AIRC Update: Federal panel of judges to hear Tea-Publican legislature’s constitutional challenge to the AIRC

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) reports that a Federal Panel of judges to hear Arizona redistricting case:

A three-judge panel will be appointed to hear the Arizona Legislature’s lawsuit challenging the state’s new congressional districts.

U.S. District Judge Paul Rosenblatt granted a motion requesting the appointment. The motion was filed by lawyers for Republican legislative leaders who acted on behalf of the Legislature.

Rosenblatt will serve on the panel and the chief judge of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals will appoint the other two members.

The lawsuit contends Arizona’s use of an appointed commission to draw congressional districts violates a constitutional provision that says state legislatures are to decide election procedures.

The redistricting commission disputes that, saying that Arizona’s system is legal because it was created by voters who themselves have the power to make laws.

The citizens of Arizona are a "super legislature" and legislative acts enacted by the citizens of Arizona take precedence over the acts of their elected representatives in the state legislature. Not the other way around.

Mike McClellan had an opinion in the East Valley Tribune the other day that explained Who’s paying for the Republican fight against redistricting? We are":

[T]he Republicans are furious. So they’re suing. Their target? Us.

That’s right. They’re claiming in federal court that the amendment to the Arizona Constitution voters approved 12 years ago — the one that took redistricting out of the legislature’s hands and gave it to an independent commission — is unconstitutional.

In other words, they’re arguing that our constitution is now, well, unconstitutional.

* * *

Well, we the people are the defendents in the case, clearly because our Republicans believe we the people made a constitutional booboo 12 years ago.

And they’re ready to take the case all the way to the United States Supreme Court.

Which could take years and hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars.

Well, points for the Republicans here; at least they’re willing to put their money where their collective mouth is, willing to pay to defend their principle.

Except they’re not. Instead, they’ve created a neat little trick: They’re gonna have the defendents pay for the plaintiffs’ costs.

How so? How are we — the people the Republicans are suing — paying for their lawsuit? How does that work?

Here’s how: They legislated it.

That’s right. Our Republican legislators — in the tail end of the session — funded their own lawsuit in the state budget. And didn’t cap the amount.

Which means two things:

They can spend as much as they please.

And we pay for it.

Neat trick indeed.

Tea-Publican deadbeats filing a frivolous lawsuit in pursuit of Tea-Publican tyranny. And you get the privilege of paying for it. Vote every last one of these deadbeats out of office.