Blog For Arizona

There's something eerily familiar about Chris Christie

Crossposted from DemocraticDiva.com

 

So it’s been revealed that NJ Gov. Chris Christie probably knew about the lane closures on the George Washington Bridge last year. Shocker! What this means is:

1. It is Christmas in February over at MSNBC

2. There is an important lesson in this for Dems who turn into big, wobbly piles of goo at the slightest sign of decency in a Republican.

Christie famously hugged President Obama after Hurricane Sandy and then bamboozled the public and credulous pundits desperate for a Moderate Republican Savior^TM for months after. He won his reelection for Governor easily – getting one third of the Democratic vote in the state – last November. Since taking that office in 2009, Christie had taken a sledgehammer to unions and public pensions and been a total dick to public school teachers but none of that mattered. Christie’s PR machine worked overtime to portray him as a likable guy with the “common touch”.

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's cartoonish side-kick thinking of running for governor

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I thought this was a headline from The Onion when I first saw it, but sadly it is from the AP (which is not satire, but frequently is also not real). Calling The Daily Show: Steven Seagal says he may run for Ariz. Governor:

Action-movie star (sic) Steven Seagal says he is considering a run for Arizona governor.

The "Marked for Death" actor told KNXV-TV that he is considering a shot at the state's highest office and has had a talk about the bid with the self-proclaimed toughest sheriff in America.

The 61-year-old made the comments while talking about his newly released reality series "Steven Seagal — Lawman: Maricopa County."

Seagal teamed up with Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio for the show that was shot in Arizona and airs on cable TV's Reelz Channel.

So crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's cartoonish side-kick and bad movie actor Steven Seagal is thinking about running for governor. Why God? Hasn't Arizona suffered enough already as the laughingstock of the nation?

I thought, surely the Phoenix New Times is all over this latest development, but the New Times is reporting on that godawful cable reality TeeVee show that the AP somehow glossed over. Joe Arpaio Hyping "Controversial" Episodes of Steven Seagal Show to Air on Obscure Network:

The Steven Seagal: Lawman show, which was filmed for two seasons in Louisiana and aired on A&E now has a "lost" third season. This one was filmed with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and is set to air starting tonight on a channel most people probably haven't even heard of.

Arpaio's press team has been circulating a flyer promising "controversial" episodes for this season featuring Seagal and Arpaio's boys in beige.

Seagal's presence has indeed been controversial, and you don't need to see a TV show to tell you that.

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's Birther attorney and groupie, Larry Klayman, calls for a 'coup' against President Obama

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's Birther attorney and groupie, Larry Klayman, who represented Citizens to Protect Fair Election Results, the Birther front group that sued Respect Arizona, the committee that tried to recall Arpaio, Birthers of the World Unite: Larry Klayman to Represent Group Defending Joe Arpaio, is back in the news again.

Judicial Watch founder Larry Klayman, who has previously called for an armed revolution in his WorldNutDaily column, is again calling for a "coup" against President Obama. Conservative Attorney Larry Klayman Sets Date For Coup Against Obama:

The conservative attorney and birther who called for a coup against President Barack Obama earlier this month has scheduled what he's describing as a "day of reckoning." 

Larry Klayman wrote Monday in Renew America that he's established Nov. 19 as the date that Obama will be forced to answer for his "criminality" and "Muslim, socialist, anti-Semitic, anti-Christian, anti-white, pro-illegal immigrant, pro-radical gay and lesbian agenda."

Klayman said he hopes his supporters will "descend on Washington, D.C., en masse, and demand that [Obama] leave town and resign from office if he does not want to face prison time."

As he did earlier this month when he first floated his coup proposal, Klayman invoked the example of Egyptians toppling President Mohammed Morsi.

It's All Fun And Games Until One Of Your Deputies Gets His Eye Put Out

By Tom Prezelski

Re-Blogged from Rum, Romanism and Rebellion

Folks who claim that our modern border militiamen are part of a proud Arizona tradition would do well to read what Captain John G. Bourke, an officer who accompanied General George R. Crook during the pursuit of Geronimo, had to say about their 19th century antecedents. Bourke characterized them as "rum-poisoned bummers" and "senseless cowards who sought to kill a few peaceable Indians and gain a little cheap notoriety." The captain went on to describe how their gun-happy amateurishness did nothing but make a bad situation on the frontier even worse.

The latest manifestation of the worst of the wild west spirit comes, of course, from Maricopa County, where a member of one such band of self-styled "militia minutemen" is in serious trouble for having pointed a rifle at a uniformed Sheriff's deputy in the desert near Gila Bend.

Social Security and Medicare Forum in Green Valley

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Announcement from Congressman Ron Barber's office:

I’ll be hosting a Social Security and Medicare Forum in Green Valley on August 20. Please join me and special guests on Tuesday, August 20 at 1 p.m. for information and refreshments at the Green Valley West Social Center.

Max Richtman, CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, also will participate.

WHAT: Social Security and Medicare Forum
WHEN: Tuesday, August 20 at 1 p.m.
WHERE: Green Valley Social Center, 1111 S. Via Arcoiris, Green Valley

Call my office with any questions or to RSVP at 520-881-3588. You can also RSVP at  [email protected]. Hope to see you there.

The state of Maricopa needs to end this litigation

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors has a choice to make: Deny funding to crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's appeal of a federal judge’s ruling that his office engaged in racial profiling, or concede that the supervisors condone his racial profiling. Sheriff Joe Arpaio appeal funding questioned:

[T]he Board of Supervisors refused to take a public stance on the issue last week, with the majority of supervisors saying the issue is not so black-and-white, and there are outstanding questions over legalities and logistics of the appeals process.

U.S. District Judge Murray Snow issued a ruling late last month that the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office engaged in racial profiling against Latinos. In his 142-page ruling on Melendres vs. Arpaio, Snow outlined the constitutional violations sheriff’s deputies committed when they targeted Latino drivers and detained them on the side of the road longer than other drivers.

Arpaio’s attorney, Tim Casey, denied Snow’s findings and said he would appeal the ruling.

Casey said the sheriff should determine how the case moves forward as the elected official named in the lawsuit.

“It is my understanding that, because this case does not involve a claim for money damages and only involves a claim for declaratory and injunctive relief that relate to the operations of MCSO, that the elected sheriff as policymaker for MCSO and its operations determines whether to appeal,” Casey said.

Random Thoughts On the Arpaio Recall

Posted by Bob Lord

Sorry, but this may be a bit stream of consciousness. Everything relates to the now unsuccessful Arpaio recall effort, but the thoughts otherwise may be unconnected.

First, was it a wasted effort? Absolutely not. Thousands of new voters were identified and registered. The data contained on those petitions is incredibly valuable. Some of those signature gatherers had their first taste of activism and liked it. And, if we look closely at who didn't support the recall effort, well, we know something about them we need to know. On that last item, there's a list of elected officials and candidates on the Respect Arizona website. Note the Dems who are not on it. 

Second, we saw who in the media gets it and who doesn't. Steve Lemons showed himself to be the class act he is. Laurie Roberts, well, Laurie deserves her own paragraph:

Lemons' Straight Talk on Arpaio

Posted by Bob Lord

In 168 words, Steve Lemons, the best political reporter and best investigative journalist in Arizona, tells you why you must help the Recall Arpaio campaign in these last few days:

Arpaio's 20-plus years in office are a result of being democratically elected six times by the voters of Maricopa County.

In other words, every act of discrimination and injustice, every child torn from his or her parents, not to mention every wrongful death in Arpaio's jails, is on the heads of those who voted for this ogre, empowered him, and gave him a mandate to run roughshod over the U.S. Constitution and the human rights of all.

Collective guilt for Arpaio's misdeeds blankets all of Maricopa County. Only those who have acted in opposition to Arpaio escape it.

Nevertheless, we are all tainted by the shame of having this racist Frankenstein monster as our sheriff.

Here, then, is a way for the denizens of this county to begin to redeem themselves in the eyes of the civilized world.

That is, pull off the impossible, and once and for all remove Arpaio from power, and send him off to Fountain Hills to live out his remaining days in disgrace.

The emphasis is mine. I just think those three paragraphs are awesome. I wish politicians spoke like Lemons writes. 

Let's all make this happen. 

Still Time to Recall Arpaio, Especially if Dem Candidates Help

Posted by Bob Lord

As the BlueMeanie has reported, a Federal judge has found that Joe Arpaio engaged in racial profiling of Latinos. 

It's no surprise, but It's also beyond despicable. This explains why Respect Arizona launched the recall campaign when they did. They knew Arpaio was doing this. You see, many of them were his victims. It explains why some candidates like David Lujan had the courage to support the recall campaign from the get go. 

Unfortunately, the recall campaign is short on signatures.

But there are still a few days left and they're within striking distance.

Here's an idea how five minutes or your time could be a huge help:

There are candidates out there with huge email lists. We need them to blast those email lists and urge their supporters to do everything they can. 

And they will, if people like us ask them to do so. Let them know it's important to you.

And if a candidate refuses to help, well ...

NEW POSTS WILL APPEAR BELOW

Federal Judge enjoins racial profiling by crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio and his MCSO

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Remember when crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio, Sheriff of Maricopa County, told his ardent critics who accused him of having a policy of unlawful racial profiling of Latinos to "prove it" in court? Be carfeful what you wish for, old man.

Today, U.S. District Court Judge G. Murray Snow specifically found from the evidence presented at trial that the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office has a policy of unlawful racial profiling of Latinos, and issued an order enjoining that policy, with a 142 page Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law. (.pdf). Awesome!

If you don't have time to read 142 pages, Stephen Lemons at the Phoenix New Times has his celebratory take, Joe Arpaio's Doomsday: Arpaio Loses ACLU Civil Rights Lawsuit, MCSO Enjoined from Racially Profiling Latinos:

U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow just handed the ACLU, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, the law firm Covington & Burling, all Latinos and everyone who has strived for justice in Maricopa County a reason to celebrate over the long holiday weekend by ruling against Sheriff Joe Arpaio in the big Melendres v. Arpaio racial profiling lawsuit.

Essentially, Snow found that the MCSO does engage in racial profiling and discrimination, and he has ordered it to stop.

So how's that GOP rebranding working out?

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

On Sunday, the Arizona Republic for some reason felt compelled to publish a guest opinion (and video) by the disgraced and recalled former Senate President, Russell Pearce, writing on behalf of his anti-immigrant nativist hate group, BanAmnestyNow.com.

Pearce discloses a continuing working relationship with the anti-immigrant nativist hate group,  Federation of American Immigration Reform (FAIR), whose lawyer Kris Kobach wrote SB 1070 for Pearce.

Pearce also cites the widely discredited Heritage Foundation report (.pdf) released last week, which was drafted, in part, by Jason Richwine, who subscribes to the controversial "science" of hereditarianism and eugenics. Richwine was forced to resign from the Heritage Foundation on Friday, presumably after Russell Pearce submitted his guest opinion to the Republic.

Ol' Russel writes, Immigration tug-of-war: Reform effort is a sham:

The 3-year-old Senate Bill 1070, America’s toughest anti-illegal immigration law, has had a dramatic impact on Arizona. We are a better place.

* * *

According to information from the Federation of American Immigration Reform, Arizonans pay $2.6 billion per year to educate, medicate and incarcerate illegal aliens. According to the Heritage Foundation, the billions we pay today are but one-third of our eventual tab a decade from now if the “Gang of Eight” immigration bill becomes law.

* * *

However, despite the many advances we have made, the burdens of illegal immigration still are too high. This is why I call upon my fellow citizens to join me in opposing the latest amnesty/citizenship bill. The group of eight U.S. senators’ legislation (including Arizona Sens. John McCain and Jeff Flake) risks America’s financial and national security. This bill is the epitome of everything that is wrong, backward and corrupt in Washington.

Tea Party Recall Hijinks

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Rep. Steve "Secession" Smith (R-Maricopa), an acolyte of disgraced recalled Senate President Russell Pearce and crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio, led an evil plot to legislatively "amend" the constitutional provision for recall in Arizona's constitution without voter approval. Stevie Secession actually got his evil plot approved by a vote of the Tea-Publican House. But it thankfully has died -- for now -- in the Senate (it's never over until sine die). GOP defections kill bill to change recall elections:

A plan to revamp the state's recall laws for all future elections fell apart Thursday when some Republican senators broke party ranks.

On an 18-10 vote, the Senate killed a House-passed measure that would have required both a primary and a general election in the event of a recall. Foes said they saw no reason to alter a system that has been in place since the early days of Arizona statehood.

Its fate may have been sealed by a late alteration that created an even more convoluted system - a provision where a recalled official could lose his or her own partisan primary and still be on the general election ballot.

UPDATE: On Monday, the Senate approved a motion for reconsideration by voice vote. A reconsideration of this bill has not yet been scheduled for a vote (while threats and intimidation to get the 16 votes needed is occurring behind closed doors).

Recall of Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio Half-Way to Signature Goal

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

At the Respect Arizona Recall Sheriff Joe Arpaio event last night, it was announced that they are half-way to their signature collection goal. Stephen Lemons of the Phoenix New Times reports, Joe Arpaio Recall Boasts 169,283 Valid Signatures, 166,034 More Needed by May 30:

Close to 1,000 people jammed the Painter's Union Hall in Phoenix Thursday to hear the news that the recall of Sheriff Joe Arpaio so far has scored more than half the signatures required to force a recall election on the octogenarian despot.

Part rally, part seminar, the meeting was organized by the Arpaio recall group Respect Arizona, which, earlier in the day, announced that it had "less than 200,000" signatures left to gather by the May 30 deadline.

During the meeting, Respect Arizona's campaign manager Lilia Alvarez told attendees that the group now had 169,283 signatures in the bank, with 166,034 remaining to collect in the next 55 days.

She later confirmed to me that those 169,283 signatures were verified as being from qualified Maricopa County electors. She estimated that the group had collected a gross of about 20 percent more than that.

Law enforcement veterans join the recall of crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

"The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated." - Mark Twain

Not long ago the manic-depressives in the Arizona political media were all but declaring the recall of crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio "dead." It seems they were a bit premature in pronouncing the time of death.

The Arizona Republic reports today, Law-enforcement veterans join Arpaio recall:

Several retired Valley law-enforcement officials have joined the recall effort against Sheriff Joe Arpaio, criticizing him for using what they consider scare tactics to raise money to fight the recall.

Respect Arizona is in the process of gathering signature petitions seeking to hold a recall election to oust Arpaio.

The group obtained a letter — signed by Arpaio and paid for by the Elect Sheriff Joe Arpaio campaign — that was e-mailed to conservative supporters urging financial donations to help fight the recall.

Respect Arizona Recall Arpaio event April 4th

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Announcment from Respect Arizona:

Tea Party temper tantrum: Arpaio 'Birthers' sue to stop Arpaio recall

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Earlier this week, Respect Arizona, the organization behind the recall of crazy uncle Joe Arpaio, announced that it is suspending its paid signature gathering campaign due to a shortage of funds (you can help alleviate this cash flow problem by using the link to contribute and to volunteer to circulate petitions).

This announcement from Respect Arizona caused The Arizona Republic(an), which first opposed the recall effort and then supported it, to have another manic depressive episode. Laurie Roberts clutched her pearls and reached for her smelling salts with a post assigned two doom and gloom captions. Joe Arpaio recall doomed by political miscalculation and Joe Arpaio recall in trouble:

Just 12 days after anti-Joe Arpaio forces announced that they had collected an impressive 120,000 signatures in the campaign to recall Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the campaign has taken a nosedive.

Lilia Alvarez, campaign manager of the Arpaio recall, confirmed the campaign is out of money and can no longer pay petition circulators. Instead, Respect Arizona will rely on volunteers to get to the promised land of 335,317 valid signatures by May 30.

Alvarez remains optimistic that it can be done.

Respect Arizona Recall Arpaio event April 4th

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Announcment from Respect Arizona:

Tea Party temper tantrum: upset about Arpaio recall, they retaliate with a recall of Chad Campbell?

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The dimmest bulbs in the political marquee, state of Maricopa Tea Party teabaggers, are upset that the recall effort against their beloved Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio is going so well. So they are throwing a bit of a temper tantrum by retaliating for the recall by filing a recall of their own against House Minority Leader (and exploring for a gubernatorial bid) Chad Campbell.

Don't try to make sense of it, there isn't any. They are just cherry-picking a high profile Democrat whom they dislike. These are people who have not advanced beyond the emotional development of a three year old with the "terrible threes."

Matthew Hendley of the Phoenix New Times reports, Joe Arpaio Supporters Go for Another Unlikely Recall: Democrat Chad Campbell:

In what appears to be another recall attempt motivated by the effort to recall Sheriff Joe Arpaio, some Arpaio supporters say they're going to try to recall House Minority Leader Chad Campbell.

Time to make the big push to recall Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Editor's note: Randy Parraz will be speaking at the Northside Democrats Club on Wednesday at Noon, at Mimi's Cafe, 4420 N. Oracle Road (Tucson). See www.northsidedems.org. Bring your check book and be generous.

Good news this past week: recall organizers have collected valid signatures at a very brisk pace. Arpaio recall group: Third of signatures gathered:

Leaders of an effort to oust Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio say they’ve gathered a third of the signatures needed to force a recall election.

Recall organizers say they’ve gathered 120,000 of the more than 335,000 valid voter signatures required by May 30 to prompt an election.

Lemons on Arpaio Recall: If They Raise The Money, He's Done

Posted by Bob Lord

Actually, that was not just Steve Lemons, whose analysis is dead-on, as usual, but also Chad Willems, the Arpaio henchman in charge of fighting the recall effort. You can read Steve's entire analysis, here.

Bottom line: if we all pony up, we can rid ourselves of this scourge. You can contribute at the Respect Arizona website.

Arpaio Recall: 'Systemic failures' in botched sex-crimes cases

Posted  by AzBlueMeanie:

The Maricopa County Sheriffs Department on Monday released results of a five-year investigation into why the sex-crimes unit mishandled sex-crime cases. "It concluded that no single person was responsible for systemic failures that resulted in hundreds of cases being reopened." MCSO report: Blame the system for botched sexcrime cases:

Last year, an Arizona Republic investigation into the 400-plus reopened cases revealed that the Sheriff’s Office failed to adequately investigate reports of sex abuse and assault — in some cases never interviewing suspects or running background checks on known offenders.

Some sex-crime complaints were completely ignored. In other cases, files were later found gathering dust in a drawer or in a deputy’s garage. Those shortcomings, combined with lengthy delays in resolving cases, left alleged predators free to find other victims — sometimes for years.

The report concluded that detectives who failed to file reports or who improperly stored evidence at home were no more responsible for flawed investigations than supervisors who failed to check log books or who signed off on incomplete case-clearance sheets.

“The deficiencies identified ... were not problems that stemmed from the conduct of one or a few individuals. Rather, I have determined that ... the MCSO sex-crimes unit was inadequately resourced to complete its tasks. The systemic problem could not then, and cannot now, be properly addressed or corrected by disciplining a few individuals,” sheriff’s Deputy Chief Brian Sands wrote last week to detectives at the center of the internal investigation.

Stephen Colbert on Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's Posse

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I posted about this last week, Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's questionable posse to do a school-shooting simulation this weekend - supervised by actor Steven Seagal. That was simply too good to be true for Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report who mocks the exercise mercilessly in this segment, "Arizona's Gun Posse."

"Because the only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is an even worse actor."

Video below the fold.

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's questionable posse to do a school-shooting simulation this weekend - supervised by actor Steven Seagal

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

What could possibly go wrong? As reported earlier this year, Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio endangers your children:

Phoenix CBS affiliate KPHO (CBS 5) decided to investigate who these volunteer posse members are. After a six month investigation it discovered that some of Arpaio's posse members have criminal records. Criminal pasts don't disqualify members of Arpaio posse.

Now comes this, Joe Arpaio's Posse Doing a School-Shooting Simulation, and Steven Seagal's Supervising. No, seriously:

Folks, Sheriff Joe Arpaio's school-patrol posse is so serious about school safety that posse members will be setting up a school-shooting simulation this weekend as a test.

Have we mentioned yet that actor Steven Seagal will be supervising the festivities?

"On Saturday, February 9, 2013, qualified armed volunteers from Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's posse will undergo their first ever training event which simulates an actual school shooting," an Arpaio press release says. "Sheriff Arpaio, who ordered the training, says six instructors will lead 40 armed posse volunteers through four different scenarios where a shooter or shooters come onto a school campus with the intent to kill."

Joe Arpaio -- What Recalls Were Invented to Remedy

Posted by Bob Lord

[My friends at Down With Tyranny just posted this piece I wrote, but I thought I'd post it here as well.] 

Progressives across America have a rare opportunity.

Joe Arpaio, the megalomaniacal sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona, is the face of racism in America today. He is facing a well-organized recall campaign. Arpaio has been elected six times, dating back to 1992, by raising zillions of dollars from right-wing ideologues and using the funds to play to the fears of Maricopa’s conservative population base, particularly the fearful senior citizens in the retirement communities west of Phoenix, while smearing his opponents with horrifically deceitful ads. But each election has been a tougher sell for Arpaio than the one before. Last November, he squeaked by with 50.7% of the vote.

The Arizona Republic: 'Leave Joe Arpaio alone!'

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The media arm of the GOP establishment in Arizona, The Arizona Republic(an), has issued its decree that there shall not be a recall of Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio. No need for new vote on Arpaio.

Columnist Laurie Roberts is so incensed that she has written two opinions just since last Friday. Arpaio recall already?, and Joe Arpaio recall a slap to voters. What does this remind me of?

Oh yeah -- "Joe Arpaio is just misunderstood. Leave Joe Arpaio alone!"

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio Recall - It's Official

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Since Blog For Arizona did not receive a press release from Respect Arizona (ahem), here is the Phoenix New Times report on Thursday's press conference. Sheriff Joe Arpaio Target of Recall -- It's Official -- By Same Community Leaders Who Successfully Ousted Senator Russell Pearce:

A campaign to recall Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is under way, with the penning of the first of the 335,000 signatures needed for an election to take place in November.

William James Fisher, a local attorney, is the chairman of Respect Arizona, a political action committee formed to oust the sheriff.

Fisher says, "Arpaio has failed in many ways," citing the sheriff's wasteful spending, the mismanagement of his office, the racial profiling in which his deputies engage, and his preference for publicity over doing his job.

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio Recall to be announced today

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

You may remember that when the recall of disgraced former Senate President Russell Pearce was announced the only media that believed he was vulnerable and could be defeated under the right circumstances was the Phoenix New Times and Blog For Arizona. The establishment political media in Arizona (which is synomymous with the conservative media entertainment complex and frequently the media arm of the Arizona Republican Party) all pooh-poohed the idea as crazy, can't happen, don't waste your time. Ol' Russell is untouchable.

We were right, they were wrong. Get ready for this same dynamic to play out again this year.

The Phoenix New Times reports Joe Arpaio Recall Paperwork Filed With Maricopa County Elections Department:

The political committee that's apparently going to try to recall Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio filed its registration paperwork with the county elections department this morning.

It's still not clear exactly who's behind the committee, Respect Arizona, but Citizens for a Better Arizona president Randy Parraz told Stephen Lemons this morning that he knows some stuff about it.

He told Lemons an attorney named William James Fisher will chair the committee, which is consistent with the information on this morning's filing. A woman at Fisher's office tells New Times that Fisher's out of the office until [Thursday] -- which is when a press conference on the matter is supposedly being held.

[Note: Guys, put Blog for Arizona on your press release media email blasts.]

Arizona's media villagers are failing to report on this scandal

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

I previously posted about Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's anti-government extremism:

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio is a favorite of far-right extremist groups like former Graham County Sheriff Richard Mack's conspiratorial Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association and the Oath Keepers, made up of former and current law enforcement officers and military personnel who believe it is their duty to defy what they deem to be unconstitutional orders. These anti-government extremists are a law unto themselves.

Hence this bit of anti-government extremism from Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio on Wednesday. Joe Arpaio Says He May Not Enforce New Gun Laws (AUDIO).

Not to be outdone for media attention, "Joe, Jr.," Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu, penned a letter to President Obama last week saying that he too would not enforce any federal laws that he deems to be unconstitutional orders. Has anyone investigated his connections to far-right extremist groups like Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association and the Oath Keepers?

Talking Points Memo reports Arizona Sheriff Tells Obama He Won’t Enforce Federal Gun Laws:

Arizona Sheriff Paul Babeu penned a letter to President Barack Obama last week criticizing the administration's gun control proposals and asserting that he won't enforce any law or executive order "contrary to what the Constitution of the United States of America says."

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's anti-government extremism

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio is a favorite of far-right extremist groups like former Graham County Sheriff Richard Mack's conspiratorial Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association and the Oath Keepers, made up of former and current law enforcement officers and military personnel who believe it is their duty to defy what they deem to be unconstitutional orders. These anti-government extremists are a law unto themselves.

Hence this bit of anti-government extremism from Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio on Wednesday. Joe Arpaio Says He May Not Enforce New Gun Laws (AUDIO):

During an interview with conservative radio host Mike Broomhead, Arpaio said he took an oath to defend the Constitution and he won't carry out policies that run counter to the founding document. 

"Now if they’re going to tell the sheriff that he’s going to go around picking up guns from everybody, they’re going to have a problem," the Maricopa County, Ariz. sheriff said. "I may not enforce that federal law.”

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio endangers your children with criminals in his posse

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

At a news conference on Wednesday, Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio announced that around 3,000 volunteers will patrol the 59 schools in the sheriff's primary jurisdiction each school day for the rest of the year, and about 500 of the volunteers will be armed and authorized to use the same weapons as deputies do.

Arpaio told ABC/Univision back in December that it was not up for debate whether the schools had posse members posted outside. "It doesn't matter whether they like it or don't," he said. "I'm still going to do it."

Phoenix CBS affiliate KPHO (CBS 5) decided to investigate who these volunteer posse members are. After a six month investigation it discovered that some of Arpaio's posse members have criminal records. Criminal pasts don't disqualify members of Arpaio posse:

Maricopa County Sheriff's Posse members wear uniforms, have badges, drive county vehicles and some even carry guns. And some of them also have criminal records. 

* * *

Arpaio wants his army of 3,000 volunteer posse members to look like sworn deputies and sometimes perform the same duties. But an in-depth project by CBS 5 Investigates uncovered a number of posse members with arrests for assault, drug possession, domestic violence, sex crimes against children, disorderly conduct, impersonating an officer - and the list goes on.           

These are crimes that are not tolerated in many professions, especially professions with an implied authority.

* * *

CBS 5 Investigates discovered that the county does not keep detailed records on posse members. A look into the backgrounds of about 2,000 of them revealed arrests for dozens of different crimes. From there, CBS 5 took a close look at some of the cases that were able to be confirmed.

Arpaio is a chicken. Call him out! (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio knows that challenger Paul Penzone is nipping at his dusty cowboy boots this election season-- so Arpaio is taking the chicken shit standard Republican position of refusing to debate. Public pressure forced Republican Jeff Flake to debate Democrat Dr. Richard Carmona.

Maricopa County is a cesspool of corruption-- election fraud, tent city jails, sheriff's deputies shooting citizens, intimidation of elected officials and citizens, people being murdered in jail, immigration sweeps through neighborhoods, racial profiling ... need I go on? Arpaio is a big part of the problem. It's time for his retirement.

Let's put the pressure on Arpaio to debate Penzone. Here is a Facebook call to action from Randy Parraz.

 

Randy Parraz

Today is DAY 15 of Arpaio's NO DEBATE PLEDGE. On October 9th Sheriff Arpaio pledged to NOT debate Paul Penzone AND he thinks he can get away with it. Take action now - Call Arpaio's puppeteer, Chad Willems, at Summit Consulting and ask him why Arpaio is too chicken to debate Paul Penzone: (602) 235-9320. Please post your responses here.

Check out one of Penzone's early campaign speeches and a background video on Arpaio after the jump.

Maricopa County election fraud: Two official documents give Spanish speakers wrong election date (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Those pesky typos! (Yeah, right.)

The Maricopa County Elections Department has admitted to a second instance of voter suppression... er... poor proofreading. You'll remember that last week ABC 15 and Blog for Arizona reported that Spanish speaking voters were given the wrong date for the election on a document that was included with new voter registration cards.

This week, the elections department says that a bookmark with election details gives English speakers the correct date for the election (Nov. 6) but gives Spanish speakers Nov. 8 as election day.

Giving groups that you don't want to vote the wrong date is a tried and true voter suppression tactic. I didn't believe the first instance was a mistake; giving Latinos the wrong date twice is definitely not a typo oopsy. Seriously, how dumb could they be? Or how dumb do they think the rest of us are?

The Maricopa County Elections Department should be investigated by the feds-- now.

Here's the story from ABC Channel 15...

PHOENIX - A spokesperson for the Maricopa County Elections Department admits they once again gave voters the wrong date of next month's election.

Yvonne Reed confirms to ABC15 that bookmarks distributed by the elections department incorrectly listed the date of the general election in Spanish as November 8.

The flip side of the bookmark correctly lists the date in English as November 6.

Reed tells ABC15 the bookmarks were distributed at the three election counters throughout Maricopa County and that the department has no way of knowing exactly how many people received the bookmarks.

Randy Parraz, President of Citizens For A Better Arizona, says the blame lies squarely with Maricopa County Recorder Helen Purcell.

"It shows she's incompetent and not qualified," said Parraz.

For the rest of the story, go to ABC 15 here.

What's really tragic about this suppression of Spanish speaking voters is that there have been gargantuan efforts to get out the Latino vote. This is an important election for all of us, but for Latinos in Maricopa County, it is there best chance in years to oust renegade Sheriff Joe Arpaio. 

Check out the Adios Arpaio video by Phoenix videographer Dennis Gilman after the jump.

The Arizona Republic endorses Paul Penzone for Maricopa County Sheriff

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

On Sunday, to no surprise, the Arizona Republic endorsed Paul Penzone for Maricopa County Sheriff. Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's gotta go!

Arpaio's Records Says: Elect Penzone

The early theme of the Joe Arpaio re-election effort is heartwarming.

In the campaign's television ads we see Joe as family man, as a young public servant in uniform. Joe as defender of the kids. And in a particularly whimsical shot, we see the Maricopa County sheriff plinking away at an ancient typewriter.

These images remind us of the public servant we supported in the 1990s and the 2000 election.

* * *

But that sheriff is as much an artifact as a manual typewriter. Arpaio, who in 1992 vowed to serve a single term, has evolved into a career politician devoted to burnishing his national brand. Arpaio's self-interest always trumps the public interest.

We and Arpaio once valued the same characteristics in a Maricopa County sheriff. Our values have not changed. His have.

Arpaio's deputy shoots and kills unarmed 19-year-old (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Unarmed teenager Trevon Martin is shot and killed in Florida, and the story goes around the world. 

On September 14, 2012, unarmed, 19-year-old Joel Smith is shot and killed in Guadalupe, Arizona by a Maricopa County sheriff's deputy, and the news doesn't even reach Tucson. WTF?

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Department is beyond corrupt. It will be a national disgrace that Sheriff Joe Arpaio is re-elected. How long will Maricopa County voters support a racist octogenarian who sweeps through neighborhoods and arrests brown people; who forces prisoners to live in the blasting heat in the Tent City Jail; who wastes taxpayer money pretending to be the border patrol while ignoring criminal cases; who allows his guards to torture and even kill prisoners? The sheriff's department should uphold the law, not break it with impunity.   

Wake up and do the right thing, Maricopa County.

Watch a video about the Joel Smith shooting by Dennis Gilman after the jump.

The 'show me your papers clause' of SB 1070 goes into effect

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

In a simple three-paragraph ruling drafted jointly by the U.S. Department of Justice and lawyers for the state of Arizona, U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton ordered that the injunction be dissolved against the "show me your papers clause" of SB 1070. That provision, Section 2B, requires officers to make a reasonable attempt to determine the immigration status of a person stopped, detained or arrested if there is reasonable suspicion that the person is in the country illegally. Police can start enforcing Ariz. immigration law, judge rules:

Bolton also ordered Tuesday that two other sections SB 1070 be permanently enjoined. Those sections required immigrants to carry immigration papers, required police to determine whether a person had committed an offense that could lead to deportation and barred illegal immigrants from seeking work.

Two other components, one that prohibited day laborers from blocking traffic while seeking work and another that forbade harboring or transporting illegal-immigrant criminals, have been enjoined as well.

Bolton had originally imposed the injunction of key parts of SB 1070 in July 2010 at the request of the Department of Justice, which sued to block the law from taking effect. The injunction was upheld by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Then, in late June, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld all but one part of the injunction, Section 2B, and sent the case back to Bolton through the 9th Circuit.

[The high court ruled that Section 2B did not automatically violate constitutional rights and was not necessarily pre-empted by federal immigration law. But the justices suggested the matter could be reconsidered if evidence of violations surfaced after the law went into effect.]

A coalition of civil rights and immigrant advocacy groups tried to get the injunction reinstated on different grounds, but on Sept. 5, Bolton denied the request and ordered the state and the Justice Department to work out the wording of the order dissolving the injunction.

The civil rights coalition, meanwhile, has appealed Bolton's decision to the 9th Circuit.

The U.S. Supreme Court expressed skepticism that the "show me your papers clause" of SB 1070 could be enforced in a constitutional manner. In fact, the Court inferred that a legal challenge would find its way back to the Court and that it would likely find it unconstitutional. The only question now is how long it will take before that case arises. With crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio, probably before the end of the week.

Undocumented protesters arrested outside of Democratic Convention

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Ten undocumented protesters from Arizona were arrested late Tuesday afternoon outside of the Time Warner Arena in uptown Charlotte, as Democratic National Convention delegates watched.

Chanting in Spanish and English, the protesters-- surrounded by media and conventioneers with smart phone cameras-- quickly marched toward the arena where First Lady Michelle Obama was scheduled to speak.

As throngs of convention delegates bustled down the sidewalk, the small band of Latinos laid a large yellow mat decorated with butterflies in the middle of the intersection and sat in protest of US immigration policies. Just as quickly, they were surrounded by police on foot and on bicycles. Although it was difficult for passersby to see them, we could hear their stories and feel the passion. 

More details and video after the jump.

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio to hold Birtherpalooza

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Oh dear God, can't they just lose him in some retirement village in Florida while he's at the GOP convention in Tampa?

Sheriff Bull Connor Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio plans to embarrass us all once again and to hold Arizonans up to public ridicule as the butt of jokes by late night comedians with a "Birtherpalooza" event in September. Alert The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, Jay, Dave, Conan, etc.

Stephen Lemons of the Phoenix New Times unleashes his acerbic wit in Joe Arpaio, Pat Boone and Teabaggers Galore Hold BirtherFest September 22 at Celebrity Theatre:

Here's a news flash: Pat Boone is still alive.

I know, I thought he was dead, too. But there he is, proffered as one of the featured speakers at a big birther wing-ding scheduled for September 22 at the Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix.

The flier for the event promises that the 78 year-old Christian crooner will sing as well as speak. Wonder if he'll do any tunes from his 1997 album In a Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy. Always loved his cover of "Smoke on the Water."

Not sure who the old biddies will be swoonin' for more, Boone, or geriatric heartthrob Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who'll be presiding at the event as Birther-in-Chief.

According to a Facebook event page posted by wingnutty Cave Creek scribe Linda Bentley, the birther bash is being held to "Support Sheriff Joe in his call for a Congressional investigation [into President Obama's birth certificate]."

I think Arpaio's rival Paul Penzone owes Arpaio a thank-you card for this one. Particularly as Joe's doing it after Labor Day, when voters traditionally begins to focus on the general election.

Arpaio and Boone will be joined on stage by other birther stars, such as court-martialed former Army doctor Terry Lakin. In 2010, Lakin pleaded guilty to disobeying orders to deploy because he didn't believe Obama was qualified to be commander-in-chief.

Lakin was dismissed from the Army and sentenced to six months in Leavenworth for his insubordination. (Ha-ha.) The birthers think this loser is a "hero," because he refused to do his patriotic duty.

Also attending will be lead cold case posse shamus and porn-star-mustache-wearer Mike Zullo, a car salesman by profession, and by demeanor. Take one look at the guy. Are you surprised this cheese-ball sells cars?

Ticket prices run $10 to $30, which raises another question: Where's the money going? After all, Arpaio did this dumb investigation with taxpayer funds and on taxpayer time, and he's been using it to raise money for his political war chest.

Crazy Uncle Joe's gotta go!

h/t Talkingpointsmemo.com for the graphic

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio goes to the circus

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

When I read this headline today, Sheriff Arpaio to join the real elephants at Republican National Convention, I thought finally, a job Joe Arpaio is actually qualified to do: carrying a shovel and a broom to clean up behind the circus elephants!

Sadly, no.

 

Saturday... Well... Weekend? Editorial August 11th, 2012

By Michael Bryan

I'd like to let you all know that Drinking Liberally will be meeting this week at the regular time and place (Wednesday, 6pm at The Shanty). This week our guest is... Me! I will be presenting the Propositions that will appear on this November's ballot (and a few that might not be...). We'll discuss the pros and cons (where such exists) and a have a few beers. For a preview, or if you can't make it, you can take a look at my 2012 Ballot Prop Guide.

I personally read almost every news source in Arizona - and keep up with national reaction to our politics, as well. I do it to bring you readers of BlogForArizona the Arizona Donkey Feed, which appears on our right-hand sidebar every day (you may also have the Feed emailed to you daily). Sometimes the avalanche of information available in our 24/7 news cycle can be overwhelming. I do generally succeed in keeping the Feed topically restricted to Arizona politics. But it is a lot of noise to sort through, so, I decided I might like to sit down once a week and take some time to look around, and try to get some perspective on the news.

This week, I chose to present an extended rumination on the Jared Loughner plea and the Arpaio trial. I sense some connections that might not be entirely obvious.

Read more after the click...

What Stephen Lemons says about the Maricopa County Sheriff race

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton recently endorsed Democratic candidate Paul Penzone for Maricopa County Sheriff. Stephen Lemons from the Phoenix New Times breaks down this race. Joe Arpaio Foe Paul Penzone Adds Greg Stanton's Endorsement to a Ton of Others - Phoenix New Times (excerpts):

The Penzone camp has released a list of its endorsements so far. They include Democratic politicians such as former candidate for state Attorney General Felecia Rottelini, ex-Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, state Senate Minority Leader and Congressional candidate David Schapira, 2008 Arpaio opponent Dan Saban, and Corporation Commissioners Paul Newman and Sandra Kennedy, among many other Ds.

But Penzone has a number of tuskers backing him as well: Phoenix entrepreneur Mac Magruder, former U.S. Attorney for Arizona Paul Charlton, ex-Arizona Attorney General Grant Woods, and longtime community activist Donna Neil of NAILEM, the Neighborhood Activists Inter-Linked Empowerment Movement.

The other wannabe sheriffs, Republican-turned-Independent Mike Stauffer and "conservative Democrat" John Rowan, lack the resources, the support, the endorsements, and the volunteers that Penzone has.

I don't know if Penzone will be able to overcome Arpaio, but it should be apparent that he is the only credible candidate in the field, no matter how much the other Joe-foes kvetch about this reality.

Penzone will best Rowan in the August 28, Democratic primary. That's a given. But as I've already noted in a recent column, Stauffer's vanity run for sheriff is troublesome, particularly if the race turns out to be a tight one.

If Stauffer were to withdraw and throw his support to Penzone, he would be an instant hero and would maintain the goodwill he's won from many by being the first man in the race.

But if Stauffer hangs on as a sure loser and possible spoiler, such selfishness certainly will earn him near-universal disdain among the anti-Arpaio crowd.

And from Arpaio, he's likely to receive a thank-you note.

checked with Maricopa County Elections Director Karen Osborne, and she tells me that because such a change would affect nearly 1.9 million voters, someone like Stauffer would have to withdraw by September 7 to ensure his name is scrubbed from the general election ballot.

* * *

People run for office for weird reasons sometimes. But if Stauffer really wants Arpaio to lose, he needs to step aside and back Penzone.

Do it, Mike. You seem like a decent guy. Now is the time to prove it.

I have to agree with Stephen Lemons on this one. We need a one-on-one contest to be successful, just like in the recall of former disgraced Senator Russell Pearce. As Lemons says, "if Stauffer really wants Arpaio to lose, he needs to step aside and back Penzone." Don't be a spoiler, Stauffer. Step up and do the right thing.

Joe Arpaio on Trial

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The civil trial for racial profiling by the Maricopa County Sheriffs Department ended on Thursday, with the parties to submit closing briefs to Judge Murray Snow

The best trial summary I have read so far comes from Stephen Lemons at the Phoenix New Times. Joe Arpaio's Racial Profiling Trial Ends, and Yes, Joe's Still Guilty as Sin - Phoenix New Times (excerpts):

As U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow explained what he wanted opposing counsel to address in their closing, written arguments in the ACLU's big racial-profiling case Melendres v. Arpaio, he mentioned that he didn't mean to "foreshadow" his ruling with the questions he was asking.

And yet, Snow seemed to do just that after the last witness left the stand a little before 3 p.m. Thursday, the final day of the trial.

An exacting jurist with an obsession for detail, Snow noted that in videotaped testimony Sheriff Joe Arpaio's lawyers had played for the judge earlier, Alonzo Pena, former Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Phoenix office, said race could be used, along with other factors, in developing probable cause regarding an individual's immigration status.

Snow, who is both judge and jury in this bench trial, observed that in the Ninth Circuit, Pena is "dead wrong," according to a precedent set in U.S. v. Montero-Camargo, a 2000 Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that eliminated race as a factor in most immigration stops.

If the MCSO used race as "one factor among many," does it matter if they believed they were following the law, as instructed by ICE? That is to say, if MCSO deputes intended to use race as a factor, does it matter if they did not intend to violate the law?

That was the inquiry put to lawyers for both sides, and yet, in his December ruling granting class action to all Hispanics stopped by the MCSO since January of 2007, Snow addressed the same issue.

Back then, Snow wrote:

"Defendants assert that in training 287(g) officers, ICE informs them that race or apparent ancestry may be used as one factor in evaluating whether officers have reasonable suspicion to stop an individual, although it cannot be considered the sole factor.

"Whether or not such information is provided by ICE to local law enforcement officers during their 287(g) training, the law in the Ninth Circuit is clear: `Hispanic appearance is of little or no use in determining which particular individuals among the vast Hispanic populace should be stopped by law enforcement officials on the lookout for illegal aliens.'"

Translation: the MCSO is up a creek sans paddle, flippers, or canoe.

Its officers have admitted under oath that they believed race could be considered as one among many factors, and even Arpaio has expressed this idea more than once in press conferences and interviews. The MCSO has insisted that ICE taught its officers to do just that.

That's just the beginning of the MCSO's woes. Snow stated that he was going to decide "what the policies of the MCSO are," and that, "I am also going to be determining what the practices of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office are, regardless of what the policies state or may or may not state."

Rolling Stone feature on Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Rolling Stone has a feature article today about Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio by Joe Hagan, The Long, Lawless Ride of Sheriff Joe Arpaio (excerpts):

[Joe] Arpaio cues up the Rolling Stones to welcome a reporter "from that marijuana magazine."

Hey! You! Get off of my cloud!

* * *

"My people said, 'You're stupid to do an interview with that magazine,'" says Arpaio, talking about Rolling Stone, "but hey, controversy – well, it hasn't hurt me in 50 years."

Arpaio is an unabashed carnival barker. And his antics might be amusing if he weren't also notorious for being not just the toughest but the most corrupt and abusive sheriff in America. As Arizona has become center stage for the debate over illegal immigration and the civil rights of Latinos, Arpaio has sold himself as the symbol of nativist defiance, a modern-day Bull Connor bucking the federal government over immigration policy. As such, he's become the go-to media prop for conservative politicians, from state legislators to presidential candidates, who want to be seen as immigration hard-liners. "I had Michele Bachmann sitting right there," says Arpaio, pointing to my chair. "All these presidential guys coming to see me!"

As Arpaio has faced allegations of rampant racial profiling in Arizona, he's declared war on President Barack Obama, accusing him of watering down federal immigration law to court the Latino vote – while Arpaio himself continues to investigate the legitimacy of Obama's birth certificate, the favored conspiracy of his far-right constituents. "I'm not going to get into everything else we got about the president," he brags to a conservative radio interviewer while I'm sitting in his office. "I could write 9 million books."

Arpaio refuses to acknowledge the president's recent decision to grant temporary immunity from imprisonment and deportation to illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as children. These people, Arpaio says, will "be arrested" in Maricopa County. In June, when the Supreme Court struck down key provisions of Arizona's controversial immigration law, the core of which allows law enforcement to demand citizenship papers from any suspected illegal immigrant they come across, Arpaio­ growled that he wouldn't "bend" to the feds, "especially when we still have state laws to enforce."

"If they think I'm going to surrender," Arpaio says, "it's not going to happen."

* * *

But the all-consuming focus on immigration has come at a cost: Arpaio is so obsessed with the often illusory crimes of immigrants that he ignored more than 400 cases of sexual abuse he was responsible for investigating, including assaults on children. And it surprised no one that JT Ready, the Arizona white supremacist who shot and killed his girlfriend, her family and himself last May, had attended Arpaio rallies.

Yet such derelictions of duty haven't hurt Arpaio among the audience he cares about most. Since 1992, despite widespread criticism from human rights groups and local political leaders, Arpaio has been re-elected four times in Maricopa­ County, the most populous area of Arizona and a bastion of retirees and conservatives for whom Arpaio is a white knight, a defender of the 1950s Shangri-La they've sought to preserve in the largely white suburbs that ring Phoenix. "I'm kind of an old-fashioned guy," says Arpaio.

Maricopa hullabaloo: Can the Dems beat Arpaio?

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Maricopa County Democrats smell blood in the water. The notorious Sheriff Joe Arpaio is facing multiple legal battles-- finally-- and the Dems think that maybe... just maybe... they can oust him from the office he has held for decades.

There are two Democrats running in the primary: John Rowan and Paul Penzone. There is a lot of verbal wrangling amongst Maricopa Dems regarding who is the best candidate. (Hey, it's politics.) Rowan, who has come out strongly as anti-SB1070 and pro-reform-- is seen as the more progressive choice. Labeled a "party darling" by activists, Penzone is much better funded than Rowan-- but not anywhere near as well-funded as Arpaio, who has millions on hand to trounce a challenger. 

Is Maricopa County ready to clean up the sheriff's office? 

Watch videos of both candidates after the jump.

Time for a new MCSO Sheriff in town

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Arizona Republic published candidate profiles last week for the Democratic candidates for Maricopa County Sheriff, Paul Penzone MCSO sheriff race: Former face of Silent Witness Paul Penzone knows recognition not enough, and John Rowan. MCSO sheriff race: Rowan talks NYPD career, Goodyear firing. 

This Thursday, The Arizona Republic endorsed Paul Penzone in its Primary picks:

Democrats need to pick the candidate with the best shot at defeating Joe Arpaio. In this race, that's Paul Penzone, a retired Phoenix police sergeant.

He has a strong record within the Phoenix department. He puts law enforcement first, not public relations. He's raised enough money to be credible.

The other candidate, John Rowan, was fired from his last law-enforcement job and wants the Sheriff's Office to crack down on corruption in municipal police departments. That's no improvement over the incumbent.

Penzone speaks softly but with authority. He says Arpaio's excessive approach to immigration has destroyed relationships in minority communities, which allows crime to take root. Penzone would rather target crime, including serving warrants.

He's the best candidate the Democrats have had in their quest to unseat Arpaio. He deserves their support.

John Rowan apparently decided to go for the Hail Mary pass with a PR stunt that looks like it may blow up in his face. The Arizona Republic reports today, MCSO sheriff hopeful John Rowan bails out inmate:

The tip came in like so many others, with a distraught family member claiming a relative had been beaten by detention officers in Maricopa County's Fourth Avenue Jail.

That information was enough to persuade John Rowan, a Democratic candidate for sheriff, to bail 18-year-old Kolton Brian Clark out of jail last week.

But the Sheriff's Office denies Clark's claim. And video that captures Clark's entire time in custody raises questions about whether the assault took place. A Phoenix police report shows that the injuries Clark attributes to sheriff's detention officers may have been suffered in the fight that landed him in jail.

Arpaio on Trial (Update)

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

When testimony in the trial began last Thursday, Sheriff's Deputy Louis DiPietro took the stand as plaintiffs' attorneys zeroed in on his motivation for stopping Manuel de Jesus Ortega Melendres, a Mexican tourist in the U.S. legally, who was stopped outside a church in Cave Creek where day laborers were known to gather. Melendres was the passenger in a car driven by a White driver.

Melendres claims that deputies detained him for nine hours and that the detention was unlawful. (This plainly would violate the "stop" conditions for SB 1070 laid down by the U.S. Supreme Court recently in Arizona v. U.S.) Attorneys for the plaintiffs have long contended that the Sheriff's Office conflates being Hispanic and being a day laborer with being an undocumented immigrant. DiPietro said as much in his testimony. Racial profiling trial: Ruling to be based on current conditions.

When testimony resumed on Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Murray Snow directed questions to Deputy Louis DiPietro. Arpaio's words used against him at racial-profiling case:

[Judge] Snow focused in on the background, training and experience of Deputy Louis DiPietro, who stopped a car in Cave Creek that had just picked up a group of day laborers, including Manuel de Jesus Ortega-Melendres. Ortega-Melendres is a named plaintiff in the lawsuit.

Of particular interest to Snow was a statement DiPietro made last week regarding his opinion that most day laborers are in the country illegally. Attorneys for the plaintiffs have long contended that the Sheriff's Office conflates being Hispanic and being a day laborer with being an undocumented immigrant.

DiPietro said he formed that opinion based on the stop he made in Cave Creek nearly five years ago.

"Is there any other basis other than that day on which you have now formed that opinion," Snow asked.

"The fact that that type of work doesn't require any type of, um, you don't have to show an ID, um, it would be easier, that type of work would be easier for, um, a person in this country illegally to, um, get because they wouldn't have the proper paperwork for other types of employment," DiPietro replied.

After a little more than an hour on the stand, DiPietro was excused.

On to the main event Tuesday. Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio took the witness stand next.

Saturday Editorial, July 21, 2012

In the flurry of news and opinion gusting out of our computer screens and smart phones, it is easy to become 'news blind' - so focused on the flakes and flurries that we forget where we are headed. We stumble confusedly ahead with no map to our destination. It's easy to get lost in the storm.

I personally read almost every news source in Arizona - and keep up with national reaction to our politics, as well - in bringing to readers of BlogForArizona the Arizona Donkey Feed, which appears on our right-hand sidebar every day (you may also have the Feed emailed to you daily). So I, too, often find myself in that blizzard without a map.

I decided I might like to sit down once a week and take some time to look around, and identify what I think are the most significant landmarks around where we stand now. It might not be a map that will tell us where we are headed, but maybe I can get some idea of where we are. Over time, perhaps it will become a map of sorts.

I would also like to let you all know that Matt Heinz, candidate for Congressm in AZ's CD 2, will be guest-host at Drinking Liberally in Tucson. Come down to the Shanty of 4th Avenue this Wednesday at 6pm and enjoy a beer with Matt.

So, here are some thoughts on what I think are the most important, or just most interesting, developments in the past week in Arizona's politics...

Arpaio on Trial

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The "most corrupt sheriff in America," Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio, goes on trial today in a civil lawsuit for a declaratory judgment that the Maricopa County Sheriff's Department has a systematic policy of discrimination of racially profiling Latinos. U.S. District Court Judge Murray Snow is presiding over the trial that begins today and is expected to last until early August. Ariz. sheriff faces profiling allegations at trial:

Now, the sheriff in Arizona's most populous county will have to convince a federal judge who is presiding over a lawsuit that heads to trial on Thursday and is expected to last until early August.

The plaintiffs say Arpaio's officers based some traffic stops on the race of Hispanics who were in vehicles, had no probable cause to pull them over and made the stops so they could inquire about their immigration status.

"He is not free to say whatever he wants," said Dan Pochoda, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona, one of the groups that has pushed the lawsuit against Arpaio.

"He will be called as a witness in our case," Pochoda said. "He will not have control over the flow of information, and he is not the final arbiter."

The plaintiffs aren't seeking money damages and instead are seeking a declaration that Arpaio's office racially profiles and an order that requires it to make changes to prevent what they said is discriminatory policing.

* * *

The lawsuit marks the first case in which the sheriff's office has been accused of systematically racially profiling Latinos and will serve as a bellwether for a similar yet broader civil rights lawsuit filed against Arpaio in May by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio goin' all Birther on us (again)

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

As I said in the previous post, Arizona has more than its fair share of embarrassing politicians somehow elected to public office. But another contender for the title of "most embarrassing Arizona politician" is Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio, who like Rep. Trent Franks, is a regular contributor/purveyor of World Net Daily wingnut conspiracy theories.

On Tuesday, Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio and his 'cold case posse," pissing away state of Maricopa taxpayer's dollars on a new WND book by Jerome Corsi and Mike Zullo, will distract the media villagers from his upcoming racial profiling trial beginning on Thursday with a press conference that promises Now ‘indisputable proof’ of Obama forgery of the birth certificate:

At a news conference Tuesday in Phoenix that will be live-streamed by WND, Sheriff Joe Arpaio and his Cold Case Posse will present “indisputable proof” the Obama birth document released by the White House is a forgery, according to the posse’s lead investigator.

Mike Zullo said the new information was developed during an investigative trip to Hawaii in May.

The press conference will be held Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time at the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. [Local time will be 2:30 p.m., as Arizona does not observe Daylight Saving Time].

The investigative team also promises to release more conclusions drawn from computer analysis of the document the White House released April 27, 2011.

In other words, an instant replay of the crazy press conference from earlier this year with Zullo's bogus computer analysis, debunked numerous times over.

I am begging you, state of Maricopa residents, make this racist hate mongering embarrassment to dedicated law enforcement officers everywhere go away. Vote this egomaniacal clown out of office.

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's racial profiling trial begins this week

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio's racial profiling trial will begin as scheduled on Thursday, July 19. Profiling lawsuit against Arpaio set for July 19 | Arizona Capitol Times:

The lawsuit alleges that officers based some traffic stops on the race of people in the vehicles and made the stops so they could inquire about their immigration status.

Arpaio denies the racial profiling allegation, saying people pulled over in the sweeps were approached because deputies had probable cause to believe they had committed crimes.

During the patrols known as sweeps, deputies flood an area of a city — in some cases, heavily Latino areas — over several days to seek out traffic violators and arrest other offenders.

Illegal immigrants accounted for 57 percent of the 1,500 people arrested in the 20 sweeps conducted by his office since January 2008, according to figures provided by Arpaio’s office.

The people who filed the lawsuit aren’t seeking damages and instead want Arpaio to enact changes to guard against what they said is discriminatory policing at his agency. Still, the plaintiff attorneys can seek reimbursement for their time and costs if they win.

Putting the emphasis on the "crazy" in Crazy Uncle Joe, Arpaio has called a press conference this week for his Cold Case Posse "Birther" conspiracy. Given that this investigation is run by Mike Zullo and Jerome Corsi who write material for the wingnut conspiracy central World Net Daily, what's next? Is President Obama the love child of a space alien from Planet Kolob? Arpaio is wasting public tax money on this tabloid trash. Arpaio using deputy to help in Obama birth investigation.

Joe Arpaio disgraces his office and is an embarrassment to all the dedicated law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line in service to the public. Joe Arpaio is a clown who only serves his enormous ego and constant need for public attention. The voters of the state of Maricopa need to pull their heads out of their asses and vote this embarrassing clown out of office.

Saturday Editor's Notes

By Michael Bryan

In the flurry of news and opinion gusting out of our computer screens and smart phones, it is easy to become 'news blind' - so focused on the flakes and flurries that we forget where we are headed. We stumble confusedly ahead with no map to our destination. It's easy to get lost in the storm.

I personally read almost every news source in Arizona - and keep up with national reaction to our politics, as well - in bringing to readers of BlogForArizona the Arizona Donkey Feed, which appears on our right-hand sidebar every day (you may also have the Feed emailed to you daily). So I, too, often find myself in that blizzard without a map.

I decided I might like to sit down once a week and take some time to look around, and identify what I think are the most significant landmarks around where we stand now. It might not be a map that will tell us where we are headed, but maybe I can get some idea of where we are. Over time, perhaps it will become a map of sorts.

I would also like to let you all know that Jim Nintzel of Tucson Weekly and AZPM's Roundtable fame will be guest-host at Drinking Liberally in Tucson. Come down to the Shanty of 4th Avenue this Wednesday at 6pm and experience the Nintz first-hand.

So, here are some thoughts on what I think are the most important, or just most interesting, developments in the past week in Arizona's politics.