The U.S. House of Representatives just passed VAWA also known as the Violence Against Women Act.

The bill will now go directly to President Obama for signature.

Senate Republicans drug their feet holding up the bill. The Senate GOPers had a problem with protecting native American Women, Undocumented Immigrant Women and Same Sex partners. Although it passed the House, 138 House Republicans voted against it.

In the Senate 22 Republicans voted against it with an overwhelming 78 Senators in favor.

Are Republicans really comfortable with being labeled as anti-Immigrant, anti-Woman, anti-Native American, anti-Children, anti-Seniors, anti-Gay and anti-Middle Class? The real problem is that they aren’t just being labeled as such, but, by and through their actions they’re firmly confirming that the aforementioned labels fit.

Unfortunately the amount allotted for VAWA was 17 percent less than the last time it was reauthorized in 2005. That means less programs to help women who are victims of domestic violence, less shelters, less victims advocates, less educational programs, less resources in general for these women who are victims of abusive partners.

All I can say is shame on the Republicans. They’ve shown us that they truly don’t care about women affected by violence. It hurts deep down to know that we live in an America that is so embroiled in politics that we are willing to let women go unprotected and without resources just to make a political point.

Can you imagine how much it must hurt the actual battered women who have been in dire need of these resources?

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 90.7 FM Los Angeles and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana Arizona. Carlos Galindo is a founding member and President of the Immigrant Advocacy Foundation, Inc.

http://www.carlosgalindo.com

History will show that Barack Obama has been the best President the United States has ever had. Even if you disagree with that statement, you have to agree that he has modernized the office of the presidency, made bold moves that have proven successful and over all he has slowly pulled us out of a double dip recession originally entered into courtesy of Bush 43′s failed war strategies and out of control defense spending.

In any event, President Obama had an uphill battle during his first administration and his second term doesn’t seem like it will be any different. Fresh off a battle with the Republicans over the fiscal cliff, Obama has proved himself to be an astute negotiator. He has also clearly demonstrated his ability to use his power to delegate. His negotiation skills were proven by his ability to convince congress’ chief obstructionist that taxes should go up for those making over $400,000.00 and for couples making over $450,000.00. However, Obama’s ability to delegate prefaced his negotiations with John Boehner. On Morning Joe I listened to Scarborough slamming President Obama for supposedly not being able to communicate with other human beings, upset because President Obama had utilized Vice President Biden to negotiate with the hateful senior senator from Kentucky Mitch McConnell. if you recall McConnell is the same guy who in 2010 stated, “The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.” Sending Joe Biden to negotiate with McConnell, the minority leader in the senate was a no brainer. It was glaringly obvious by McConnell’s statement and subsequent behavior that he didn’t want to give President Obama the time of day, besides, that’s Biden’s job as Senate President. Biden approached McConnell as an ex senator, former colleague and Vice President of the United States. McConnell caved and the fiscal cliff bill flew through the senate and over to our obstructionist congress. Boehner did what he knew he needed to do after President Obama negotiated with him and the rest is history.

Time and time again President Obama has been able to overcome the hatred directed towards the first African American President. He has executed the duties of the office of the President with respect, fairness and most importantly in a manner that has always served the best interest of this country. Contrary to Republican and conservative beliefs, President Obama is not a socialist, is not a Muslim and is not hell bent on ruining this country. His love for this country is derived from his traditional upbringing based on solid American values instilled in him by not just his Mother, but his White Grandparents. His Ivy league education refined him, honed his intelligence, and prepared him to be a great leader. His respect for the laws of this country and our constitution are reflected in his careful and calculated decisions that have ultimately reshaped and greatly benefited this great country of ours.

President Obama has now selected Charles “Chuck” Hagel as his nominee for Secretary of Defense. Hagel is the ex senator from Nebraska, a highly decorated war veteran who would be the first enlisted man to lead this nation’s defense, and he’s a Republican to boot. Republicans are the first to claim a stake on patriotism, service to this country and respect for their statesmen. If that’s the case, then why is it that they’re so willing to trash a member of their own party? Republicans adamantly oppose Hagel’s confirmation and have vowed to put up a good fight. We know McCain is upset because Hagel refused to buy into McCain’s flawed presidential candidacy in which he tapped an inept and extremely ignorant politician from Wasilla Alaska as his Vice Presidential candidate. We also know that many Republicans are upset because of Hagel’s criticism of the Iraq war and his comment regarding the 2012 Republican presidential candidates, referring to each of them as being in a “race to say who would bomb Iran first.” The list goes on of “reasons” that the Republicans oppose Chuck Hagel, the reality is that the Republicans are doing what they do best, obstruct.

I think Hagel will make a fine Secretary of Defense. I also think that President Obama has been consistent by reaching out to Republicans in an effort to reach across the aisle, or should we say, extending the olive branch. However, the problem is the Republican controlled house has also been consistent in their obstructionist and selfish behavior. This is not a congress willing to do what is best for their constituents, this is a congress bound and determined on protecting the wealthiest under the guise of wanting to create jobs and protecting our children’s future. I think this is the perfect time to invoke Ralph Waldo Emerson’s quote: “When a whole nation is roaring Patriotism at the top of its voice, I am fain to explore the cleanness of its hands and purity of its heart.”

I have a suggestion for President Obama, he should continue extending that olive branch to the Republicans, and in the other hand he should keep a sledge hammer.

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana Arizona. Carlos Galindo is a founding member and President of the Immigrant Advocacy Foundation, Inc.

http://www.carlosgalindo.com

Well it sure looks like my pro Immigration colleagues missed the boat again. As soon as I heard Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio allege that ICE (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) was working with him on picking up the undocumented Immigrants he has been detaining, I knew there was more to the story than Arpaio was claiming.

I heard a Latino civil rights attorney on a Spanish language radio show blowing it off as just crazy rhetoric, and he further encouraged listeners to ignore the old man. He said they give him too much credit and that what he was claiming was hogwash. The cooperation between ICE and MCSO that is.

No matter how much Latino “leaders” and “activists” want to use the “just ignore Arpaio tactic”, that’s certainly not the way to deal with him. It’s best to understand the man and his tactics in order to know how to counter them or at the very least to know how to inform the unprotected Immigrant community who has zero information at their disposal and who clearly depend on their “advocates” to keep them informed. Telling the community to ignore the old man certainly is not in any way helpful to the Spanish speaking Immigrant community who utilizes radio programs and Spanish language television to get what little bits of information they can for purposes of survival. Remember Sun Tzu’s advice,
“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.

I had a pretty good idea how it was Arpaio was able to get ICE out to pick up the undocumented Immigrants even after President Obama had made it clear that ICE would not pick up those identified as undocumented Immigrants unless they had committed a felony.

In order to understand how Arpaio is gaming the system, you have to understand the prosecutorial tool he’s using. It’s a controversial law that was conjured up in 2005 for purposes of pursuing human traffickers. The law, A.R.S. 13-2319 is meant to target those human traffickers who make it a business to transport America’s labor force across the border and across that unforgiving desert to drop houses where they are often held for ransom until a friend or family member coughs up the additional bucks requested.

I don’t think any of us have a problem with the prosecution of human traffickers commonly referred to as “coyotes”. It’s precisely that “coyote” law, A.R.S. 13-2319 that has allowed Sheriff Joe to brag about Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s cooperation with his deputies. In the last few days Arpaio has netted over 20 undocumented Immigrants and it appears all have been picked up by ICE.

Let’s take a closer look at the method in which the “Coyote” law is being misused by Arpaio and the Maricopa County Attorney’s office. In 2006 as the law came to be applied against those being smuggled as co-conspirators, all hell broke loose. Here is an excerpt from an AZbar article:

The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office interpreted the new law as creating liability
for such individuals under Arizona’s conspiracy statute, A.R.S. § 13-1003. On June
9, 2006, this interpretation was upheld by the Maricopa County Superior Court after
the defendants arrested under the statute moved for dismissal under various grounds.
The court found jurisdiction and venue were proper in Maricopa County because
overt acts in furtherance of smuggling occurred there. The court found the defendants
“may be prosecuted for conspiracy to smuggling themselves” if it is proved they
provided themselves as “human cargo” and agreed to be transported as illegal aliens.

Despite testimony from one of the bill’s sponsors that A.R.S. § 13-2319 was not
intended to be applied to the aliens who were being smuggled, such exclusionary language was not included in the statute and the legislature is presumed to have
known and intended the conspiracy statute would apply to a violation of A.R.S. § 13-
2319.

As mentioned in the article, the intent of the law as written and later confirmed by one of it’s authors former state lawmaker Jonathan Paton, was not to pursue those being smuggled, but to punish those doing the smuggling.

The inappropriate use of the law was challenged in a lawsuit by Somos America Coalition and ironically ex senator and political opportunist Kyrsten Sinema was a plaintiff in that lawsuit. Yes the same “Democratic” senator who later created an anti-Immigrant law titled SB1225 in which she hypocritically utilizes A.R.S. 13-2319 as her prosecutorial tool.

So now you know, what I know. Arpaio simply has to get a Spanish speaking investigator or officer to ask these timid undocumented immigrants if they paid a coyote to be transported. By the time they are questioned, their morale is shot, they more than likely have traveled days across a desert that takes it’s tolls in lives. Perhaps they witnessed some of their group get left behind and die next to a bush in the desert, they suffered thirst, hunger and their body has been ravaged by the elements. So when asked a basic question, “did you pay a coyote to bring you here?”, they’re quick to answer, “si señor, le page a un coyote $3,000.00 para cruzarme” Which interprets into, “yes sir, I paid a human smuggler $3,000.00 to transport me. That’s all she wrote! Joe Arpaio now has enough to charge them with conspiracy to smuggle themselves which under A.R.S. 13-2319 is a class four felony. Don’t take my word for it, take a look at Joe Arpaio’s press release outlining the details as I just articulated.

So it’s a no brainer, Obama’s recent policy change indicates ICE will not pickup undocumented Immigrants from police officers in Arizona unless they are being charged with a felony. Well, given the aforementioned information, it appears ICE will be forced to cooperate with Joe and his MCSO goons, thanks to the misuse of A.R.S. 13-2319, another piece of poorly designed legislation by Arizona’s inept Republican lawmakers.

Joe Arpaio upset

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and W60 AM Radio, Los Angeles, San Diego and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana and the Tucson Citizen in Arizona. Carlos Galindo is President and founder of the Immigrant Advocacy Foundation, Inc.

http://www.carlosgalindo.com

Jan Brewer seems poised and ready to strike once the Supreme Court renders it’s decision regarding SB1070. Brewer just issued an executive order directing the AZPOST (Arizona Peace Officers Standards and Training Board) to issue material previously given to officers enabling them to determine who might be in the country legally.

AZPOST, the agency that oversees police officers in Arizona was commenced 44 years ago under a Republican administration and according to their website their purpose in part is as follows:

The Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board was created by an act of the 28th Arizona legislature on July 1, 1968 as the Arizona Law Enforcement Officer Advisory Council. The name was officially changed to its present form on July 17, 1994.

The Board was originally created to address the need for minimum peace officer selection, recruitment, retention and training standards, and to provide curriculum and standards for all certified law enforcement training facilities. The Board was also vested with the responsibility of administering the Peace Officer Training Fund.

So now AZPOST’s job is to determine what an “illegal looks like”. Well at least that’s what Jan Brewer, Arizona’s illustrious governor thinks their job is. While signing SB1070, Brewer was asked by a reporter what she thought an “illegal immigrant” looked like. Brewer stuttered as she struggled to answer the very basic question this law hinges on. After all, if you’re signing a law into effect that is meant to be used to chase down and prosecute undocumented immigrants, you should have a good grasp on what the person you’re targeting looks like.

It’s obvious that Jan Brewer never considered what an “illegal immigrant” looks like, just as she didn’t consider the repercussions that signing this law into effect would create. Most importantly the loss of life it caused in the case of Juan Varela who was shot by his neighbor Gary Thomas Kelley just two weeks after the signing of SB1070 and a concealed weapon law. Kelley approached Varela asking him if he was on his way to, or returning from, a protest against SB1070. When Varela, a fifth generation American Citizen told him to leave him alone, Kelley pulled the concealed weapon from his waistband and brandished it while calling Varela a wetback and telling him to go back to Mexico. Kelley, viciously, and in a criminal act of hate, took Varela’s life in front of Varela’s seventy eight year old mother and his brother.

The effect of SB1070 on the State of Arizona has been great and diverse, from a mass exodus of lawful immigrants fearing harassment based on their prominent indigenous features, to the loss of jobs based on large businesses’ refusal to set up shop in Arizona because of the hostile and polarized environment.

Jan Brewer did what was politically expedient and fruitful for her flailing political career. Brewer was not concerned about how Arizonan’s might be affected, or to what extent they might take this law into their own hands.

As Brewer called Arizona’s traditional immigrant migration, an invasion, as she fabricated stories of decapitated bodies and exclaimed, “it’s out of control, it’s simply out of control”, border militia’s like J.T. Ready’s U.S. Border Guard were formed, and a get him, he’s brown, mentality prevailed. You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve been told to go back to Mexico, even though I’m a light skinned Mexican Immigrant and a naturalized citizen who speaks perfect English.

Brewer spokesman Matthew Benson on Tuesday said, “The governor is optimistic that the heart of SB 1070 will be upheld and implemented,” he went on to say, “The governor thought this was an appropriate time to revisit the issue and make sure Arizona law enforcement is as prepared as possible for partial or full implementation of the law.”

So as we await the Supreme Court decision, AZPOST prepares to issue updated manuals on what an “illegal immigrant looks like” in order to facilitate police officers in determining who they should stop while driving brown.

There is of course someone else that’s preparing for the onslaught of immigrant arrests. The detention officers who work in the private prison industry who make certain that those determined to be “illegal immigrants” are stuffed into cells like sardines in a can, ensuring that the private prison industry gets the maximum bang for their buck, after all they invested a great deal of money in these local politician’s political campaigns to ensure they had the “right” people in place. That of course includes Governor Brewer’s right hand man, top advisor Chuck Coughlin, the equivalent to George Bush’s Karl Rove aka “The Architect”.

Coughlin is a lobbyist for CCA (Corrections Corporation of America), CCA in turn is a giant in the private prison industry and a specialist in detention of brown skinned folks. The influence that Coughlin has on Brewer is astounding. On his own website, “High Ground Public Affairs”, Coughlin brags about the influence he has had in putting the right people in place within the Brewer administration.

Coughlin’s bio states:

Coughlin was asked to serve by then-Secretary of State Jan Brewer as the Chairman of her Transition Team when she became Governor in 2009. As the Transition Team Chairman, Coughlin assembled a diverse team of business and community leaders who recommended to the Governor her executive management team, senior policy positions, cabinet recommendations and coordinated her swearing in ceremonies. Coughlin chaired the search committee which recommended the succession of Secretary of State Ken Bennett into the role left vacant by Brewer’s ascension to the office of Governor.

The Supreme Court decision could come as early as Monday, and as the immigrant community prepares for the onslaught, Brewer’s mouth and arms move about barking and signing executive orders, while Coughlin and the private prison industry pull her strings. Why does this remind me of the song from the sixties, “I’m your puppet.”

Carlos Galindo talking to white protester during SB1070 protests

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and W60 AM Radio, Los Angeles, San Diego and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana and the Tucson Citizen in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is President & Founder of The Immigrant Advocacy Foundation, a non-profit corporation in good standing.

http://www.carlosgalindo.com

It’s disgusting to see the Republicans in Arizona still using smoke screens to confuse the uninformed and primarily conservative voters. This years legislative session includes legislative bills that are meant to pursue, or single out undocumented Immigrants who have made Arizona their place of abode.

Amongst the bills are ones that want undocumented children counted in the classrooms and a report generated that would go to the senate president and the governor as well as the chairman of the appropriations committee, who as many of us know is Don Shooter (R) Mesa, who donned a sombrero, a sarape and a half-filled bottle of tequila on the first day of the special session last year, making a mockery of the special session that was meant to direct legislators to the request for extension of unemployment benefits for Arizonans. Given the unemployment rate in Yuma Arizona, Senator Shooter should have not only taken his job serious, but taking into consideration the Mexican population in his district and the fact that he is pro SB1070, this was a slap in the face to not just Mexicans in his district, but Mexicans in Arizona. When confronted with his inappropriate behavior, shooter responded “Anybody who knows me, knows I’m a cutup, a jokester, but I also play hard and I work hard” Well, I’ll be, that certainly isn’t behavior conducive with what then senate president Russell Pearce called, “maintaining decorum within the senate building.”

Another example of irresponsible behavior from Arizona’s failed leadership is that of Frank Antenori (R) Tucson. As women prayed at a vigil outside the senate building, Antenori, who is currently running for congress, accompanied by senate majority leader Andy Biggs (R) Gilbert, stood inside the senate building, door open, body half way out, and with bullhorn in hand, turned the siren on while pointing the bullhorn at the women in prayer, later screaming through the bullhorn, “how do you like it?”

This irresponsible and childish behavior on behalf of Arizona legislators and our governor who claims to be part of Arizona’s “leadership”, is not uncommon. Many of us saw the recent images that made their way around the world with our inept governor wagging her finger dangerously close to President Obama’s face while reprimanding him for questioning distorted facts within her book.

I could go on and on about the insensitive comments like those of Lori Klein (R) Anthem who yelled “go back to Mexico”, to voters protesting in front of the senate building, but let’s move on and take a look at Arizona’s failed leadership from an incontestable series of facts.

Rather than using their creativity to conjure up laws that promote attrition of Arizona’s Latino and Immigrant community, Arizona’s legislature and it’s governor should be focused on attracting corporations that can bring jobs to Arizona. They should be finding a way to allow small businesses to thrive in Arizona which would stimulate the economy.

Arizona’s “leadership” has many years ago lost their way. They compromised any good intent they may have originally had as legislators for political gain. They have been much more interested in their reelection than reinforcing Arizona’s economy. The creation of unfunded mandates is one clear example of not only their hypocrisy, but their irresponsibility in legislating for Arizona.

Arizona’s lawmakers rant and rave about the cost of Immigrants to Arizona, yet any law created to date, meant to be used as an attrition tool, has been an unfunded mandate.

I interviewed Sheriff Ralph Ogden (R) Yuma, he generated a report many years before the passing of SB1070 that used specific numbers to explain the cost involved with trying to implement an SB1070 type law in his county. Taking his costs from thousands to millions based on the need to incarcerate, prosecute, and further incarcerate post conviction, and that’s only for a misdemeanor charge. Utilizing mandates within SB1070 a second arrest for unlawful presence would require felonious charges therefore creating an exorbitant amount in to the hundreds of millions to incarcerate, adjudicate and subsequently imprison these immigrants whose original intent in Arizona was simply to fill those much needed low skilled labor jobs.

Where is the hypocrisy you may ask? It’s clear that if you preface the “do you support SB1070″ question with, do you consider yourself a fiscal conservative, time, and time again, these legislators and most “conservative” Arizonans will quickly confirm both. Yet, if you follow up with the fact that SB1070 is an unfunded mandate, their blanket response is one that lends credence to the belief that these are racists whose only intent is to eliminate people who come from a cultural background that they simply cannot accept as equals.

The average Republican and legislator in Arizona will consistently respond by saying, “I don’t care what it costs, we just have to get rid of the “illegals” in Arizona.” Fiscal conservative? I truly doubt that! Multiply the “Yuma County factor” by fifteen counties in Arizona and you have a financial dilemma like one never before seen in Arizona.

Now you may be quick to spit out the usual conservative rhetoric or repeat the well known Arizona Republican mantra that was for years promoted by the now disgraced Russell Pearce. “It costs millions to medicate, educate and incarcerate illegals.” If that was even remotely true, consider the costs added from an unfunded state mandate.

There is absolutely no doubt, and as I previously pointed out, there is no refute to the argument that Arizona’s politicians are not interested in making Arizona a more sound state, but in fact are more interested in performing political stunts that will cause their reelection time and again at the expense of a deeply divided and broke Arizona.

I recently became aware of a “Recall Jan Brewer” campaign that was launched by a group of activists that are looking for a change in Arizona. Unfortunately, I know that a recall of Jan Brewer is an uphill battle, especially since you’re looking at a statewide movement that would need thousands of volunteers and hundreds of thousands of dollars to pull off. Believe me, the recall Pearce effort was a cake walk compared to what would be required to recall Arizona’s inept and damning governor, Janice K. Brewer. I wish them well, at least they’re doing something other than complaining.

Given Arizona’s apathetic voters and failed leadership on both the right and the left, perhaps Arizona has what they deserve. The way I see it, most of the legislature and the governor should all be recalled, yes even most on the left who utilize the pro immigrant topic to get reelected, yet lack the political mountain oysters to propose and push for sweeping changes.

Arizona's House of Horrors

http://www.carlosgalindo.com

Every day I return home from the daily grind to turn on the television and watch my recorded programs. The DVR has become an intimate friend who shares moments with me I may otherwise miss, and that might otherwise relegate me to searching through the Internet to capture tidbits of what I am looking for amongst the hundreds of thousands of items that pop up when I use a keyword search phrase.

I am sure that the hottest search word this past week is CPAC or Conservative Political Action Conference as it is otherwise known.

A tidbit about CPAC:

The conference was founded in 1973 by the American Conservative Union and Young Americans for Freedom as a small gathering of dedicated conservatives. Over the years it has grown to thousands of attendees annually. Roughly half of those in attendance in the past few years have been college-aged.

Speakers have included Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Pat Buchanan, Karl Rove, Newt Gingrich, Sarah Palin, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Tony Snow, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Allen West, Michele Bachmann, and other conservative public figures. Before, during, and after his presidency, Ronald Reagan spoke at CPAC a total of 12 times. In his 1985 speech, he referred to CPAC as his “opportunity to dance with the one that brung ya”, referring to CPAC having been a contributing factor to his political success.

CPAC has featured “groups at odds with conservative orthodoxy in years past—including the American Civil Liberties Union,” and, more recently, the gay Republican group GOProud, which has attracted major controversy.

Okay, enough of the Wikipedia crap! Let’s get to the nuts of this blog. First of all, if the damn conference couldn’t already be appropriately defined as a boatload of extremist Republicans meeting once a year to teach their hypocritical followers how to spin the their lies, it certainly can be defined in that manner this year. This year, more than ever, CPAC has gone completely extremist and anti-Obama.

As if that wasn’t bad enough the contraceptive controversy surfaced just as CPAC launched it’s misinformation conference. Boy howdy, they grabbed this one by the horns and they been riding it for all it’s worth. Some of the titles on the right wing blogosphere are “Catholic Bishops: Obama‘s Contraception Mandate Change “Unacceptable”, “Limbaugh on So-Called HHS ‘Accommodation’: There‘s no ’Compromise,‘ It’s all BS!”, “Pastor Rick Warren: “I’d Go to Jail Rather Than Cave to Contraceptive Mandate”, “Gloves Off: Sen. Rand Paul Blasts HHS Mandate as “Authoritarian” & “Totalitarian.” Well, you get the drift.

Those titles are like red meat for the right, of which there are no longer what could be considered “reasonable Republicans” if there was ever such a thing, but simply put, these are extremists who’d rather see this country divided and failed, rather than allow a successful presidency under a black president.

As they tried their best to spin the contraceptive controversy into a wedge issue, successfully getting even some Democrats to criticize the president, The 2012 candidate and sitting president Barack Hussein Obama (yes I used his middle name) did what he always does, he stood back, observed the mayhem and effectively took the wind out of their sails by modifying his mandate to accommodate the religious organizations that care less about their flock than their supposed “religious principles.”

We are into day three of CPAC and the stink emitting from the conference is intolerable. I can smell it all the way here to Arizona. It’s so bad, it’s almost overshadowing the stink coming from the Arizona State legislature. Let me clarify, I said almost, since the Arizona State Legislature is putrid with hate and rancor towards it’s underprivileged, Latinos, Immigrants, women and children.

The speakers at CPAC are as classic as the previous years, one tries to top the other, until I’m sure one of them will go so far overboard, as they always do, that everyone will act offended and supposedly repudiate the offensive rhetoric as they giggle amongst themselves at their mixers or in their hotel rooms while their wives down their contraceptives and the husband makes a pass at the housekeeper that enters the room to turn down their bed covers.

Alas, observe the Republican creature in his natural environment, it’s called CPAC.

Something stinks to high heaven

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and W60 AM Radio, Los Angeles, San Diego and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed col

Republicans never cease to amaze me. There’s currently a Republican Arizona lawmaker out of Tucson promoting a religious studies bill in this years legislative agenda. Terri Proud (R) district 26 wants a law that specifically teaches religion in the classrooms. The Associated Press reports:

Republican Rep. Terri Proud of Tucson sponsored the measure, which asks the state Board of Education to design a course called “The Bible and its Influence on Western Culture.” The course would be an elective at high schools that choose to offer it.

Public schools across the country have generally avoided Bible courses, but hundreds offer such classes as electives.

The bill stipulates that the course maintain “religious neutrality,” and requires the state Attorney General to review the curriculum to ensure it doesn’t conflict with the U.S. Constitution.

Proud, who is on the House Education Committee, said she wants students to learn about the Bible’s influence on art and literature, noting that there are biblical references in everything from Michelangelo’s paintings and Shakespeare’s plays to modern movies and television.

“This is such an essential foundation for our kids’ knowledge,” she said. “We are so engulfed in it.”

If students aren’t taught those references, Proud said, they face a learning gap from high school to college.

Proud said teachers in her district told her they have a fear of mentioning Christianity or the Bible in the classroom, and she hopes the law will give them some guidance.

“There’s nothing wrong with bringing religion into a classroom,” she said. “The issue is we can’t bring devotion.”

So in a 2012 Arizona where Ethnic Studies has just been banned by Republicans promoting an anti-Immigrant agenda, another one of those Republicans is promoting pro religion studies. According to Proud, “the Attorney General for the state of Arizona would have to review the curriculum to ensure it doesn’t conflict with the U.S. Constitution.”

Keep in mind that the current Attorney General for the state of Arizona is Tom Horne, who worked closely with Steve Montenegro (R) district 12 to promote HB2281 while Horne was the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

How will Horne react to this bill that specifically promotes religion in the classrooms, in high schools, and in Tucson nonetheless? Proud is quick to state “There’s nothing wrong with bringing religion into a classroom,” she said. “The issue is we can’t bring devotion.”

Victoria Lopez, a program director with the Arizona office of the American Civil Liberties Union, said a Bible-focused class is “troubling.”

Lopez said it’s difficult for a school to teach such a course without imposing a particular religious view.

“It’s very easy for teachers to cross the line and violate students’ religious rights,” she said. “There’s a lot of room here for those violations to take place.”

Though the course would be an elective, Lopez said it’s a problem that public resources and agencies would be involved in some form of religious study.

We’ll see what kind of legal challenge this bill will bring if it does in fact translate into law and specifically how Attorney General Tom Horne the primary anti ethnic studies advocate will handle this specific studies issue.

For the record, I am a Christian who supports ethnic studies.

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and W60 AM Radio, Los Angeles, San Diego and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana and the Tucson Citizen in Arizona.

After today’s shocking and disappointing news that Board of Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox had recommended the appointment of ex legislator David Lujan to replace outgoing Senator Kyrsten Sinema who resigned to run for the newly created district 9, I spoke to Senator Steve Gallardo who by the way has been very active as a state senator.

According to a tweet from Maricopa County reporter for the Arizona Republic and AZ Central Michelle Lee,

Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox says she quizzed @davidlujan hard on why he missed SB1070 vote, which she said she knows ppl are concerned about

I hardly think that quizzing David Lujan “hard” over his missed SB1070 vote qualifies for holding him accountable for failing to do his job, not just as minority leader in the house, but as a Latino Democratic legislator who had claimed to oppose SB1070. Lujan outright lied to reporters stating he was out of town, only to be caught by super sleuth reporter and New Times blogger Stephen Lemons of the famed “feathered Bastard” blog. When confronted by Lemons Lujan fessed up to his lie and admitted he was AWOL enjoying a party with his parents. He had no choice but to fess up, Lemons caught him red handed promoting himself for AG at a precinct meeting.

To add insult to injury it appears Wilcox and Lujan are in cahoots to make it look like state senator Steve Gallardo supports the decision or supports Lujan’s replacement of Sinema. The fact is that Steve Gallardo (D) district 13, Leah Landrum (D) district 16, and Linda Lopez (D) district 29 all sent a letter to Wilcox outlining their support for ex legislator Ken Clark. Gallardo tells me he spoke to mary Rose Wilcox personally and expressed his discontent with the possibility of Lujan sliding into Sinema’s vacated seat.

According to another tweet from the AZ Republic reporter Lee:

#Maricopa County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox says @davidlujan committed to introducing bill to repeal SB1070 with @Steve_Gallardo.

Gallardo shared with me that he has not spoken with David Lujan or Mary Rose Wilcox about Lujan cosponsoring a bill to repeal SB1070. Gallardo confirmed that he has a bill to repeal SB1070 and has been garnering support from other members, but has never had a reason to talk to Lujan about it.

Gallardo is extremely offended by the suggestion or the insinuation that Lujan has anything to do with having cosponsored a bill with Gallardo.

This is just another in a long line of politically shoddy moves by Supervisor Wilcox and the Democratic party. It’s obvious the Republican party doesn’t have to do much to stay in power in Arizona with such political ineptness courtesy of Arizona’s Democratic elected officials.

One last thing, where have the “supreme” Latino leaders and “activists” been on this issue? I haven’t seen a one of them vocalize their discontent for a guy who not only slapped the Latino community in the face by not showing up to vote against SB1070, but a guy who after having had what is akin to unwanted sex with the Latino community, has now returned promising to play nice and ask next time before he bends them over.

What the heck?

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana Arizona. www.nospinonair.com/http://www.carlosgalindo.com

I received an urgent call this morning from someone reporting that Joe Arpaio, the Maricopa County Sheriff was executing a warrant at a workplace raid at the Days Inn on 7th Avenue & Camelback Rd. in Phoenix, AZ.

When I arrived I saw the familiar sheriff’s vehicles there. The mainstream media was there as well. The usual activists including Lydia Guzman was present granting her interviews to the Spanish language media. The usual garbage, preaching to the choir. Nothing new to say. You often see the same old tired faces spewing their usual nonsensical rhetoric and boring analysis of the Sheriff’s raid.

Univision tried to get Joe Arpaio to cough up information about the Obama administration’s new policy and procedure regarding prosecutorial discretion and the case by case scrutiny of the more than 300,000 detainees suspected of being in the country unlawfully. He bit his upper lip and refused to answer their question. It doesn’t matter, it would have probably been edited out by the producers or the reporter himself. When the initial story broke about the Obama administration’s change in Immigration policy, the Univision reporter did a terrible job in covering the story fairly, completely ignoring anyone supportive of the policy. Instead he focused on pessimistic Latinos who said President Obama wasn’t doing enough.

I was able to coax Arpaio in to responding to the question. It’s all in how you phrase it right? Imagine that, and I’m just a little old radio talk show host and political analyst.

Well according to what “Sheriff Joe” told me, he was looking for ten people accused of identity theft who were working at the hotel. He shared with me that they had not updated their intelligence and thought that all the employees were in full work mode when they arrived at around 8:00 AM. It turns out that because of cutbacks in hours based on the pitiful economy, they had been asked to report at 10:00 AM. Oops! misfire! Joe was only able to capture one housekeeper accused of being in the country unlawfully and usurping someone else’s identity. Wow! once again, thousands of dollars spent to capture one, or a handful of low skilled labor. Not exactly how I want my tax dollars spent.

I will note that Arpaio plans on trying to locate the AWOL employees at their homes. This is his M.O. for workplace raids. If he doesn’t locate them there, he goes to their homes. Normally they will even pursue ex-employees, if, after seizing the workplace records, they determine that previous employees were possibly using false identities.

An interesting note on this raid, is the comments that Joe Arpaio shared with me and which the mainstream media missed, was the fact that according to his investigation, this may be a good case for prosecution under the existing employer sanction law that was passed in 2007 by the legislature and that until a couple of months ago was tied up in the Supreme Court. SCOTUS upheld the employer sanction law paving the way for possible civil prosecution of employers. Something that many employers have feared since the law went into effect. We haven’t seen these employers push for immigration reform, they just invested thousands of dollars into fighting the law to avoid possible sanctions.

Could this possibly be a change in Arpaio’s strategy? Pursuing employers? I doubt it! After all these are the same people that sponsor his campaigns when reelection rolls around.

Oh, and talking about reelection, I asked Arpaio if he was preparing himself for a 2012 run for Sheriff. He was quick to correct me. “For sheriff he asked?”, “Why not for the U.S. Senate?”, “I’ve been asked to run you know?” I laughed and said “OK”, Arpaio quickly came back with ” well, either way, if I don’t run for the senate, I’ll definitely run for sheriff again.”

I do have to point out that Arpaio lashed out at me when he first saw me, stating, “I’m not happy with you”, “I saw you talking about me on TV.” “You’re getting involved in politics now” he quipped. I laughed and just shook my head. Poor guy, he forgets from one day to the next what’s going on around him. After all, I’m a radio talk show host and political analyst, that my job for God’s sake!

As he got into his brand new Chrysler Joe shouted, “hey, do you anyone that can get me a good deal on a 300?” Referring to the Chrysler 300 he used to be chauffeured in by his favorite deputies.

“Nope, I yelled, besides that, you might check their legal status knowing you.” He responded with a chuckle, “yeah, they might drive off with my car”, and off he went to chase more cooks, car washers, landscapers, housekeepers, bread makers, butchers, did I miss any of his recent raids?

Thousands of dollars spent, to chase that labor force that Arizona desperately needs, hired by hypocritical employers that hold a double standard.

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana and the Tucson Citizen. Arizona. www.nospinonair.com/http://www.carlosgalindo.com

Listen to our live radio broadcast every Friday from 5-7 PM on The JOLT Tucson 1330 AM or via the web on www.nospinonair.com

Local pro Latino groups continue to criticize President Obama. One washed up Latino politician called him a liar on Spanish language television. So are they siding with the Republicans and the Tea Party by being critical of our president right around the corner from the 2012 elections?

Has the Immigrant community allowed their “Latino leaders” to dangle the Immigration carrot in front of their nose while placing blinders on them?

I will cover this topic and more on today’s Straight Talk Tucson

We go live at five (MST) Tucson’s The Jolt 1330 AM 5-7 PM every Friday. Straight Talk with Arizona’s unapologetic Liberal.

Carlos E. Galindo is a radio talk show host & political analyst conducting radio shows in both English and Spanish on four radio stations in Arizona. Mr. Galindo is a weekly contributor to KPFK 98.7 FM Los Angeles and has appeared on CNN, Univision and Telemundo as a political analyst. Mr. Galindo is also an Op-Ed columnist on Prensa Hispana and the Tucson Citizen. Arizona. www.nospinonair.com/http://www.carlosgalindo.com

Listen to our live radio broadcast every Friday from 5-7 PM on The JOLT Tucson 1330 AM or via the web on www.nospinonair.com