Larry Bodine

Larry is an articulate and insightful commentator whose views are shaped by a combination of journalism, entrepreneurship, law practice, and leadership.‎ ★★ Sign up for my occasional newsletter at Bit.ly/LBNow. ★★ ✍ He is an experienced leader, having served as Chair of the LD18 Democrats, and President of the Democrats of Greater Tucson, a teacher at the UA Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, and Video Manager for Iskashitaa Refugee Network, ‎ ✍ A common-sense business leader, he operated a successful marketing consultancy for 20 years. He is skilled in fundraising, artificial intelligence, and online communications.‎ ✍He considers multiple viewpoints before forming an opinion. His ethos is the Boy Scout Law.‎ ✍ Larry is a lifelong writer, having worked as a seven-time award-winning journalist for the New York Daily News and as the author of 600 articles for the Blog for Arizona.‎ ✍He is a graduate of Amherst College and Seton Hall Law School and has also attended the University of Munich in Germany.‎ ✍He is not all work and no play. Larry enjoys singing and playing the guitar, hiking Tucson's beautiful trails, going on outings with his Portuguese Water Dog, weight training, and meeting his many friends for breakfast.‎ ‎▼ Scroll down to see my articles below. ▼

January Contreras Campaigns for Consumer Protection in Attorney General Race

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Former Prosecutor January Contreras is campaigning to restore protections for Arizona consumers, kids and seniors as she runs to be state Attorney General.

“Consumer protection is the core mission of Attorney General’s office,” she says. “This has not been on the agenda of Attorney General. We need an Attorney General who is willing to ruffle feathers when it involves going after these drug companies purposely making money off the opioid crisis.”

Contreras seeks to oust incumbent Republican Mark Brnovich, who has been A.G. since 2015, carrying out the agenda of Gov. Doug Ducey. She spoke recently at the LD9 Democratic party meeting in Tucson.

She was Ombudsman and Director for U.S. Department of Homeland Security from 2009-2012, Arizona Health Policy Advisor from 2006-2008, Assistant Director of the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System from 2004-2006, and an Assistant Attorney General from 2000 – 2003. Prior to that she was a deputy Maricopa County prosecutor.

She plans to enforce laws against drug companies and distributors that have caused the opioid crisis by flooding Arizona with hydrocodone and fentanyl. More than 3,200 suspected opioid overdoses have been reported to state officials since June 15, with more than 400 of those deaths, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

“Recently, 44 Attorneys Generals – Republicans and Democrats – took action to hold drug companies accountable. Mark Brnovich wasn’t one of them,” she says. “As this bipartisan group called on Congress to repeal legislation that weakens the DEA’s power to go after suspicious drug companies, Brnovich was one of six Attorneys General who looked the other way.”

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David Garcia Sees New Voters Propelling Him to Governor’s Office

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“Every time Trump tweets, a new Democratic activist is born.”

Candidate David Garcia plans to win the race for Arizona Governor by harnessing disaffected voters, and recruiting a generation of Latinos to become new voters who will support Democrats for years to come.

“To change Arizona and win in 2018 we need to focus on new voters,” Garcia told the Democrats of Greater Tucson yesterday in a rousing presentation. “We have a surge of Democratic energy. It’s incredible. We need to take this unique opportunity to get a group of reliable voters that we have not been able to bring out.”

He cited California as an example of a once-Republican state that is now solidly Democratic. The state’s Latino population boomed in the 1990s and they rejected the Republican hard-line stance on immigration. The state’s immigrant population has elected Democratic candidates decisively in every election since 1992.

Minority voters were a major factor in electing a Democrat to Governor in Virginia this month.

The Latino vote

“Latino voters vote for Democrats 70% of the time,” he said. “They are not engaged and we need to get them on board. The numbers are there to win.”

Repeating a quote from his Democratic rival Steve Farley, Garcia said, “Every time Trump tweets, a new Democratic activist is born.”

He cited three ways that he can take the Governor’s office away from Doug Ducey:

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Victoria Steele Charts a Comeback with a State Senate Bid

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Bruce Wheeler, candidate for US Congress, and fellow Democrat Victoria Steele, candidate for State Senate.
Victoria Steele (right), candidate for State Senate, with fellow Democrat Bruce Wheeler, candidate for US Congress.

Charting a comeback to the Arizona legislature, Democrat Victoria Steele asserts that ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment is a first step to improving the Tucson economy.

“Women are an economic powerhouse.  But if you are a woman of color, you make 54 cents for every dollar white man makes,” she said. “We need a constitutional amendment that guarantees wage equality. Until we have constitutionally guaranteed protection for women, we won’t have wage equality.”

She spoke at the hot new political gathering, the Over-60 Liberals Who Do Breakfast and Lunch meetup on Saturday at Monterey Court on Miracle Mile.

The 4 E’s

Steele is running for the state Senate seat in northern Tucson that opened up when Steve Farley launched a run for Governor. The economy is one of the four “E’s” that are guiding Steele’s return campaign: Education, economy, environment, and equality. Each is affected by the other.

“Nevada ratified the ERA this year,” said Steele, State Legislative Coordinator for the National Organization for Women and co-founder of the Tucson NOW Chapter. “I will work to push it over the edge in Arizona.”

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400 Turn Out to Hear Democratic Congressional Candidates

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400 Democratic primary voters turned out at the candidate forum at Rincon High School.
400 Democratic primary voters turned out at the candidate forum at Rincon High School.

Illustrating the intense interest among Democrats in ousting Martha McSally from Congress, 400 people turned out to hear five Democratic congressional candidates at a forum organized by the progressive PAC Represent Me AZ.

A show of hands revealed that the audience was made up of primary voters. They showed up on a Thursday evening 10 months prior to the primary, looking for the candidate who can recapture the District 2 seat in Tucson.

And it may turn out that McSally will bail on re-election as she considers running for Flake’s Senate seat.

All the Democratic candidates supported a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, allowing women on Medicaid to use Planned Parenthood, restoring funding for the Affordable Care Act, requiring a background check for gun purchases, and opposing changes to boundaries of national monuments.

As a precinct committeeman, I listened for a candidate who would most interest voters on door-to-door visits. Here’s my take.

Candidates who have been elected to office

Bruce Wheeler is the candidate with the most-clearly expressed platform. He emphasized his support for Medicare for all. “Each one of us knows someone that’s on Medicare. It works, it’s efficient, and it’s cost-effective. It’s already covering the most expensive section of the population, and by making it universal we strengthen it,” he said.

Calling for action on climate change, Wheeler said, “it is an existential issue, a ticking time bomb. Every year we go backwards is robbing future generations of a healthy planet.”

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3 Reasons Why Mary Matiella Beats McSally: Experience, Accessibility and Personality

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In the crowded race to be Tucson’s Congresswoman, Mary Matiella stands out as the candidate who has experience in the federal government, a personal story of succeeding against big odds and a relatable presence that appeals to voters.

Experience, accessibility, and personality are the primary reasons she can beat incumbent train wreck, Rep. Martha McSally, but there are actually 8 good reasons:

1. Matiella’s positions are well fleshed out, favoring progressive ideas like Medicare for all and debt-free higher education, along with centrist positions like creating jobs by rebuilding infrastructure and eliminating waste in government. And she is “100% against the border wall.”

She bills herself as an unapologetic progressive candidate, but adds, “I’m not too liberal for the congressional district. Everything that I believe in has resonated with the vast majority of the people. I’m pretty well in line with the Democratic constituents here in the district. The folks I would like to swing over to our side are the independents — that’s one-third of the voters.”

In contrast, McSally avoids taking a stand on most issues. But McSally’s votes betray her right-wing positions, as she voted to repeal Obamacare, voted to cut funding for Planned Parenthood, and voted 95% in line with the Trump position.

2. Matiella has attracted key endorsements from US Rep. Raúl Grijalva, the progressive PAC Democracy for America, Pima County Supervisors Sharon Bronson and Richard Elias, Tucson City Council members Regina Romero and Paul Cunningham and TUSD Board member Adelita Grijalva.

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