Blog For Arizona

Memorial Day Message

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Memorial Day message that President Obama delivered over the weekend in his weekly address. Video below the fold.

Tea-Publicans discover their inner Keynesian

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Steve Benen has an informative post on economics, Keynesians to the left of me, Keynesians to the right of me:

The gist of Keynesian economics is fairly straightforward: during an economic downturn, caused by insufficient demand, it's up to the public sector to inject capital into the system while consumers and businesses pull back. It's what FDR used to rescue the country from the Great Depression and it's what President Obama used to rescue us from the Great Recession.

Republicans, at least the contemporary version of them, loathe Keynesian economics. As the GOP sees it, supply and demand aren't as important as shrinking government during a downturn. When consumers and businesses pull back, Republicans argue, the economy will improve if government does the same -- taking capital out of the struggling system -- and focuses more on debt reduction and less on growth.

It's why, in 2009, at the height of the global crisis, congressional Republicans not only vehemently fought against a Keynesian stimulus, they also strongly recommended a five-year federal spending freeze (a proposal even David Brooks characterized as "insane").

In 2012, however, Republicans have suddenly discovered the inner Keynesians within:

Sen. Harry Reid's refusal to "back off" looming cuts to the Pentagon won't just harm the nation's security, Republicans say. It could plunge the fragile U.S. economy back into a recession next year. [...]

"Puzzling" was how Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) described Reid's remarks. With CBO's warning, Congress should be looking at every possible option to renew the Bush tax cuts and avoid the automatic, across-the-board cuts to defense and domestic spending.

"The whole point here is to try to get some economic growth, job creation, to get out of this recession," Kyl told POLITICO. "Why would we risk going backward with policy that even CBO says would be the wrong prescription right now?"

Sometimes, I can't help but feel like I'm stuck in a Lewis Carroll novel.

'The vision thing' returns

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

It was reported that President George H.W. Bush's response to the suggestion that he turn his attention away from short-term campaign objectives and focus on the larger picture was "oh, the vision thing." The phrase "the vision thing" has come to personify any politician's failure to incorporate a greater vision in a campaign, and has often been applied by the media to politicians or public figures.

Enter POLITICO today, Mitt Romney not Into ‘vision thing’:

Mitt Romney has made it clear what he’s against.

What he’d be for as president is another question.

The presumptive GOP nominee has some Republicans worried he lacks the “vision thing” that has hurt previous presidential candidates and haunted George H.W. Bush in his quest to succeed Ronald Reagan.

Some GOP officials fear that their nominee for president has so far failed to articulate a clear and compelling plan for the country if he defeats President Barack Obama in November. Instead of framing his ideas in a positive and specific way — like some of his GOP primary challengers — they say Romney must stop solely running a defensive campaign that leaves voters without a clear idea of where he stands.

Ah, but there is also another favorite media meme at play here. Whenever a Democrat disagrees with the party leadership the media villagers instinctively trot out "Democrats are in disarray." Well, the shoe's on the other foot in this POLITICO story. "Republicans are in disarray," in particular, the far-right radical extremists who are still not sold on Willard "Mittens" Romney.

“I don’t know what he’ll do on anything,” Club for Growth President Chris "Count" Chocola told POLITICO. “And that’s, that’s the concern that people have always had is, you don’t truly understand what Mitt Romney is going to do.”

* * *

“At the end of the day, you can’t just be all, you know, anti-Obama,” said former Ohio Secretary of State [and senior fellow at the Family Research Council] Ken Blackwell, whose state is key to Romney’s chances. “It has to be, I think, two parts that and one part here’s the antidote, here’s the vision, here’s the path that I would like to lead America down.”

And GOP strategist Mark McKinnon — who advised former two-term Republican president George W. Bush — said it’s time for Romney to outline his agenda.

“It’s important to establish the problem when you are a challenger because you are asking voters to fire the incumbent. So, Romney has to file his grievances,” McKinnon said. “But at some point he has to show that he has a vision of a better way. He can’t just say ‘The future is bleak, follow me.’ Because no one will.”

Wisconsin Update: The Total Recall/Walkergate Debate (with video)

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Associated Press reports on Friday night's Total Recall/Walkergate debate in Wisconsin. Tom Barrett, Scott Walker clash in first Wisconsin governor debate:

Democratic Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, down in the polls to Gov. Scott Walker, aggressively went after Walker in a debate Friday and accused him of purposefully dividing the state and triggering the June 5 recall election.

Barrett kept Walker on the defensive throughout much of the hour-long debate in Milwaukee, which was broadcast live statewide just 11 days before the election. Walker is only the nation’s third governor to ever stand for recall. The previous two, most recently California Gov. Gray Davis in 2003, were defeated.

* * *

[Walker] was targeted for recall after successfully passing a law last year that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers.

Barrett said that proposal, which sparked massive protests for weeks and made Wisconsin the center of a national debate over collective bargaining powers, tore the state apart.

* * *

“You decided to use a budget crisis to try and divide and conquer this state,” Barrett said, speaking directly to Walker as the two stood near each other behind podiums in a television studio. “That’s what happened. That’s what led to all of this. And you succeeded. You succeeded in dividing this state.”

* * *

Barrett said Walker was determined to wage an “ideological civil war” and punish his enemies, most notably unions that have traditionally backed Democratic candidates.

“I will end this civil war,” Barrett said. “That is something the people of this state want.”

Arizona Daily Star endorses Ron Barber for Congress

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Arizona Daily Star has gone out of its way to provide its readers with some of the worst political reporting I have seen in my lifetime. Just check out today's Political Notebook, the political gossip column that I have been praying for a merciful death to since the talentless hack Daniel Scarpinato was writing the column. Stenographic reporting and no fact checking is not reporting.

Despite its failings, the Star occasionally gets something right. Today's editorial endorsement of Ron Barber for Congress is one of those occasions. This is a Sunday print-edition only editorial column (it will be posted online Monday). UPDATE Barber for CD8: centrist, mature leadership on complex issues. Snippets:

Barber for CD8: centrist, mature leadership on complex issues

OUR VIEW: Depth of knowledge, willingness to seek bipartisan answers are vital to district

 * * *

On June 12 the voters will decide who is best to complete the congresswoman's term. Also at stake is whether centrist advocacy for Southern Arizona will continue through January 2013.

Ron Barber was at Gifford's side as her district director. He should continue to serve CD8 as its congressman.

On January 8, 2011, Barber was shot twice and nearly died during the assassination attempt on Giffords. While his life irrevocably changed that day, Barber has met the challenge with grace, clarity of purpose and maturity. And the district staff continues to provide constituent assistance without interruption.

Barber has spent his life in public service. When the lasting effects of his injuries were still unknown, he focused personal and public attention on coping with our community's great loss and how to move forward together.

With his family he created a foundation that funds anti-bullying programs in schools, raises money to help fellow Jan. 8 victims, and advocates for better mental health services.

Barber said Giffords asked him to run in this special election, but he is no placeholder. He is the strongest, most knowledgeable candidate about the needs of the district. He possesses hands-on experience, intellectual complexity and wisdom that his competitors -- Republican jesse kelly and Green Party candidate Charlie Manolakis -- have failed to demonstrate.

His maturity speaks volumes about his potential as our next congressman.

* * *

Congress is not an all-or-nothing place and effectiveness requires balance. A mature candidate understands that value.

* * *

Barber does not have a flashy personality and, to be blunt, isn't a dynamic politician. He's learned a great deal campaigning.  And his performance at the debate indicates his inclusive leadership style is now powered by even more determination.

The foundation Barber has built over his decades in Southern Arizona, combined with his experience, empathy, depth of character and integrity are excellent qualifications.

Democrat Ron Barber is best for Southern Arizona. He is our choice to represent Congressional District 8.

Political Calendar: Week of May 27, 2012

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Political Calendar is posted on Sundays. Please send us notice of your political events prior to the Sunday before your event (7 days would be most helpful). See the calendar icon in the right-hand column of the blog page for easy access to the calendar.

SPECIAL ELECTION DEADLINES

• Early ballots were mailed May 17 , 2012.
• Early voting period from May 17 to June 8, 2012.
• Candidate nomination petitions for the CD 2 congressional election are due Wednesday, May 30, 2012 by 5:00 p.m. (prior to the Special Election)
• Normal statutory rules for legal challenges to candidate nomination petitions apply to general election.
• 'Special' Election Day is Tuesday, June 12, 2012.

Those of you interested in election as precinct committee persons also need to submit your candidate petitions by May 30.

We Are Listening in 2012! Campaigns are encouraged to submit notices of campaign events to BlogForArizona at BlogForArizona@gmail.com.

Campaigns are also encouraged to purchase Advertising on BlogForArizona. BlogForArizona does ads through BlogAds.com. This page will walk you through creating ads on our blog.

Political Calendar For The Week of May 27, 2012

Monday, May 28: Memorial Day (observed).

Monday, May 28, Noon: Democrats of Greater Tucson luncheon, Dragon's View Restaurant (400 N. Bonita, South of St. Mary's Road between the Freeway and Grande Avenue, turn South at Furr's Cafeteria), buffet lunch costs $8.50. No DGT this week in observance of Memorial Day. Visit DGT's web site at www.tucsondemocrats.org. Next Week: Elaine Richardson, candidate for Pima County Treasurer, and Brandon Patrick, candidate for the House in the New LD 10.

Cartoon of The Week

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

PAC+ ad - What Romney Thinks Of Us

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

A pro-Latino super PAC, called PAC+, has a new television ad in Arizona, criticizing Mitt Romney on immigration policy.

UPDATE: Daily Kos reports PAC Plus coalition organizes voters, targets Mitt Romney in Spanish and English:

Starting in Arizona, where TV ads will run in Phoenix, Tucson and Yuma in Spanish and English linking Mitt Romney to Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and Arizona Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, a new PAC Plus (PAC+) coalition of people of color and progressive whites is gearing up to target six key states: Arizona, California, Georgia, Ohio, New Mexico and Texas.

Video below the fold.

Stand up against Citizens United - corporations are not people!

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Two local events are coming up in opposition to Citizens United v. FEC.

First, the "Move to Amend Barnstorming Tour" is coming to Tucson on Tuesday, June 12, at 7:00 p.m., at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 4831 E. 22nd Street (at Swan Road). JUNE 1-17: Move to Amend Barnstorming Tour in Texas and Arizona.

TUCSON, AZ: Move to Amend Barnstorming tour with David Cobb | Move to Amend:

David Cobb, a fiery speaker, and former Green Party presidential candidate, is touring the country giving his talk "Creating Democracy & Challenging Corporate Rule." He tells the story of the American creation myth and the Constitution as it pertains to Corporate Personhood and illegitimate but legal corporate constitutional rights, followed by about an hour of facilitated discussion / Q and A.

Cobb is an organizer and national spokesman for MoveToAmend.org, a coalition of over 198,000 people and organizations whose goal is to amend the United States Constitution to end corporate rule and legalize democracy.

This event is free and open to the general public, donations requested, no one turned away for lack of funds.

• RSVP on Facebook

• Sign up to carpool

Contact:  Margo Newhouse at margonewhouse25@hotmail.com or (520) 784-1198

Second, I received an e-mail telling me that the Tucson City Council will be taking up a resolution to overturn Citizens United also on Tuesday, June 12, at 5:30 p.m., at the Tucson City Hall, 255 W. Alameda Street  (The meeting room is located on the west side of City Hall). The June 12 Agenda is not yet posted online so I cannot yet confirm.

The City of Flagstaff passed the resolution earlier this month. Flagstaff Is the First Arizona City to Pass the “Get Money Out of Politics” Resolution:

On Tuesday, May 1, 2012, the City Council of Flagstaff, Arizona passed a resolution condemning the decision of the United States Supreme Court in Citizens United vs the Federal Election Commission and called for a 28^th amendment to the U.S. Constitution to overturn the decision and allow states to regulate campaign contributions. The  resolution states in clear terms that contrary to the Supreme Court’s ruling, corporations are not “persons” protected by the constitution and do not have “political speech rights” under the first amendment.  Flagstaff is the first city in Arizona to weigh in on this issue.

Tuesday, June 12 is also Election  Day in the CD 8 Special Election, where we have seen the corrupting influence of corporate PACs, including from the infamous Citizens United responsible for this travesty.

FAUX News makes you stupid

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I blame all of 24/7 cable TV for this, really. I had to wait for a repairman to show up the other day and had the opportunity (misfortune) to channel surf through some daytime TV programming, something I never do. Oh my God! I could literally feel brain cells being destroyed. Turn it off, turn it off!

Let's say you decided to make a little fort out of your couch cushions, crawl inside, and just stay there. No television, no newspapers, no contact with the outside world whatsoever.

You'd still know more about the world than if you watched FAUX News Fraudcasting.

So writes Hunter at Daily Kos. Another study says watching Fox News makes you dumber:

I've lost count of how many of these studies have been done at this point, but I guess it's time to add another one to the pile. Watching Fox News makes you less informed about events than not watching any news at all.

According to a new study by Farleigh Dickinson University, Fox viewers are the least knowledgeable audience of any outlet, and they know even less about politics and current events than people who watch no news at all.

Respondents to the survey were able to answer correctly an average of 1.8 of 4 questions about international news and 1.6 out of 5 questions about domestic affairs. “Based on these results, people who don’t watch any news at all are expected to answer correctly on average 1.22 of the questions about domestic politics, just by guessing or relying on existing basic knowledge,” said Dan Cassino, the poll’s analyst.

“The study concludes that media sources have a significant impact on the number of questions that people were able to answer correctly,” wrote Cassino and his colleagues. “The largest effect is that of Fox News: all else being equal, someone who watched only Fox News would be expected to answer just 1.04 domestic questions correctly—a figure which is significantly worse than if they had reported watching no media at all. On the other hand, if they listened only to NPR, they would be expected to answer 1.51 questions correctly.”

Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes have created a fact-free alternate reality conservative media news bubble in which the willfully ignorant and dangerously misinformed live. It is how the conservative media noise machine and the irresponsible "mainstream" media that follows the lead of "manufactured outrage of the day" in the conservative media are destroying our democracy, which relies on the "informed" consent of the governed. I hope there is a special place in hell for the media.

Fact checking the mendacity of 'Mittens'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Time once again for Steve Benen's weekly fact checking of the pathological liar, Willard "Mittens" Romney. Chronicling Mitt's Mendacity, Vol. XIX:

Campaigning in Iowa yesterday, President Obama reflected on some of Mitt Romney's recent speeches, including last week's remarks in Iowa. "I know Governor Romney came to Des Moines last week; warned about a 'prairie fire of debt,'" Obama said. "But he left out some facts. His speech was more like a cow pie of distortion. I don't know whose record he twisted the most -- mine or his."

It was a rhetorical point, of course, but when it comes to Romney's falsehoods, I'm not sure whose record he twists more, either. Maybe you can help me decide by taking a look at the 19th installment of my weekly series, chronicling Mitt's mendacity.

1. In an interview with Mark Halperin, Romney argued about President Obama, "Did he hold unemployment below 8%? It's been, what, 39 months now. That hasn't happened. He promised it would happen by virtue of his stimulus."

As Romney surely knows by now, that's simply not true.

2. In the same interview, Romney asked, "Are people happy with ... the level of foreclosures?"

Romney was trying to attack the administration, but he's on record supporting more foreclosures, making this, at a minimum, wildly misleading.

3. Romney added, in reference to the president, " Look at him right now. He just doesn't have a clue what to do to get this economy going. I do."

Actually, Obama's jobs agenda, unveiled in September, included specific policy proposals that Romney had previously endorsed. If the president "doesn't have a clue," then Romney doesn't have a clue.

4. Romney went on to say, "I actually lay out a plan to get us to a balanced budget within eight years."

That's plainly false. Romney says his plan "can't be scored," but independent budget analysts have found his agenda would make the deficit bigger, not smaller, and add trillions to the national debt.

5. Romney also argued, in the context of talking about budget savings, "I'm going to take action immediately by eliminating programs like Obamacare, which become more and more expensive down the road -- by eliminating them, we get to a balanced budget."

He's lying. In fact, this is the polar opposite of the truth -- Obamacare's savings become greater in future years, and killing the law makes it harder to balance the budget.

Continue reading Chronicling Mitt's Mendacity, Vol. XIX.

Previous editions of Chronicling Mitt's Mendacity: Vol. I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII,XIII, XIV, XV, XVI, XVII, XVIII

Willard 'Mittens' Romney embraces Birtherism

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Earlier this week, Willard "Mittens" Romney was asked to admonish the actions of his Arizona campaign co-chairman, Secretary of State Ken Bennett, for embarrassing the state of Arizona by delving into the fringe Birther movement.

To my knowledge, Mittens has not publicly admonished the actions of Ken Bennett. I have not seen any public statement. The failure to object is to condone and to ratify the actions of Ken Bennett.

It gets worse. Also this week, the Romney campaign is promoting a fundraising event with the race-baiting Birther King himself, Donald Trump. Mitt Romney to supporters: Dine with Donald Trump - The Washington Post:

The Romney camp is offering supporters a chance to “Dine with The Donald,” according to a new fundraising missive.

“Donate today and you are eligible for a chance to win: Airport transportation in the Trump vehicle;” a “stay at the Trump International Hotel & Tower New York;” a chance to “tour the Celebrity Apprentice Boardroom;” and an opportunity to “dine with Donald Trump and Mitt Romney,” reads the message on the Romney campaign Web site.

An image on the site tells visitors to “donate $3 and you are entered for a chance to win” — although, as the fine print notes, as with any such campaign offer, no purchase is necessary to enter or win a prize.

In addition, Trump is hosting a Romney fundraiser next Tuesday night at the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas. Former House speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), who dropped out of the race last month, is also expected to attend, according to spokesman R.C. Hammond.

Wisconsin Update: The Total Recall/Walkergate Debate Friday Night

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Madison Capitol Times editorializes today on Friday night's Total Recall/Walkergate Debate. Walker versus Barrett (and John Doe):

Scott Walker and Tom Barrett have had debates before, but . . . It’s different now, as they prepare to debate Friday evening.

Walker is the most controversial governor in the nation, a right-wing firebrand whose attack on collective bargaining rights has provoked mass demonstrations, lawsuits and a recall election that has transformed the politics of Wisconsin. And Barrett is the challenger who carries the hopes of those who would defend labor rights, public education and public services in a historically progressive state.

But the issue that will likely be the most contentious of the first debate of the Wisconsin recall campaign between Walker and Barrett is a John Doe inquiry into felony wrongdoing by Scott Walker’s aides and political donors. The probe, which is led by Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, has already produced felony convictions, and now top aides to Walker when he served as Milwaukee County executive face trials that will raise the question asked recently by a Milwaukee anchorman: “What did the governor know and when?”

Tonight’s debate between Walker and Barrett — which will be aired live statewide at 8 p.m. on Wisconsin Public Television — will be wide-ranging. But Barrett, in television ads and public appearances, has posed two questions that are now unavoidable:

“Governor Walker, will you release all emails, sent and received, between you and the people in your office, who have been charged and pled guilty to criminal wrongdoing? Will you tell us, who is funding your legal defense, which has already paid more than $100,000 to criminal lawyers?”

But we wouldn’t stop there.

Dr. Richard Carmona is 'Zeus... a political Greek god'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Who said this? Jason Rose, Arizona GOP political strategist. No, really.

Pema Levy reports at Talking Points Memo A ‘Political Greek God’: Even Republicans Think Carmona Has a Chance In Arizona:

“Political Greek god,” “amazing” and “tremendous” are all words used to describe Arizona Democratic Senate candidate Richard Carmona — by Republicans.

Many Arizona Republicans think the Democrat who was personally tapped by President Obama to run could be the first Democrat Arizonans send to the Senate in 22 years.

His compelling biography is a big reason why.

* * *

But given the bare-knuckled brawl for control of the United States Senate, which has turned nasty in several other states, it’s rare to find a close race in which members of the opposing party are willing to speak so glowingly about the competition.

“Zeus,” Arizona GOP strategist Jason Rose said, “sent the Democratic Party here a political Greek god.”

“It’s a great story. It’s a beautiful story,” said Grant Woods, a former Republican attorney general of Arizona. “It makes people want to root for him, just like Barack Obama had a great story.”

Carmona is often compared to Janet Napolitano, the most successful Arizona Democrat in recent history, who won three statewide races before being joining the Obama administration to run the Department of Homeland Security.

“She was able to upend Matt Salmon,” said Rose, who advised Mitt Romney in Arizona in 2008 and supports him this time around, referring to Napolitano’s 2002 gubernatorial win in a very Republican year. “Can Carmona repeat what Napolitano was able to achieve? It’s certainly possible.”

“He has the potential to be an even better candidate than Napolitano,” said Woods. “Again that’s potential right now. … Janet, in all three of her statewide races, she executed flawlessly. I mean, there were no missteps. She did an excellent job. But on paper, I think Carmona starts in a much better position as a candidate than she did.”

* * *

“I think [Carmona has] the best resume that has run for political office in Arizona since John McCain in 1982,” said Rose. “You can make the argument that it’s the best bio to ever run for office in Arizona.”

Rose said Carmona is not just good on paper, either. He saw him in person and was “thoroughly impressed.”

Media fail at the Arizona Daily Star continues

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Jesse Kelly is avoiding the media like the plague, just as he did in 2010. Everything comes through his campaign spokespersons, one of whom is the Arizona Daily Star's former talentless hack political reporter, Daniel Scarpinato, who somehow fell upwards to land a job with the RNCC after blowing a tailor-made election for Jonathan "Payday" Paton in 2010 by losing to the political neophyte Jesse Kelly in the GOP primary (I mean really, how else does one explain this other than utter incompetence?)

Scarpinato's value to the Kelly campaign is his open door access at the Arizona Daily Star to an equally highly disappointing political reporter, Brady McCombs, who rotely reports whatever Scarpinato provides him in stenogrpaphic fashion. If McCombs had a lick of common sense he would avoid the obvious and transparent link between Star alumnus, which destroys the credibilty of the Arizona Daily Star as an objective news source. That goes double for the editors of the Star.

A line in today's reporting: "Scarpinato and the GOP have been trying to link Barber to Obama and what they call his 'job-destroying policies' throughout the campaign." McCombs does not correct this GOP falsehood.

The overall economy has now added over 2 million jobs over the last year, and nearly 3.5 million jobs over the last three years. For America's private sector, it's 2.3 million over the last year, and 4 million over the last three years.

Incidentally, the 8.1% unemployment rate is the lowest since before President Obama took office...

Here's another chart, this one showing monthly job losses/gains in just the private sector since the start of the Great Recession. That's 26 consecutive months of private sector job growth.

The Bush Years Were a Lost Decade of job growth. It was faith based supply-side "trickle down" GOP economics that gave us the Bush Great Recession. Bush is the first president since Herbert Hoover to leave office with fewer jobs than when he entered office. "Mittens" Romney promises Bushonomics "on steroids."

Rep. Trent Franks, 'Mayor' of Washington, D.C.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Rep. Trent Franks is Arizona's most embarrassing congessman by far, he just doesn't get the kind of media attention the others do.

Last week Rep. Trent Franks (R-AZ) held Congressional hearings on a bill that would prevent doctors in D.C. from performing abortions after 20 weeks (the bill the Arizona legislature recently enacted into law served as a model and cover for Frank's hearing). Franks prevented Delegate Eleanor Norton (D) — D.C.’s only congressional representative — from testifying against the measure, thus disenfranchising the citizens of Washington D.C. of representation.

Since Arizona's Trent Franks wants to micromanage the affairs of Washington, D.C., its citizens had a request for "hizzonor" the self-appointed "Mayor" of Washington, D.C. Protesters Mock Arizona Congressman’s DC Abortion Ban, Ask ‘Mayor Franks’ To Fix Pot Holes:

[P]rotesters descended on the Arizona Congressman’s office — who represents a district 2,300 miles and two time zones away from the nation’s capital — to ask “Mayor Franks” to fix pressing local concerns like pot holes, broken street lights and traffic lights:

One by one, about 50 protesters knocked on the door of Franks’ office, and then spoke a few words about a problem in the city that they think “Mayor Franks” should address if he’s going to be writing laws that affect D.C. residents.

“My issue today is Metro — full funding for Metro,” said Jon Ozment, a 56-year-old D.C. resident. “As a constituent here, I use Metro all the time, my children use it, and it’s really disgraceful the condition they’ve allowed Metro to get to.”

“I have to say I’m very disappointed today,” he added. “I really wanted to meet my representative, Mr. Franks. He’s supposed to be representing us and I did take some time to come in here today, so I hope he takes these concerns into account.”

Wednesday’s protest was organized by Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington DC and DC Vote.

The GOP Women's Policy Committee

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

So the Tea-Publican response to the GOPs "war on women" is to form a Women's Policy Committee and put a female face on their misogynist anti-woman policies. "How can there be a war on women if women are sponsoring these misogynist GOP policies?" (The Arizona legislature has used this tactic for years).

Tea-Publicans insult your intelligence. They think you are stupid and you will fall for this kind of crap. As Steve Benen writes, The 'Women's Policy Committee' gets to work:

The "war on women" didn't catch on as a national phenomenon because GOP officials are invariably men; it caught on after Republicans in Virginia decided to mandate medically-unnecessary, trans-vaginal ultrasounds for women who want to undergo a legal medical procedure.

In recent months, Republicans at the state and federal level and have been fighting to restrict contraception; cut off Planned Parenthood; approving sweeping new restrictions on abortion; playing games with the Violence Against Women Act; denying the existence of gender-based pay discrimination and rolling back pay-equity laws.

When it came time for House Republicans to pay for lower student loan interest rates, GOP officials decided to get the funding by cutting access to breast cancer and cervical cancer screenings.

And in nearly all relevant instances, every member of this new Women's Policy Committee voted with their far-right male counterparts.

If these lawmakers think a committee and a video will help improve the political circumstances, they don't yet understand that this is about public policy, not perceptions about gender diversity. If they want to close the gender gap, they need to change the substance, not the style.

The Women's Policy Commttee video has the feel of an SNL ad skit, and reminded me of this earlier ad from the creative minds at Funny or Die. (Video below the fold - not work safe).

The CBO has suddenly made everyone Keynesians again

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reminded everyone yesterday that on December 31 all of the Bush-era tax rates will expire, as will the Obama-era payroll tax "holiday." At the same time, thanks to the failure of the congressional "supercommittee" last October, $1.2 trillion in automatic budget cuts will kick in, half to come from the military budget, and half to come from domestic programs. the colloquial term for this event has become known as "Taxmageddon." CBO report: Taxmageddon would throw U.S. back into recession.

Steve Benen writes, Maybe we really are all Keynesians now:

Yesterday, the CBO told policymakers that if the deadline comes, tax rates go up, and spending goes down, the deficit will shrink very quickly -- but the economy will probably contract and slip into a recession.

And wouldn't you know it, the CBO has suddenly made everyone Keynesians again.

A giant austerity bomb is timed to go off at the beginning of next year, and the threat of significantly higher taxes and lower spending has Republicans running around the Capitol sounding more like John Maynard Keynes than John Boehner.

Automatic, across-the-board reductions to domestic and defense spending, combined with the looming expiration of the Bush tax cuts, will dramatically consolidate the budget in the next calendar year, if Congress does nothing. And despite bemoaning deficits throughout the Obama years, the GOP's suddenly come around to the view that cutting government spending is a job killer.

Republicans have argued, practically every day since Jan. 20, 2009, that there's a "debt crisis" that threatens the very fabric of civilization. This "crisis" will not only crush our children's future, conservatives have argued, the budget shortfall, created largely by GOP policies, is killing jobs and holding back the economy today.

But they don't mean it. If Republicans were sincere about this, yesterday's CBO report would be seen as great news -- after all, the automatic cuts and higher tax rates would not only shrink the deficit immediately, it would prevent trillions of dollars in new debt over the next decade.

Mittens: The first rule of Bain Capital Fight Club is that only I get to talk about Bain Capital Fight Club

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Willard "Mittens" Romney has made his experience at Bain Capital the centerpiece of his campaign (because he really does not want to talk about his one term as Governor of Massachusetts).

At the same time, Mittens argues that any criticism of his time at Bain Capital is evidence of "character assassination," and an attack on capitalism itself.

Sooo, Mittens can talk about Bain Capital, but no one else is permitted to talk about Bain Capital. What, is Bain Capital like Fight Club?

This is just as crazy as Newt Gingrich, after criticizing Rep. Paul Ryan's budget plan on Meet The Press Gregory, saying "Any ad which quotes what I said on Sunday Is a falsehood" -- umm, no it's not, you actually said it!

Romney surrogate Gov. John Sununu (R-N.H.) does not agree with the president of Bain Capital Fight Club. He told reporters in a presser on Tuesday, "I think the Bain record, as a whole, is fair game."

Mr. Sununu, Cory Booker is calling for you on line one -- he said something about "tag, you're it!"

Mittens' opponents in the GOP primary thought Bain Capital was fair game as well. "Who is this pretentious Gordon Gekko to tell us what is relevant and what we can talk about? F#%k him!"

Priorities USA Action has released this highlight video from the GOP primary on the subject of Bain Capital. (video below the fold).

The Tucson Weekly does fact checking right

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Maybe the staff at the Tucson Weekly should invite the staff of the Arizona Daily Star over for a course on how to do fact checking. Waddya think?

Jim Nintzel shows them how it is done. A Fact Check: The Citizens United Ad Now Showing in CD8:

The ad, which features an image of a sad elderly patient in a hospital bed, focuses on the same claims that we’ve already discussed in recent weeks about the “$500 billion in cuts” to Medicare under the Affordable Care Act.

Those claims have been repeatedly rated as “false” by PolitiFact and “misleading” by FactCheck.org, but they been recycled repeatedly by GOP political operatives since the 2010 midterm elections.

The Citizens United ad focuses attention on $130 billion in planned reductions in future expenses for the Medicare Advantage program, which uses private insurers to provide coverage to seniors, rather than the traditional Medicare program that the government runs.

“ObamaCare will gut the Medicare Advantage program,” the narrator says. “Jesse Kelly will save Medicare Advantage.”

A little bit of background on Medicare Advantage is helpful: About one-fourth of seniors across the country are now enrolled in Medicare Advantage, which was an experiment in seeing how the private sector could help hold Medicare costs down while providing better service for seniors.

While it has succeeded in providing, in some cases, better health-care benefits (such as gym memberships and vision and dental care plans), it has failed in keeping costs down. On average, Medicare Advantage costs about 14 percent more than traditional Medicare on a per-capita basis, according to Kaiser Health News.

The Affordable Care Act, as part of its effort to slow the growth of Medicare costs, introduces a variety of reforms for insurance companies that offer Medicare Advantage plans to bring costs in line with traditional Medicare.

Media fail at the Arizona Daily Star

Posted by AzblueMeanie:

Our sad small town newspaper, the Arizona Daily Star, fails us once again. The newspaper that cannot bring itself to publish a single fact check article on the "$500 billion cut to Medicare" lie that will not die -- and you really should ask the editors why they will not do what the Tucson Weekly does -- has yet another article by Brady McCombs in what appears to be an attempt at "gotcha" reporting, complete with a reference to a Breitbart.com video provided by the GOP.

McCombs' big reveal? Ron Barber supports reforming our broken healthcare system. Video proves Barber pushed for Obama health law, GOP says. Ooohhh, scary!

Here's a bit of history for you. President Theodore Roosevelt, a Republican, was the first to propose universal healthcare as part of his "new nationalism" in the Square Deal. His distant cousin, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, provided a safety net for the nation’s elderly, sick and disabled as part of the Social Security Act of 1935 in the New Deal. President Harry Truman made universal health care coverage part of the Democratic Party’s Platform in the Fair Deal. This goal was partially realized by the creation of the Medicare and Medicaid systems in 1965 under President Lyndon Johnson in the Great Society. And here's a schocker for you: President Richard Nixon expanded Medicare and Medicaid and worked with Sen. Edward Kennedy to propose universal healthcare coverage under the Nixon-Kennedy Healthcare plan of 1974. President Bill Clinton proposed national healthcare reform. And even Republican George W. Bush supported Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage programs. See, U.S. Presidents And Health Care Reform: The History Of Public Health Politics In America.

In short, every Democrat who has run for office since FDR's New Deal has supported healthcare reform. It's been in the Democratic Party’s Platform since Harry Truman. This would only be a story if Ron Barber was opposed to healthcare reform.

Another GOP myth debunked: Obama's excessive spending (not!)

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I am convinced that the GOP gets away with this myth-making only because the vast majority of Americans are: (1) terrible at math, and (2) know little or nothing about economics. Low information voters are going to be the death of us all.

As Tea-Publicans tell this tall tale, President Obama is "spend, spend, spending" this country into economic ruin. One of the favorite bumper sticker slogans of these simpletons is "stop the spending."

Steve Benen posts today, The spending surge that never happened:

The notion that federal spending soared after President Obama took office is one of those "facts" that the political world just accepts implicitly. Republicans have repeated the claim so often (and so loudly) that it's no longer even questioned. Indeed, Mitt Romney promises to "stop the excessive overspending" on a nearly daily basis.

But MarketWatch's Rex Nutting took a closer look at the assumption that many assume is true, but isn't. (The MarketWatch piece included this great chart, too.)

Government spending under Obama, including his signature stimulus bill, is rising at a 1.4% annualized pace -- slower than at any time in nearly 60 years.

But it didn't happen. Although there was a big stimulus bill under Obama, federal spending is rising at the slowest pace since Dwight Eisenhower brought the Korean War to an end in the 1950s.... There has been no huge increase in spending under the current president, despite what you hear.

It matters, of course, that a political myth is accepted as fact, especially when it's likely to be one of the driving messages of the 2012 campaign.

But let's also keep in mind that this has dramatic policy implications: the fact that the economic recovery is so weak and fragile has nothing to do with the debt and everything to do with not enough capital in the system, leading to too little demand.

In other words, the fact that spending growth under Obama has been so slow is practically a form of austerity, and it's bad for the economy, not good.

The biggest offenders, of course, were Saint Ronnie Reagan who quadrupled the national debt, and George W. Bush who doubled it again.

Jesse Kelly's energy/jobs 'pipe dreams' take another hit from reality

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Brad Plumer has a post today at Ezra Klein's WonkBlog that delivers another blow of reality to Jesse Kelly's energy "pipe dreams." Will cheap shale gas revive U.S. manufacturing? Not so fast:

It’s hard to think of an extravagant prediction that hasn’t been made about America’s recent natural-gas boom. Let’s see: Cheap natural gas will wipe out coal. It will make the U.S. energy independent. And, oh yes, it will create one million manufacturing jobs and revitalize the Midwest. [Cue Jesse Kelly]

That last claim comes via a recent report from PricewaterhouseCoopers. But over at the Council on Foreign Relations, Michael Levi casts a more skeptical eye on arguments that the age of cheap natural gas from shale will really lead to a dramatic revival of U.S. manufacturing.

There are reasons to think the overall impact will be fairly muted. Energy costs are still a small factor for many manufacturers. Levi points to a 2009 paper (pdf) by Joseph Aldy and William Pizer finding that “only one tenth of U.S. manufacturing involved energy costs exceeding five percent of the total value of shipments.” Aldy and Pizer estimated that a carbon tax, which raises energy prices, would affect manufacturing employment slightly — less than 3 percent — in the most energy-intensive industries like aluminum, cement, glass, and steel. The flipside is that lower energy costs, thanks to cheap natural gas, would have a similarly marginal impact.

(Updated) Legislatively-referred constitutional amendments on the 2012 ballot

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I need to update and correct an earlier post Legislatively-referred constitutional amendments on the 2012 ballot, now that Secretary of State Ken Bennett has finally got around to posting the information on his web site in between making calls to Hawaii regarding President Obama's birth certificate. Ballot Measures.

Prop. 114 - The Crime Victim Protection From Liability For Damages Amendment, SCR 1020 (2011) (PDF)

The measure would amend Aticle II, section 31 and Article XVII, section 6 of the Arizona Constitution.

The measure would prohibit crime victims from being subject to a claim for damages for causing harm to a person if that person is killed or injured when engaging in, or fleeing after, a felony crime.

Prop. 115 - The Judicial Department Amendment, SCR 1001 (2011) (PDF)

The measure would amend Article VI, sections 4, 12, 20, 36, 37, 39, 41, and 42 of the Arizona Constituion.

The measure would modify the Appellate and Trial Court Commissions. If it passes, specifically the measure would increase the terms of judges from six to eight years and the retirement age from 75 to 70. In addition to these changes, the State Bar of Arizona will be allowed to appoint only one of five attorneys to a judicial nominating commission. Currently, the governor appoints five attorneys that are vetted by the bar association.

This arises out of GOP displeasure with the Appellate Court Commission selection of the five members of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission in 2011.

CD 8 Veterans Issues Forum in Sierra Vista

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Sierra Vista Herald provided thorough reporting on the veterans Issues forum this past Saturday in Sierra Vista. Unfortunately, the Herald put it behind a "premium member" wall. While I do have the full report, there is no way for me to summarize this lengthy report on the candidates' responses to some nine questions. Suprisingly, the candidates were in general agreement on veterans issues -- the candidates differed when they ventured into other related issues.

I will give you the free part of the article and you can decide for yourself whether you want to be a "premium member" of the Sierra Vista Herald. Or maybe you can convince Bill Hess to post the full article in the interest of better informing the public -- or maybe he could make it available to his sister publication, the Tucson Weekly, for republication. Barber, Kelly address veterans’ concerns | The Sierra Vista Herald:

SIERRA VISTA — While the Republican and Democratic candidates for the special Congressional District 8 election answered questions pertaining to veterans issues, they were able to incorporate their stump speeches into their responses on Saturday.

Surprisingly  Republican Jesse Kelly and Democrat Ron Barber agreed in many cases in the answers they provided on some of the questions.

It was how they worked in their campaign comments where the differences were noted.

You must be a premium member to read the rest of this story. To become a member, please click here.

Dr. Richard Carmona op/ed on student loan dispute in Congress

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Dr. Richard Carmona's op-ed in the Ahwatukee Foothills News last week. Carmona: Hiking student loans would limit opportunity:

Access to higher education is the great societal equalizer and what ultimately makes the American Dream possible. It’s what gives every parent hope. And for kids who grew up poor like me, it’s what allows us to achieve success.

My grandmother always told me to get an education because it would set me free.

She was right, even if I didn’t immediately follow her advice. Like my friends and siblings, I dropped out of high school and ran the streets before joining the U.S. Army.

I served in Vietnam, and returned home a combat-decorated veteran. Despite earning my GED in the Army in order to qualify for Special Forces, when I returned home I still couldn’t get into college.

It was an open enrollment program for veterans at Bronx Community College that opened the door for me. It was an opportunity that changed my life. In one generation, I went from being a homeless kid on the streets to becoming the 17th Surgeon General of the United States.

Recent coverage of Dr. Richard Carmona senate campaign

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Going through my inbox of things to catch up on. . . There is an exceptional profile piece of Dr. Richard Carmona, candidate for the U.S. Senate, by Terry Greene Sterling at The Daily Beast. Dr. Richard Carmona Faces a Tough Race as the Democratic Candidate for Senate in Arizona. (The caption is based upon the premise that this is a Republican-leaning state and Rep. Jeff Flake has a substantial campaign war chest). The caption detracts from what is an otherwise must-read piece.

Dr. Carmona was also a guest on former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm's show on Current TV, "The War Room." Yeah, I don't get that cable channel either. Posting the video here will probably get more views than Current TV. Carmona calls for statesmanship in politics: 'I've always been a straight shooter' - The War Room with Jennifer Granholm:

Dr. Richard Carmona, Democratic candidate for senator in Az., calls for change and action. Carmona says Washington is “a toxic, hyperpartisan environment.” The fix? “We need to return civility to governance,” Carmona says. “It’s reprehensible that health issues are being politicized,” Carmona tells Jennifer Granholm. Women’s health issues are health issues, not women’s issues, he says. Most of all, he says people must be able to have confidence in their government. “We can’t run a democracy when 90% of people don’t trust the government.”

Video below the fold. (Video may run slower than the audio in some browsers).

Arizona Daily Star/Tucson Jewish Community Center CD 8 Debate on Wednesday

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Arizona Daily Star has provided more information about the CD 8 Debate it is cosponsoring on Wednesday, May 23 at 7:00 p.m. at the Tucson Jewish Community Center (JCC), 3800 E. River Road.

The JCC seats in excess of 500 people. Seating is first come, first served.

People who want to attend will not be allowed onto the JCC grounds until 6:00 p.m.

Tickets for admission to the ballroom will be distributed outside the JCC's main entrance starting at 6:00 p.m.

Political signs will not be allowed on the property. politically themed clothing and campaign buttons are allowed.

The candidates will have tables outside the JCC's main entrance where they can greet voters and distribute campaign materials. Campaign materials may not be distributed inside the building.

Audience members will be reminded to respect the right of all candidates to speak and be heard. Disruptive behavior will result in your ejection. (I understand that security has been arranged).

The debate will air live on radio station KVOI 1030 AM. A podcast will be available the next day.

You can submit questions for the debate. Questions should be directed to all candidates. Send your question to the Arizona Daily Star by e-mail no later than Monday, May 21 to politics@azstarnet.com. Questions should include your name and your telephone number and/or home address (for verification only). If your question is selected, you will be credited by name for your question used in the debate.

The banksters of Wall Street own Willard 'Mittens' Romney

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

One would expect an amoral vulture capitalist who is all about making money regardless of the cost in human lives and communities destroyed to be the choice of the amoral banksters of Wall Street. Willard "Mittens" Romney is one of them, and he promises to return these banksters to the unregulated casino capitalism that nearly destroyed our financial system and the world's economy just a few years ago. Good times.

Steve Benen writes, Getting by with a little help from their friends:

With fundraising totals reaching extraordinary heights, there's no doubt that both President Obama, Mitt Romney, and their assorted allies will have plenty of resources between now and Election Day.

But it's worth noting that while neither side will suffer from empty coffers, there's a clear qualitative difference in the kind of donors that separate one campaign from the other. The Boston Globe had an interesting report on this the other day.

When the head of JPMorgan Chase met with shareholders to answer for a trading loss of more than $2 billion Tuesday, it was against an evolving political backdrop: Donors from big banks are betting on Mitt Romney to defeat President Obama and repeal new restraints on risky, large-scale investments.

"There's no doubt that there's been a big diminution of support for the president,'' said William M. Daley, Obama's former chief of staff and a former top JPMorgan Chase executive. "People in the financial services sector are saying, 'The president has been too tough on us, both in policy and on rhetoric.' ''

The top five donor groups in Romney's campaign are individuals and political action committees associated with large financial institutions, led by Wall Street giants Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase, according to information compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan research group that tracks campaign donations.

Arizona Republic endorses Ron Barber for Congress

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

It turns out that Jesse Kelly is too extreme even for the GOP establishment conservative editorial board of The Arizona Republic, which endorsed Ron Barber for Congress today. Barber provides steady centrism district needs (excerpts):

We think Ron Barber is the best choice to finish Giffords' term.

Voters may want a different style in November. For now, Barber offers continuity and steadiness. He served as district manager during Giffords' 5 1/2 years in Congress, and he knows the district and the people. He wants to focus on problem solving. Barber cites as a model the cooperative efforts of Republican Sen. Barry Goldwater and Democratic Rep. Morris Udall to secure funding for the Central Arizona Project.

Barber is a former small-business owner, and he worked for 32 years with the state's Department of Developmental Disabilities before joining Giffords' staff.

Although the border is no longer the burning issue it was in 2010, Barber says ranchers in the district do not yet feel safe. He hopes to build consensus in Congress around security measures, such as stationing Border Patrol agents closer to the line; one rancher told him it took two weeks to get a hole in the fence repaired. He also wants to add horse patrols in rugged areas, increase use of unmanned drones, add more mobile surveillance units and pursue a public-private partnership to put up cellphone towers to reduce the number of communication dead zones.

These are practical solutions with bipartisan appeal.

Barber also says it may be time to uncouple the elements of comprehensive immigration reform and look at what can be done piecemeal. He mentioned the alternative Dream Act being offered by Republican Sen. Marco Rubio and a guest-worker program.

GOP attempting to depress Democratic voter turnout in CD 8

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I have heard from Democrats since last week, several of them long-time party activists, who have told me that they have received mailers from the Jesse Kelly campaign, and have received both live calls asking them to vote for Jesse Kelly or robo calls asking them to vote for Jesse Kelly. They even robo called my house!

Unless the GOP has an unlimited reserve of campaign cash (perhaps a line of credit with the Koch brothers?), campaigns do not spend their money on contacting voters of the other party. They contact their base voters and persuadable independent voters.

This is not an attempt to persuade Democrats to vote for Jesse Kelly. It is a form of intimidation to attempt to depress Democratic voter turnout.

If you have received one of these mailers, please scan it and send us a (.pdf) file of the mailer. If you have received one of these phone calls and stayed on the line long enough, please tell us the content of the phone call you received, particularly the "paid for by" legal disclaimer, in the comments.

Your response to this attempt to depress Democratic voter turnout should be to get angry and to return your early mail-in ballot or to go to an early voting location on Monday and cast your early ballot for Ron Barber. Make this blow up in their face.

Democrats fight for your rights in the GOP war on voting

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

There is a promo ad on MSNBC by Mrs. Greenspan (Andrea Mitchell) in which she says how terrible it is that political parties -- plural -- are trying to restrict the voting rights of American citizens.

Newsflash Mrs. Greenspan, there is only one political party that is subject to a federal court consent decree for voter suppression for over thirty years and that is the GOP. The RNC's latest appeal was rejected by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. Court Rejects Voter Suppression Efforts | Truthout.

It is the GOP that has sought to impose new restrictions on voting in state legislatures across the country over the past two years. Why don't you report that story on your program Mrs. Greenspan? Or would you and your hubby no longer be invited to the best cocktail parties in the Beltway media bubble?

Did you miss this story as well, Mrs. Greeenspan? This week in the War on Voting: Obama and House Democrats fight voter suppression:

[Dorothy Cooper is] 96 years old and almost wasn't going to be able to vote this year because stringent new voter identification laws passed in her state, Tennessee, intended to, well, keep people from her like voting. Because her story made news, she got some attention and help from a powerful source.

Obama for America volunteers helped secure Mrs. Cooper's identification and is featuring her in GottaVote.org, a new tool developed by the Obama campaign designed to help residents in every state navigate the increasingly complicated voter registration process. In an email announcing the new site, the campaign writes:

GottaVote.org is a one-stop shop for getting the facts on voting, reminders for key dates and deadlines, and alerts on the status of voting rights in your state. It’s available in both English and Spanish (www.gottavote.org/es) because different languages shouldn’t keep Americans from voting.

The Fire Next Time: The Euro Financial Crisis - G-8 to Germany: End Austerity

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

In advance of the G-8 Summit at Camp David this weekend, Paul Krugman's column on the the Euro financial crisis was decidedly pessimistic with the government in Greece this week rejecting the austerity plan forced on them by European Union leaders a few weeks ago, forcing new elections to be called in Greece. Apocalypse Fairly Soon:

Suddenly, it has become easy to see how the euro — that grand, flawed experiment in monetary union without political union — could come apart at the seams. We’re not talking about a distant prospect, either. Things could fall apart with stunning speed, in a matter of months, not years. And the costs — both economic and, arguably even more important, political — could be huge.

This doesn’t have to happen; the euro (or at least most of it) could still be saved. But this will require that European leaders, especially in Germany and at the European Central Bank, start acting very differently from the way they’ve acted these past few years. They need to stop moralizing and deal with reality; they need to stop temporizing and, for once, get ahead of the curve.

I wish I could say that I was optimistic.

Paul Krugman: Romney 'a dangerous fool'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Paul Krugman has said that Willard "Mittens" Romney is a pathological liar who will say anything to get elected. Now he is beginning to believe that Mittens is an ignorant dangerous fool. Win Some, Lose Some:

Is it possible that I have misjudged Mitt Romney?

My take has always been that he’s a smart guy who also happens to be both ambitious and completely amoral; he decided that his career can best be advanced by pandering to the crazies of the right, and will say anything to that end.

More and more, however, he has been coming out with statements suggesting that he is, in fact, a dangerous fool.

The latest: JPMorgan’s loss was no biggie:

This was a loss to shareholders and owners of JPMorgan and that’s the way America works Some people experienced a loss in this case because of a bad decision. By the way, there was someone who made a gain. The $2 billion JPMorgan lost someone else gained.

Hey, when Lehman Brothers lost a lot of money, that was money someone else gained. No problem, right?

Can Romney really not understand that key financial institutions are different from any old business — that when they fail they can wreak havoc? And can he really not understand that for that reason taxpayers are ultimately on the hook for large losses — and that JPMorgan in particular has government-guaranteed deposits?

I’m beginning to suspect that we can — that outside of whatever he did at Bain, Romney really is ignorant as well as uncaring.

Reminder: The Gathering of The Cochise County Democratic Party

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Announcement from the Cochise County Democratic Party:

Please send your donation with this detachment to the address below, or call a contact number to RSVP.

============================================================================

The Gathering Cochise Democratic Party, May 26, 2012

 

Name ____________________________________________________________ Total Number of Guests _________

 

Address _________________________________________________________________________________________

 

City/ Sate / Zip _________________________________________________________________________________

 

Phone _____________________________________________________________________________________________

 

E-Mail Address _____________________________________________________

 

Employer ___________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Occupation _________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Donation Amount ____________________ Check Cash

 

Cochise County Democratic Party, P. O. Box 3233, Sierra Vista, AZ 85636

Political Calendar: Week of May 20, 2012

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Political Calendar is posted on Sundays. Please send us notice of your political events prior to the Sunday before your event (7 days would be most helpful). See the calendar icon in the right-hand column of the blog page for easy access to the calendar.

SPECIAL ELECTION DEADLINES

• Early ballots were mailed May 17 , 2012.
• Early voting period from May 17 to June 8, 2012.
• Candidate nomination petitions for the CD 2 congressional election are due Wednesday, May 30, 2012 by 5:00 p.m. (prior to the Special Election)
• Normal statutory rules for legal challenges to candidate nomination petitions apply to general election.
• 'Special' Election Day is Tuesday, June 12, 2012.

We Are Listening in 2012! Campaigns are encouraged to submit notices of campaign events to BlogForArizona at BlogForArizona@gmail.com.

Campaigns are also encouraged to purchase Advertising on BlogForArizona. BlogForArizona does ads through BlogAds.com. This page will walk you through creating ads on our blog.

Political Calendar For The Week of May 20, 2012

Monday, May 21, Noon: Democrats of Greater Tucson luncheon, Dragon's View Restaurant (400 N. Bonita, South of St. Mary's Road between the Freeway and Grande Avenue, turn South at Furr's Cafeteria), buffet lunch costs $8.50. Featured speakers are Sen. Olivia Cajero Bedford (LD 27) and Rep. Steve Farley (LD 28) for a legislative session wrap-up. Visit DGT's web site at www.tucsondemocrats.org. Next Week: No DGT - Memorial Day observed.

Cartoon of The Week

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

New Ron Barber Ad: 'The Right Way'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Ron Barber for Congress has released a new ad, a thirty-second spot called “The Right Way.” The ad shows Jesse Kelly, in his own words, talking about his support for reducing the corporate tax rate to zero and his support for the so-called Fair Tax, a 23 percent consumption tax. Ron Barber for Congress Releases New Campaign Ad: “The Right Way” | Ron Barber for Congress:

Download a fact check of the ad here. [PDF]

At the Saddlebrooke Republican Club debate in January, 2010, Kelly said, “We must get the corporate tax rate to zero.”
[Saddlebrooke Republican Club Debate, 1/07/10]

According the non-partisan Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy, the Fair Tax proposal would eliminate all federal corporate taxes.
[P. 1, “The Effects of Replacing Most Federal Taxes with a National Sales Tax: A State-by-State Distributional Analysis,” Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, 9/01/04]

The same study by the ITEP shows that this tax plan would increase federal taxes on 80% of American families by $3,828 per year, while rewarding the richest five percent of American families with a tax cut of over $40,000.
[P. 6, “The Effects of Replacing Most Federal Taxes with a National Sales Tax: A State-by-State Distributional Analysis,” Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, 9/01/04]

On Kelly’s campaign YouTube channel, he uploaded a March, 2010 video in which he said, “A lot of people want to know how I feel about the Fair Tax, this 23% consumption tax that’s out there right now. I’ll tell you right now, I would vote for the Fair Tax. I do support the Fair Tax.”
[Kelly4Congress YouTube Channel, Uploaded 3/5/10]

At the University of Arizona Republican Club debate in April, 2010, Kelly said, “Fair tax, flat-tax, I support them both. They’re both fantastic and a lot better than what we have now.”
[University of Arizona Republican Club Debate, 4/08/10]

Kelly has also trumpeted his support of the so-called Fair Tax on the Jon Justice radio program. In July, 2010, Kelly told Justice, “As far as the Fair Tax goes, I would support the Fair Tax, would sign on as a sponsor immediately to the Fair Tax. […] the Fair Tax has my support one hundred percent.”

In September, 2010 he said, “I’ve also said I would support the Fair Tax because it’s better than what we have now.”

“Now that Southern Arizonans are being reminded of Kelly’s radical statements in favor of a tax policy that will hurt middle class families, we expect Kelly to deny ever having made them,” said Jessica Schultz, spokeswoman for Barber for Congress. “Sadly, that is what Southern Arizona has seen from Jesse Kelly: irresponsible ideas followed by unbelievable denials.”

“Middle class families need someone who will fight for them—not tilt the playing field further in favor of big corporations and the rich,” Barber said. “Unfortunately, Jesse Kelly has shown that he’s just fine with tax increases for the middle class—as long as corporations don’t have to pay their fair share.”

Video below the fold.

Tea-Publican insane clown posse makes Arizona the laughingstock of the nation

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

It seems every week there is a new political corruption scandal in Arizona. As I have said before, we should designate one of our prisons just for politicians and the lobbytists they serve.

Then there are the batshit crazy bills promoted by the Birthers-Birchers-Secessionists of the Tea Party in the Arizona legislature that keep late night comedians in business. Our Tea-Publican insane clown posse leadership in Arizona makes Arizona the laughingstock of the nation.

The stupid, it burns!

Laurie Roberts of The Arizona Republic writes today, Once again, Arizona is the nation's laughingstock:

Aaaaaaaaand we're off to the races once again.

The race, that would be, to determine the loopiest, looniest oh-so-laughable state in the land.

Cue Secretary of State Ken Bennett: "I'm not a birther. I believe the president was born in Hawaii or at least I hope he was. But my responsibility as secretary of state is to make sure that the ballots in Arizona are correct and that those people whose names are on the ballot have met the qualifications for the office that they seeking."

So starts the official kickoff to the 2014 gubernatorial campaign, a contest in which every God-fearing, gubernatorial-aspiring Republican will apparently feel the need to court the "tea party."

Update: Tea-Publican tyranny in Michigan - waiting for the courts to decide the fate of democracy

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

On Thursday the Michigan Court of Appeals heard oral arguments regarding the petitions for a referendum to repeal Michigan's emergency manager law which has been used to impose martial law in Michigan, dissolving duly elected town councils and school boards and putting them under the control of an unelected emergency manager possessing dictatorial powers, appointed by the governor.

Michigan Live reports Court of Appeals hears emotional, technical arguments in emergency manager ballot dispute:

Attorney Herb Sanders choked up this morning as he delivered a closing statement before the Michigan Court of Appeals in Detroit, his momentary silence contrasting with the chants of protestors 14 floors below.

Sanders, representing the Stand Up For Democracy coalition, urged the court to reverse a decision by the state Board of Canvassers, which kept a referendum to repeal Michigan's controversial emergency manager law off the November ballot because of the font size used on petitions.

"This case is about philosophy and how we're going to govern in Michigan," Sanders told the judges. "You can accept their philosophy, which is to make it difficult for people to petition their government, or you can uphold the Constitution of Michigan and the Constitution of the United States for government by the people, for the people and of the people."

Fact checking the mendacity of 'Mittens'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Time once again for Steve Benen's weekly fact check of the pathological liar, Willard "Mittens" Romney. Chronicling Mitt's Mendacity, Vol. XVIII:

Back in February, Paul Krugman argued that Mitt Romney is "running a campaign of almost pathological dishonesty." Was this an intemperate analysis? Perhaps. Three months later, does it seem fair? Put it this way: take a look at the 18th installment of my weekly series, chronicling Mitt's mendacity.

1. Romney promised in a speech this week, "I will lead us out of this debt and spending inferno."

Given that his stated agenda would add trillions to the debt, and Romney refuses to say how he'd pay for his tax cuts and increased Defense spending, the claim seems pretty misleading.

2. Romney claimed in the same speech that Obama has "bailed out the public-sector."

I really wish that were true. It's not.

3. Romney also argued that Obama has "added almost as much debt as all the prior presidents combined."

That's not even close to being true.

4. Romney insisted that the national debt is responsible for "the most tepid recovery in modern history."

That's ridiculously false. If the debt were holding back the economy, we'd have high interest rates and high inflation. We have the opposite.

5. Romney also said the national debt is the reason "half of the kids graduating from college can't find a job that uses their skills."

There is no universe in which this is true (or really, even coherent).

6. On the Recovery Act, Romney said, "President Obama started out with a near trillion-dollar stimulus package -- the biggest, most careless one-time expenditure by the federal government in history. And remember this: the stimulus wasn't just wasted -- it was borrowed and wasted."

The Recovery Act rescued the economy. Romney doesn't have to like it, but he shouldn't lie about it.

7. Romney added, equating the debt with a prairie fire, Obama "fed the fire. He has spent more and borrowed more."

That's false, too.

Continue reading Chronicling Mitt's Mendacity, Vol. XVIII.

Previous editions of Chronicling Mitt's Mendacity: Vol. I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII,XIII, XIV, XV, XVI, XVII

BONUS: The Washington Post's fact checker Glenn Kessler destroys Romney's "job creator" claims today with a definitive piece that does a total demolition job on Romney’s entire argument.

BONUS II: Bloomberg News fact checks Mittens' job creation numbers and calls bullshit. Fact-Checking Romney's Job Stats.

Almost forgot: Romney on the Rev. Jeremiah Wright smear campaign: “I’m not familiar precisely with exactly what I said, but I stand by what I said whatever it was.” This guy changes what he says so often, does he even have a clue what it is he is standing by?

D.C. Court of Appeals upholds constitutionality of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Aaahhh, this will give Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne another sad. Court after court -- just as they have always done since 1965 -- has upheld the constitutionality of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act which requires Justice Department preclearance for election laws in states with a history of racial discrimination like Arizona.

Today,the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld the constitutionality of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, affirming the summary judgment of the D.C. District Court. Press release from The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. D.C. Circuit Upholds Constitutionality of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965:

In Shelby County, Alabama vs. Holder, the court rejected an argument advanced by attorneys for Shelby County, Alabama, that the legislative record did not support the 2006 reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act, identifying numerous examples of modern instances of racial discrimination in voting that sustain Congress's findings.

"The court properly found that this key provision of the Voting Rights Act is still needed to ensure that minorities can fully exercise their constitutional right to vote free from discrimination," said Lawyers' Committee Executive Director Barbara R. Arnwine.  "This is an important victory in the defense of Section 5." 

Secretary of State Ken Bennett panders to the Birthers-Birchers-Secessionists of the Tea Party

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Secretary of State Ken Bennett is not good at his job. Anyone who has tried to use the candidate committee filings online to keep track of who is running for office knows that Bennett has completely failed to present this information in any usable manner accessible to the public -- the reason why it is posted online. Bennett is also slow to update bills that have been signed into law and to post them online.

Then there was his completely WRONG legal opinion in the Rep. Daniel Patterson matter in which LD 29 voters disenfranchised by Secretary of State Ken Bennett (Updated).

Earlier this week it was reported by the Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) that Bennett created the online signature-gathering system "E-Qual" largely to benefit himself in his run for governor in 2014. Ken Bennett collecting signatures for potential gubernatorial run | Arizona Capitol Times:

Secretary of State Ken Bennett, who helped pioneer the state’s online signature-gathering system for political candidates, has started using the system for his potential gubernatorial race two years away.

Bennett, a former Senate president, has an exploratory committee for governor, which means he can legally collect money and gather signatures to measure the viability of a gubernatorial run. [This is the "Huppenthal Loophole" that eviscerated Arizona's resign-to-run law.]

“Yeah, I guess, you know, this puts me one step closer,” Bennett said today of his online signature-gathering efforts.

Nothing unseemly about using his office to benefit himself, nosiree. Nothing unethical to see here, move along.

But Secretary of State Ken Bennett really outdid himself at the end of this week when he went full "Birther," proving that he is unfit for his job. Arizona Secretary Of State Says It’s ‘Possible’ Obama Won’t Be On Ballot | TPMMuckraker:

The man in charge of running Arizona’s elections has gone to the birthers. Secretary of State Ken Bennett now says he’s not convinced Barack Obama was really born in the United States and so he is threatening to keep the president off the ballot in November.

TED conference: Nick Hanauer - Who are the job creators?

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Back in March at the TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) Conference in Long Beach, California, Nick Hanauer, a venture capitalist and one of the founding investors of Amazon.com, gave a talk that cast quite a bit of doubt on Willard "Mittens" Romney's foundational argument for his campaign — his claim that as a super-rich vulture capitalist he was a "job creator." (Today Washington Post fact checker Glenn Kessler weighs in with a definitive piece that does a total demolition job on Romney’s entire argument).

Mittens is a true believer in the GOP religion of faith based supply-side "trickle down" economics, and has a Randian view of free market capitalism. In his talk, Nick Hanauer says supply-side "trickle down" economics "is dead wrong" and is damaging our society.

Nick Hanauer believes in textbook Economics 101 -- consumer demand is what grows the economy and creates jobs. This is bottom-up, not "trickle down." As President John Kennedy once said, "a rising tide lifts all boats," meaning that improving the economic conditions for those at the bottom will also benefit those at the top. As President Kennedy also said, "For of those to whom much is given, much is required," paraphrasing the Book of Luke 12:48.

There was a bit of a controversy yesterday over whether the owners of the TED Conference series of lectures had censured this talk on "Who are the job creators?" because it was "too political" and the TED Conference wants to avoid any political controversy. Ezra Klein writes in Nick Hanauer’s TED talk on taxes:

Chris Anderson, head honcho at TED, has responded to Nick Hanauer’s claims that his TED talk was censored. TED, Anderson says, tries “to steer clear of talks that are bound to descend into the same dismal partisan head-butting people” and that Hanauer “framed the issue in a way that was explicitly partisan.” The upshot, though, is that he’s letting viewers decide for themselves.

To my ears, Hanauer framed the issue in a way that was explicitly nonpartisan. The only mention of either party comes at the beginning: “If taxes on the rich go up, job creation will go down,” Hanauer says. “This idea is an article of faith for Republicans, is seldom challenged by Democrats, and has indeed shaped much of the economic landscape. But sometimes the ideas we’re certain are true are dead wrong.”

Video below the fold.

Extreme Makeover: The media villagers give Jesse Kelly 2.0 a pass

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

As I posted previously in Extreme Makeover: Jesse Kelly 2.0, "Blog for Arizona is going to go back through our posts from 2010 and repost some of them to demonstrate the "extreme makeover" the RNCC is doing to make Jesse Kelly 2.0 appear more palatable to voters in 2012."

Michael Bryan did a post on Every Republican Congressional Challenger in Arizona Supports a Flat Tax or National Sales Tax that contained this link to the Arizona Voter Guide with Jesse Kelly's 2010 Survey from the Center for Arizona Policy aka the Christian Taliban. http://www.azvoterguide.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/kellyj.pdf.

Some interesting highlights from Jesse Kelly:

Supports:

Q1.   Replacing the current federal tax code with a flat tax or national sales tax.

Q5.   Amending the United States Constitution to define marriage as between only one man and one woman.

Q12.  Prohibitng abortion except when it is necessary to prevent the death of the mother [only].

Q13.  Passing state laws that authorize local law enforcement officials to enforce federal immigration laws [i.e., SB 1070 type laws].

Opposes:

Q6.   Setting a government cap on carbon emissions, requiring companies to buy emissions credits, and allowing them to trade any leftover credits (called "cap amd trade') [supported by John McCain and Sarah Palin in 2008 presidential campaign].

Q10.  Adding "sexual orientation,' "gender identity," or "gender expression" to the protected classes of race, religion, age, sex and ancestry in discrimination law [The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) currently before Congress] [Related: the Violence Against Women Act amendments currently before Congress].

Q14.  Repealing the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which states that marriage is the union of one man and one woman and declares states do not have to recognize same-sex marriage from oher states.

Tucson Weekly Endorsement: Ron Barber for Congress

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Tucson Weekly on newstands today endorses Ron Barber in the CD8 Special Election -- early voting begins today. The Tucson Weekly Endorsement: Ron Barber:

There's a reason that Republicans who have worked with Democrat Ron Barber are stepping across party lines to support him.

It's because those Republicans—former Tucson Mayor Bob Walkup, Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik, homebuilder John Wesley Miller, former state lawmaker Pete Hershberger, former SAHBA lobbyist Alex Jacome, former president of the 162nd Fighter Wing Minuteman Committee Tim Amalong, and many others—have worked with Barber in the past. So they know from personal experience that he's the kind of guy who will work with other people to make Southern Arizona a better place, regardless of political ideology.

And that's why we're urging you to vote for Ron Barber in the June 12 special election to complete Gabrielle Giffords' congressional term.

Barber has deep roots in Southern Arizona. He has lived here since the 1960s, graduating from Rincon High School. He raised his family here. He built a career as head of the Southern Arizona branch of the state's Division of Developmental Disabilities, learning how to use the levers of government to help the most vulnerable in our community. He also successfully moved people out of state-run institutions and into the community, where they could live better lives.

With his wife, Nancy, he ran Toy Traders/Stork's Nest for more than two decades and learned about the challenges facing small businesses.

In 2006, Barber was inspired to leave his job with the state to help Giffords get elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. After she won that race, he headed her Southern Arizona office.

In that role, Barber gained the experience that would make him an excellent congressman. He helped build a staff that, by all accounts, reached across all sectors of the community to serve the people of Southern Arizona.

On Jan. 8, 2011, he was among those who were victims of a madman's rampage. But even after taking two bullets and nearly losing his life, Barber demonstrated his resilience. His first inclination was to find a way to make some good come out of a terrible event. As he recovered in the intensive care unit, he came up with the idea to find a way to raise money to help kids who are bullied, and young people who suffer from mental illness.

Barber created the nonprofit Fund for Civility, Respect and Understanding. Just about two months after the shootings, he brought an array of rock stars to Tucson for a fundraising concert—and ended up onstage himself, alongside his family, to sing "Teach Your Children" with the likes of Jackson Browne, Alice Cooper, David Crosby and Graham Nash.

Ron Barber has a spine of steel.

Now Barber is stepping up to serve one more time. At the behest of Giffords and her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly, he's taking on the challenge of representing Southern Arizona in the U.S. House of Representatives.

* * *

Southern Arizona voters have a stark choice in front of them. For us, it's an easy choice to make.

Vote for Ron Barber for Congress.

The Tucson Weekly teaches the Arizona Daily Star how political reporting is done

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

How can we expect informed voters when the media fails to inform?

A classic example today is the Arizona Daily Star coverage of last night's CD8 Special Election debate on KUAT. Star reporter Brady McCombs focuses on the optics of the event rather than substance, falls back on his comfort zone of pure stenography (he said/he said) to create a false equivalency that both sides are lying -- AND WHERE IS THE FACT CHECK accompanying article? Testy Barber, Kelly trade claims of lying during CD8 debate.

The Arizona Daily Star is almost totally useless.

Luckily we have a real political reporter, Jim Nintzel at the Tucson Weekly, who teaches the Arizona Daily Star today how political reporting is done. The Skinny | Tucson Weekly:

THE CD 8 AIR WAR ESCALATES

The stories about competing endorsements and shifting positions on Social Security and Medicare in the Congressional District 8 race have been overshadowed by the money pouring into Southern Arizona from Washington, D.C.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the House Majority PAC, a Democratic super-PAC, are spending at least $800,000 through Election Day; the National Republican Congressional Committee is spending at least $600,000, and the GOP ticket is getting a boost from the Citizens United, a right-wing super-PAC that announced this week that it would spend $100,000 on TV ads.

The Republicans are focusing on how Democrat Ron Barber won't support the complete repeal of the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare; the Democrats are focusing on all the radical statements Jesse Kelly has made about privatizing Medicare and Social Security, and eliminating the minimum wage and corporate taxes, as well as his other Tea Party rhetoric.

The NRCC ads, as we explained in last week's Skinny, rely on a claim that has been repeatedly declared "false" by the Pulitzer Prize-winning fact-check operation PolitiFact. The Republicans have been pushing the talking point that Obamacare cuts Medicare by $500 billion.

Classic Krugman

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Paul Krugman blog:

Killing Satire Isn’t Enough

Some people insist on waterboarding it first.

Former President George W. Bush will soon publish a book on strategies for economic growth.

Housekeeping

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

 

I will repost this link http://www.cracked.com/funny-3809-internet-argument-techniques/ which provides you with an effective summary of the worst practices of blog trolls. Enjoy.

Mann and Ornstein were talking about you, Robb

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Late last month, political scientists Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein wrote an op-ed, Let's just say it: The Republicans Are The Problem in the Washington Post that generated a great deal of discussion. (Oddly enough, the op-ed was not republished in either The Arizona Republic of the Arizona Daily Star, despite those newspapers subscribing to the Post's stable of syndicated columnists and often republishing Post editorials).

The premise of their op-ed is the same as in their new book, It's Even Worse Than It Looks: How the American Constitutional System Collided With the New Politics of Extremism:

We have been studying Washington politics and Congress for more than 40 years, and never have we seen them this dysfunctional. In our past writings, we have criticized both parties when we believed it was warranted. Today, however, we have no choice but to acknowledge that the core of the problem lies with the Republican Party.

The GOP has become an insurgent outlier in American politics. It is ideologically extreme; scornful of compromise; unmoved by conventional understanding of facts, evidence and science; and dismissive of the legitimacy of its political opposition.

When one party moves this far from the mainstream, it makes it nearly impossible for the political system to deal constructively with the country’s challenges.

Mann and Orrnstein also had harsh words for the corporate media villagers as well:

We understand the values of mainstream journalists, including the effort to report both sides of a story. But a balanced treatment of an unbalanced phenomenon distorts reality. If the political dynamics of Washington are unlikely to change anytime soon, at least we should change the way that reality is portrayed to the public.

Our advice to the press: Don’t seek professional safety through the even-handed, unfiltered presentation of opposing views. Which politician is telling the truth? Who is taking hostages, at what risks and to what ends?

Also, stop lending legitimacy to Senate filibusters by treating a 60-vote hurdle as routine. The framers certainly didn’t intend it to be. Report individual senators’ abusive use of holds and identify every time the minority party uses a filibuster to kill a bill or nomination with majority support.

Look ahead to the likely consequences of voters’ choices in the November elections. How would the candidates govern? What could they accomplish? What differences can people expect from a unified Republican or Democratic government, or one divided between the parties?

In the end, while the press can make certain political choices understandable, it is up to voters to decide.