Attorney General

The GOP plots the next round of hostage takings and ransom demands

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Greg Sargent noted in his column on Friday, Chaos in Congress is about to get a lot crazier:

The quote of the week, one that will likely reverberate through the halls of Congress for many months to come, is this one from GOP Rep. Charlie Dent, lamenting the inability of the House GOP caucus to unite behind, well, anything at all:

“We really don’t have 218 votes to determine a bathroom break over here on our side. So how are we going to get 218 votes on transportation, or trade, or whatever the issue?”

If you thought that the GOP clusterfuck over the Department of Homeland Security funding fiasco was fun, you ain’t seen nothing yet.

The GOP is plotting the next round of hostage takings and is sending more ransom demands to the White House. This week, McConnell will delay Lynch unless Dems cooperate on trafficking bill:

hostageSenate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Sunday said Loretta Lynch, President Obama’s nominee to succeed Eric Holder as attorney general, will not move until Democrats cooperate surrender on a human trafficking bill.

Democrats have threatened to [filibuster] the bipartisan trafficking measure because Republicans included a provision that would prohibit restitution funds from paying for abortions.

McConnell told Dana Bash on CNN’s “State of the Union” that Lynch’s nomination will remain in a holding pattern until Democrats allow the trafficking bill to move forward.

“This will have an impact on the timing of considering the new attorney general. Now, I had hoped to turn to her next week, but if we can’t finish the trafficking bill, she will be put off again,” he said.

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2014 General Election is all about APS; Republican voters should be very concerned

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Crossposted from the Arizona Eagletarian

Yesterday afternoon, Arizona Republic columnist Laurie Roberts asked the question, “Why is APS doling out cash to get Mark Brnovich elected?” It’s an excellent question.

Unfortunately, Roberts didn’t come up with an answer.

It’s not really a legitimate rhetorical question if the audience/readers cannot answer it for themselves. There is, however, a clear answer available. Voters — especially Republicans whose interests are being subverted — need to become aware of the background, reasons and the stakes involved.

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The Arizona Republic’s understated endorsement of Felecia Rotellini for Attorney General

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Felicia-RThe editors of The Arizona Republic today endorsed Democratic candidate Felecia Rotellini for Attorney General, but the editors mislead voters by asserting that it’s “a close call,” the “differences are ones of degree and style, and they all break toward the same candidate,” Felecia Rotellini. In close call, Rotellini for Arizona attorney general.

This is a classic example of coming to the right conclusion after a deeply flawed analysis.

A “close call”? Seriously? This should have been an unqualified endorsement of Felecia Rotellini that dismissed her opponent as just more of the same under Tom Horne.

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Republicans line up to support Felecia Rotellini

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This is becoming something of a trend for Democratic candidates: a committee of well-known Republicans who support their candidacy over their Tea-Publican opponent. I don’t see the reverse of this happening. The Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) reports Raft of Republicans back Democratic AG candidate: Former Arizona Gov. Fife Symington is among nearly 200 prominent … Read more

Stick a fork in him, Tom ‘banned for life by the SEC’ Horne is done

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TomHorneArizona Attorney General Tom “banned for life by the SEC” Horne likes to claim how effective he is as an attorney. And yet  . . .

Last week “Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Mark Brain rejected Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne’s bid for a temporary restraining order against County Attorney Bill Montgomery, whose office is investigating, among other things, allegations that Horne has used his state office to campaign for re-election.” Tom Horne’s Bid for Temporary Restraining Order Against Against Bill Montgomery Rejected by Judge.

This week, “A Maricopa County judge denied Attorney General Tom Horne’s request to bar the Citizens Clean Elections Commission from investigating a campaign finance complaint against him.” Judge denies Horne injunction against Clean Elections:

Judge Dawn Bergin rejected Horne’s argument that the commission lacks authority over candidates who don’t participate in the Clean Elections system. Furthermore, Bergin said a 2014 law that sought to prohibit the commission from investigating privately funded candidates doesn’t apply to the case.

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