Get Arizona Donkey Feed to Keep Up With Arizona’s Political News
January 18, 2012
Posted by Michael Bryan
Did you know that BlogForArizona offers a customized newsletter of (nearly) every day's top political news from Arizona's meanstream media and blogs (both liberal and conservative)? It's a great way to keep abreast of Arizona's political news, opinion and events. (BTW, you can get a great run down of upcoming political events anytime you want by clicking the BfAZ Political Calendar link at the top of the page)
Did you know that the service is totally, 100% free?
It's the Arizona Donkey Feed!
Did you know that you can get this useful feed in many convenient formats?
You can just look at the top of the right sidebar under 'Mike's AZ Politics News Clips', where the 20 most recent items are displayed.
Or, you can click on the Donkey Feed graphic, or on the AZDonkeyFeed link at the top of the page, to go to the webpage where all the items are displayed (with either a full text of the item, or a synopsis, whichever the publisher chooses to publish in their RSS feed).
Or you can click on the Subscribe To Feed graphic, which will take you to a Feedburner page on which you can subscribe to the custom RSS feed in your preferred RSS reader, or elect to receive a daily email of that day's links.
The email option is great. If you want a pre-view of a what a day's newsletter looks like, just click the continuation link to see an example of today's email.
Sign up today! It's free!
It’s good to be ‘Mittens’
January 18, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Willard "Mittens" Romney worked as a vulture capitalist for Bain Capital until 1999. He still receives income from Bain Capital on investments, which for hedge fund managers and guys like "Mittens" Romney is taxed as capital gains at a rate of 15%. The über-rich have a lower tax rate than you and I do, especially when you add in FICA payroll tax deductions on top of income tax liability.
"MIttens" claims to have earned around $374,000 in speaking fees, which he described as "not much money" (followed by evil laughter). This is more than six times the average middle-class household income of $50,000. Not much? Out of touch Richie Rich.
"Mittens" Romney says he may produce his income tax records in April, which most political commentators rightly observe will only be his 2011 taxes, and will be politically manipulated in an attempt to defuse this issue. Not so fast, "Mittens."
His father George Romney released 12 years worth of tax records when he ran for president in 1968. I want to see his tax records for the past 12 years, i.e., since he left Bain Capital — and he can release those records today, there is no justifiable excuse for delay.
President Obama to visit Phoenix on January 25
January 18, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie: Via the Arizona Republic's AZ/DC Blog – Obama to visit Phoenix area on Jan. 25: WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama will travel to the Phoenix area on Wednesday, Jan. 25, a White House official confirmed Wednesday. The president’s trip to Arizona will be part of a five-state, three-day swing across the country … Read more
Arizona Democratic Roadmap to the Future 2012
January 18, 2012
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by David Safier
The Arizona Democratic Party has just released a pdf, Roadmap to the Future 2012. Because of our new BfA download policy, I've put a link to the pdf after the jump.
You'll find a number of interesting proposals in the Roadmap, like these:
- Require disclosure of lobbying activities and special perks to legislators by groups like ALEC
- Adopt ethics reform to stop gifts and favors to legislators from special interests in the wake of the Fiesta Bowl scandal
- Create a lower tax burden for small businesses who hire Arizona workers
- Stop private prison expansion
- Require an automatic sunset on all current and future tax credits and loopholes
- Use surplus funds to renew and maintain school buildings to create jobs and invest in our school infrastructure
- Restore health care for children and the most vulnerable to minimize long-term health care costs
Download Roadmap to the Future 2012 after the jump.
Jack Harper has gotta go
January 18, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Arizona has more than its fair share of buffoons serving in the Arizona legislature. And then there is Jack Harper – arguably in a class of buffoonery all by himself. Jack is always good for a "crazy quote" in the media.
And then there is the ideological extremist bills he sponsors. Jack Harper has gotta go. Insider: Self-serving bills mark new legislative session:
Lawmakers have proposed more than 750 bills in this week-old 2012 legislative session. . . The biggest offender — or shall we say opportunist — seems to be Rep. Jack Harper (R-Surprise! I can't believe I get elected). Harper announced he will not run for re-election to the Legislature but has in the past voiced interest in a run for secretary of state. (Oh, hell no!)
Let's start with HB 2022 (sponsor Harper): Would eliminate the one-year moratorium on lobbying for former state lawmakers. HB 2022 passed the House Government Committee last Wednesday. Bill would overturn ban on Ariz. lawmaker lobbying:
The current ban has been on the books since the early 1990s in the wake of a legislative bribery scandal known as "AzScam," a 1991 sting in which several legislators were caught taking bribes from undercover officials posing as lobbyists for the gaming industry.
Republican Rep. Jack Harper of Surprise, who introduced the measure, said the ban infringes on the freedom of lawmakers to continue their careers.
Senior legislative staff members are able to return as lobbyists at the Legislature, he said, and lawmakers should be allowed to do the same.
"It's about ideology," he said. "It's about not limiting someone's economic liberty."
Harper said his goal is ideological, saying lawmakers should have the same options as staffers and anyone else.
Does Rich Crandall have skin in the “No Free School Lunches” game?
January 18, 2012
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by David Safier Rich Crandall is behind a bill that would allow Arizona schools to say No to the federal government's free and reduced lunch program. Crandall is also President and CFO of Crandall Corporate Dietitians, which calls itself "the nation's largest provider of dietary consulting and menu services to nursing homes, long-term care facilities, … Read more
Confirmation that TUSD book ban is discriminatory
January 18, 2012
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by David Safier Last night Dr. Word categorized the removal of texts from MAS classroom shelves as a "discriminatory, open-ended book ban." Since then, the Star published an article, TUSD rejects reports of book ban. Even though the article makes it clear the use of the books is prohibited using legal means — the definition … Read more
The Farley Report: January 17, 2012
January 18, 2012
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
The Arizona legislature is back in session, and you know what that means. Time once again for the weekly Farley Report from Rep. Steve Farley (D-Tucson).
The Governor's budget is out, and it seems to have taken its theme from the classic Spaghetti Western, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. But believe it or not, it is an improvement over the last couple of years' budgets that were purely Bad and Ugly. This one actually has some things that we in the minority can support.
Here's some good:
–> She does ask for more funding for a few education programs, including remedial reading instruction for third graders who are behind in their performance.
–> $10 million in community college scholarships for veterans for workforce training.
–> More money for investigators for Child Protective Services, and more pay for overburdened CPS field workers — something long overdue.
–> $39 million more for services for the seriously mentally ill, to comply with federal requirements. This helps to restore some of the cuts to these services that Brewer signed last year.
