Arizona Democratic Senate candidate Richard Carmona — by Republicans.
Many Arizona Republicans think the Democrat who was personally tapped by President Obama to run could be the first Democrat Arizonans send to the Senate in 22 years.
His compelling biography is a big reason why.
* * *
But given the bare-knuckled brawl for control of the United States Senate, which has turned nasty in several other states, it’s rare to find a close race in which members of the opposing party are willing to speak so glowingly about the competition.
“Zeus,” Arizona GOP strategist Jason Rose said, “sent the Democratic Party here a political Greek god.”
“It’s a great story. It’s a beautiful story,” said Grant Woods, a former Republican attorney general of Arizona. “It makes people want to root for him, just like Barack Obama had a great story.”
Carmona is often compared to Janet Napolitano, the most successful Arizona Democrat in recent history, who won three statewide races before being joining the Obama administration to run the Department of Homeland Security.
“She was able to upend Matt Salmon,” said Rose, who advised Mitt Romney in Arizona in 2008 and supports him this time around, referring to Napolitano’s 2002 gubernatorial win in a very Republican year. “Can Carmona repeat what Napolitano was able to achieve? It’s certainly possible.”
“He has the potential to be an even better candidate than Napolitano,” said Woods. “Again that’s potential right now. … Janet, in all three of her statewide races, she executed flawlessly. I mean, there were no missteps. She did an excellent job. But on paper, I think Carmona starts in a much better position as a candidate than she did.”
* * *
“I think [Carmona has] the best resume that has run for political office in Arizona since John McCain in 1982,” said Rose. “You can make the argument that it’s the best bio to ever run for office in Arizona.”
Rose said Carmona is not just good on paper, either. He saw him in person and was “thoroughly impressed.”
Media fail at the Arizona Daily Star continues
May 25, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Jesse Kelly is avoiding the media like the plague, just as he did in 2010. Everything comes through his campaign spokespersons, one of whom is the Arizona Daily Star's former talentless hack political reporter, Daniel Scarpinato, who somehow fell upwards to land a job with the RNCC after blowing a tailor-made election for Jonathan "Payday" Paton in 2010 by losing to the political neophyte Jesse Kelly in the GOP primary (I mean really, how else does one explain this other than utter incompetence?)
Scarpinato's value to the Kelly campaign is his open door access at the Arizona Daily Star to an equally highly disappointing political reporter, Brady McCombs, who rotely reports whatever Scarpinato provides him in stenogrpaphic fashion. If McCombs had a lick of common sense he would avoid the obvious and transparent link between Star alumnus, which destroys the credibilty of the Arizona Daily Star as an objective news source. That goes double for the editors of the Star.
A line in today's reporting: "Scarpinato and the GOP have been trying to link Barber to Obama and what they call his 'job-destroying policies' throughout the campaign." McCombs does not correct this GOP falsehood.
The overall economy has now added over 2 million jobs over the last year, and nearly 3.5 million jobs over the last three years. For America's private sector, it's 2.3 million over the last year, and 4 million over the last three years.
Incidentally, the 8.1% unemployment rate is the lowest since before President Obama took office…
Here's another chart, this one showing monthly job losses/gains in just the private sector since the start of the Great Recession. That's 26 consecutive months of private sector job growth.
The Bush Years Were a Lost Decade of job growth. It was faith based supply-side "trickle down" GOP economics that gave us the Bush Great Recession. Bush is the first president since Herbert Hoover to leave office with fewer jobs than when he entered office. "Mittens" Romney promises Bushonomics "on steroids."
Jesse Kelly Psychotically Dodging Questions On ALIPAC Endorsement
May 24, 2012
By Michael Bryan This story has already been picked up nationally by the Maddow Blog, and I expect it will air on the Rachel Maddow Show. Locally, Jim Nintzel posted on it at The Range Blog. Rachel recently did a segment on idiot Congresscritter Mike Coffman who was caught by a reporter mindlessly mouthing his … Read more
Rep. Trent Franks, ‘Mayor’ of Washington, D.C.
May 24, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: Rep. Trent Franks is Arizona's most embarrassing congessman by far, he just doesn't get the kind of media attention the others do. Last week Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) held Congressional hearings on a bill that would prevent doctors in D.C. from performing abortions after 20 weeks (the bill the Arizona legislature recently … Read more
Dr Richard Carmona Blasts the Arizona Birthers
May 24, 2012
By Michael Bryan Dr. Richard Carmona published an op/ed on the Capital Times today (outside their paywall) that criticizes the rash of birther news coming from Arizona's conservative politicians. He writes, in part: "Many observers have blamed this rash of birther “investigations” in Arizona on career politicians pandering to the extremes. They posit that it must … Read more
What the Heck is “Completely Out of Bounds” About ALIPAC’s Endorsement of Jesse Kelly?
May 23, 2012
By Michael Bryan Why is Jesse Kelly so freaked about being endorsed by Americans for Legal Immigration (ALIPAC)? Maybe because the Anti-Defamation League reports ALIPAC is backed by white supremacists, neo-Nazis and anti-Semites? Maybe because Senator John McCain demanded J.D. Hayworth renounce his own endorsement by ALIPAC during his Sentorial primary challenge to McCain, because of … Read more
The GOP Women’s Policy Committee
May 23, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
So the Tea-Publican response to the GOPs "war on women" is to form a Women's Policy Committee and put a female face on their misogynist anti-woman policies. "How can there be a war on women if women are sponsoring these misogynist GOP policies?" (The Arizona legislature has used this tactic for years).
Tea-Publicans insult your intelligence. They think you are stupid and you will fall for this kind of crap. As Steve Benen writes, The 'Women's Policy Committee' gets to work:
The "war on women" didn't catch on as a national phenomenon because GOP officials are invariably men; it caught on after Republicans in Virginia decided to mandate medically-unnecessary, trans-vaginal ultrasounds for women who want to undergo a legal medical procedure.
In recent months, Republicans at the state and federal level and have been fighting to restrict contraception; cut off Planned Parenthood; approving sweeping new restrictions on abortion; playing games with the Violence Against Women Act; denying the existence of gender-based pay discrimination and rolling back pay-equity laws.
When it came time for House Republicans to pay for lower student loan interest rates, GOP officials decided to get the funding by cutting access to breast cancer and cervical cancer screenings.
And in nearly all relevant instances, every member of this new Women's Policy Committee voted with their far-right male counterparts.
If these lawmakers think a committee and a video will help improve the political circumstances, they don't yet understand that this is about public policy, not perceptions about gender diversity. If they want to close the gender gap, they need to change the substance, not the style.
The Women's Policy Commttee video has the feel of an SNL ad skit, and reminded me of this earlier ad from the creative minds at Funny or Die. (Video below the fold – not work safe).
