Category Archives: Immigration

Corporate America’s Shadow Government

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Ever wonder why, when Arizona passes an anti-immigrant bill, suddenly similar bills show up in other state legislatures? Or why, as North Carolina legislators introduce a Voter ID bill designed to suppress minority and student votes, similar bills are making their way through dozens of other states?

It’s not coincidence. And it’s not merely some sort of copycat, legislative follow-the-leader. It’s orchestrated by an organization called ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council).

Sponsored by large corporations, ALEC describes itself as “a membership organization of state legislators which favors federalism and conservative public policy solutions.” More accurately, ALECWatch.org describes the group as “a screen for hundreds of big corporations and trade associations to advance their legislative agendas in state capitols from coast to coast.”

Membership of ALEC’s Private Enterprise Board reads like a Who’s Who of big, greedy corporations and conservative special interest groups: CenterPoint360, Bayer, GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, Reynolds American, Wal-Mart, Johnson&Johnson, PhRMA, KraftFoods, AT&T, UPS, ExxonMobil, Altria, State Farm, and, of course, the now infamous Koch Industries, to name but a few.

Here’s how it works: ALEC maintains a staff of “scholars”, lawyers and conservative ideologues who write legislation on behalf of its corporate sponsors. It then distributes the proposed bills for its legislative members to introduce in every state legislature in America. Often the legislators don’t even read the bills which carry their names until after they’ve introduced them. An example is a Florida legislator who, upon introducing a bill on the floor of the Florida statehouse, began reading the ALEC “for your eyes only” instructions that accompanied the bill.

In Arizona alone, ALEC members have introduced more than 50 ALEC–authored bills during the current legislative session. These bills read like a robber baron’s wish list, ranging from cutting corporate taxes to eliminating collective bargaining to privatizing more prisons to eliminating regulations and public oversight of corporations.

There are no comparable organizations for private citizens and progressives. Indeed, ALEC’s website brags that “ALEC is the only state legislative organization that adopts policies and creates model legislation for its members to use in their states. To date, ALEC has nearly 1,000 pieces of model legislation.”

And you probably thought your legislators were elected to work for you! To learn more, read the report on ALEC by Defenders of Wildlife and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na-na Goodbye, Senator Pearce!

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This week, Boss Hogg wannabe, Russell Pearce was defeated in a recall election in Mesa, Arizona. You may remember him as the Godfather of SB1070, Arizona’s anti-immigration, anti-Latino bill. Thing is, he doesn’t deserve credit for writing the bill; only attaching his name to it and bullying it through the Arizona legislature.

One of the few things for which Pearce actually deserves credit is corruption and increased political devisiveness in Arizona. Yet, after the election returns were counted showing that he was defeated despite a litany of dirty tricks, Pearce was unapologetic. In a statement televised locally, he said, “If being recalled is the price for keeping one’s promises, so be it.”

Promises? Pearce didn’t promise anything. Promise is a term of hope. That hardly describes any of Pearce’s loathesome actions.

As former Chief Deputy for the self-proclaimed “nation’s toughest sheriff,” Pearce takes credit for having created “Tent City,” a Maricopa County jail located in the desert where prisoners are denied air conditioning despite 100+ degree temperatures and are served baloney sandwiches for every meal.

As President of the State Senate, Pearce not only unabashedly took $40,000 worth of free trips and football tickets from the Fiesta Bowl committee. He balanced the state’s budget on the backs of children and the poor. He demanded drastic cuts in education, while giving money to big business. He closed state parks in a state that depends on tourism. He drove tens of thousands of Latinos from Arizona further depressing the state’s economy. He fought to allow guns on school campus.  He challenged the 14th Amendment and President Obama’s birthplace. And he pushed for bills that would cement the Teapublican stranglehold on state politics for generations.

But despite the embarrassment of being the first Arizona legislator, and the first Senate president, to be recalled, Pearce vows a comeback. And if he’s ever successful, one suspects he’ll raise devisiveness and the corruption of power to entirely new levels.

Teapublican Lie #14.

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“Immigrants steal our jobs.”

That’s been a common accusation since the very beginnings of our nation. Previous generations despised the Irish, Italians, Germans, Scandinavians, Eastern Europeans, etc. for simply trying to eke out a living. Nothing has changed in the present day, except that now the charge is leveled against Latinos.

In discussing her book, They Take Our Jobs! and 20 other myths about immigrants, Avi Chomsky, historian, teacher, and coordinator of Latin American studies at Salem State College says, “When people claim that immigrants take our jobs, underlying the statement are some flawed ideas of how our economy works. They don’t understand that the world economy is extremely integrated.”

“In the US, there is a dual labor market,” she says. “One category consists of good jobs that offer security, benefits, decent pay and safe working conditions. The second category consists of jobs that are dangerous and unpleasant with no security and low wages. The jobs in the second category have always been done by those who are politically excluded, such as undocumented workers. By politically excluding workers, employers are able to exploit them. And others in our society rely on people doing these jobs.”

In reality, the number of jobs taken by immigrants is a very small percentage of the jobs shipped overseas by our corporations. Moreover, immigrants actually create jobs because they purchase food and automobiles, and they rent or buy homes. They also pay sales taxes, property taxes, income taxes, even Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes. (In 2010, it’s estimated that illegals paid $12 billion into Social Security. Yet they are not eligible for any of the government services provided by those taxes.)

As Chomsky states, “The debate on immigration is a way of creating a scapegoat for very real problems, like the economy, even the environment.”

America’s Most Corrupt Sheriff?

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Unless you’re an intelligent, non-Teapublican living in Arizona, you probably know Joe Arpaio as “America’s Toughest Sheriff.”

You’ve likely heard of the way he treats prisoners at his “Tent City” in the desert by forcing them to wear pink underwear and eat baloney sandwiches for every meal. You may have heard of his regular “sweeps” for illegal immigrants. You may have heard of his celebrity “posses.” And you may have heard of his political connections to the Teapublican elite, such as Senator John McCain, half-governor Sarah Palin, Governor Jan Brewer, AZ State Senator-under-recall Russell Pearce, and Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann.

But you probably haven’t heard that he’s under federal investigation for civil rights violations. You probably don’t know that he misspent $100 million of Maricopa County funds. You probably haven’t heard of the county’s investigation resulting in the firing of his top henchmen.

Unless you live in Arizona, you probably haven’t heard allegations that he and his buddy, former County Attorney Andrew Thomas, trumped up investigations and charges against Arpaio’s political enemies. And you probably haven’t heard that he and his “deputy” Steven Seagal are being sued for shooting an innocent family’s dog during a botched raid looking for suspected illegal immigrants.

For any other elected official, even one of these issues would result in dismissal from office, if not a trip to “Tent City.” But given the massive numbers of wingnut voters in Arizona, Arpaio seems untouchable. Indeed, he’s actually considering a run for the US Senate.

Now he’s even opened an investigation with his “Cold Case” Posse to check the legitimacy of President Obama’s birth certificate! And the Teapublican presidential wannabes are trekking to Phoenix to kiss Arpaio’s…er..ring.

With thugs like Sheriff Joe in their camp, how can anyone take the Teapublicans seriously?

World’s Greatest Nation? Really?

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Although many Americans are fond of calling the US the greatest nation on Earth, that hasn’t been true for many years. Certainly we have the world’s most powerful military, but that’s no criteria for greatness. Neither is the fact that we are still the world’s richest nation, despite the downgrade in our credit rating by Standard & Poors.

But greatest?

Does a great nation tolerate an ever-widening gap between billionaires and the working poor? Does a great nation leave tens of millions of its citizens without access to health care? Does a great nation allow millions of its children to be homeless? Does a great nation allow its education system to become third-rate? Does a great nation allow its infrastructure to decay and collapse merely to give another tax cut to large corporations and the wealthy?

Does a great nation use its financial and military power to prop up brutal dictatorships around the world? Does a great nation bankrupt the small farmers of neighboring countries by subsidizing corporate farms then demonize those farmers when they cross the border looking for jobs? Does a great nation demean those who labor to build things with their hands, to put out fires, or to teach its youth? Does a great nation begrudge a comfortable retirement to its elderly? Does a great nation allow large corporations and the wealthy to elect its politicians?

How can a nation be called great when it rewards greed and corruption? When its judicial system rules that corporations have rights superior to those of its citizens? When its financial institutions are allowed to grow so large they are immune to failure from their own mistakes? When its corporate lawyers are tasked with seeking out financial and legal loopholes that allow their clients to game the system? When its politicians are more concerned with scoring political points than the welfare of its voters? When its citizens are more interested in the antics of its celebrities than those of its government? When it allows its previous leader to run up a huge debt, and then blames the leader who inherited it?

We didn’t need Standard & Poors to tell us that our nation is on the verge of bankruptcy. When it comes to fairness, ideas and ethics, the US has been on the verge of bankruptcy for many years.

If Teapublicans Have Such Great Ideas, Why Do They Lie So Much?

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Why do they generate and circulate a seemingly endless number of blatantly false and misleading chain emails that demean our President?
Why do they try to shout down everyone with whom they disagree?
Why do they parrot talking points instead of rationally debating issues?
Why do they protect the obscenely wealthy and attack the poor?
Why do they complain about immigration then hire illegal immigrants to do their landscaping or repair their roofs?
Why do they preach small government then pass laws giving government power to prevent gay marriages and lawful abortions?
Why do they fight to ban abortions while, at the same time, fighting against sex education and the contraceptive practices that would help avoid them?
Why do they revere police and firefighters for responding to 9/11 then try to take away their right to collective bargaining and health care?
Why do they praise those in the military and ignore veterans in need of help?
Why do they revere President Bush for adding $7 trillion to our national debt and crashing our economy then attack President Obama for adding $1.4 trillion in trying to fix it?
Why do they complain about the excesses of Wall Street bankers while trying to block laws that will regulate them?
Why do they slash budgets for education while complaining that the US is falling behind other nations?
Why do they complain about unemployment as they cut federal budgets to force even more layoffs?
Why do they complain about government health care while telling the government to keep its hands off their Medicare?
Why do they complain about passing health care reform after a 10-month debate then pass a bill to kill entitlements with virtually no debate.
Why do they talk about helping small businesses then undercut them with policies that only benefit large corporations?
Why do they refuse to eliminate tax loopholes for corporations that claim an offshore P.O. Box as their corporate headquarters?
Why do they subsidize big oil companies and refuse to subsidize renewable alternatives?
Why do they call themselves conservatives when they’re against conservation of our environment?
Why do they demand compromise then refuse to consider alternate ideas?

Arizona Leads U.S.

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It’s true.  The state of Arizona is leading the nation.  Just not in a good way.

For example, we have one of the nation’s worst economies.  Our schools, home prices, and poverty rank among the nation’s worst.  Our gun shows lead the nation in exporting weapons to the Mexican drug cartels.  And, based on the actions of our state legislature, we must have more non-institutionalized lunatics than any other state in the union.  (Of course, if said legislators have their way, we may not be part of the union much longer.)

To elaborate, just consider the bills currently pending in a legislature that is overwhelmingly dominated by Republicans:

SB1433 would set up a committee of 12 lawmakers (of course, they would be mostly Republican) to review federal laws and regulations to determine which are “outside the scope of the powers delegated by the people to the federal government in the U.S. Constitution.”  If passed, the legislation would directly challenge federal supremacy as written in Article 1, Sections 8 & 10 of said Constitution.

SB1308 and HB2562 would limit federal authority setting up interstate compacts to honor each others’ birth certificates segregating children who are considered U.S. citizens from those who are not.

SB1309 and HB2561 would redefine Arizona citizenship in defiance of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

SB1328 would make it legal for Arizonans to defy any federal law or rule if federal employees or members of Congress do not have to comply.

SB1391 would create an interstate firearms freedoms act guaranteeing the right of citizens to bear arms free of federal regulation.

SB1393 declares that the state has the exclusive right to regulate carbon dioxide emissions within the state boundaries while SB1394 protects the right to emit carbon dioxide from human-caused activity.

SB 1545 would allow the production of nuclear fuel in Arizona free from federal regulation.  (It’s unknown if that also includes the production of nuclear weapons.)

SCR1016 would require the approval of the legislatures of half the states in order for Congress to increase the federal debt.

HB2077 requires any federal agency coming into an AZ county to first register with the county sheriff before conducting official business.

HB2471 would bar the appropriation of any state funds to comply with a federal mandate unless the federal government provides a report to show the mandate is constitutional.

HB2472 would allow the state to acquire federal property by eminent domain unless the federal government first receives permission of the state legislature.

HB2537 permits the AZ house speaker and senate president to defend last year’s SB1070 immigration law by lawsuit if necessary.

HB2544 requires U.S. presidential candidates to provide certain proof of citizenship before they can appear on the ballot in Arizona.

HCR2015 calls for a constitutional convention to adopt an amendment to require the consent of three-fourths of the states to increase federal debt.

HCR2022 proposes a constitutional convention to require a balanced federal budget.

On top of all this, the state attorney general has just announced that he is suing the federal government for not defending the border against illegal immigrants and drug smugglers.  (I guess more than 10 border agents per mile doesn’t qualify as a defense.)  Amazingly, it seems that Arizona Republicans are more interested in attacking the U.S. government than dealing with the very real problems in our own state!  Can’t you just picture Nero fiddling while Rome is burning?

The Great miStake Of Arizona.

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There are now 15 states considering an immigrant-bashing bill similar to Arizona’s.  Some are also considering legislation similar to a bill currently in the Arizona legislature that challenges the 14th amendment.  And many states are trying to match Arizona’s insane gun laws.

Living in Arizona, all I can say is that other states should be more careful in selecting role models.Since President Obama selected Arizona’s Governor Napolitano to lead the Homeland Security Department, the state has gone bonkers.  After turning our citizens against each other by passing SB 1070, Republican legislators passed a bill that allows anyone to carry a concealed weapon without a permit.  Faced with an enormous budget crisis, Republicans have continued to cut taxes for corporations and the wealthy.  And having labeled public education as another form of socialism, they have made draconian cuts to education budgets.

Now these same geniuses have turned their wrath on the federal government.

They plan to challenge the Medicaid program by denying health care access to nearly 300,000 Arizona citizens.  They are in the process of suing the federal government over the health care mandate.  They have passed a “birther” bill that requires federal candidates to produce their original long-form birth certificate in order to be listed on the ballot in Arizona.  (Never mind that, although most of us can easily obtain a copy of our birth certificate, we would find it virtually impossible to get our hands on the original.)  They are in the midst of passing a bill that denies any future cooperation with the EPA.  Now Arizona Republicans are sponsoring a bill that would allow a state legislative panel to ignore any federal laws or mandates it deems unconsitutional.  (In other words, they would usurp the power of the U.S. Supreme Court!)  And the Arizona legislative session is just getting started.

What’s next?  Secession?

If so, Arizona is certain to be the next third world country.

Arizona’s SB1070 7 Months Later.

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In April of this year, Jan Brewer signed Arizona’s controversial anti-immigrant bill into law.  It was hailed by conservatives far and wide as a great first step in closing our border to keep Mexicans from taking our jobs and using our services.  And at least 12 more states are considering similar legislation.

So how is 1070 actually working out?

In the 7 months since its signing, many of the most controversial parts of the law have not yet gone into effect, and the state has spent more than $10 million to defend the law in courts.  An estimated 100,000 undocumented workers have fled the state to find jobs elsewhere, taking with them the money they paid for rent, clothing, groceries, gasoline and more.  A very conservative estimate of the financial loss to the state would be somewhere in the vicinity of $4 million.  And their contributions as a workforce to the state could be estimated at more than 10 times that.  In addition, the law has led to boycotts from other states and cities which has already cost our tourism industry more than $141 million.  Add to that the jobs lost in the tourist industry and the cost rises to more than $250,000.  Based on the latest estimates, the new law has cost Arizona nearly $500 million!

“But certainly the state has seen some benefits from the law, too,” you say.

Not really.  It has served to create distrust between Arizona’s white population and Latino population.  The law has turned many other states and cities against us.  And the drug war still rages along the border, fueled by American guns and our insatiable appetite for illegal drugs.

The only ones who seem to have benefited from the law are Jan Brewer, John McCain, Russell Pearce, and other right-wing Arizona politicians who used scare tactics related to the law to get themselves re-elected.  Which is no doubt the over-riding reason for passing the law in the first place.

The Politics of Fear.

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Following World War II, Gustave Gilbert, a German-speaking intelligence officer and psychologist, was granted access to all of the prisoners held in the Nuremberg jail. During one of his conversations with Nazi leader, Hermann Goering, Gustave said, “I did not think that the common people are very thankful for leaders who bring them war and destruction.”

“Why, of course, the people don’t want war,” Goering responded. “Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece? It is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship.”

Gustave countered, “There is one difference. In a democracy the people have some say in the matter through their elected representatives, and in the United States only Congress can declare wars.” “Oh, that is all well and good,” said Goering, “But, voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country.”

You could easily see this philosophy at work in Bush’s run-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq when those opposed to the war were questioned for their patriotism, and our long-time ally, France, was vilified for not participating in the war.

And today, in the midst of mid-term elections, we can see Goering’s principle at work again. Despite much evidence to the contrary, Republicans like John “McNasty” McCain and Jan “Clueless” Brewer have focused anger on Mexican immigrants, blaming them for everything from crime to unemployment to our budget woes.

Led by Fox Noise Channel, Republicans have created a similar right wing outcry against Muslims for daring to propose a community center near Ground Zero. The ensuing “debate” has fueled anti-Muslim fervor across the nation, resulting in the arson of a Tennessee mosque and wingnuts calling for an “exception” to our Constitutional right to freedom of religion.

Conservatives have fueled anti-Obama hatred with vile emails accusing him of being an un-American-Socialist-Communist-Nazi-racist-Muslim. They have falsely accused him of banning prayer in military academies, of forcing the removal of crosses from military cemetaries, of promoting Muslim holidays…the list is too lengthy to continue.

As a result of this nonsense, it appears that Republicans are poised to win many more seats in Congress despite policies that led to two wars, an economic collapse and the raping of the middle class by the wealthiest two percent of this nation. I guess the lesson is that it’s easy to win elections by creating hatred toward minorities. It’s much more difficult to win elections on ideas and relevant issues.