Who is Packing the Supreme Court Now?

With the storm of really wild events overcoming the political scene in this great republic these days, it's difficult for me to focus on a single issue, but I should, and I have. The impending advise and consent charade by the U.S. Senate (previously known as "The World's Greatest Deliberative Body"). The resulting installation of another extremely far-right thinking justice is troubling. The actions of the Republican leadership and majority in the Senate as they race almost breathlessly to confirm Judge Barrett are gallingly hypocritical. I remember the same characters sanctimoniously blocking the nomination of Judge Garland far earlier in [...]

By Paul Waugaman|2020-10-12T18:57:46-07:00October 12th, 2020|Commentary|

Cursing Like a Trained Parrot, McSally Loses Debate to Mark Kelly

This article is cross-posted from the Blog for Arizona. By AZ BlueMeanie Martha, Martha, Martha … you are such a tool of Newt Gingrich’s GOPAC candidate training program, you just ooze Newt’s nastiness from your pores. And that is why Arizonans rejected you in 2018 and will do so again in 2020. McSally thought she was being oh so clever or cute in last night’s debate by calling Mark Kelly “counterfeit Kelly” repeatedly – seriously, that’s all you got left in the tank, Martha? To quote a recently revived game show, “You are the biggest loser. Goodbye.” McSally has an [...]

By Larry Bodine|2020-10-07T12:28:20-07:00October 7th, 2020|Commentary, Elections, Healthcare, Mark Kelly|

Will the New Conservative Court Impede Medical Aid in Dying Laws?

Trump and Supreme Court Nominee Amy Coney Barrett Although staunchly Catholic Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, has never weighed in on medical aid in dying legislation, she certainly believes it's a sin. She follows Pope Francis, who reiterated on September 22, that "assisted suicide and euthanasia are intrinsically evil, in every situation or circumstance.” Barrett's youngest child of seven --two of whom are adopted from Haiti-- was diagnosed with Down Syndrome during a prenatal screening but chose to keep the baby boy. Barrett, currently 48, was confirmed to the Seventh Circuit Court that includes Indiana, Illinois, and [...]

By Lynn Shapiro|2020-09-30T12:32:38-07:00September 29th, 2020|Commentary, Criminal Justice|

Gallup: Democrats Viewed as Party Better Able to Handle Top Problems

STORY HIGHLIGHTS Democrats have an edge at handling the most important problems, 47% to 39%. Typically, the party leading on this measure has won the election. The government, the coronavirus most often mentioned as the top problems in September. More Americans believe the Democratic Party (47%) than the Republican Party (39%) would do a better job of handling whatever issue they consider to be the most important problem facing the U.S. Americans' preferences on this question in presidential election years have generally corresponded with the party that ultimately won the election. In fact, in all but two presidential elections in [...]

By Jeffrey Jones|2020-09-21T21:26:52-07:00September 21st, 2020|Arizona Democratic Party, Commentary|

Replace Postmaster Louis Dejoy Immediately

Millions of Americans are counting on the USPS Governing Board to use their authority to replace Louis Dejoy as Postmaster General. In the military, no one rises to the rank of general without deep knowledge and understanding of the job—and the wisdom to anticipate the consequences of actions being considered. It is this wisdom that minimizes the likelihood of unintended consequences. We cannot eliminate the possibility of unintended consequences totally, but we should do whatever we can to minimize them, especially in cases where the consequences have the potential to do so much harm. One arena where we continue to [...]

By Lynne Hudson|2020-08-17T19:07:13-07:00August 16th, 2020|Arizona, Commentary, Economics, Local Activism, Uncategorized|

Four religious segments appear to be strongly in Biden’s camp

According to a new Gallup Poll, four religious segments appear to be strongly in Biden's camp: Black Protestants, "Nones," those of non-Christian faiths, and Hispanic Catholics. Biden's main challenge with these groups is to increase their turnout, particularly with youthful Nones who are less engaged in both religion and politics. Biden's choice of Harris as his vice presidential nominee may help increase turnout among Black Protestants.White Americans who identify as evangelical Protestants or Mormons, or who are active Catholics or lapsed Catholics, or who associate with other Christian denominations, are significantly predisposed to vote for Trump in this election, with [...]

By Larry Bodine|2020-08-14T13:33:16-07:00August 14th, 2020|Commentary, Elections, Joe Biden|

Trump’s Payroll Tax Deferral Raises Red Flags on Social Security

President Trump announced four executive actions, including a temporary payroll tax cut. While illegal, they are also a backhanded way to defund Social Security and Medicare. The president’s understanding of the reason for payroll deductions is in itself puzzling, or he understood it perfectly well, and his real intention is another try at defunding Social Security and Medicare. Temporarily eliminating the payroll tax and ignoring Congress’ power of the purse on funding unemployment insurance will do nothing to help Americans recover from the coronavirus. But what it will do is withhold funds needed to fund our Federal Government, our State [...]

By Clyde Steele|2020-08-13T19:05:57-07:00August 11th, 2020|Arizona, Commentary, President|

Why I Don’t Trust the Polls — and Neither Should You

Call it PTSD from the 2016 election, but I don't trust the new polls that show Biden ahead of Trump by 15 points. The surveys are wildly inaccurate and are lulling Democrats into a dangerous sense of complacency. This article originally appeared on the Blog for Arizona. As Joe Biden would say, the polls are malarky. The Rasmussen Reports show Biden ahead by only 3 points. The Hill/HarrisX poll shows Biden ahead by only 4 points. On the other hand, Quinnipiac sees Biden ahead by 15 points. Somebody's got to be wrong here. Another news story reports, "President [...]

By Larry Bodine|2020-07-20T14:01:36-07:00July 20th, 2020|Commentary, Elections, President|

Progress Report from Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick

Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick of CD2 in Tucson. Suffice to say, last week was a challenging one for our community. The tragic, heartless, and unjust murder of George Floyd led to a nationwide outcry — an outcry sadly not unfamiliar to us. There is systemic racism still embedded in our country’s fabric, and more must be done to address it. I released a statement last week in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. I am committed to listening and educating myself on how to be a better ally. On the global pandemic front, case numbers have been rising in Arizona. [...]

By Ann Kirkpatrick|2020-06-15T19:52:59-07:00June 15th, 2020|Arizona, Commentary, Immigration/Refugees|

By ‘Opening Up for Business,’ Arizona COVID19 Cases Skyrocket

Arizona Representative Pamela Powers Hannley Inhabitants of Earth are nearly six months into the most disruptive year of our lives, thanks to the novel Coronavirus. The United States was slow to react to the pandemic that had already spread across Asia and Europe and killed thousands. Early denial by leaders in multiple countries-- like the US, Brazil, Russia, India, and the UK-- has proven deadly for the general population. As of today, June 14, 2020, there have been 7,767,336 cases and 429,555 deaths worldwide. Although the US has 4.25% of the world's population, we have close to 30% of the [...]

By Pam Hannley|2020-06-14T13:50:01-07:00June 14th, 2020|Arizona, Commentary, Economics, Elections, Environment, Environment/Climate Change, Healthcare|