AZ Congressional Delegation

Were any GOP lawmakers on that bus from Phoenix?

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I posted yesterday about the Arizona land grab bills and the anniversary of Bundy ranch.

Racist deadbeat rancher Cliven Bundy and his band of Neo-Confederate secessionists rallied at the Nevada state capitol in Carson City for the federal land grab bill sponsored by Tea-Publicans in the Silver State, heard in committee today.

BundyThe AP report below from U.S. News & World Report says that “A bus from Phoenix and another from Las Vegas brought more than 100 people, according to Bundy’s son, Ammon Bundy.” (AP Photo/The Reno Gazette-Journal, Jason Bean).

Did that bus from Phoenix include any of the several GOP politicians in the “caravan” to the Bundy Ranch a year ago? This included Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ), state Representatives Bob Thorpe (R-Flagstaff), David Livingston (R-Peoria), Kelly Townsend (R-Mesa), Senators Judy Burges (R-Sun City West), and Kelli Ward (R-Lake Havasu City), several county level elected officials, and of course, former Graham County Sheriff and “Patriot” (sic) leader Richard Mack.

Gosar Bundy Ward 14 April 2014Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ) and state Senator Kelli Ward (R- Lake Havasu City) with their good buddy Cliven Bundy.

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NY Times puff piece today on Rep. Martha McSally

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Ashley Parker of the New York Times does a “New faces of Congress” puff piece today on Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ), that reads like it belongs in the Society Pages of the Times. Nothing substantive to read here. Pioneering Combat Pilot Persists in Rise From Arizona.

People's Budget

Majority of Democrats Vote for Progressive Caucus People’s Budget (video)

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People's BudgetEach year, during the Congressional budgeting process, multiple budgets are proposed in the US House of Representatives. If you’re lucky, you might hear about the Republican budget from the mainstream media (since they hold the majority of seats in the House and since that budget usually contains some weird shit like converting Medicare to a voucher program). The Democrats and the Progressives also put forth budgets for consideration and voting. (Representatives can vote for any or all of the plans; they are not mutually exclusive.)

This year– for the first time — the majority of Democrats (96 out of 188) actually voted for the Congressional Progressive Caucus People’s Budget. Of Arizona Democrats in the House, Representatives Raul Grijalva and Ruben Gallego voted for it; Representatives Ann Kirkpatrick and Kyrsten Sinema voted “no” with the majority of Republicans.

From the Congressional Progressive Caucus…

The People’s Budget: A Raise for America

8.4 million good paying jobs by 2018

$1.9 trillion investment in America’s future

$820 billion infrastructure and transportation improvements

The People’s Budget fixes an economy that, for too long, has failed to provide the opportunities American families need to get ahead. Despite their skills and work ethic, most American workers and families are so financially strapped from increasing income inequality that their paychecks barely cover basic necessities. They earn less and less as corporations and the wealthy continue amassing record profits. It has become clear to American workers that the system is rigged.

The People’s Budget levels the playing field and creates economic opportunity by increasing the pay of middle- and low-income Americans. More customers and higher consumer spending advance American businesses, not tax cuts and relaxed regulations. The People’s Budget drives a full economic recovery by creating high-quality jobs and reducing family expenses, restoring the buying power of working Americans.

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Martha McSally: demonstrating little influence or success in a Tea-Publican Congress

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McSallyRep. Martha McSally (R-Raytheon) was in Southern Arizona last week for a district work week. She held a town hall at her former employer, Raytheon missile systems in Tucson.

This report from the Arizona Daily Star reads as if it was prepared from a McSally press backgrounder. McSally vows to be strong voice for defense, Raytheon:

Before moving to a podium to speak to employees of Raytheon Missile Systems on Wednesday, Arizona Rep. Martha McSally moved stage right to the display of an inert Maverick missile.

“I think I’m the first congresswoman or person from your district that has actually shot your missile,” the freshman Republican lawmaker told a crowd of Raytheon missile-makers at the company’s facility at the University of Arizona Tech Park.

McSally, a retired Air Force colonel who fired Mavericks as the first female fighter pilot in combat, said her experience piloting A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack jets gives her a unique perspective she plans to use to push for a stronger defense budget, save the A-10 from a planned retirement and boost Raytheon’s role in national security.

She vowed to work for a strong defense budget and to keep defense jobs in Southern Arizona.

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Forecasting the Court’s opinion in the Arizona redistricting case

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SupremeCourtIt’s a rare day when the media arm of the Arizona Republican Party, The Arizona Republic(an), Our View: Lawmakers vs. the people – who wins? (Our View: The people have spoken. They don’t trust lawmakers to draw election maps. But will the Supreme Court listen?), and the “librul” New York Times, Will the Supreme Court Say No to Gerrymandering? (Americans need to have more direct control over the integrity of the electoral process), can agree with one another: Republicans in the Arizona legislature determining congressional district boundaries is a bad thing.

Unfortunately, both editorial boards are going to be disappointed by what the U.S. Supreme Court appears most likely to do in Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission.

I have read most of the national news media reporting on the oral argument yesterday, and the vast majority of reporting is in the vein of this AP headline: Justices Seem Skeptical of Independent map Drawers.

Election law attorney Rick Hasen has his Analysis: Supreme Court Looks to Endanger Citizen Redistricting Commissions and MORE:

I have now had a chance to review the transcript in Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission and the news is not good. It appears that the conservative Justices may be ready to hold that citizen redistricting commissions which have no role for state legislatures in drawing congressional districts are unconstitutional. What’s worse, such a ruling would endanger other election laws passed by voter initiative trying to regulate congressional elections, such as open primaries. For those who don’t like campaign finance laws because they could protect incumbents, this is a ruling that could make incumbency protection all the worse, removing the crucial legislative bypass which is the initiative process (for congressional elections).

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