Rum, Romanism and Rebellion

Once again, the logic of our friends on the right leaves me dizzy. I guess I should stop expecting consitency and sense from those guys.
The current deal getting conservative panties in a bunch is the knock against Senator Harry Reid for daring to criticize General Peter Pace. They shout, how dare he criticize a man […]

I haven’t posted in a few days. Really, it’s because I’m all broken up about Mr. Wizard. Now, I’ll never know how to make an electromagnet with a potato, old pennies and a mayonaise jar.
Hmm. Maybe I’ll not post until the house leadership takes some action on the budget…

I’m hearing this talk that Fred Thompson would be a great choice for president because of his conservative family values (a series of relationships with semi-famous blondes a generation your junior is “conservative family values,” who knew?) and because he has played tough talking leaders. He is “folksy” because he leased a red pick-up truck […]

A week or so ago, Daniel Scarpinato’s Political Notebook column featured comments from Pete Zimmerman, a Democratic consultant who is working on behalf of an initiative drive being pushed by Wal-Mart. Of the criticism he’s taking from Democratic activists, he said:
It really boils down to a war that’s being waged on Wal-Mart by several unions […]

Little question for you, I know that the Senate immigration compromise is probably dead, although all sorts of things can happen. We know where most of our federal officials are on it, except maybe Jon Kyl (for it before he was against it?). What about our potential federal officials. I’m thinking of Tim Bee. His […]

E-mail that went out to legislators and staff yesterday:
Everyone:
A dead bat was found in the House Members’ parking lot.  It tested positive for rabies by DHS.
We are addressing the problem.  In the meantime, do not go near any dead or live bats.  Please contact security immediately if you see a bat.
Great, I can’t refer to […]

Okay, this guy Sheriff Lee Baca who is now being hammered for releasing Paris Hilton early? Guess who he endorsed for President.
That’s right: John McCain.
Baca, by the way, has been criticized in the past for the soft spot on his heart for celebrities. He had a ”celebrity reserve unit” that had to be curtailed because of the misbehavior of the various […]

The Governor came down yesterday for the rally honoring our championship Wildcat Softball team. Our Gov’s office was nice enough to send me a couple of pictures. You can click them to see them full size. Congratulations, Wildcats!

The zeitgeist about this one is that Robert Gates wants to bring in his own man, and Peter Pace is seen as Donald Rumsfeld’s man.
Anyone think that this actually changes a darned thing? So, will this new admiral he likes be in charge of the war or will it be this Douglas Lute fellow?
I really have little interesting […]

Patrick Leahy and Arlen Specter pushed a bill through the Senate Judiciary Committee called the Habeas Corpus Restoration Act, that would reverse the revokation of the right of detainees at Guantamano Bay to a hearing. Specter was the only Republican on the committee to vote for the bill, which means our own Jon Kyl voted […]

From yesterday’s Skinny:
The budget process really does put the fun in dysfunctional.
Fun? Fun because our Representatives have had all sorts of free time on their hands. In the past two weeks, the House has met for a total of four days (for only a couple of hours each day) while Speaker Jim Weiers negotiates with […]

The Republic’s Plugged In blog has reported that the finance director for the State Republican party has quit. She has only been there for two months. The previous finance director quit just minutes after the election of new chairman Randy Pullen.
Part of the trouble for these folks is that the “Country Club Republicans” that Pullen […]

Hey, anyone notice that one of the people that voted against cloture on the Senate’s vaunted immigration compromise today was a certain Jon Llewellyn Kyl?
Yeah…remember how the guy was getting so much credit for forging this compromise (after campaigning last year against such compromises)? Hmm…he must love his compromise so much that he doesn’t want […]

Yesterday’s Star featured the headline “Dems Get Lion’s Share of Bond Funds” above the fold for all who pass the vending machines. The headline leaves the impression that bond money is distributed on a partisan basis, while the story itself only covers one particular set of bonds.
The story talked about neighborhood reinvestment money from the […]

Many of you have spotted this one on other sites, but it is too rich.
Every election, some conservative baboso goes on TV to claim that Democrats are praying for economic collapse so that voters will vote for them. Well, to fit in with their “secular progressive” conspiracy theories, they don’t actually accuse us of praying.
As […]

I recieved this e-mail from the Phil Gordon campaign:
As a Democrat working on the Phil Gordon for Mayor 2007 campaign, along with our Deputy Campaign Director who comes directly from the Arizona Democratic Party, I wanted to respond to your recent post. Feel free to use any or all of it in your blog.
In addition […]

Chicago congressman Luis Gutierrez visisted Tucson yesterday for a community meeting organized by Raúl Grijalva. The topic of the meeting was the STRIVE Act, sponsored by Gutierrez and Jeff Flake, and supported by Grijalva.
The public that showed up took up all the seats set up in the gymnasium at the El Pueblo Neighborhood center. The […]

I know that us liberals are supposed to be spectacular whimps compared to the oh-so-manly men that lead the Republican party. I mean, not one Democrat has ever shot a friend in the face while hunting captive quail.
But there is a strain of conservative commentary that makes them look like simpering three-year olds: the strain that […]

Greg Patterson’s latest crusade against Arizona’s Fourth Estate is posted on his blog. In it, he takes issue with an article in the East Valley Tribune about a possible conflict of interest regarding Steve Yarbrough’s advocacy of laws that may, the article alleges, raise his own salary.
Patterson’s argument is that we have a citizen’s legislature, […]