Blog For Arizona

Arizona Swims against the Tide of Growing Equality...Again

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Once again, Arizona is on the brink of taking a giant leap backward. This time it’s picking the wrong side in the fight for LGBT equality.

Both chambers of the Arizona Legislature recently passed a bill that would legalize discrimination against gays and lesbians on the basis of religion. Painted as a law to protect religious freedom, SB 1062 redefined “exercise of religion” and dramatically expanded the definition of a “person” to include “any individual, association, partnership, corporation, church, estate, trust, foundation or other legal entity.”

If Governor Jan Brewer signs this new bill into law, it would allow people and businesses with “sincerely held religious beliefs” to refuse to provide services or employment to anyone whose lifestyle is an affront to their religious beliefs.

The Arizona House passed the legislation after more than three hours of debate about religious freedom, discrimination, equality, and the measure’s potential negative economic impact. Repeatedly, Rep. Eddie Farnsworth, who introduced the House version of SB1062, defended the bill from attacks by Democrats, particularly Minority Leader Chad Campbell. A number of times, Farnsworth reminded the House that gays and Lesbians are not a protected class-- implying that that fact made discrimination OK.  Farnsworth, Rep. John Kavanagh, and Rep. Steve Montenegro were the bill's strongest supporters, insisting that the intention of the bill to “protect” the religious people and businesses from being exposed to lifestyles that are against their religion.  The vote fell largely along party lines. Every Democrat in the two chambers voted against it, joined by a total of three Republicans. (LD9 Rep. Ethan Orr, who has strong ties with the Chamber of Commerce, was one of the three Republicans who voted "no".)

Farnsworth, Kavanagh, & Lesko Are Among 17 AZ Legislators Courted by ALEC

by Pamela Powers Hannley

At least 17 Arizona state legislators attended a lavish recruitment dinner on Tuesday for the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), an out-of-state right-wing corporate bill mill that wields a heavy influence in Arizona and at state capitols around the country. [Hat tip to Progress Now for the info.]

The senators and representatives, including Senate President Andy Biggs, enjoyed dinner and drinks alongside several prominent lobbyists in a private back room at Donovan’s, one of the Valley’s finest steak and chop houses. They came at the behest of Rep. Debbie Lesko, ALEC’s Arizona Chairwoman, whose leaked invitation billed the event as “an Arizona ALEC Membership Reception/Dinner” while including her House office number for RSVPs.  It is unclear how many Arizona legislators Lesko invited to Tuesday’s shin-dig, but no Democrats were seen arriving.

In addition to Sen. Biggs and Rep. Lesko, lawmakers spotted at the dinner included: Reps. Eddie Farnsworth, John Kavanagh, Carl Seel, Brenda Barton, Bob Thorpe, David Livingston, J.D. Mesnard, Justin Olson, Michelle Ugenti, T.J. Shope, Adam Kwasman, Jeff Dial; and Senators Nancy Barto, Chester Crandell and Don Shooter. [You'll remember that Farnsworth and Kavanagh were big stars on Thursday-- valiantly defending the anti-gay bill SB1062-- when the Arizona House passed it. You'll also remember that Farnsworth, Olson, Ugenti, Lesko, and Seel were on the committees that forced the death of the Equal Rights Amendment by not hearing it. So, who are they supposed to be working for?]

Feb 19 City Council Meetings: Bus Fare Hike, Ronstadt Transit Center Redevelopment

by Pamela Powers Hannley

At the Feb. 19 study session and evening meeting, the Tucson City Council will consider two issues that could greatly affect bus service in our town.

During the study session, they will consider a proposal to increase bus fares. At the regular evening meeting, they will hear public comments about the proposed redevelopment of the Ronstadt Transit Center. (Proposals and background here.) In between these two meetings, the Tucson Bus Riders Union will have a rally outside of the City Council Chambers, beginning at 4 p.m. (Details and related articles below.)

Deadline Looms: ERA Ratification Assigned to Judiciary Committee in AZ Legislature

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Rep. Victoria Steele’s (D-9) bill to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (HCR2016) was assigned to the House Judiciary Committee late last week. (You’ll remember that mid-week, I reported it was languishing on the desk of House Speaker Andy Tobin.)

This week is the last week for bills to be heard by committees of the Arizona Legislature. Currently, the House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to meet onThursday, Feb. 20, 2014. ERA ratification is not on the agenda, but– hey– it’s only Monday. Agendas and committee meeting dates routinely shift around in the Arizona Legislature. Arizona women deserve economic equality. It's time to make some phone calls to Phoenix!

Bills can be killed in multiple ways: they can be voted down in committee, voted down by the Legislature, or just plain ignored by the Speaker or the committee chair. If the HCR2016 isn’t heard this week, it will die in committee. Arizona women deserve economic equality. Tucson's favorite "moderate" LD9 Rep. Ethan Orr is on the Judiciary Committee; he could be an important swing vote on the ERA.  [Contact information for committee members after the jump.]

AZ Reps. Grijalva and Barber Back Extension of ERA Ratification Deadline

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) has received bipartisan support in the Arizona Legislature, but Arizona's Congressional delegation appears to be lagging behind. Of Arizona's 11 Senators and Representatives, only two--  Southern Arizona Reps. Raul Grijalva (D- CD3) and Ron Barber (D- CD2)-- have signed on to co-sponsor legislation to remove the ERA's ratification deadline.

There are two Congressional bills to remove the ratification deadline. In the House, HJ Res 43 has 104 cosponsors (including Grijalva and Barber), and in the Senate, SJ Res 15 has 34 cosponsors.

The ERA was introduced during every Congressional session between 1923 (when it was originally proposed) and 1972. It finally passed Congress nearly 70 years after it was originally introduced. In the 1970s, there was a ground war at the state level to get 38 state legislatures to ratify the ERA in order for it to become a Constitutional Amendment. The ERA fell 3 states short of ratification; Arizona is one of a handful of states that never ratified the ERA. (Contact and Twitter info for Arizona's Congressional delegation after the jump.)

HCR2016 ERA Ratification Bill Languishes on Speaker Tobin's Desk

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Tucson Rep. Victoria Steele has introduced two bipartisan bills to advance the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in the Arizona Legislature. One has made it to committee, while the other is waiting on Speaker of the House Andy Tobin's desk.

HCR2016 is a bill to ratify the ERA. Although ERA ratification has 22 sponsors, including four Republicans, it hasn't made it "out of the gate" yet. According to an aid in Steele's office, HCR2016 hasn't had a "first read" yet. Bills are read first by Speaker Tobin, who determines committee assignments. If a bill is never assigned to a committee, it is dead in the water. (HB2016 text here.)

HCM2006 is a memorandum to the federal government asking that the ratification deadline be extended. HCM2006 has 19 sponsors, including two Republicans. The bill has been assigned to the Federalism and Fiscal Responsibility Committee (FFR) but hasn't made it on the committee's agenda... yet. (More about the committee here. HCM2006 text here.)

Bills can be killed in multiple ways: they can be voted down in committee, voted down by the Legislature, or just plain ignored by the Speaker or the committee chair. Although it's early in the session, it appears as if the ERA bills are being ignored-- even though the ERA has bipartisan support in the Legislature and broad, popular support among the majority of Americans. (Sponsor list after the jump.)

Uphill Battle: Rep. Victoria Steele Introduces Bill to Extend ERA Ratification Deadline

Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.
– Equal Rights Amendment

by Pamela Powers Hannley

There is an ideological perfect storm brewing in the Arizona Legislature. A memorandum supporting extension of the ratification deadline for the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) has been assigned to a committee where five out of seven members have pledged to protect and fight for the rights of fetuses over the rights of women.

Not content with winning the right to vote in 1920, women’s rights advocates proposed the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) 91 years ago. The ERA was introduced during every Congressional session between 1923 and 1972 and finally passed nearly 70 years after it was originally proposed. In the 1970s, there was a ground war at the state level to get 38 state legislatures to ratify the ERA in order for it to become a Constitutional Amendment. The ERA fell 3 states short of ratification; Arizona is one of a handful of states that never ratified the ERA.

HCM2006 Sponsors

Fast forward to 2013, the ground war for women’s equality has resumed at the state level with ERA ratification proposals six states– Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Missouri, Virginia, and now … Arizona.; Nevada and North Carolina plan to hear it in 2014. LD9 Rep. Victoria Steele has introduced HCM2006, a memorandum from the State of Arizona asking the federal government to extend the deadline for ratification of the ERA, and HCR2016, a fill to ratify the ERA.

In addition to Steele, the ERA memorandum has 18 co-sponsors– including two Republican women, Kelly Townsend (LD14) and Karen Fann (LD1). Below is the complete list. Although Southern Arizona is well-represented on this list with Steele, Wheeler, Gabaldon, Saldate, and Pencrazi, where are the rest of the Democrats and the “moderate” Repulbican? (Should I name names, or can you figure out who’s missing here? If you live in LD9, LD10, LD2, or LD3, you might want to ask your representatives and senators why their names are missing from this list.)

Democrat Randall Friese Kicks-off Campaign for LD9 Representative (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Grassroots volunteers mingled with local and statewide Democratic Party glitterati at the official campaign kick-off event for Dr. Randall Friese, who is running for a seat in Arizona House of Representatives.

Friese recently announced his candidacy for one of LD9's two seats in the Arizona House. Currently, LD9, which stretches from Speedway in midtown north into the Foothills, is a competitive district being served by Republican Ethan Orr and Democrat Victoria Steele in the House and Democrat Steve Farley in the Arizona Senate.

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her astronaut husband Mark Kelly hosted an estimated 130 stalwarts of the Pima County Democratic Party, including current County Chair Don Jorgenson, past Chair Jeff Rogers, and several current and former elected Democrats: LD9 Rep. Victoria Steele, LD10 Reps. Stephanie Mach and Bruce Wheeler, LD10 Senator Dave Bradley, Tucson City Councilwoman Karin Uhlich, former Surgeon General Dr. Richard Carmona, former Attorney General and current Secretary of State candidate Terry Goddard, and former Rep. Nancy Young-Wright. (Farley was conspicuously absent, following a social media dust-up on Friday over this article in the Arizona Daily Star.)

Former Giffords' staffer Pam Simon and Kelly gave impassioned speeches about Friese, who was one of the University Medical Center trauma surgeons who cared for Giffords and others who were shot on January 8, 2011. During Giffords' long stay in UMC's intensive care unit (ICU), Kelly and Friese became friends and had many late-night ICU discussions on multiple topics-- including politics. According to Kelly, Friese and Giffords are similar in that they are dedicated to finding solutions, not playing politics. [Friese vs Orr on the issues, after the jump.]

Boo Hoo: Two Sick Babies Hurt AOL's Bottomline... Not

by Pamela Powers Hannley

AOL Chairman and CEO Tim Armstrong reported that the highly profitable, multi-million-dollar company was forced to cut employee benefits because of  increased insurance costs under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the cost of care for two sick dependent children born to AOL employees. 

Armstrong (who made $12 million in 2012) said because AOL paid $1 million for medical care for the two babies, the company must scale back the employee retirement plan. He also claimed that the ACA has increased AOL's insurance cost for 5000 employees by $7 million.

On the same day that Armstrong blamed the babies, AOL announced it's "strongest revenue growth in decades" -- with 2013 revenue at $679 million, up 13% over 2012. 

Oh, right, blame the sick babies! It's obviously their fault. It has nothing to do with corporate greed or over-blown CEO salaries. 

AZ Star Perpetuates ‘Ethan Orr Is a Moderate’ Myth

by Pamela Powers Hannley

In today's Arizona Daily Star, columnist Tim Steller chides the Pima County Democratic Party for trying to take down "moderate" Republican LD9 Legislator Ethan Orr. 

First of all, a quick look at Orr's voting record and political endorsements reveal that the "Ethan Orr is a moderate" meme is a myth. For example:

Orr voted FOR voter suppression on multiple occasions. Most recently, Orr cast the deciding vote in committee and sided Republicans who want to do an "end run" around voters by repealing last year's Omnibus Voter Suppression Bill (HB2305), in order to pass several other voter suppression bills this session. The bill to repeal HB2305-- if passed by the Legislature-- will eliminate the citizens' right to vote for or against voter suppression in the 2014 election. Orr voted for voter suppression last week,  and he was part of the Republican block that originally passed HB2305 in the dead of night in the waning hours of the 2013 Legislative session.

Orr signed an anti-abortion pledge to defend the rights of the unborn. Orr-- along with Governor Jan Brewer, Republican legislators, and three weak-kneed Democrats-- signed the Christian conservative Center for Arizona Policy's pledge to fight for the rights of unborn fetuses, while ignoring the legal rights of adult women to make choices about their bodies, their children, and their lives. Steller soft-sells Orr's pro-fetus stance by saying that Orr "tends toward a pro-life viewpoint on abortion." Orr signed a pledge to fight for fetal personhood; this is an extreme viewpoint that confers rights upon fetuses-- while taking away the rights of American women. This goes far beyond tending "toward pro-life". [Pledge text and more after the jump.]

Tucson Rep. Ethan Orr Votes FOR Voter Suppression Bill HB2196

Squeaky clean, self-proclaimed Republican moderate LD9 Rep. Ethan Orr voted for the voter suppression bill, HB2196 today, and it passed in committee. You’ll remember that the House Judiciary Committee tried to hear this bill last week, but when PEOPLE showed up in the hearing room and flooded the phone lines, the vote was postponed.

HB2196 is the Republican end-run around the voters to repeal HB2305 (the omnibus voter suppression bill that passed in the dead of night on the last day of the 2013 session, at the personal urging of US House Speaker John Boehner).

Sounds OK, right? He voted for a bill that would repeal a 2013 voter suppression bill. The catch is that last summer 140,000 Arizonans signed petitions to stop implementation of HB2305 and put it on the ballot in 2014– in a sense asking Arizona voters if they want the Legislature to suppress their right to vote and to put initiatives on the ballot (among other things, list here.)

If HB2196 survives the Legislative process, the Legislature will have taken away our right to vote on this measure– essentially using political maneuvering to suppress our vote. How convenient. Furthermore, Republican Legislators plan to pass several smaller voter suppression bills individually this year. (They tried this last year, and the tactic didn’t work.)

I guess Orr’s vote shouldn’t be too much of a surprise, since Orr voted for the original HB2305.

Don’t be fooled by the politicos who say Orr’s a moderate. He’s pro-life (with a 0% approval rating from Arizona Right to Choose). He’s backed by the NRA, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Small Business Association, and he has a 61% approval rating by the Goldwater Institute. Check out his voting record here.

The upcoming match-up for the highly competitive LD9 house seat between Orr and Dr. Randy Freise should be interesting. Stay tuned.

State Political Meetings: AZ GOP Nullifies Fed Law, while Dems Endorse Marijuana Legalization

by Pamela Powers Hannley

The party faithful of the Arizona Democratic and Republican Parties gathered on Saturday, January 25, 2014 in Maricopa County for their respective State Committee Meetings. State law requires official political parties to meet quarterly. Precinct committee people, state and county party leaders, elected officials, and candidates gather to discuss strategy, issues, money, and candidates.

The outcomes of those two meetings show the STARK differences between Arizona's two major political parties. (Even where the two parties met shows their ideological differences. Democrats met in a public high school; Republicans met in a church.)

At the Arizona Democratic Party's (ADP) State Committee Meeting, the ADP continued to show its progressive side, unanimously endorsing a resolution against fracking. With only two dissenting votes, ADP also endorsed a resolution supporting the marijuana legalization initiative, Safer Arizona, which was endorsed by ADP's Progressive Caucus at the November 2013 State Committee Meeting. (BTW, if you support legalization, help them out by signing and circulating petitions and/or donating money.)

A resolution barring the ADP from accepting funds from members of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) was endorsed by the ADP's progressive caucus on Saturday, as was the fracking resolution. When proposed to the entire State Committee, it was tabled.

The Price of Fracking: Earthquakes, Explosions, & Water Contaninmation

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Politicians and energy industry enthusiasts have touted fracking as the path to US energy independence, while environmentalists have battled against the proliferation of fracking and the resultant damage to the Earth. Despite environmental concerns, 18 states have jumped onto the fracking bandwagon (map.)

Fracking now is being blamed for an outbreak of earthquakes in North Texas, the explosion (pun intended) of crude oil train disasters across the country, and water contamination in four states. (Fracking accident map pictured here.)

Texas Is Shaking

More than 20 earthquakes have rocked North Texas since October 2013. Seventeen of those earthquakes have hit the small town of Azle, Texas, and residents are up in arms.

Why is North Texas shaking and sinking? Fracking.

Sunshine Is Best Disinfectant: AZ Legislature Delays Voter Suppression Discussion

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Yesterday, the Judiciary Committee of the Arizona House of Representatives was scheduled to discuss repealing last year’s omnibus voter suppression bill (HB2305). Since thousands of Arizona citizens had signed petitions to stop implementation of HB2305 and put voter suppression on the 2014 ballot, sneaky legislators had devised a plan to do an end-run around voters by repealing the destined-to-fail-at-the-polls bill and replace it with several individual voter suppression bills. (After all, we can’t let citizens decide issues as important as who gets to vote or how measures are put on the ballot.)

Thanks to a widely distributed press release from the Protect Your Right to Vote Committee, news of Republican legislators’ Voter Suppression Plan B flew out across the blogosphere on Wednesday, resulting in much citizen– and news media– interest.

Overnight, hundreds of concerned Arizona voters called and wrote to members of the committee urging them to respect the will of the voters and let them have their say on HB2305 in November. Dozens of people showed up to speak at the hearing as well as three television news crews. Judiciary Chairman Eddie Farnsworth then told the amassed crowd that he was holding his repeal bill (HB2196). He has since rescheduled the hearing on his bill for next week.

Proving once again that sunshine is the best disinfectant and voter suppression is a topic best discussed in the dead of night with no witnesses, Farnsworth decided not to open discussions with TV cameras rolling and citizens watching.

HB2305 Redux: Arizona Legislature Hell Bent on Suppressing Your Right to Vote

by Pamela Powers Hannley

In the wee hours of the 2013 session of the Arizona Legislature, Republican legislators cobbled together several voter suppression initiatives that had gone no where and passed them (at the urging of House Speaker John Boehner) as an omnibus voter suppression bill (HB2305).

During the summer, outraged Arizonans collected 145,000 signatures to halt implementation of HB2305 until the people voted on it in 2014.

Hell bent on cheating their way into office… er… voter suppression,  a group of legislators now wants to circumvent a statewide vote on HB2305 by repealing HB2305 and re-introducing its component parts for potential passage in the 2014 session.

Below is a press release from the Protect Your Right to Vote Committee. It’s time to make some phone calls -- especially to Ethan Orr (LD9)-- and tell your representatives that if they want to pass a voter initiative it should be a bill that guarantees the right to vote– not a set of bills that will deny citizens their rights.

 

PDA Meeting, Jan 23: Should Arizona Move Its Money? (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Following the Wall Street crash and the housing market collapse a few years ago, the Move Your Money campaign encouraged millions of Americans to take their money out of big commercial banks and hold the funds locally in credit unions and community banks.

Is it time for state governments to move their money?

Across the US, millions of dollars of taxpayer funds are held in big commercial banks and invested on Wall Street. If Arizona had a public bank, the state’s rainy day funds would be held and invested in Arizona.

Local investment of state funds translates into jobs and a stronger economy. An Arizona public bank could create jobs by investing in public works projects, can boost entrepreneurship by backing small business loans through community banks, can build our state’s future by helping finance college loans—and much more. Isn’t it time that Arizona invested in Arizona—instead of Wall Street?

Why does Arizona need a public bank?

• Maybe it's because Arizona has a crumbling infrastructure and "no money" to fix roads, bridges, and public buildings?
• Maybe it's because Arizona's entrepreneurs can't get the capital they need to grow and innovate?
• Maybe it's because cities and towns are strapped for cash and have have to sell bonds and pay high fees in order to get credit?
• Maybe it's because Arizona has the 3rd lowest credit rating in the US, making borrowing extremely expensive?
• Maybe it's because Arizona is among the 10 worst states in the country for home foreclosures?
• Maybe it's because 10 Arizona banks have failed in the last few years?
• Maybe it's because university tuition continues to increase, pricing young Arizonans out of the market for higher education?

The answer is, of course, all of the above and more. 

Come to the January 23, 2014 meeting of Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) Tucson Chapter to learn how public banking can build Arizona’s economy and benefit Arizona’s citizens. [Event details and video after the jump.]

Elk River Disaster: Lax Oversight Puts Citizens in Peril (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

The lives of 300,000 central West Virginia residents were thrown into chaos a week ago when 1000s of gallons of solvent leaked from a storage tank and drained into the scenic Elk River, contaminating the water supply.

Initially, citizens were told to not only stop drinking the water but also to not even shower with it, due to the extreme levels of contamination. As residents left the capitol city of Charleston to find clean water to drink, cook, and bathe, the story of lax environmental oversight of the WV plant unfolded. According to the LA Times, the leaking storage tank owned by Freedom Industries, Inc. had not been inspected since 1999. The latest news is that Freedom Industries filed for bankruptcy on Friday, January 17. (What are the implications for Southern Arizona? Think Rosemont Mine and read on.)

Arizona Legislature Opens: Watch ‘State of the Hate’ Address (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

January 13 marked the opening of the Arizona Legislature’s 2014 session. Since Governor Jan Brewer took over the helm, this day of speecheshas evolved into a day of protest.

Citizens for a Better Arizona (CBA) organized a major demonstration on the capitol plaza for the opening day. Chanting “stop the hate”, approximately 150 CBA supporters  brought attention to Brewer’s failure to protect the children of Arizona on multiple levels.

Late in 2013, Arizonans learned that more than6500 Child Protective Services (CPS) cases have gone uninvestigated. While the administrator in charge of CPS has said that his regular reports to the governor and the legislature included the large number of uninvestigated cases, Brewer has been acting shocked since the news broke. During her state of the state address on the opening day, Brewer announced that she has disbanded CPS and created a new agency that will report directly to her.

Calling attention to the CPS scandal, CBA activists moved their protest inside the capitol building and tried to go up to the 8th floor, where the governor’s offices are, to deliver dozens of stuff animals, representing the children who were lost in Arizona’s CPS system. (Watch CBA’s protest and interaction with capitol police in the video below.)

At Monday’s action, CBA also urged Brewer and Attorney General Tom Horne to stop their attacks on DREAMers and allow them to drive legally. Watch the video after the jump.

Federal Court Ruling: Is this Beginning of the End for Net Neutrality?

by Pamela Powers Hannley

If you don’t like the way Facebook shovels advertising and promoted posts into your “news feed”, instead of the latest photos of your friends’ vacations, you’re really not going to like the new and improved Internet.

Yesterday, a U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) doesn’t have the power to regulate net neutrality. What does this mean for you? Internet providers like Verizon can now cut deals with corporate giants to accelerate their content, while leaving non-commercial Internet content–like those pesky independent blogs– in the dustbin of a Google search.

From Think Progress…

Net neutrality rules were issued by the FCC to prevent broadband providers from favoring some content over other content, potentially even their own. As the two-judge majority explains, “a broadband provider like Comcast might limit its end-user subscribers’ ability to access the New York Times website if it wanted to spike traffic to its own news website, or it might degrade the quality of the connection to a search website like Bing if a competitor like Google paid for prioritized access.”

Even as they struck down these rules Tuesday, the D.C. Circuit judges concede that this concern is real, writing, “broadband providers represent a threat to Internet openness and could act in ways that would ultimately inhibit the speed and extent of future broadband deployment.” The problem, however, derives from an earlier FCC decision that even advocates of net neutrality like Free Press president Craig Aaron say was a failure of FCC leadership to “ground its Open Internet rules on solid legal footing.” [Emphasis added.]

Rolling Shift Rally: Support Unions at ASARCO, Jan. 6

Join the rally today in support of continued contract union/management negotiations at ASARCO. Here are the details from the Pima Area Labor Federation.

The nearly 2000 union members who work in ASARCO’s copper mines, smelters and refineries entered contract negotiations in June 2013. They are spread over five locations and are represented by eight different unions.

On Monday, January 6, 2014 Our Negotiating Committee and ASARCO will begin negotiations after the long holiday break.

Join us as we rally in support of our continuing negotiations and in support of our Negotiating Committee.

Water, snacks, hot cocoa, and shade provided. We have an agenda planned out for the entire rally so bring your family, friends, and dress warm because we will all be out until past 7:00.

If you have any questions contact:

Eduardo Placencio 520-373-3881

Official Negotiations Web Page
http://www.usw.org/media_center/news_articles?id=1381

Facebook Event: here.

Fruity or Oaky? Rambling Thoughts on White People Problems

by Pamela Powers Hannley

My coffee table book is too large for my coffee table.

My Internet connection is too slow.

My dishwasher doesn’t really get the dishes clean.

iPads should have a USB connection.

I can’t remember all of my passwords.

Will Wall Street gambling hurt by 401K’s performance?

My car is annoying. The on-board computer tells me when to add air to the tires, when someone’s seatbelt is undone, and when it needs to go to the shop for service.

I hate it when I find a good recipe on the Internet and then can’t find it again.

Cable TV is too expensive for what your get. NetFlix is the way to go– or just plug the laptop into the flat screen TV.

I give my dog a daily dab of Greek yogurt with her dog food because she farts too much.

Self-Actualization, White People Problems, & the War on the Poor

by Pamela Powers Hannley

As one year comes to a close and another begins, people often look back at events to reflect and perhaps resolve to improve their lives or change their behaviors in the coming year. In 2013, the Do-Nothing-at-All Congress-- led by the nose by Teapublicans-- continued its war on the poor-- fighting for cuts to food stamps and unemployment and fighting for austerity for the 99%, while disingenuously padding the pockets of their corporate benefactors.

As Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs teaches us, people must satisfy their basic needs before they can become fully self-actualized, before they can reach their full potential. To put this simply, if you don't have food, water, and shelter, your time, energy and resources will be spent obtaining those basic needs. Until you have security and the necessities of life, you will not have the luxury to worry about trifles-- Christmas gifts, video game releases, wine selections, fancy coffee, designer-label clothes, insignificant social snubs, political differences-- in other words, "white people problems".

Since our country is governed by the  Congressional millionaire's club, it's no wonder that they can't relate to the poor (or even the struggling middle class).

Shopping the ACA Marketplace: One Small Business' Route to 'Affordable' Healthcare

by Pamela Powers Hannley

With full implementation of the  Affordable Care Act (ACA), January 2014 marks the beginning of a new era in health insurance in the US.

For the chronically uninsured and for those with pre-existing conditions, it's been a long and financially perilous wait for all of the ACA benefits to kick in.

For anti-government, conservative ideologues, the three-year waiting period gave them time to mercilessly attack reform that will provide insurance for millions of Americans, spread layers of misinformation about "Obamacare," hold dozens of meaningless repeal votes in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, and hold the country hostage for 16 days in a multi-million-dollar government shutdown fiasco.

Today, December 23, 2013 is the cut-off date for enrollment in ACA insurance plans which begin January 1, 2014; the final deadline for ACA enrollment is March 31, 2014. Since the beginning of December, I have been shopping the healthcare marketplace on behalf of the ultra-small business that I work for--The American Journal of Medicine. On Friday, I submitted our final paperwork to our insurance broker.

This is the story of one small business' route to "affordable" care.

Our Journey

Our journey began long before the premier of Healthcare.gov, the much-maligned ACA enrollment website, and even before the ACA was signed into law in 2010. At the Journal, we had been unhappy with our health insurance plan through Aetna for years. Like clockwork, the cost went up 10-25% each year, forcing us to rethink coverage multiple times in order to live within our budget.  We also were dissatisfied with the limited number of even more expensive alternative plans offered to us. The Journal's editorial pages have been pushing for Medicare for all for years and broke the stories about medical bankruptcy in 2009 and continued medical bankruptcy under Romneycare in Massachusetts in 2011. Consequently, we were ready for the public option back in 2009; today, we're just glad that the ACA made it through the Republican gauntlet and the Supreme Court. Unlike recent news stories about people and small businesses wanting to keep their existing healthcare plans, we were waiting with baited breath for three years to dump our plan.

The bottomline is that with Obamacare, the Journal -- and the emplopyees-- will pay less for healthcare insurance. Read about our ACA Marketplace experiences and lessons learned after the jump.

As Income Disparity Grows, Tucsonans Protest Low Wages at Walmart & McDonalds

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Protests against the low wages paid by multinational corporate giants have been sweeping the country, since the Occupy Movement raised the consciousness of the 99%. On Black Friday, Nov. 29, at Walmart stores nationwide and again Thursday, Dec. 5 at McDonald's restaurants nationwide, workers, unionists, progressives, and other liberal activists protested unfairly low wages and barriers to unionization for millions of US workers.

With profits, CEO pay, and wage disparity at all time highs, isn't it time to raise the minimum wage to a living wage?

Here in Tucson, protesters chanted and waved signs in front of the Walmart on Valencia and the McDonald's in midtown. (For more on the Walmart protest, check out the video here.)

At McDonald's, approximately 80-100 citizens braved chilly temperatures and intermittent rain to protest low wages. In the days before the local protest, right wing radio host Jon Justice shared PDA Tucson's Facebook announcement about the event and urged his Facebook followers to come to the midtown McDonald's, show their support for the fast food chain, and eat some good food. (Excuse me, but McDonald's hasn't served "good food" in decades-- if ever.) This resulted in a flurry of comments on the PDA page and Justice's page about the "entitlement mentality", people being "paid what they're worth", and the fast food industry being "one key stroke away from 80% automation"-- justifying Arizona's $7.80/hour minimum wage and offering support to McDonald's franchisees who make millions on the backs of workers.

Protest Low Pay for Fast Food Workers in Tucson on Dec 5

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Across the US-- and here in Tucson-- citizens will be standing in solidarity with fast food workers who are demanding a living wage. The Tucson protest is at the McDonalds at Alvernon and Speedway. Here is the flyer . Here is a link to the Facebook event.

 

Arizona Democratic Party Shows Its Progressive Side at State Committee Meeting

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Progressive voices were heard loud and clear at Saturday’s Arizona Democratic Party (ADP) State Committee Meeting in Maricopa, Arizona.

Unlike some past ADP meetingswhere progressives were ignored or where progressive resolutions were tabled and not heard by the full ADP membership, the Maricopa meeting was dominated by progressives.

During the morning caucus meetings, approximately 80 members of the progressive caucus (pictured here) met in the booming high school cafeteria to hear about legalization of marijuana, the plight of Dreamers, and a host of progressive resolutions.

In the progressive caucus, members unanimously endorsed resolutions: 1) in support of a Constitutional Amendment ending Citizens United and abolishing corporate personhood; 2) in support of passage of the Inclusive Prosperity Tax (AKA Robin Hood Tax); 3) against building the Keystone XL Pipeline; and 4) in support of allowing DREAMers to have Arizona drivers’ licenses and in-state college tuition. A resolution requiring clean elections candidates to give back extra funds passed, with some dissent. In addition, with only one dissenting vote, the Progressive Caucus voted to endorse Safer Arizona, the citizens’ initiative to legalize marijuana for personal use. [Votes from the entire State Committee after the jump.]

Can Public Banking Spur Economic Growth in Southern Arizona?

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Tucson is one of the most impoverished cities in the country—for many reasons. The Arizona Legislature—driven by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and short-sighted, “small government” ideology—has routinely swept funds earmarked for counties and cities to "balance" the state’s budget or fund pet projects like lower corporate taxes.

Beyond the Legislature’s negative impact on Baja Arizona, the Tucson economy is not diversified enough. Manufacturing is nearly non-existent in Southern Arizona. There is an over-reliance on defense spending, University of Arizona spin-offs, tourism, low-wage service jobs, and growth/development. During the Great Recession, multiple income streams for our local economy were dramatically reduced or eliminated—resulting in the loss of hundreds, if not thousands of good-paying jobs due to budget cuts, business closures, and the housing market crash. People and jobs left the area.

In August, the Arizona Daily Star ran a week-long series on multiple aspects of poverty in Southern Arizona and just this week, the Star ran a story that stated Tucson was second only to Detroit in the proliferation of crappy, low-wage jobs. In a survey of 52 metro areas with over 1 million residents, Tucson was in the top 10 for job creation; the problem is that more than half of the projected 28,000 new jobs will pay less than $13.84/hour. (If you really want to be depressed, check out the list of Tucson's fastest growing occupations here. None of these jobs requires a college education. Thanks to TREO's efforts, telemarketer is #1. Thanks to Tucson's ample supply of old folks, the next four most popular jobs are low-wage health/caregiver positions. We won't break the cycle of poverty in this city with a jobs picture like this.)

So, we know that our city has big economic challenges. Now what? As I wrote back in August, it's time for some creative economic solutions. It's time to STOP our addiction to military spending. It's time to STOP relying on temporary construction jobs and low-wage hospitality industry jobs. It's time to defund TREO and STOP chasing rainbows by competing with other metro areas for "the next IBM" or the next spring training team. It's time to STOP sending our money to Wall Street for investment. It's time to START investing in Tucson. It's time for public banking. [Read why after the jump.]

PDA Meeting: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about the Affordable Care Act (and Healthcare Reform)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) and healthcare reform, in general, will be the focus of PDA Tucson’s general membership meeting on Thursday, Nov. 14.

Andrea Witte (the Connect the Dots Lady) will present the updated version of “The American Healthcare CrazyQuilt”, which looks at how the US healthcare system evolved into the most expensive system in the world but still leaves millions of people uninsured. She also will discuss the Affordable Care Act.

Dr. Eve Shapiro, local pediatrician and head of PDA Tucson’s universal healthcare issue organizing team, will talk about single-payer, universal healthcare and why that should be our country’s ultimate healthcare reform goal. The ACA is a step in the right direction but not the end of the road.

Concluding the healthcare portion of the program, Michal Goforth, executive director of the Pima County Access Program, will talk about local ACA outreach efforts and local implementation of the new healthcare law.

Rounding out the evening, PDA Tucson Chair Phil Lopes will discuss local and national initiatives of the Progressive Democrats of America.

The Nov. 14 meeting will be held at the Pima County Housing Center, 801 W. Congress St. The entrance faces Congress Street, but parking is on the North and East sides of the building. Doors open at 6 p.m.; program starts at 6:30 p.m.

Related Information:
Affordable Care Act Quick Reference Guide from Connect the Dots USA

Affordable Care Act Claims: PolitiFact Sorts Fact from Fiction

Wind Dancer Design on TPAC Open Studio Tour (Shameless Self-Promotion)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

This weekend, Nov. 9-10, is the 26th Annual Tucson Pima Arts Council Open Studio Tour. More than 240 local artists, scattered all over Pima County, will open their art studios to visitors (and hopefully make a few sales). My midtown studio– Wind Dancer Design– will be one of them.

Buying local is always a good idea, but the Open Studio Tour gives art and craft lovers an opportunity to buy from Tucson’s smallest and most unique micro-businesses– local artists. It’s also highly cost-effective to buy direct from an artist, since local galleries and gift shops take 40-50% of the sale price as a consignment fee when you buy through them.

Since going to 240 artist studios is impossible in one weekend, the TPAC website allows you to review what’s available by location or by artist and plan your outing. Although there are many artist studios and collectives around downtown and the University of Arizona (like my daughter’s), there is also a high concentration of artist studios in the central Tucson area (where I am). Tour booklets which provide detailed maps, thumbnail photos, and artist details are available at local libraries and retailers around town, and you can download one here. (The booklets are so well done that they provide a year-round reference to local artists.)

The tour is Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. both days.

This holiday season, it’s time to forsake the chachkies made by Chinese children and buy uniquely Tucson gifts of local art. Come on down!

 

UPDATE: Oct 16 PDA Tucson Fall Membership Meeting Postponed until Nov 14

by Pamela Powers Hannley

October 15 Update:

Yesterday, I posted a notice about the Fall Membership Meeting of PDA Tucson. The headline speaker was to be Congressman Raul Grijalva.

The Congressman had to cancel, so the PDA meeting is being postponed until Thursday, Nov. 14. 

Here is a link to the event on Facebook. You can find updates there or on this blog. We had hoped that Grijalva canceled because he was called back to DC to vote on lifting the shutdown and the debt ceiling, but given this afternoon's headlines that vote appears to be a distant dream.

October 14 Blog Post:

With the government shutdown, historic gridlock in Congress, and multiple protests errupting, Washington DC has been a hotbed of political activity.

While some Arizona Democrats are cozying up to the Republicans, Congressman Raul Grijalva continues to be a leader of the progressive movement. Last week, he and other progressive Congressmen were arrested at a recent immigration reform protest in DC (above). He also spoke with Democracy Now about the shutdown and immigration reform.

This Wednesday, October 16, Grijalva will give a Washington update at the Fall Membership Meeting of Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) Tucson Chapter at the Ward 6 midtown office.  

Immigration Reform NOW: Protestors Blockade Entrance to Eloy Detention Center

by Pamela Powers Hannley

From the arrest of Congressman Raul Grijalva and other progressive representatives last week at an immigration reform rally to protesters chaining themselves to immigration detention center buses to the blockade of the Eloy Detention Center today, immigration reform advocates are turning up the pressure.

The Eloy blockade began this morning. For background information go here and for dramatic photos go here.

From the National Day Laborer Organizing Network…

Just now, protestors chained themselves in front of the Eloy Detention Center. Their action calls on the President to stop deportations and the criminalization of immigrants. Through civil disobedience they say they’re exposing the inhumane imprisonment at the center of current immigration policy and the needless warehousing of the undocumented who could benefit from reform.

Many of those inside Eloy have committed no major offense and instead are victims of Congress’ 34,000 minimum detention bed mandate and the profiling of Sheriffs like Arpaio and Border Patrol required to fulfill the arbitrary quota.

 

Boehner Defiantly Rationalizes GOP Madness, as Stephanopoulos Presses for Shutdown End Game Strategy (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

A week ago, Republican grandstanding in the House of Representatives shutdown the US government. Saying they want to "save the American people from the threat of Obamacare" Tea Party anarchists are risking the health and welfare of millions of Americans, our standing as a world leader, and our financial health as a nation, as they stall budget negotiations. This is beyond unconscionable. It is traitorous.

Bankrolled by the Koch Brothers and a handful of capitalists bent on denying affordable health care to millions of Americans, Republicans in the House of Representatives continue to use double speak lie to cloud the issues and deflect blame for this dangerous brinksmanship away from themselves.

From Esquire...

We have elected a national legislature in which the true power resides in a cabal of vandals, a nihilistic brigade that believes that its opposition to a bill directing millions of new customers to the nation's insurance companies is the equivalent of standing up to the Nazis in 1938, to the bravery of the passengers on Flight 93 on September 11, 2001, and to Mel Gibson's account of the Scottish Wars of Independence in the 13th Century. We have elected a national legislature that looks into the mirror and sees itself already cast in marble.

We did this. We looked at our great legacy of self-government and we handed ourselves over to the reign of morons. 

[Video after the jump.]

On Occupy's 2nd Anniversary: The World Says 'End Austerity Now!' (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

What began on Sept 17, 2011 as an extended sit-in in a park in Manhattan-- the bastion of US capitalism-- the Occupy Movement grew into a worldwide movement with a simple message, "We are the 99%."

And we are oppressed by the 1% who own the world's wealth.

Occupy's we're-all-in-this-together-- regardless of age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, ability, or location on the globe-- message presented an ah-ha moment and raised the class consciousness of millions of people.

Despite being ignored by the mainstream media, within weeks, Occupy encampments sprung up across the US, around the world, and here in Tucson.

Although small-scale compared to big-city encampments, Occupy Tucson was one of the longest running, ongoing encampments and one of the most harassed by local police and one of the most ignored by the local media. Hundreds of tickets for violating park curfews were issued to Tucson Occupiers in nightly park sweeps. At one point in 2011, more Occupy tickets had been issued in Tucson than in any other US city-- except for New York City.

Today, Occupy Tucson lives on-- not in the parks-- but in a small office in the Alliance for Global Justice headquarters, where several activist groups share space. Well-known local Occupiers and their allies regularly speak out or organize actions related to ending corporate personhood, stopping Citizens United, building a sustainable community, ending drone warfare, stopping genetically modified foods, and other issues of the day.  [Video links and the impact of Occupy after the jump.]

Affordable Care Act Claims: PolitiFact Sorts Fact from Fiction

by Pamela Powers Hannley

As the Republican Congressional circus continues, October 1-- the federal budget deadline and the Affordable Care Act health exchange roll-out date-- is fast approaching.

Teapublican Senatorial crusaders Ted Cruz and Mike Lee and others are spreading tons of misinformation about the Affordable Care Act (AKA Obamacare).

To counter the misinformation, PolitiFact has provided this great list of facts-- to counter the "pants-on-fire" lies.

1. The health care law rations care, like systems in Canada and Great Britain. False.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott, July 2, 2012,  in an interview on Fox News

The health care law is not socialized medicine. Instead, it leaves in place the private health care system that follows free market principles. The law does put more regulations on health insurance companies. It also fines most large employers who fail to provide insurance for their employees, and it requires all individuals to have health insurance. This is unlike the systems in either Britain or Canada. In Britain, doctors are employees of the government, while in Canada, the government pays most medical bills as part of a single-payer system. The U.S. health care law has neither of those features. PolitiFact has rated this claim and others like it False.

Ronnie & Nancy Scold Congress for ‘Bringing the Country to the Edge of Default’ (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

President Ronald Reagan has been elevated to God-like status by contemporary Republicans-- particularly those who still believe in trickledown economics, union-busting, Welfare Queens, the "vegetable" ketchup, and spending BIG BUCKS on the military-industrial complex, while taking food out of the mouths of children.

So, although the Gipper might agree in theory with the cannibals in the House of Representatives who are trying to destroy the social fabric of our country by denying food to the poor, he would not agree with their irresponsible tactic of repeatedly bringing the country to the brink of a shutdown just to make political points.

Check out this recording from 1987 (below) in which he scolds Congress for exactly the brinksmanship that his contemporary fans are pursuing now.

Climate Smart Southwest: Are YOU Ready for Climate Change?

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Is it hot enough for ya?

In the coming years, as temperatures rise, weather patterns evolve, and plant and animal species become extinct, that wry, old country greeting will lose it’s quaint humor. Thanks to global warming.

The Southwest is already the hottest and driest part of the US. And our region is already experiencing longer and more intense heat waves, a dramatic spike in forest fires and severe dust storms, and changes in rainfall and seasonal snowmelt. These changes threaten water resources, food security, and public health.  As extreme weather events continue to increase, we will see higher rates of heat stress, newly emerging infectious diseases, asthma, and other respiratory illnesses.

How will the Sonoran Desert change as climate change progresses? Will we have enough water? What will our air quality be like if Arizona’s dirty coal-fired power plants continue to balk at environmental regulations?  How will Arizona cope with rolling brown outs if electrical demand spikes? How will Tucson’s vulnerable populations fare with more days over 100 degrees? What can we do NOW to lessen the impact of climate change on our fragile environment?

This coming weekend, Sept. 20-21, the Arizona Chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) is sponsoring an important conference for us desert dwellers:Climate Smart Southwest, Ready or Hot? Check out the details after the jump.

New Research: 'Guns Do Not Make a Nation Safer'

by Pamela Powers Hannley

With each massacre of innocent citizens, the demand for action on gun control by the US Congress intensifies.

After the tragic Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in December 2012,  it appeared as if the national outrage over the massacre of 20 children and 6 school staff would finally push the Congress into action, but sadly, in April 2013, the most recent attempt at common sense gun control was thwarted by a Republican Party filibuster (which included both Arizona Senators Jeff Flake and John McCain.)

This week, a lone gunman opened fire in a Washington DC naval facility, killing 12 people and injuring 8 others before being killed by authorities. Within hours of the shooting, Senator Diane Feinstein, who sponsored gun control legislation earlier this year, called on Congress to revive gun control efforts.

Serendipitously for gun control advocates, The American Journal of Medicine released Gun Ownership and Firearm-related Deaths by Drs. Sripal Bangalore and Franz Messerli today.

More Guns Don't Make a Nation Safer

Read the details of the study after the jump and then forward it to your state legislators and your Congressional representatives.

Poor People’s Party: Occupy Tucson, PDA, and NNU Celebrate Occupy’s 2nd Anniversary

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Two years ago, the Occupy Movement– with its simple “We Are the 99%!” message– united the world by enlightening us to the workings of the corporate oligarchy and the governments they run (including our own) and how this system is designed to keep us down. Worldwide, Occupy encampments sprang up in 2011.

On the second anniversary of Occupy, there will be worldwide protests against austerity. Here at home the anniversary will be marked with a Poor People’s Party.

Here is the information from Occupy Tucson.

This Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2013, beginning at 6:00 pm, Occupy Tucson, National Nurses United, and Progressive Democrats of America are hosting a Poor People’s Party to offer a collective response to the global austerity measures foisted upon us.

Come to 225 E 26th Street and check out the new national headquarters for the Alliance for Global Justice. 

We’re having a pot-luck supper, free movies, free games, and a chance to video-record personal responses to “What Austerity Means to Me.”

Please spread the word. Bring your favorite games. Let’s have some fun. That’s the best response to a widening wealth gap, a corrupt political system, and a ramped-up hyper-militarized police state.

Related articles

Occupy Network: S17 Updates for the 2nd Anniversary of OWS

Happy Birthday Occupy

What occupy has given us

Tucson Food Stamp Challenge: A Teachable Moment

by Pamela Powers Hannley

September is Hunger Action Month. Locally, the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona is encouraging Tucson residents to take the SNAP (food stamp) challenge by trying to live on $4 of food per person per day.

If you follow my blog, you know that I write regularly about poverty and imperiled social safety net programs, including food stamps and other nutrition programs like Meals on Wheels and school lunches. When the food bank called me and asked if I wanted to join the SNAP Challenge and blog about it, I jumped on board. I was intrigued by Cory Booker’s food stamp challenge blogging and video and wanted to try it.

My husband and I both participated in the SNAP challenge this week. Since there were 2 of us doing it, our allotment was $32 for the 4 days of the challenge. Read about our experience after the jump.

Poverty, Hunger, Inequality, Violence: American Women Are Being Screwed

by Pamela Powers Hannley

It's time for a status update...

93 years after American women won the right to vote,

90 years after the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) to the US Constitution was proposed,

53 years after The Pill,

50 years after The Feminine Mystique awakened middle-class housewives from the slumber of the 1950s,

47 years after the creation of the National Organization for Women (NOW),

40 years after Roe v Wade legalized abortion in the US,

and 31 years after the ERA died because it fell short of state ratification by 3 state legislatures...

Where are we? Find out after the jump.

UPDATED: Monthly Progressive Roundtables Give PDA Members a ‘Seat at the Table’ (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

UPDATE: This article was picked up by the national publication In These Times and by the Daily Kos Progressive Blog Round-up. Check out the In These Times version for more details: Knights of the Progressive Roundtable.

Deals are made, and bills are negotiated not only in the halls of Congress but in offices and meeting rooms around DC. Since December 2012, Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) has been conducting monthly, Educate Congress roundtable meetings with Congressional representatives and key staff.

With a give-and-take format, these meetings allow PDA representatives and allies to discuss proposed legislation and related progressive ideas and allow Congressional representatives and staffers to offer updates, insights, and strategies.

The Progressive Roundtables provide a forum to address a broad range of issues– from Wall Street gambling and hunger in America to voting rights, immigration, fracking, universal healthcare, the living wage, austerity, tax reform, mass incarceration, and more.

“One of the things I love about PDA is you stand up for ‘the little guy,’ and that’s what government’s all about,” Massachusetts Rep. Jim McGovern told the roundtable audience in July 2013. “Donald Trump doesn’t need us [Congress], but somebody who is unemployed or somebody who is working and making so little that they still qualify for SNAP [food stamps], they need us!” More roundtable details and videos after the jump.)

Party of ‘NO’ Says ‘NO’ to Debates on CNN, NBC

by Pamela Powers Hannley

In recent years, the Republican Party has earned the well-deserved nickname of the “Party of NO.” Senior Senator form Kentucky, Mitch McConnell (AKA Senator Gridlock) is the Party of NO’s mascot with an astounding 413 filibusters since 2007.

The latest thing for the Republican National Committee to say “Hell, No!” to is debates on CNN and NBC. Why are they pulling debates from these two national networks? Because they plan to air a specials about Hillary Clinton.

Seriously? Instead of rising to the challenge of the Democratic Party’s early presidential favorite and finding an intelligent candidate (ie, not Rand Paul or Rick Perry), you’re going to HIDE from her and the American people?

Being afraid of a TV special that airs three years before the election is just silly– given the American public’s short attention span.

Stop your sniveling and man up.

Like what you read here? Check out my Word Press blog Tucson-Progressive.com, my Tumblr page, or my Facebook page.

ALEC’s Legacy of Destruction: PDA Members Join Anti-ALEC Protesters in Chicago (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Inside the 40th annual meeting of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in Chicago, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and other right-wing big-wigs addressed ALEC members and on-the-dole politicians.

Outside, the people, who have been cut out of the legislative process by ALEC and big money donors, protested in the streets. (Photos here.)

In its 40-year history, ALEC has done more to destroy the American Dream than any other group. According to a report by the Center for Media and Democracy, 466 ALEC bills were introduced in 2013, and 84 of them became law. Every state and the District of Columbia considered ALEC bills this year. Read the highlights of this ALEC legislative report and watch a video of Chicago protesters after the jump.

In Light of Local Poverty, Tucson Needs Creative Direction & Progressive Economic Ideas

by Pamlea Powers Hannley

Business friendly? Tucson’s been there, done that, … and got the t-shirt at Goodwill. As former City Councilwoman Molly McKasson said, we put all of our eggs in the development basket and look where it got us.

Twenty percent of Tucsonans are living in poverty.

Thirty percent of Tucson children are living in poverty.

Fifty-two percent of Tucson children live in a one-parent household.

Seventy-one percent of Tucson Unified School District students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. (Statistics from the Arizona Daily Star.)

How did we get here?

The Back Story on Tucson’s Poverty Rate

In a November 2011 “What If?” article published just a few days before the last mayoral election, former Arizona Daily Star reporter Josh Brodesky interviewed activist, writer, and artist McKasson and mused about how Tucson would be different today if she had beaten former Mayor Bob Walkup back in their 1999 match-up.

I remember that election well. Walkup– a former Hughes Aircraft executive and former head of the Greater Tucson Economic Council– was the quintessential business candidate. Bankrolled by Tucson’s business community, Walkup’s campaign successfully painted McKasson as a flighty hippie artist whose no-growth, tree-hugging, water-conserving policies would be bad for Tucson (ie, bad for business and bad for growth). Meanwhile, Walkup was championed as a business savvy savior who successfully ran a business, and, therefore, (of course!) could successfully run a city.

As mayor, the glad-handing, ribbon-cutting Walkup promoted business development, Rio Nuevo, and ill-conceived, taxpayer-funded private projects like the downtown hotel (which went down in flames, thank goodness). Except for his pro-business, pro-growth cheerleading, Walkup was a do-nothing mayor who depended upon defense funding, the occasional TREO call center moving to Tucson, and housing boom construction jobs to bolster Tucson’s chronically low-wage tourist economy. The Tucson Weekly’s endorsement of McKasson (here) eerily  predicts what happened to Tucson under three terms of Walkup. Read it and more background and new ideas after the jump.

MoveOn Members Blast Blue Dogs Sinema & Kirkpatirck for Obamacare Vote (video)

MoveOn.org members have launched petitions against 14 Democrats– including Arizona’s Congresswomen Kyrsten Sinema and Ann Kirkpatrick– for siding with Republicans in their vote to delay implementation of the Affordable Care Act from 2014 to 2015.

According to The Hill, these members were targeted with MoveOn.org petitions: Reps. Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.) Scott Peters (D-Calif.), Brad Schneider (D-Ill.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), Julia Brownley (D-Calif.), Sean Maloney (D-N.Y.), Elizabeth Esty (D-Conn.), Dan Maffei (D-N.Y.), Ann Kirkpatrick (D-Ariz.), Bill Enyart (D-Ill.), Bill Owens (D-N.Y.), Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.) and Collin Peterson (D-Minn.).

Video and more background after the jump.

Richmond, Calif to Try Eminent Domain to Reduce Foreclosures

The banksters are pissed. How dare the City of Richmond, California try to use its power of eminent domain to stop housing foreclosures in its city?

Generally, governmental bodies use eminent domain to force people to sell their land and/or homes to make way for projects (like freeways) which are for the common good. Long ago, the Occupy Wall Street movement suggested that cities could use eminent domain to buy up mortgages and reduce homeowner debt– before the homeowners are forced out of their underwater mortgages by the banksters.

Remember the old Occupy chant? “Banks got bailed out. We got sold out.” The US government bailed out the Wall Street gamblers who crashed the worldwide economy, created and burst the housing bubble, caused businesses to close and lay off workers, and plunged millions of Americans into homelessness or rental units when they lost their homes. The federal government has done almost nothing to help the millions of beleaguered homowners who have lost their homes or are on the verge of it. Check out Richmond's plan after the jump.

MAS Redux: Tucson Weekly & MalintZINE Dare to Tell the ‘Rest of the Story’

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Sexism and sexual violence cross all ethnic, racial, and class boundaries. This story focuses on the struggle against misogyny and sexual violence in Tucson’s Chicano community.

For years, the Tucson Weekly’s Mari Herreras has covered multiple aspects of the rise and fall of Mexican American Studies (MAS)– the chaining, the chanting, the demonstrations, the fundraising, the controversies, the personalities– but A Broken Community, the cover story of the July 18 issue, was one of the more fascinating stories about the evolution of MAS.

Maybe it’s because I gave up reading the Three Sonorans blog years ago, but I haven’t heard or read much about MAS since the former director of the program, Sean Arce, was charged with domestic violence back in December 2012.

At the time, the silence surrounding the Arce’s charges and what happened between him and his wife that night in December at La Cocina was deafening. As I wrote, “Bloggers who regularly post ‘news’ stories every time Arce catches a cold are mute, and none of the mainstream media have touched his story.”

A handful women bloggers wrote about the Arce story– most notably, a relatively new blog, MalintZINE. “Dear Sean”, a moving essay about machismo and sexism in the MAS movement, was one of the first few posts on this blog, and at the time, the author(s) was/were anonymous to the general public, myself included.

Herreras’ TW story updates us on this thread.

Rape and Violence

Without naming many names, Herreras gives us the back story on sexism, sexual abuse charges, and fallen idols in the MAS program, with accounts dating back to 2011 (more than a year before the December 2012 Arce incident). At the core of the story is former MAS spokesperson and former cover girl for the Precious Knowledgemovie Leilani Clark and the womyn of MalintZINE. In the early heyday of the MAS protests, Clark was everywhere. I heard her speak with poise and fire  about the MAS struggle at multiple events, and then… poof… she disappeared from the scene.  She was everywhere, and then, nowhere. (I’m sure I’m not the only one who wondered what happened to her.) 

To find out, follow the jump.

PDA Street Heat: Robin Hood Ready

Don't forget the Prosperity Not Austerity Rally at Raul's today.

10:30-12 noon, 738 N. 5th Ave.

Brings signs.

We will thank Congressman Raul Grijalva for his progressive leadership while promoting the Robin Hood Tax, jobs, and universal healthcare. More background here.

We'll also celebrate the 48th birthday of Medicare with cupcakes and "Happy Birthday."

John Oliver Nails George Zimmerman & Florida’s Racism (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

Over the weekend, George Zimmerman, the now infamous gun-toting neighborhood watch volunteer, was found not guilty after he shot and killed black teenager Trayvon Martin.

Like many others, I was shocked at the verdict, I don’t agree with it, but I am sadly not surprised. I have not written about this because I really didn’t know what to say. Was it racial profiling? Yes. Did the gun give Zimmerman undeserved power and authority over Martin? Yes. Should Stand-Your-Ground Laws be repealed? Yes. Do we need better gun control laws in the US to prevent innocent people from premature death? Yes. Are laws in the US applied unevenly based upon race and class? Yes.

John Oliver  sums up the outrage and the inequality in this segment of the Daily Show. Now it’s our turn to figure out next steps. Maybe in our own backyard– with Arizona’s Stand-Your-Ground Law. 

Here's the link:

Acquitted Development, with John Oliver

[Photo Credit: c.garcia.s, Wiki Creative Commons]

From DC to Texas: Men Behaving Badly (video)

by Pamela Powers Hannley

From the failure of the Farm Bill to the ups and downs of Immigration Reform to last-minute,late night anti-abortion bills– it’s been a wild ride lately. And, the craziness is not likely to stop any time soon.

After the jump, check out several news stories and two videos which highlight [Republican] men behaving badly in the Congress and multiple state legislatures. Heavy sigh. Will this strategy of "subtraction" work for them in 2014 or 2016? I personally don't see how it can.