Prop. 100 says schools need more money? PVUSD wasted $49 MILLION making buildings more "green!"

OUTRAGEOUS! H/T to Lynne Weaver, Chair of Prop. 13 Arizona, for providing this article that ran in the Arizona Republic. The problem is not that our schools need more money, it's that they are being mismanaged.

David Schweikert: Hey, can I borrow your truck?

Do you have office supplies you can donate to the new campaign office?

We'll be moving into our official campaign office soon, and we could really use some help. If you have any of the items that we've listed here, contact the campaign.

• Modern computers!
• Computer printers, a fax machine, and a copy machine
• Tables, chairs, bookcases, or shelves

(And let us know if you have a truck we can borrow...)

CAP: Gov. Brewer Signs Pro-Life Bill

Gov. Brewer Signs Pro-Life Bill at CAP Dinner! At our CAP Family Dinner Saturday night, Governor Jan Brewer signed SB 1305, prohibiting taxpayer-funded insurance coverage for elective abortions for public employees. With the bill, Arizona became the first state in the nation to opt out of providing abortion coverage in any state insurance exchanges created under Obamacare. Approximately 40 state legislators joined Gov. Brewer on stage, making a powerful statement to our nation that Arizonans' taxpayer dollars won't be used to fund abortions. I especially thank Governor Brewer and the bill's sponsors, Sen. Linda Gray and Rep. Nancy Barto, for their pro-life stands.

Have you met the two McCains?

POLL SHOWS HAYWORTH LEADING MCCAIN AMONG CONSERVATIVES

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  THURSADAY, APRIL 29  PRESS RELEASE

POLL SHOWS HAYWORTH LEADING MCCAIN AMONG CONSERVATIVES (PHOENIX-AZ) APRIL 29 -- The campaign of U.S. Senate candidate J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ) today said a new poll showed Hayworth is leading Senator John McCain 46 percent to 38 percent among conservative voters in the state.   "Conservative voters are going to determine who is the next Senator from Arizona, and they are overwhelmingly for Hayworth," said campaign spokesman Mark Sanders   . Public Policy Polling reported today : "Republican primary voters in Arizona are down on John McCain with a majority of them thinking he's too lenient on immigration and a plurality feeling that he's too liberal in general."   The poll found that a majority -- 45 percent of voters -- disapprove of his job performance, that a majority -- 43 percent --think he is too liberal, and that a majority -- 53 percent -- think he is too lenient on illegal immigration.   "Senator McCain is underwater," Sanders said. "For a 28-year incumbent who was the Party's nominee for President to be trailing in the polls with the Party's base is shocking."   Among conservative voters, 46 percent disapprove of McCain compared to only 41 percent approval, 59 percent think he is too liberal, and an astounding 67 percent think he is too lenient on illegal immigrants.   "After flip-flopping on every issue, trying to remake himself in this election year and running more than $2 million on ads, Arizona voters are just not buying it," Sanders said.   For more information, please visit http://www.JDforSenate.com or contact info@jdforsenate.com    Paid for by JD HAYWORTH 2010

David Schweikert Calls on Harry Mitchell to Join Him in Supporting SB1070

Asks Mitchell to join him in condemning Grijalva’s call for a boycott of Arizona?

(Scottsdale, AZ)  Republican candidate David Schweikert today called on Congressman Harry Mitchell to join him in supporting SB 1070 – the anti-illegal immigration law recently passed by the Arizona Legislature.
“Because our state has taken the brunt of the federal government’s unwillingness to secure our southern border and crack down on illegal immigration, the Arizona Legislature correctly decided to act,” said David Schweikert.  “I applaud their action and support their commitment to protecting our state. I call on Congressman Mitchell to join me in supporting this necessary legislation,” continued Schweikert.
David Schweikert also asked Mitchell to join him in condemning Congressman Raul Grijalva’s  call for businesses to boycott Arizona.  “Harry Mitchell needs to immediately condemn Grijalva’s call for a boycott,” continued Schweikert. “Grijalva’s call for a boycott is irresponsible and Harry Mitchell should repudiate it.”

For Immediate Release – April 28, 2010
Contact: Oliver Schwab • 480.659.9383 • 781.254.7246

Margaret Carlson: McCain has entered witness protection program for politicians seeking to change their identity for election purposes

Interesting article by Margaret Carlson on McCain's rare appearance in Washington, to question Goldman Sachs executives. Funny that McCain is questioning them, considering Goldman Sachs contributed $230,095 to his campaign in 2008, his fourth highest donor. That same year, McCain voted for the TARP pork financial bailout, which awarded $10 billion to Goldman Sachs.

Some excerpts from the article -

There was a brief sighting of the Senator John McCain who’s been hard to find since entering the Witness Protection Program for politicians seeking to change their identity for election purposes.

His new guise comes as the senator is confronting his first serious primary challenge from his right, as J.D. Hayworth, the former congressman and talk-show host, pummels him for apostasies. McCain treats his former friend like a piece of lint he can brush off, but the guy has rattled him.

Maverick No More

Ever since Hayworth labeled himself the “consistent conservative,” McCain has wanted to be one as well. Thus did McCain claim to Newsweek that he’d never been a maverick, leaving us to wonder if he remembers three decades of reaching across the aisle, challenging his party on climate change, gay rights and spending. His old self is such an embarrassment he’s blotted out the inconvenient fact that he subtitled one of his books “The Education of an American Maverick.”

He long said he would follow the lead of top U.S. brass regarding gays in the military. Now that the brass is for dropping the policy of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” McCain isn’t.

He was for creating a national-debt commission before he was against it. And he uttered nary a peep of protest when the Supreme Court overturned part of his bid to reduce the role of money in politics.

Panicked Friend

Then McCain’s best friend, Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, withdrew from a piece of energy legislation he’d written with Democrats, furious that Democrats were about to move forward on immigration in what he considered a “hurried, panicked manner.” The only panic, of course, is over McCain having to address the thorny immigration issue during his reelection campaign.

It wasn’t so long ago that McCain joined with Senator Edward Kennedy for Congress’s last great immigration reform effort, legislation that laid out a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants.

During the 2008 presidential campaign, McCain pulled back from that under pressure from his base.

  

Arizona 2010 Project chairman boycotting San Francisco

PHOENIX, AZ (AP) — The Chairman of the Arizona 2010 Project, Ronald E. Ludders is boycotting San Francisco, CA because of Mayor Newsom's comments on Arizona's stringent new immigration law. Ludders' has asked that all members of the Arizona 2010 Project not to travel to San Francisco even thought many of them may have left their heart there at one time or another. Ludders' stated that he will encourage both his solitary democrat friend and all his Republican friends not to pick San Francisco for their destinations during the next several years. Ludders' says Arizona's law is "much needed" and will resolve many of the illegal immigration problems. Additionally, he says the law will reduce racial tensions. Ludders' action is in line with other Tea Party facilitators in Arizona who also suggest boycotting San Francisco, where Mayor Newsom has put a moratorium on city employees' official travel to Arizona. Newsom didn't know much about the new Arizona law, but freely gave his uninformed, prejudice opinions which were picked up by the main stream media and misrepresented as the comments of a intelligent individual who has given thoughtful consideration to the new Arizona law.
 

Tom Horne, candidate for Arizona Attorney General: "Being AG is a man's job"

I am appalled that a Republican candidate for Arizona Attorney General, Tom Horne, has declared, "Being Attorney General is a man's job." What kind of jobs does he think women are suited for, cooking and cleaning? It is this kind of attitude that perpetuates the stereotype that the Republican Party is full of sexists, racists, etc. These kinds of comments are hurting the Republican Party when it comes to the female vote. There are many women like myself who aspire to top legal positions, and find that kind of remark very belittling. I worked hard to get through law school on loans, then took a job as an Assistant Attorney General in Commercial law at the Arizona Attorney General's Office for three years.  Fortunately, the other Republican in this race, Andrew Thomas, is not a sexist. He offered me a high-level position at the County Attorney's Office where I have worked the last 5+ years. I hope the voters realize who really represents Republicans, not some sexist stereotype of Republicans, and vote for Thomas.

More speculation on whether McCain will run as an Independent like Crist

Great post at Sonoran Alliance analyzing the possibility

Pamela Gorman launches Mother's Day Money Bomb

J.D. Hayworth Takes On John McCain and SB1070 on Fox News

JD questions why McCain is supporting Arizona's SB1070 considering three years ago he co-sponsored an amnesty bill with the late Ted Kennedy.

Schweikert for Congress: A discussion on immigration...

A discussion on immigration... This past week, we’ve seen our state thrust into the spotlight of the national debate on illegal immigration. This is an issue that will not go away until our federal government decides to get serious about this problem and do something more than just pay it lip service. Conservative columnist George Will makes some very powerful points in regards to birthright citizenship as a primary obstacle to a political solution and explains why the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Constitution in this area is flawed. Click here to read the article: An argument to be made about immigrant babies and citizenship

Original Phoenix Tea Party Organizer Endorses Andrew Thomas For AG

Original Phoenix Tea Party Organizer Endorses Thomas For Attorney General

PHOENIX, ARIZONA. APRIL 28, 2010.  Founder of the original Phoenix Tea Party group and Arizona State Chair of the Patriot Caucus group, Keith Sipmann, has formally endorsed Andrew Thomas in the Arizona Attorney General race.

“With immigration issues at the forefront, Andrew brings the promise of prosecuting illegal immigrants under the state's human smuggling laws.  He has a track record of reducing crime and illegal immigration which we can rely on,” Sipmann said.   

Thomas has also been endorsed by Mohave County Attorney Matthew Smith, Mohave County Sheriff Tom Sheahan, Pinal County SheriffPaul Babeu, Cochise County Sheriff Larry Dever and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

During Thomas' time in office, crime rates plummeted.  The 19 percent drop is more than twice the national rate of decline, in despite of an 11 percent increase in the county's population during that time.  The illegal immigrant population has dropped by anywhere from 18 percent (Dept. of Homeland Security estimate) to 30 percent (Center for Immigration Studies estimate). Like the fall in crime rates, this dramatic decline in illegal immigration is far greater than the average in the rest of the nation. 

Thomas has a track record of successfully defending illegal immigration crackdowns in our courts, including his successful efforts to prosecute illegal immigrants for conspiring to violate the state's human-smuggling law and to defend Prop 200's voter ID requirements and the employer-sanctions law, which he defended along with the Attorney General's Office.

If elected Attorney General Thomas has pledged to expand that office's prosecutions of illegal immigrants under the state's human smuggling laws. The office is not currently pursuing such prosecutions.

Thomas is married with four children.  He is a graduate of Harvard Law School.  Prior to serving as Maricopa County Attorney, Thomas served as an assistant attorney general for Arizona, deputy counsel and criminal justice policy advisor to the Governor, special assistant to the Director of the Arizona Department of Corrections, and a deputy county attorney.   

To schedule an interview please contact Jason Rose.  For more information about Andrew Thomas, please gotowww.ThomasforArizona.com.

Goldwater Institute: Arizona lawmakers join with Goldwater Institute to support Montana firearms manufacturing law

by Nick Dranias

 

On April 9, 2010, the Goldwater Institute filed an amicus brief in defense of the Montana Firearms Freedom Act. The law permits firearms to be manufactured and sold within state boundaries, free from federal regulation. Similar laws have also been enacted in Arizona, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, South Dakota and Tennessee. The Institute's amicus brief has been joined by nearly a third of the Arizona Senate, nearly half of the state House of Representatives, as well as one U.S. Congressman and various Arizona organizations. It is the first of many litigation salvos aimed at restoring state sovereignty and the principles of federalism under the U.S. Constitution. 

The lawsuit defending the Montana Firearms Freedom Act, Montana Shooting Sports Association v. Eric Holder, challenges the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearm's declaration that federal gun control laws pre-empt the act. The Institute's brief argues that such federal pre-emption would undercut the purpose of preserving state sovereignty in our federalist system-protecting individual liberty from the concentration of power in the federal government. This is because enforcing federal gun laws would restrict the opportunities Montanans would have otherwise under the act to enjoy their right to keep and bear arms and their related personal right to manufacture and sell firearms under the Ninth Amendment.

This argument has never been made before and could prevail in restraining the federal government's reach. Of course, such optimism must be tempered with the challenge posed by modern constitutional law. Nevertheless, if we are to restore the balance of power needed to maintain our free republic, pushing back federal laws that directly implicate enumerated fundamental rights is among the best places to start.

Nick Dranias holds the Clarence J. and Katherine P. Duncan Chair for Constitutional Government and is Director of the Joseph and Dorothy Donnelly Moller Center for Constitutional Government at the Goldwater Institute.

Learn More:

Goldwater Institute: Amicus Brief in Montana Shooting Sports Association v. Holder

National Public Radio: State Gun Laws Aim At Dodging Federal Regulation

Associated Press: More States Join Fight With Feds Over Guns

Andrew Thomas Gains Endorsement Of Mohave County Attorney Matthew Smith

PHOENIX, AZ. April 27, 2010:  Tough on crime Arizona Attorney General candidate Andrew Thomas is pulling in more key endorsements every day.  Mohave County Attorney Matthew Smith has formally endorsed Andrew Thomas in the race for Arizona Attorney General. 

“Andrew’s policies helped reduce crime and illegal immigration in Maricopa County.  We need those same results on a state level,” Smith said.

Smith is known for his own tough on crime policies in Mohave County, focusing on forceful prosecutions of the death penalty and child molestation cases.

Thomas enjoys the endorsements of Mohave County Sheriff Tom Sheahan, Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu, Cochise County Sheriff Larry Dever and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.  He has also been endorsed by Arizona Right to Life.

During Thomas' time in office, crime rates plummeted.  The 19 percent drop is more than twice the national rate of decline, in despite of an 11 percent increase in the county's population during that time.  The illegal immigrant population has dropped by anywhere from 18 percent (Dept. of Homeland Security estimate) to 30 percent (Center for Immigration Studies estimate). Like the fall in crime rates, this dramatic decline in illegal immigration is far greater than the average in the rest of the nation. 

Thomas has a track record of successfully defending illegal immigration crackdowns in our courts, including his successful efforts to prosecute illegal immigrants for conspiring to violate the state's human-smuggling law and to defend Prop 200's voter ID requirements and the employer-sanctions law, which he defended along with the Attorney General's Office.

If elected Attorney General Thomas has pledged to expand that office's prosecutions of illegal immigrants under the state's human smuggling laws. The office is not currently pursuing such prosecutions.

Thomas is married with four children.  He is a graduate of Harvard Law School.  Prior to serving as Maricopa County Attorney, Thomas served as an assistant attorney general for Arizona, deputy counsel and criminal justice policy advisor to the Governor, special assistant to the Director of the Arizona Department of Corrections, and a deputy county attorney.   

To schedule an interview please contact Jason Rose.  For more information about Andrew Thomas, please go to www.ThomasforArizona.com.

AFP: More Lies and Scare Tactics from Prop 100 Supporters

Dear Arizona Taxpayers and Tea Partiers: The Big Spenders and their lobbyists are spending their ONE MILLION DOLLAR budget on radio ads, robo-calls and glossy mailers to try to dupe Arizona taxpayers into voting for the Prop 100 tax increase on May 18. Early ballot voting is heavy this week, so you may have already heard some of the slogans and messages from the pro-100 side. The pro-100 side has resorted to several lies and scare tactics to make its case for raising taxes on struggling workers, families, and small businesses. For example, under a caption that says “the numbers don’t lie,” the pro-100 website (yeson100.com) claims that Arizona’s state revenues have fallen to 2004 levels, and that since 2004, Arizona has added “145,000 additional K-12 students.” To check that “fact,” go to pdf page 12 of the state superintendent’s report for 2009: http://www.ade.state.az.us/AnnualReport/AnnualReport2009/Vol1.pdf It’s clear that the total K-12 school population has increased by only 111,051 students. More importantly, the amount Arizona spent per student increased dramatically during that period. You can do your own math, using the figures on pdf pages 10 and 12, or refer to our chart: http://www.americansforprosperity.org/040710-az-k-12-funding-worst-case-scenario-prop-100 The increased spending was due in part to increased tax revenues from Prop 301, which was passed in 2000, the last time a Republican secretary of state became governor and told us we needed to raise taxes to support K-12 education. And yet, we have nothing to show for all that extra money, in terms of student performance (see the second chart in the link above). Also, the state’s auditor general tells us that we have less money in the classroom now than we did before Prop 301! That is a double scandal. Voters need to stop falling prey to the scare tactics. If your school district has flat-screen computer panels, but is threatening to fire good teachers, that’s an allocation problem, not a resource problem. Arizona does not need more tax dollars for education. Arizona needs more education for its tax dollars. (And please don’t get me started on “public safety” and “the firefighters”…) WE CAN WIN. PLEASE TAKE ACTION. The GOOD NEWS is that Prop 100 has very weak public support. After two months of pro-100 propaganda, including a ton of sky-is-falling rhetoric, the latest Rasmussen poll shows that only 53 percent of respondents say they will vote Yes. That is a very low level of support for the interest groups that are trying to put a heavy new tax on the people of Arizona--people who are suffering in a tough recession and tired of bailing out government when it spends too much money. Early ballot voting has already begun . Most voters will vote by mail by the end of this week. Your neighbors, and the commuters in your area, need to know that the grassroots is rising up against the fraudulent and economically damaging Prop 100 tax increase. They have to be reminded that real people would be hurt by the tax increase. The best and cheapest way to fight Prop 100 is to make homemade signs and post them next to the pro-100 signs at busy intersections. Here is how to do it: Get large pieces of corrugated plastic, cardboard, poster paper, bed sheets, or canvas. (Any large surface will do—I used an old closet door.) Go to a discount store or a hardware store and get some cheap acrylic paint and some brushes, or some spray paint. Write very simple messages (we have some ideas below, to stimulate your creativity). Be sure to make your letters VERY BIG—brush strokes should be about two inches wide. Then, take zip ties and attach your signs to chain link fences and to stakes at busy intersections near you. Put your anti-100 signs next to the glossy, mass-produced pro-100 signs. Then be ready to make more signs, in case the activists from the pro-spending side vandalize or remove your signs. Here some ideas for messages: Please vote NO on Prop 100 Tell the Big Spenders NO – Vote NO on Prop 100 We are Taxed Enough Already – Vote NO on Prop 100 Make government live within its means. NO on Prop 100. Make government more efficient. NO on Prop 100. We are ALL hurting in this recession. Vote NO on Prop 100. This is free speech at its best. Keep it cheap. Do not spend more than $500 (you can make a lot of big signs for less than $20), so that you do not have to register as a political committee. Remember: this election is in the hands of the grassroots. If you can’t make your own yard signs, here are two options: 1) Contact the Ax the Tax committee (www.axthetaxaz.com or azthetax@cox.net) and ask them if they have yard signs. You will probably need to make a small donation (please do!). 2) Contact activist Brandon Trichell (btbaseball@aol.com or 602-295-6947). He and a merry band of activists have been making cheap (but good-looking) yard/street signs in a garage in Mesa. They are asking for a donation of one dollar per sign. This is what the signs look like: http://www.americansforprosperity.org/042710-homemade-yard-signs-fight-prop-100 BEST SIGN CONTEST Once you have posted a sign, take a digital picture of it, and send it to tjenney@afphq.org. Feel free to send in multiple entries. AFP Arizona will post the photos on a web page starting on May 1, and we will ask all of our activists to vote for their favorite sign. We will award you a $100 gift certificate for your favorite store, if your sign gets the most votes. And AFP Arizona will award a second $100 gift certificate to whoever in our opinion comes up with the most succinct and powerful message, displayed in the biggest letters. REQUEST AN EARLY BALLOT TO VOTE AGAINST PROP 100! Early ballot voting has already started! The last day to request an early ballot is Friday, May 7. Go to the AZ Secretary of State’s website and request your early/absentee ballot: Registration Site: http://www.azsos.gov/election/county.htm   Tom Jenney Arizona Director Americans for Prosperity www.aztaxpayers.org tjenney@afphq.org (602) 478-0146

Goldwater Institute Given Top Rating by America's Largest Charity Evaluator

Goldwater Institute Given Top Rating by America's Largest Charity Evaluator

Charity Navigator gives Goldwater four out of four stars

 

PHOENIX - The Goldwater Institute has been awarded a four star rating, the highest possible, by Charity Navigator.

Charity Navigator, the nation's largest charity evaluator, applies an objective rating system to help donors assess the financial health of more than 5,000 American charities. According to CharityNavigator.org, this system examines "how responsibly (the charity) functions day to day as well as how well positioned it is to sustain its programs over time."

"The four star rating is a testament to the Goldwater Institute's commitment to responsible budgeting and spending in the fight for liberty," said Darcy Olsen, president and CEO of the Goldwater Institute.

The Goldwater Institute is an independent government watchdog supported by people who are committed to expanding free enterprise and liberty. The Institute develops innovative, principled solutions to pressing issues facing the states and enforces constitutionally limited government through litigation. The Institute focuses its work on expanding economic freedom and educational opportunity, bringing transparency to government, and protecting the rights guaranteed to Americans by the U.S. and state constitutions. The Goldwater Institute was founded in 1988 with Barry Goldwater's blessing.

Learn more at www.goldwaterinstitute.org or www.charitynavigator.org

 

Read the online version of this news release here.

 

To get Goldwater Institute news and information direct to your cell phone click here.