An optimist might have hoped that the explosion of information technology would lead to a period of truth and enlightenment as the ability to confront lies and distortions increased. Sadly, the ability to proliferate total fiction has outpaced that of the truth. Naturally, we see this displayed [...] Here's a press release from Grijalva's office:
Grijalva Announces Bill To Help Struggling Schools Prevent Dropouts, Encourage Pursuit of Higher Education
Washington, DC – Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva today announced the release of H.R. 4122, the Graduation for All Act, which seeks to decrease dropout rates and provide assistance to [...]
Ad for the President Obama, United We Serve and NFL Team Up fitness and service campaign.
This goes out to friend of the blog Steve Gall who is trying once again to get a 30 minute mandatory recess bill through the legislature and is talking to and working at [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Arizona's Neoconservative Senator John McCain is at it again. This is the man who was a patron of Ahmed Chalabi and his Iraqi National Congress which fabricated intelligence of Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction. This is the man who advocated for war with Iraq and confidently predicted [...]
by David Safier
The Rs planned to cut $144 million in soft capital funding from district schools. The snafu Thursday only delayed the move.
But now some legislators are asking, Why aren't charter schools feeling the budget ax as well?
Here is among the lamest reasons imaginable for not making cuts to' [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
First, some background. The Washington Post reported that one of former Vice President Dick Cheney’s daughters, Mary, was “leaving the political consulting firm Navigators Global to start her own consulting company.” Though one of Mary’s friends told the Post that Mary’s dad and her sister, Liz, would [...]
by David Safier
A few days ago, I posted about problems with the survey Goldwater Institute's Matthew Ladner used for his study about how little high school students know about Civics. It seems the company that conducted the survey, Strategic Vision LLC, has a history of complaints about their methodology [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Republicans have controlled the Arizona House since 1967 -- 42 years. And with a few short-lived exceptions, Republicans have controlled the Arizona Senate during the same period of time. Arizona's governors, Republicans and Democrats alike, have been hostage to Republican legislators.
With this kind of iron-fisted control over [...]
We here at R-Cubed are deeply, deeply sorry for mischaracterizing Jan Brewer’s actions during our very special session. She may have missed out on the entirety of the meetings this week due to her crucially necessary presence at the Republican Governors Association meeting, but she showed us the sort of [...]
If you've been watching Rachel Maddow or following the blogs, you've probably seen that one of the latest anti-Obama slogans is a line from one of the Old Testament Psalms of David, 109, verse 8:
Let his days be few; and let another take his office.
This isn't just a' [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Nothing is ever the fault of Republicans (just ask our governor and legislators). And nobody shirks personal responsibility better than Sarah Palin. "True Americans" (white American Christian conservatives) are the true victims. And Sarah Palin in 2012 would allow conservatives to snatch "victimry" from the jaws of their defeat.
[...]No, not Sarah for Arizona. I want Sarah in Arizona during the 2010 primaries supporting the Senate candidate of her choice. Will it be her running mate, John McCain? Will it be her more natural ally, J.D. Hayworth? Or will it be Chris Build-a-wall-around-the-entire-country Simcox? Arizona wants to [...]
People in unemployment line at DES office in Tucson.Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
I know I have explained this before, but apparently some people up at the state capitol need a refresher course. The way a special session is supposed to work is that the Governor and House and Senate leadership get together and craft a bill that they can all [...]
Marszałek Senatu Bob Burns is angry with Senador Thayer Verschoor, who didn’t show up for Thursday’s extra special session. Burns was so angry with Verschoor that he…tweeted!
Pique is best when done in 140 character segments, I always say.
The funny part about this is that Verschoor was [...]
From Rasmussen:
Senator John McCain’s future in the U.S. Senate may be a little less assured than previously thought.
A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely 2010 Republican Primary voters in Arizona finds the longtime incumbent in a virtual tie with potential challenger J.D. Hayworth. McCain [...]
This is about Maricopa and it's about community colleges -- a bit out of my usual physical and educational geography -- but really, it's about a rogue members of a Board trying to use the colleges for personal and political ends, educational mission be damned. And that kind [...]
You know that special session called by the Accidental Guv to do some budget cutting? It didn't quite work out that way.
A fragile budget deal collapsed in the Senate Thursday when Sen. Thayer Verschoor skipped the floor session and tied his support to a last-minute amendment to' [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
When one of the Neocon Washington Post's deans of conservative apologists, George Will, sings someone's praises you know something dark and evil is afoot. It merits a closer examination of the object of his praise. (Will's columns should come with a disclosure statement).
Both of Arizona's two major newspapers [...]
The folks at the Yellow Sheet decided to take on the Democratic Party for, it seems, a press release that the party sent a year and a half ago.
You may recall that during the heady days of the 2008 campaign, Tim Bee brought George W. Bush to Tucson for a [...]
I happened to be at the Capitol Wednesday, camera and notepad in hand, so I took in the Dem press conference.
The thrust of the conference was to criticize the Rs for their piecemeal approach to budgeting: cut some stuff today and worry about everything else [...]
Sarah Palin has been making the rounds (and no, I haven’t read the book) and one of the things that inevitably comes up is Katie Couric and her “gotcha questions.” It would be helpful to remember that one of these “gotcha” questions was about what newspapers she read. This wouldn’t [...]
All Things Considered had a bit about Carl Hayden last night featuring Jack August. This was obviously because they saw my post about Hayden yesterday morning and knew they had to catch up with me. The piece is up on their website.
August made one error (admittedly a big [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
John Perr is one of the better economics bloggers. He posted this piece at crooksandliars.com Born Again Deficit Virgins:
Everything you need to know about the descent of the conservative movement into a hypocritical caricature is illustrated by two of its proudest constituencies: Republican deficit hawks and [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Earlier this year, the Accidental Governor and several Republican state legislators toyed with the idea of rejecting federal stimulus aid to the state. It was purely ideological grandstanding. Wiser heads prevailed and Arizona accepted the federal stimulus aid. The current budget deficit would have been far worse without the federal [...]
AZ House Dems continue to push for real solutions.At the suggestion of one dedicated reader, I sifted through Shaun McCluskey’s last campaign finance report. He sent in an amended one due to a last minute infusion of cash and his last minute spending on hit pieces on Richard Fimbres.
It’s no big surprise: various members of Jim Click’s family [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanIe:
I have always heard that Costco is a Labor/Democrat friendly business, despite the fact that it sells every screed from right-wing pulp fiction publishing houses at bulk discount prices.
Now it is selling Caribou Barbie -- no, not the doll -- the real-life Sarah Palin, [...]
If you live in Tucson and you want to know about the tuition tax credit/STO mess, there's currently only one place to go: my posts on BfA. The Star has been AWOL when it comes to covering the story. I don't think it would take all the fingers [...]
In the post below, I wrote about the recent meeting of the R-created committee looking into painting a happy face on the tuition tax credit mess. I mentioned it brought in an "expert," Charles North, to explain that tuition tax credits save Arizona millions and millions of tax [...]
Quick, who was the longest serving member of Congress? Well, up until this week, you could have proudly mentioned Carl Trumbull Hayden of Tempe. As of this week, however, the good Senator Hayden has lost that distinction to Robert Byrd of West Virginia.
Hayden served a term [...]
The other legislative committee looking into tuition tax credits and STOs met Monday. I call it "the other committee" because it was set up by Rs to counter the task force set up by Ds. The D-created task force is trying to probe tuition tax credit abuses. The [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Rep. John Shadegg wins the bronze in World's Worst Persons for November 17, 2009.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
UPDATE: Rep. John Shadegg was forced to apologize on Tuesday for suggesting the family of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg could' [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
The Tea Party has moved into its next phase, opposition to immigration reform legislation soon to be introduced in the Congress. This past weekend, the nativist right-wingers at ALIPAC and the National Policy Institute organized a series of "Tea Parties Against Amnesty.
Things didn't go quite as the teabaggers'" [...]
Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
The Anti-Defamation League has released the following ADL Special Reports: Rage Grows in America: Anti-Government Conspiracies
Introduction: A Year of Growing Animosity
Since the election of Barack Obama as president, a current of anti-government hostility has swept across the United States, creating a climate of fervor and activism [...]
Everyone knows Sarah Palin's book came out today. Walmart and Amazon are already selling it for 50% off. But wait, there's more! For $8.10 at Amazon, you can buy The Sarah Palin Rogue Coloring & Activity Book. Actually you can't, for while there are ample copies' [...] I thought I would never have to write about this one charter school principal again. But a news story from KPHO Phoenix let me know the principal, who should never have been allowed to be around students after what she did in 2005, is back in the [...]
