A Chandler Resident Campaigns for Greg Stanton

For the past few months I have been making phone calls and knocking on doors in support of Greg Stanton's campaign for mayor of Phoenix. I live in Chandler, not Phoenix, and I have been asked many times, "Why are you interested in the Phoenix mayoral race?" I have several reasons, but the most important is this. Phoenix is the largest city in Arizona, the sixth largest city in the country, and the positive changes that the mayor can make in Phoenix will also impact the rest of Arizona. Greg Stanton is the best candidate by far to make those positive changes. So it is not just Phoenix residents that should be interested in this election. Concerned voters in Tempe, Chandler, Mesa, and other towns and cities should get involved. This might be an "off year" for most of us, but it is definitely "on" in Phoenix, and it is up to all of us to get involved in this important political event in Arizona.

Contributed by Craig Falasco, Chandler

LD20 Chair Responds to DiCiccio’s Union Bashing!

Sal DiCiccio (Phoenix Council member for District 6) just couldn’t resist jumping on the union-bashing bandwagon in his May 25 newsletter. CJ Briggle, Chairwoman of the LD20 Dems had this response to his latest rant.

Councilman DiCiccio:

Unions provide the ONLY workplace recourse from bullies like you. Your silver-toothed outlook on life leaves very little compassion for the working class. Thankfully, unions exist today to protect the worker and working families. When we eliminate the world of workforce abuse, that’s when we can discuss eliminating unions. Until then, THANKS, AFL-CIO, for being there for us. Thanks, BIG TIME.

Proud union member,
CJ Briggle

Not a Single Vote in Support of Public Education by LD20 Legislators

Arizona Education Network published its 2011 Legislative Session: Education Funding Voting Record by Legislator. The report shows McComish, Dial, and Robson voted EVERY TIME to take budget dollars away from public education in Arizona. Read the full report including the methodology and links to legislative summaries. Contact McComish, Dial, and Robson, and let them know that they will be held accountable for their attacks on education in Arizona!

Be a part of history! Help recall Russell Pearce!

Let's get out this weekend and next week to get PLENTY of signatures before the May 31 deadline. We know that Pearce and his cohorts will stop at nothing to invalidate every signature possible. Here's the schedule for Saturday, May 21 and Sunday, May 22. Meet at the Citizens for a Better Arizona office, 628 Center St., Mesa, Saturday at 10 am or 3 pm, Sunday at 1 pm or 4 pm. Don't wait to read about Pearce's demise in the news. Be a part of it!!

Schweikert’s statement on bin Laden fails to mention President Obama

David Schweikert released a statement today commending our armed forces in their effort to track down bin Laden, but he failed to mention President Obama! Maybe Schweikert does not know that President Obama is the Commander in Chief of those same armed forces. Maybe he’s not familiar with that section of our constitution, or he didn’t want to upset his tea party supporters, or maybe he just chose to be spiteful. In contrast, Senator McCain showed some class in his statement by commending the President and his team, as well as the military and intelligence professionals. From the beginning, President Obama said he would focus on al-Qaeda and finding bin Laden, and now we see the positive results of that focus. Schweikert’s pettiness cannot diminish the role that President Obama played in bringing the ten-year search for bin Laden to a successful conclusion.

McComish, Dial, and Robson all voted to approve the Arizona “birther” bill!

Our LD 20 legislators, McComish, Dial, and Robson, chose to NOT listen to mainstream Arizonans, and instead followed their Republican extremists in the House and Senate by approving H.B. 2177, the Arizona “birther” bill! Instead of focusing on jobs, education, and other important and REAL issues, our legislators are wasting taxpayer money on conspiracy theory nonsense.

Follow these links to read the complete Senate vote and House vote, and a summary of H.B 2177. For a thorough review of the conspiracy theories that prompted this unfortunate Arizona bill, read this article.

Hate groups proliferate in USA

Excerpted from the Southern Poverty Law Center e-newsletter, author Morris Dees

On February 23 the Southern Poverty Law Center released their annual investigative report exposing the hate and extremist groups operating in the United States—and the news is not good. For the first time ever, hate groups number more than 1,000. Plus, armed, anti government militias surged for the second year in a row.

Frankly, given the political climate in our country, I'm not that surprised at this explosive growth of radical-right forces. Far-right politicians and media figures continue to pour fuel on the fire with outrageous conspiracy theories and demonizing propaganda about those who disagree with them, including our first African-American president.

What's more troubling is the recent spate of hate-inspired violence: a bomb planted along the MLK Day parade route in Spokane; a man arrested with explosives outside a mosque in Michigan; a neo-Nazi caught heading for the Mexican border with a dozen homemade grenades. And, of course, a mentally ill man who appears to have absorbed radical-right ideas killed six people and wounded 13 when he tried to assassinate U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona.