Archive for February, 2008
February 29th, 2008, 3:57 pm by Le Templar
Arizona’s copper dome (original photo on Arizona Capitol Museum’s Web site)
Remember back in December when Republicans who control the Arizona Legislature described the pending billion-dollar budget shortfall as a crisis that would be the first priority of lawmakers when the regular session started in mid-January? The budget committees meet for a week before the session started, and then all regular committee meetings were canceled for another week so the budget writers could focus on the next fiscal year which will start July 1.
Now it’s the 1st of March, so the Legislature must have wrapped up all of those budget issues and moved on other stuff, right? Hmm … No. The Senate Appropriations Committee acted Feb. 19 on what’s supposed to be the latest Republican plan to solve this year’s budget problems. But not a word since, and nothing on next year’s budget, either.
It’s going to be a looong spring for the Legislature that could stretch right into early summer. But what’s new about that?
Posted in: Arizona Legislature | Post a Comment »
February 27th, 2008, 2:41 pm by Le Templar
Tribune photo
If you haven’t read Wednesday’s profile of state Sen. Karen Johnson, R-Mesa, by Tribune writer Mary K. Reinhart, you should check it out. Reinhart does an excellent job of capturing Johnson’s political views as a super-strict constitutionalist as well as her friendly personality.
Whenever I read or hear someone go into a full-throated, vicious criticism of Johnson, I know that person hasn’t spent any time actually speaking or interacting with her. Johnson has the disposition of a sweet grandmother. She might say some things you find pretty weird (I still don’t get her obsession with the “threat” of the mythical North American Union). But you can’t help but admire her because she’s so nice to everyone. And if you listen to her for a while, you might just surprise yourself by agreeing with her every so often.
When Johnson moved to the Senate from the House in 2005, she was given a desk on the floor next to Sen. Ken Cheuvront, D-Phoenix. That had lots of people wondering if any sparks would fly, as Johnson believes strongly that couples should involve only one man and one woman and Cheuvront is openly gay. Johnson has even suggested bringing back Arizona’s former ban on co-habitation, much less a constitutional ban on gay marriage.
Toward the end of 2005 session, Johnson told me she had worried about possible tension with her floor neighbor. Not because of Cheuvront’s sexuality, she said. She had assumed he must be a flamin’ liberal because he is one of those Phoenix Democrats.
Johnson discovered Cheuvront is actually more of a libertarian (Just get government out of our lives and spend less of our money), so he and Johnson share pretty similar views on a variety of issues related to government taxes, business incentives and economic policy. Johnson also shares Cheuvront’s dislike of many of President Bush’s policies, although often for different reasons.
For his part, Cheuvront said three years ago that Johnson is rather pleasant to be around, and he felt pretty lucky with his seating assignment. So by the end of the 2005 session, Johnson and Cheuvront were far more chummy than the legislative leaders of their respective parties.
Johnson also has a rather strong ethical streak that’s somewhat rare among career politicians. She doesn’t dissemble or try to hide from her more controversial views. She votes her conscience instead of swaying to the political winds or to the pressure of certain interests that could help her later. So she continues to get respect from her constituents and her colleagues, even when it seems like she’s tilting at windmills no one else can see.
Posted in: Arizona Legislature | 3 Comments »
February 17th, 2008, 11:29 am by Le Templar
Tribune photo
There’s a museum curator in Texas who should be out of a job pretty darn quick. And a day or two in the local stockade might be reasonable as well.
The Tribune reported Saturday that Jeff Hunt of Texas Military Forces Museum at Camp Mabry in Austin, Texas, recently destroyed a diorama of a Civil War battle that was painstakingly designed and painted by students at Gilbert’s Highland High School.
The diorama, featuring hundreds of little soldier figurines, was of the Battle at Palmetto Ranch, which is considered to be the final conflict of the war between the states. Highland put together the display at the specific request of Hunt’s predecessor because the students have developed a reputation for detailed work of excellence.
But Hunt, who wrote a book about the Battle at Palmetto Ranch, decided after the diorama had been on display for seven weeks that it was historically inaccurate — and he ripped it apart.
If Hunt truly is the expert he claims to be, he knows just how much time and energy goes into preparing these types of dioramas. In this case, the Highland students more than three years on the display and it cost $23,000 to finish.
Hunt deserves to lose his job for his heartless destruction of these students’ hard work. And if the diorama still belonged to Highland High School instead of the museum, he committed some criminal mischief or vandalism as well.
Posted in: Gilbert | 3 Comments »
February 11th, 2008, 2:51 pm by Le Templar
Gov. Janet Napolitano speaks on KJZZ (91.5 FM), as posted at kjzz.org.
Gov. Janet Napolitano certainly enjoyed herself when she appeared on last week’s National Public Radio game show “Wait, Wait … Don’t Tell Me.” The show hosted by Peter Sagal was taped Thursday before an enthusiastic audience at the Mesa Arts Center. If you missed the broadcast over the weekend on KJZZ (91.5 FM), you can listen to the whole hourlong show or individual segments here.
Napolitano came on to for the weekly segment called “Not My Job,” in which a celebrity or politician chats for a little while with Sagal before answering three questions about some obscure subject. Napolitano laughed throughout her appearance in a rather full-throated manner that indicated she was entirely relaxed and not at all self-conscious about the likelihood of someone poking fun at her on a national broadcast. Perhaps she’s a big fan of the show.
For example, Sagal mistakenly referred to the second question as the last one, and Napolitano jumped in to correct him. She wasn’t taken aback at all when Sagal said bluntly, “You’re rather bossy, aren’t you, governor?” and she played along rather nicely.
During the chit-chat, Napolitano also continued the fiction that she’s never given any thought to her political career beyond the end of her last term as governor in 2010. But I’m sure this particular crowd easily let that slide.
The point of “Not My Job” is the subject of the three questions should be so distant from what the celebrity/politician does for a living, there’s almost no chance for her to know the answers and she must guess from among multiple choices offered for each question.
But I have to wonder if someone told the “Wait, Wait” producers that Napolitano considers herself to be a little bit of a sports geek, especially on the subjects of baseball, football and basketball. The three questions were about the well-known temper of Bobby Knight, the legendary college basketball coach with the most wins in history who retired from Texas Tech last week.
If anyone was trying to help Napolitano out, it didn’t work, as she missed all three questions (and didn’t win the program’s grand prize for a Glendale woman — having announcer Carl Kasell create a phone voice message for you).
A friend of mine pointed out Napolitano’s new political hero, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., correctly answered his three questions when he was on the show of Aug. 6, 2005. Does that make Obama a genius, or was Napolitano just unlucky?
Posted in: Governor | Post a Comment »
February 8th, 2008, 2:11 pm by Le Templar
President Bush and Transportation Secretary Mary Peters (courtesy of the White House Web site)
U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters soon will be out of a job if the International Brotherhood of Teamsters has anything to say about it.
The Teamsters have launched a media and lobbying campaign asking Congress to “fire Mary Peters” over President Bush’s plan to allow a limited number of Mexican tractor-trailers to deliver goods anywhere in the U.S. under a year-long pilot program. Peters is the former director of the Arizona Department of Transportation who is considered to be a possible candidate for governor in 2010.
The Mexican truck pilot program is the Bush administration’s latest attempt to carry out a requirement of NAFTA to allow U.S. and Mexican commercial semi-trucks to travel freely in both countries. Without the treaty, industrial and agricultural goods moving between countries must be unloaded from the home country’s deliver truck at a border port of entry and moved into a truck from the country where the goods are headed. This increases costs and reduces trade between the U.S. and Mexico.
While NAFTA was negotiated and signed by President Clinton, Democrats have been heavily urged by unions such as the Teamsters to undermine the delivery truck exchange provisions. Unions fear that Mexican truck drivers working for cheaper wages will steal jobs from U.S. drivers, ignoring the fact that increased trade should mean more work for everyone involved.
The unions’ complaints were largely ignored until Democrats took control of Congress in 2007 and the actual effective date of the delivery truck exchange came into sight. First, Congress sought to impede the treaty by requiring Mexican trucks and drivers to comply with all safety and environmental regulations that apply to U.S. trucks. That’s when Peters announced this pilot program a year ago to demonstrate Mexican trucks can pass U.S. inspections and comply with the law.
The unions didn’t relent, so in December a provision was snuck into a spending bill to deny any funding for the pilot program.
The Transportation Department has parsed the bill’s language and decided it doesn’t actually apply, despite what Congress intended. So the pilot program continues.
And the Teamsters now are trying to use public pressure to force Peters to back down or to lose her job. The campaign is something of a publicity stunt, as Congress can’t “fire” Peters, only Bush has that authority.
But we’ll see if the Teamsters can prompt Congress to take further action to thwart this provision of NAFTA.
Posted in: Transportation | Post a Comment »
February 7th, 2008, 12:48 pm by Le Templar
Ward Connerly
When Ward Connerly predicts Arizona will easily adopt a constitutional amendment to abolish affirmation action programs, his track record says you have to take him seriously.
The former regent of the University of California system has become a national leader in the movement to end all government programs that offer preferential treatment to women or minorities. He was the voice and face of initiatives to stop public colleges and universities from considering race for admission in California, Washington and Michigan. Now, Connerly is the force behind a bid to bring constitutional amendments to November general elections in five states at once, including Arizona, that would ban preference programs related to public education, government employment and public contracts.
Connerly plans to formally launch his campaign for a “Super Tuesday for civil rights,” next week. But he gave a preview in Phoenix Thursday at breakfast fundraiser for the Goldwater Institute.
The Arizona campaign already has high-profile chairman in Maricopa County Andrew Thomas. But Connerly is expected to be the heart and soul of the five-state strategy. As a black man raised by his grandmother, aunt and uncle in the pre-civil rights era of the 1950s, Connerly has been the perfect foil to various groups who say opponents of affirmation action are closet racists.
Connerly says his direct experience with overt discrimination has led him to believe no person should be judged by their skin color or gender, even if the underlying intentions are well-meaning. He says the “morally wrong” focus on race actually keeps society from addresses the problems that harm minorities such as poverty and a lack of education.
Connerly spoke for more than 30 minutes without notes so his speech was somewhat rambling. But his passion emerged during a question-and-answer session when he was challenged by audience member Ed Valenzuela, the former regional director of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Connerly easily cited a litany of statistics that enrollment and graduation rates climbed for blacks and Asians at specific University of California campuses after that state’s voters banned affirmation action in higher education. He argued black students are now matched better with the programs where they can succeed instead of being accepted into schools for which they weren’t prepared. And Asians clearly were discriminated against in order to prop open campus doors for blacks, he added. “It is Orwellian to say that by demanding that people be treated equally, you are suppressing their numbers,” Connerly said.
Connerly’s petition drive is formally called the Arizona Civil Rights Initiative and it would “prohibit preferential treatment or discrimination by state government, state universities, colleges, community colleges, school districts, counties and local governments to any individual or group based on race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education or public contracting.”
The initiative has to collect at least 230,047 valid signatures from registered voters by July 3 to qualify for the Nov. 5 general election.
Posted in: Arizona government • Election initiatives | Post a Comment »
February 6th, 2008, 4:26 pm by Le Templar
Sen. John McCain at Wednesday morning press conference (AP photo)
Call it the campaign to win back the faithful. Sen. John McCain hasn’t locked down the Republican nomination for president just yet. But he’s already reaching out to traditional conservatives who long have resented McCain’s willingness to oppose the agenda of the GOP base on key issues such as campaign finance reform, embryonic stem cell research, illegal immigration and a federal amendment to ban same-sex marriages.
During his Super Tuesday speech at a Phoenix campaign rally, McCain promised to defend the “conservative principles and policies” that have defined the national Republican platform ever since the Ronald Reagan years. He mentioned his support for appointing judges who enforce laws instead of making them. And he pledged to defend the nation’s freedom against all enemies, foreign and domestic, yet another reference to his prior career as a Navy aviation commander and Vietnam prisoner of war.
Then on Wednesday, he called out to the various right-wing talk show commentators who started thrashing McCain after his Florida victory moved him into the lead for the Republican nomination.
“I do hope that at some point we would just calm down a little bit and see if there’s areas we can agree on,” he said according to the Associated Press.
Meanwhile, longtime McCain supporters are beginning to talk about their frustration that some conservatives are threatening to sit out the general election if McCain does claim the nomination.
Alberto Gutier is a Cuban refugee and naturalized U.S. citizen living in Phoenix who has been active with the Arizona Republican Party for more than 40 years and sits on the state party’s executive committee. But his Republican credentials have been questioned repeatedly, along with the state’s two at-large members on the Republican National Committee, because of their early backing of McCain over the other GOP contenders.
“It drives me crazy, this talk that we’re not going to come together behind one candidate,” Gutier said. “You want Hillary Clinton (or Barack Obama)? Fine, that’s what you are going to get.”
Posted in: Presidential campaign • Uncategorized | Post a Comment »
February 6th, 2008, 9:44 am by Le Templar
Barack Obama speaks to Illinois supporters on Super Tuesday (Reuters)
Sen. Barack Obama came in second statewide among Arizona voters, but scored an important victory among some East Valley Democrats that is helping him keep pace with Hillary Clinton.
According to the Secretary of State, Obama narrowly won the most votes in Congressional District 5, which covers most of Scottsdale, Tempe and Ahwatukee Foothills. The Democratic Party’s arcane system of handing out convention delegates means Obama will grab a portion in Arizona with this win. Obama lost in Congressional District 5, which covers most of the south East Valley including Mesa, Gilbert and much of Chander, and Congressional District 1, covers the Pinal County portions of the East Valley. But his margin in those two districts was closer than the overall Arizona defeat.
CD 5 and CD 6 both have more Republican registered voters, and Democrats in those districts are generally viewed to be more moderate or centrist than traditional strongholds such as Pima County. But Obama picked up widespread support here, despite his strong liberal voting record, demonstrating a nationwide trend that Democrats are generally happy with Obama and Clinton as the two main contenders for their party’s nomination.
Posted in: Presidential campaign | Post a Comment »
February 6th, 2008, 7:37 am by Le Templar
John and Cindy McCain celebrate Super Tuesday wins (Tribune photo)
Conservative Republicans in Arizona appear to have turned their back on Sen. John McCain on Super Tuesday, but were outnumbered in the huge turnout by moderates and independents who registered as Republicans to be able to cast primary ballots.
McCain won the Arizona presidential primary by wide margin over Mitt Romney and also claimed Maricopa County, the state’s most populous county. But it was a different story in Congressional District 6, which probably has the largest concentration of social conservative GOP activists in the state. CD6 covers most of the south East Valley including Mesa, Gilbert, much of Chandler and a small portion of neighboring Pinal County.
According to results from the Secretary of State, Romney received 39,743 votes compared to McCain’s 33,432 votes. CD6 also features a large number of Mormons, and Republican church members have enthusastically embraced Romney over other party challengers.
But McCain doesn’t have a problem with just Mormons. CNN is reporting that exit polling showed Romney received 47 percent of the vote statewide from Republicans who self-identified as conservatives. McCain received only 36 percent.
Interestingly, the House member who represents Congressional District 6, Rep. Jeff Flake, was on the stage at McCain’s election rally Tuesday night showing his support for Arizona’s senior senator. But it appears a majority of Flake’s Republican voters would have preferred for him to be among Romney supporters at a party in Paradise Valley instead.
The other major East Valley district, Congressional District 5, easily went to McCain as he grabbed more than twice as many votes as Romney. (Mike Huckabee came in a distant third everywhere in Arizona). CD5 includes most of Scottsdale, Tempe and Ahwatukee Foothills, and is considered to be a more moderate Republican base. While there are more registered Republican voters than Democrats, the district is currently represented by Democratic Rep. Harry Mitchell.
Posted in: Presidential campaign | Post a Comment »
February 5th, 2008, 6:22 pm by Le Templar
Sen. John McCain and his wife, Cindy, exit an airplane in Nashville, Tenn., Saturday as part of their campaigning for Super Tuesday elections (Associated Press as posted at MSNBC)
Sen. John McCain returned to his home state this afternoon saying he’s “guardedly optimistic” about his chances in the Super Tuesday primaries and caucuses, but “superstitious” about making any predictions.
McCain landed at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport shortly before 5 p.m. in a chartered JetBlue airplane, making his first formal visit to Arizona since the party nomination campaign season kicked off with the Iowa caucuses.
He came down the stairs with his wife, Cindy, at his side and was trailed by several notable politicians who had campaigned with McCain in California including Sens. Lindsay Graham, R-S.C., and Joe Liberman, I-Conn., and Florida Gov. Charlie Crist.
McCain’s staff had parked one of the dark blue “Straight Talk Express” travel buses inside the charter airplane hanger as a backdrop for a brief press conference for local media and national reporters traveling with the senator.
The microphone that McCain used was strictly for broadcast recording. McCain spoke so softly that print and Web reporters relying on their own ears or open-air recorders kept creeping closer to pick up his words.
They didn’t miss much. McCain gave the same prepared answer to repeated questions about a sudden conservative backlash in recent days, concentrated most heavily among news talk radio hosts.
“I have a strong conservative voting record and I’m pleased to have the support of people like Jack Kemp and Steve Forbes,” McCain said.
When pressed further about the verbal pounding that McCain has received from conservative talk luminaries such as Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity, McCain said he has a few broadcast opinion makers in his corner such as Bill O’Reilly and Bill Bennett.
After only 5 minutes, McCain ended the news conference and moved into the bus, although he was expected to ride in a regular, 4-door sedan to his election night party at the historic Arizona Biltmore Resort and Spa.
But before he left, McCain did offer one thought about his chances with hometown Republicans.
Arizona is one for the 24 states involved in the Super Tuesday elections, and a variety of media have pointed out in recent days that a large segment of GOP activists really don’t like the senator. That mirrors the angst reflected among many conservatives across the country who had assumed McCain wouldn’t make it this far much after his campaign collapse last summer, much less that he would be the perceived frontrunner going into Super Tuesday.
But history has shown a majority of local Republicans are willing to support McCain despite the political with many conservative activitists. “I think I’ll do OK in Arizona,” McCain said with a tight smile.
Catch all of the latest results from Super Tuesday at www.eastvalleytribune.com.
Posted in: Presidential campaign | 1 Comment »
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