Civil & Human Rights

AZ House approves unlawful CAP bill for harassment and intimidation at abortion clinics

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TalibanThe Center for Arizona Policy (CAP) bill for surprise inspections of abortion clinics, HB 2284 (.pdf) was approved by Tea-Publicans in the Arizona House on a party-line vote on Tuesday, demonstrating that Cathi Herrod’s influence over Tea-Publicans has not been diminished following the public relations debacle over her Religious Bigotry bill vetoed by Governor Brewer. House approves warrantless abortion clinic inspections.

This bill is really about harassing and intimidating abortion services providers and invading the constitutional medical privacy rights of their clients. The bill is sponsored by a CAP water-carrier and Arizona state chairman of ALEC, Rep. Debbie Lesko, R-Peoria.

Democrats and Planned Parenthood opposed the bill. The federal courts have previously ruled that snap inspections of abortion clinics are unlawful because women’s medical privacy rights are at risk.

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Is Cathi Herrod really all that?

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I’m becoming increasingly skeptical that Cathi Herrod, President of Center for Arizona Policy, is (or ever was) as all-powerful as she is reputed to be. Let’s look at recent evidence: First there’s the humiliating defeat of the religious bigot bill SB1062 and the swift public recanting and repudiation of by it three Senators who had voted for it. And then comes this, a new PPP poll of the Governor’s race:

Moving on to the Governor’s race for this year, it looks pretty wide open for both the Republican primary and the general election. The leader for the GOP nomination is ‘undecided’ at 34%. 5 candidates have measurable amounts of support at this point- Ken Bennett at 20%, Christine Jones at 16%, Scott Smith at 12%, Andrew Thomas at 9%, and Doug Ducey at 6%. Al Melvin, John Molina, and Frank Riggs all register at 1% in the poll.

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Egyptian Police Detain, Assault, & Deport Peace Activist Medea Benjamin

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On route to a women’s conference in Gaza, Code Pink founder and peace activist Medea Benjamin was detained by Egyptian police and held in an airport prison cell for several hours without being charged. During her detention, the petite Benjamin said she was “jumped on” by Egyptian police and “violently handcuffed” resulting in a  fractured … Read more

CAP is at it again with a heinous anti-choice bill

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Fresh on the heels of their embarrassing defeat with SB1062, comes the Center for Arizona Policy with HB2284, which would allow surprise inspections of abortion clinics and impose criminal penalties on anyone who is not the parent or guardian of a minor who assists her in getting an abortion.

Democrats and progressive orgs plan a response, similar to the SB1062 one:

As long as the legislature is still in session, none of us are safe from Cathi Herrod, the Center for Arizona Policy, and other aligned organizations. Fresh from losing the battle against legalized discrimination, they now want the government to meddle in women’s healthcare with surprise inspections of clinics that provide healthcare and abortion services. This law is intended to frighten women out of utilizing these healthcare resources–as well as frighten clinicians & doctors out of offering these services. This bill, if passed into law, would be unconstitutional, illegal, and drastically misaligned with the priorities of Arizonans.

We must keep fighting for what is right: our dignity, privacy–and our freedom.

ACTION:

1) Share this event with ALL of your contacts.
2) Join the presser on the Capitol lawn at 1 PM.
3) Call Speaker Tobin at (602) 926-5172 or email him at atobin@azleg.gov to voice your opposition to this bill.
4) Fire up Brewer’s phone lines again at: (602) 542-4331.

#NotYourWomb

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Financial Reports: Cathi Herrod & Center for Arizona Policy Give AZ Lege More than Ideas

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capitol940-sig-sm72The nationwide outrage generated byhighly discriminatory SB1062 shined a harsh light on the Arizona Legislature and on the bill’s creator– lobbyist Cathi Herrod and her non-profit political group, the Center for Arizona Policy.

With 123 Center for Arizona Policy bills becoming law, Herrod and her fundamentalist Christian organizationhave been highly influential have beenway too powerful in the the Arizona Legislature for years. (Details here.) Herrod is such a fixture at the Capitol that “admirers and foes alike refer to as Arizona’s 31st senator,” according to AZCentral.com.

A recent fluff piece about Herrod in AZCentral.com said that her group brought in $1.7 million in 2011 (the most recent tax report available) but spent under $20,000 on lobbying the Arizona Legislature that year. Hmmm…

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