February 8th, 2010

John Murtha

John MurthaJust coming over the wires is the news that John Murtha has died. He was first elected to the United States House of Representatives in a special election in 1974, which made him the first Vietnam Veteran to do so.

I am not going to pretend that I was a huge fan of everything he did in public office (although his vocal opposition to the Iraq War warmed the hearts of many progressives), but he served his country as both a Marine and a Congressman, and that deserves a measure of respect.

February 6th, 2010

In the Near Future…

Due to some discoveries made by scientists at Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems and Veridian Dynamics, a device called the Tachyon Capacitor will be invented allowing for limited time travel. It is through this device that a visitor from the future has provided me with this wire service story:

WASHINGTON (AP) – Despite being dismissed by critics, it looks as though Bag of Hair’s bid to be the Republican Party’s Presidential nominee has become inevitable. Hair has carried 16 of 18 states in the “Super Tuesday” primaries, mathematically eliminating Hair’s better known and better financed opponents.

Hair is not without critics. Roger Bartone, a former Democratic consultant turned cable television commentator, immediately went on the attack on the program Bartone Zone in his daily “Unhinged Rant” feature, one that had to be cut short so an assistant producer could clean the spittle from the camera lens.

“This isn’t just someone with a weak grasp of foreign policy, but a weak grasp of our own country. We are talking about a candidate (Hair) who identified ‘Osama’ as the capitol of Nebraska.”

The capitol of Nebraska is Lincoln, the AP has learned.

Conservative supporters disagree and believe that Hair shares their values.

Morgan Jesperson of the Institute for American Values and Unfettered Commerce said in a call from his private jet that Hair represents small-town, main street values.

“The liberals like to play those gotcha games like asking who the current president is, that only matters to the media elites but not the true, red blodded American.”

“Also, I don’t care about Hair’s lack of experience. As long as everything Hair says bothers liberals, centrists, moderate Republicans and the media, full steam ahead, I say,” Jesperson added before cutting the interview short for a meeting with financial industry lobbyists.

“So what if you don’t know that California is on the Pacific Ocean?” said Rosie Fulgrove, an Indiana supporter of Hair, highlighting a recent gaffe made in a debate, “What we care about is whether or not our president will finally cure this gay thing.”

Hair’s critics cite other gaffes such as a condolence card sent to Monticello upon the death of Sherman Hemsley, a microphone clearly picking up the words “Prawns nearly sight” while singing the national anthem, and shock on a foreign trip to London when the locals spoke English.

Sal Parchesi, a Queens New York resident who formed his “Patriots for Hair” group long before Hair sought the nomination, dismisses criticism of Hair’s intellect. “What do these other guys have? They went to fancy colleges and got degrees in how to add or subtract. Hair has common sense, and will solve this deficit problem without raising my taxes or cutting my medicare. Oh, and Hair will send those New Mexicans back where they came from,” Parchesi said, referencing another statement made during an appearance in Wisconsin.

New Mexico was made a state in 1912, the AP has learned.

There are party leaders who are uneasy about a Hair candidacy. None would speak on the record, but one said “I don’t expect a candidate to be Abraham Lincoln, but I’d like one who knows who he is.”

With Hair’s unassailable front runner status, party insiders are speculating about possible running mates. Box of Hammers is the most prominently mentioned.

February 5th, 2010

The Most Important Question in the Race for Attorney General

Vince Rabago

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Vince Rabago

February 5th, 2010

Remarks at Save Adult Education Rally

Richard Elías, Pima County Supervisor:

Eva Carrillo Dong, Member, Sunnyside School District Board

Juan Martínez, a GED recipient

February 4th, 2010

Save Adult Education Rally

A rally will be held today at 5:00 at El Rio Neighborhood Center to support adult education and GED testing, both of which are eliminated in Jan Brewer’s budget. The El Rio Neighborhood Center is at 1390 W Speedway, between Grande and Silverbell.

It would surprise many people to know about the number of people who recieve GEDs in Arizona. Nearly one fifth of the High School Diplomas issued last year were actually GEDs (1,812 right here in Pima County). Even with that, we are still left with 800,000 people in Arizona without a diploma.

We allocate $4.5 million to these programs, but we are giving up a match of $11 million in federal money by defunding them. Also, think about this: a person without a diploma makes $8,000 less per year than someone with one. Because of the hand up we offer, GED recipients generate an additional $8 million in revenue for the state annually.

Think about this: Arizona has consistently had one of the highest dropout rates in the country. If this portion of the budget passes, we will be the only state that offers dropouts no alternatives. I guess we can’t wonder why we don’t hear the phrase “compassionate conservative” these days.

February 4th, 2010

Sales Tax to House Today

I have no earthly idea if the sales tax will pass the House. I doubt there are votes in the Republican caucus to pass it, and Democratic leadership is less than enthusiastic about the bill.

I’ve gotten some feedback from R Cubed fans asking why Democrats in the Senate voted for the bill. Word from folks I talked to is that Jorge García got a promise that Bob Burns would not hear Kirk Adams’s tax cut bill until after the next budget is passed and that the referral would be decoupled from eliminating Prop 105 protections. There was also a concern expressed by some Senators that Dems in the Senate would be labeled as “obstructionist” if they didn’t vote for the referral.

And here’s a piece of information that will dispel any beliefs left over from your Junior High Social Studies class: the Senate leadership had the bill refered to the Natural Resources committee. They tried to give a rhetorically contorted reason for this, but the real reason it was referred there was because they didn’t think it would pass a more relevant committee. Why give these committees issue portfolios at all? Name them like old NHL divisions, it would make as much sense.

February 3rd, 2010

Hey, Wait a Second…

Barack Obama today, as reported by Talking Points Memo, emphasis mine:

President Obama had some advice for Democratic senators at a conference in D.C. today: stop watching TV and reading blogs.

What? I may have to retroactively unendorse the man.

February 3rd, 2010

Gallego Picks Up National Endorsement

VoteVets.org PAC, an organization representing Iraq and Afghanistan vets, has given its endorsement to Marine Corps veteran Ruben Gallego, who is running for the State House in Phoenix. He is only one of three state-level candidates to get their endorsement this year. Press release after the jump.

Keep reading →

February 3rd, 2010

Law and Order

Andrew Sullivan with his take on the current Chicken Little strain on the right when discussing anti-terror policy:

To see political leaders in the West have such a low view of the American judicial system and such an elevated view of the world-historical significance of these pathetic, twisted, religious nutjobs … well, they look like a bunch of scaredy cats to me.

January 31st, 2010

Is the Recall Movement on Speaking Terms with Itself?

Over the last couple of days, Humberto Lopez has given indications that he’s dialing back on his enthusiasm for his recall of Karin Uhlich, Regina Romero and Bob Walkup.

This prompted a press release from Trent Humphries and Robert Meyer, who are local “Tea Party” organizers that have taken the lead on the recall. They say that the recall is still on, despite Lopez’s comments. Just the fact that they feel the need to do this isn’t exactly a sign of strength.

As for the numbers claimed, I’ve always been told by political organizers to distrust numbers like “about 200 volunteers” and “hundreds of signatures.”

Press release after the jump.

Keep reading →

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