Last week’s AFL-CIO Day of Action at the State Capitol was a resounding success. Approximately 1000 workers came to Phoenix to express their displeasure with our state’s Republican-controlled government and the six anti-worker bills still alive in the Legislature.

From the Huffington Post…

The statewide AFL-CIO called for a Day of Action on March 1, 2012 and bussed hundreds of workers to the capitol to talk with lawmakers, hear fiery speeches by union leaders and protest bills attacking labor rights.

Several speakers, including Arizona AFL-CIO Executive Director Rebekah Friend, called out the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and the Goldwater Institute as the creators of the union-busting bills SB1484, SB1485, SB1486, and SB1487, which are reminiscent of legislation in Wisconsin, Ohio, and other states.

Not to be satisfied with diminishing the strength of public sector unions, the Arizona Legislature is also considering bills that would reduce the minimum wage earned by tip workers and people under 20 years of age (HCR2056) and eliminate civil service protection for thousands of state workers (HB2571) .

Check out the links (above) to the six bills, and you will find that four of Southern Arizona’s Republican legislators are sponsors of these anti-worker bills– Frank Antenori, Terri Proud, Al Melvin, and David Gowan. (None of the Democratic Party legislators have voted to move these bills forward.)

If you’re represented by Republicans in the Legislature, call them and tell them that you’re tired of them representing ALEC and the Goldwater Institute, instead of  Arizona residents. Antenori should really be put on the hot seat for this, since he wants to be Southern Arizona’s representative in Congress, replacing Gabrielle Giffords. Southern Arizona doesn’t need an ALEC puppet as a representative.

Here’s a link to the rest of the story.
Arizona Unionists Rally Against Anti-Labor Bills, 1000 Strong

Four buses of unionists left Tucson this morning. (Image credit: Pamela Powers Hannley)

When I originally reported on the AFL-CIO Day of Action, I said four bus-loads of unionists were going to the Capitol to lobby Legislators and demonstrate against the anti-labor bills. Correction: that’s four buses just from Tucson. Additional bus-loads will be arriving from other Arizona cities.

As they loaded the buses, one participant told me that two years ago, 30 unionists went to the Arizona Legislature on the Day of Action. Last year, there were two buses of unionists. This year with six anti-worker bills in the Arizona Legislature, there are four bus-loads just from Tucson going to the capitol.

Maybe today will be Arizona’s “Wisconsin moment.”

The Arizona AFL-CIO has organized a Day of Action for March 1. Four bus-loads of union members and supporters are descending upon the state capitol in Phoenix on Thursday.

But will this Thursday be Arizona’s “Wisconsin moment” or will union members politely wander the halls of the Legislature and ask the wingnuts  legislators to play nice?

Annually, the AFL-CIO has a lobby day when unionists meet with lawmakers, but this year’s lobby day will have a twist– thanks to six anti-worker bills winding their way through the Arizona Legislature. After the four bus-loads of unionists go the capitol and say to people like Senator Frank Antenori (who wants to be our Congressman), “WTF?”, they will have a rally at 1 p.m. on the Arizona State Capitol, House Lawn, 1700 W. Washington St.

From Rebeka Friend, executive director of the Arizona AFL-CIO.

Corporate politicians are pushing these bills to scapegoat working families and fulfill their extreme, right-wing agenda—to the detriment of our schools and the health and safety of our communities.These bills are not about the budget and they’re not about jobs. They’re about satisfying deep-pocketed donors and right-wing organizations like the Goldwater Institute and the American Legislative Exchange Council to further their political agenda to help the 1%.

For background on the status of the anti-worker bills check this link.

This is not just a union fight. This is a worker fight, since four bills attack unions, one attacks civil servants, and another attacks people who make tips and those 20 years old and under. And, let’s not forget the anti-college student bill that would require all college students– regardless of income– to pay at least $2000 of their tuition. No free rides.

This collection of abominable bills is an onslaught against all Arizonans. Be there. If you can’t be there, call and/or e-mail your state representatives or senators.

‘Nuff said.

On August 31, 2011, join Progressive Democrats of America Tucson Chapter, local MoveOn activists, and local nurses at Jon Kyl’s Tucson office (yes, he has one) at 6840 N. Oracle Rd., Suite 150, 6 p.m. Click here for a map. Click here to RSVP.

Arizona Senator Jon Kyl is a member of the new Super Congress which will decide our future and the future of our children and grandchildren. Tell Kyl to “have a heart”– not an ideology.

Given: System-wide, US healthcare costs have been on an upward trajectory for decades.

Given: The #1 reason Americans go bankrupt is that they cannot pay their medical bills.

Given: As we grow older, our healthcare (and health insurance) costs increase.

Given: Baby Boomers are entering their Golden Years, and between 2010 and 2040, the US population over 65 years of age will double.

Given: Fiscal hawks at the state and federal level want to reduce, dramatically change, or eliminate government-backed health insurance (Medicare and Medicaid), as well as social safety net programs (ie, Social Security, food stamps, and unemployement).

Given these facts: It is not difficult to see how the colliding forces of an aging population, increasing healthcare costs, and decreasing government support could create a perfect storm in US in the not-so-distant future.

New research published in the September 2011 issue of The American Journal of Medicine gives us a glimpse of what that perfect storm may look like.

Using statistical modeling, scientists from the University of California, San Francisco and Columbia University reported that without significant changes in risk factors or treatments, “…the aging of the US population will result in a sizeable increase in coronary heart disease incidence, prevalence, mortality, and costs.”

More specifically:

• “…incident coronary heart disease [new cases] is projected to increase by approximately 26%, from 981,000 in 2010 to 1,234,000 in 2040…
• “Prevalent coronary heart disease [is projected to increase] by 47%, from 11.7 million to 17.3 million.
• “Mortality will be affected strongly by the aging population; annual coronary heart disease deaths are projected to increase by 56% over the next 30 years, from 392,000 to 610,000.
• “Coronary heart disease-related health care costs are projected to rise by 41% from $126.2 billion in 2010 to $177.5 billion in 2040 in the United States.”

The public health and economic consequences of these projections are staggering– particularly if extremist Teapublicans like Congressman Paul Ryan and sheep-like followers (including Arizona’s own Jeff Flake) have their way.

Let’s assess the current situation…

• 52 million Americans don’t have health insurance.
• 61% of bankruptcies in the US due to medical costs.
• 9.1% of Americans are unemployed.
• Teapublicans– with the help of President Obama– want to fix the “deficit problem” by cutting entitlement programs WITHOUT cutting military spending or raising revenues or creating jobs (which would boost the economy).

If you think income disparity and greed are destroying our country now, just wait. If Teapublicans like Michelle “down with entitlements” Bachmann, Rick “minimum wage” Perry, Mitt “the oligarch’s baby” Romney, Sarah “cut NPR to balance the budget” Palin, Jeff “I was against austerity before I was for it” Flake*, and, of course, FOX “the poor need to pay their fair share” News have their way, there will be literally millions of sick, elderly Americans living at the subsistence level without healthcare services or medicine.

Is this the future we want?

The balanced budget deal passed earlier this month is the only one in history that includes cuts in spending and no increases in revenue. We need sanity in government, and I’m not sure we’ll get it from the Gang of 12.

We need to put people back to work– at good-paying jobs (not the kind Perry created in Texas)– so they can contribute to the economy and contribute to Medicare and Social Security through their paychecks. To control healthcare costs, we need universal healthcare– instead of this hybrid system that allows insurance companies to continue their rape of the American people. We need to eliminate the Bush era tax cuts for the rich and cut tax loopholes for individuals and corporations. We need to end the wars and cut military spending.

Yes, we need sanity in government.

* In all fairness, this is also the position of Senators Jon Kyl, John McCain, and Mitch McConnell and Congressmen John Boehner and Paul Ryan.

Last week, Governor Jan Brewer called the Arizona Legislature into special session to make a one-word change in state law which would allow extension of unemployment benefits to the chronically unemployed in Arizona– at no cost to the state.

Legislators argued and grandstanded for two days and, in the end, changed nothing. As the Arizona Daily Star said, Legislators showed “indifference to struggling Arizonans.”

State lawmakers wrapped up their special session Monday and went home without making the one-word change needed to continue funding unemployment for people out of work for at least 79 weeks.

Extending long-term unemployment insurance for another 20 weeks is a no-brainer. It would have extended a safety net to thousands of Arizonans on the brink. It would have continued to inject $3.2 million of federal money into the economy each week. And it should have been easy to do. All lawmakers had to do was change the number “two” to “three” in a formula used to grant the 20-week extension.

Most importantly, it would have been the right and moral thing to do.

These are extraordinary times. The unemployment rate has dropped to 9.3 percent, which is roughly double what it was 10 years ago. While extending unemployment benefits by another 20 weeks would have helped 15,000 people stay afloat, cutting them off will affect an additional 30,000 people who will hit the 79-week mark later this year. So in essence, state lawmakers have ripped away the safety net for 45,000 jobless Arizonans. That’s roughly the size of the crowd at a UA football game. [Emphasis added.]

It’s sad but not surprising that Republicans did this. After all, Arizona right-wing ideologues are just following the lead of right-wing Congressional ideologues like our own Senators John McCain and Jon Kyl, who have voted against extending unemployment many times. And, all of them are more interested in handing out corporate welfare and tax breaks for the rich than helping citizens in need.

Lest we forget the names of the people who passed corporate welfare in the wink of an eye but denied a no-cost extension of unemployment benefits, the Arizona Democratic Party has provided the following list of names and the unemployment rates in their districts.

“Rather than help jobless Arizonans, they punished them. Rather than strengthening our economy, they sapped it of another $3 million a week,” said Andrei Cherny, Arizona Democratic Party chairman. “Weakening our economy and middle-class families is not what we deserve from our state legislators. Even Governor Brewer’s top political advisor agrees that voters in 2012 will remember this outrageous action from the out-of-touch Russell Pearce Republicans.”

These lawmakers should be held accountable for their actions. Here is a list of Republican lawmakers who voted not to extend unemployment benefits. We should fire them all.

AZGOP lawmakers and unemployment rates in their regions:

Legislative District 1
Sen. Steve Pierce
Rep. Andy Tobin
Rep. Karen Fann
Unemployment rate in
Prescott MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area): 9.5%

Legislative District 3
Sen. Ron Gould
Rep. Doris Goodale
Unemployment rate in
Lake Havasu-Kingman Mohave County MSA: 10.1%

Legislative District 4
Sen. Scott Bundgaard
Rep. Jack Harper
Rep. Judy Burges
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA 8.1%
Yavapai County: 9.5%
Glendale: 8.3%
Peoria: 5.7%
Yavapai County: 9.5%

Legislative District 5
Sen. Sylvia Allen
Rep. Chester Crandall
Rep. Brenda Barton
Unemployment rate in
Gila County: 10.2%
Graham County: 10.5%
Greenlee County: 9.1%
Holbrook: 8.0%
Pinetop-Lakeside: 8.2%
Show Low: 7.5%
Snowflake: 8.5%
Winslow: 7.1%

Legislative District 6
Sen. Lori Klein
Rep. Amanda Reeve
Rep. Carl Seel
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Phoenix: 9.4%

Legislative District 7
Sen. Nancy Barto
Rep. Heather Carter
Rep. David Burnell Smith
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Phoenix: 9.4%
Scottsdale: 6.0%

Legislative District 8
Sen. Michele Reagan
Rep. Michelle Ugenti
Rep. John Kavanagh
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Scottsdale: 6.0%
Carefree: 2.8%
Cave Creek: 3.7%
Fountain Hills: 4.0%

Legislative District 9
Sen. Rick Murphy
Rep. Rick Gray
Rep. Debbie Lesko
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Glendale: 8.3%
Peoria: 5.7%
Sun City: 9.4%

Legislative District 10
Sen. Linda Gray
Rep. Jim Weiers
Rep. Kimberly Yee
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Phoenix: 9.4%
Glendale: 8.3%

Legislative District 11
Sen. Adam Driggs
Rep. Kate Brophy McGee
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Phoenix: 9.4%
Paradise Valley: 3.7%

Legislative District 12
Sen. John Nelson
Rep. Steve Montenegro
Rep. Jerry Weiers
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
El Mirage: 12.1%
Goodyear: 5.8%
Buckeye: 10.1%
Surprise: 10.0%
Litchfield Park: 7.4%
Glendale: 8.3%

Legislative District 18
Sen. Russell Pearce
Rep. Cecil Ash
Rep. Steve Court
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Mesa: 7.4%
Gilbert: 4.6%

Legislative District 19
Sen. Rich Crandall
Rep. Justin Pierce
Rep. Justin Olson
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Mesa: 7.4%
Gilbert: 4.6%

Legislative District 20
Sen. John McComish
Rep. Bob Robson
Rep. Jeff Dial
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Phoenix: 9.4%
Chandler: 6.2%
Tempe: 7.0%

Legislative District 21
Sen. Steve Yarbrough
Rep. Tom Forese
Rep. J.D. Mesnard
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Mesa: 7.4%
Gilbert: 4.6%
Chandler: 6.2%

Legislative District 22
Sen. Andy Biggs
Rep. Eddie Farnsworth
Rep. Steve Urie
Unemployment rate in
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale MSA: 8.1%
Mesa: 7.4%
Gilbert: 4.6%

Legislative District 23
Sen. Steve Smith
Rep. John Fillmore
Rep. Frank Pratt
Unemployment rate in
Pinal County: 10.6%

Legislative District 24
Sen. Don Shooter
Rep. Russ Jones
Unemployment rate in
Yuma County: 25.3%

Legislative District 25
Sen. Gail Griffin
Rep. David Stevens
Rep. Peggy Judd
Unemployment rate in
Cochise County: 8.2%
Santa Cruz County: 14.7%
Pima County: 7.9%

Legislative District 26
Sen. Al Melvin
Rep. Terri Proud
Rep. Vic Williams
Unemployment rate in
Tucson MSA: 7.9%
Pima County: 7.9%
Oro Valley: 5.6%

Legislative District 30
Sen. Frank Antenori
Rep. Ted Vogt
Rep. David Gowan
Unemployment rate in
Tucson MSA: 7.9%
Cochise County: 8.2%
Pima County: 7.9%
Santa Cruz County: 14.7%

Source: AzDOA Office of Employment and Population Statistics – Special Unemployment Report 2010-2011

US Congressman Raul Grijalva penned a moderate Op-Ed on ethnic studies for Sunday’s Arizona Daily Star:

Political Fight over Ethnic Studies Should Never Have Been Ignited at All

In his commentary, he places the blame for the problems  facing TUSD squarely where it belongs– with the Arizona Legislature, Governor Jan Brewer, and Attorney General Tom Horne. He ends the piece with a call for public comment, fairness, and due process…

Thankfully, TUSD has avoided premature decisions about the fate of the program. We need to let the legal, administrative and public comment processes run their courses. All of us, whatever our background, share the American history and values of fairness, democracy and due process.

That’s what we need here, not more overheated rhetoric.

Ironically, two days before Grijalva’s piece appeared, I also called for continued free and open public dialogue and less “overheated rhetoric.”

Focusing so intensely on this one small program is clouding the bigger picture: Education in Arizona is in trouble, and public education nationwide is under attack. As long as were fighting and drawing lines in the sand, nothing will progress. We need full transparency, and we need a public forum where everyone’s voices can be heard– not just those who shout the loudest. We need to come together to fix this– or Tom Horne will fix it for us.

I usually don’t yell, but this is very important.

A few of State Senator Frank Antenori’s mean-spirited anti-Tucson bills may hit Governor Jan Brewer’s desk as early as Wednesday, April 20.

John C. Scott interviewed Councilman Steve Kozachik on the Jolt 1330 AM on Tuesday. Kozachik detailed the bills that comprise Antenori’s vendetta against Tucson and reminded people about his petition against legislation that subverts local control of government. (You can still sign this by clicking the link.)

…I invite you as an individual to join me in standing up for the independent and unquestionable rights of our local governments to decide what is right for our communities. By clicking this link and signing this petition your affirmation will be automatically forwarded onto the State Legislature and to the Governor’s office. Please take the time to give your opinion a voice.

https://www.change.org/petitions/stop-hurting-our-local-government

Soooooo…. my Liberal Readers… the time to act is now.

Go ahead and click on Koz’s petition. (There are 678 right now– almost double from yesterday’s count.)

But also, call or e-mail Brewer separately from the petition. Seriously, we need to flood her office to the point where she can’t ignore us.

Tell Brewer to veto these anti-Tucson bills– mostly proposed by Antenori. The bills that are nearing passage in the Arizona Legislature (which may come tonight, according to Koz) are: SB1345 and 1347 cutting city staff to a percentage of the population (which means 1/2 of the city’s workers would be immediately unemployed) and regulating city employee’s salaries; the SB1322 forcing the city to bid every contract over $75,000 (thus adding a ton of bureaucracy to a shrinking city payroll); SB1201 allowing guns in public buildings; and SCR1025 eliminating Tucson’s clean elections law.

Here is the link to send an e-mail to the Governor.

Here are the mailing address, telephone and FAX numbers.

The Honorable Jan Brewer
Governor of Arizona
1700 West Washington
Phoenix, Arizona 85007

Telephone (602) 542-4331
In State Toll Free 1-(800) 253-0883 (outside Maricopa County only)
Fax (602) 542-1381

Don’t let them destroy our City.

Recall Antenori!

Pass this on!

P. S. Where is the rest of our city government? Koz already put his neck on the chopping block for Tucson, what about the other 6 of you? I’d suggest hopping into a city van and going to the Governor’s office on Wednesday.

View from Pima Canyon (Photo Credit: Pamela Powers)

Late April in Baja Arizona… ahhh… the weather is gorgeous, the skies are blue, plants are springing back to life, and community events pack the weekends. If Baja Arizona has such an luscious environment and close-knit, eclectic community, why is it that the natives are often weary and depressed this time of year?

Why? Because by late April we have been pummeled by the Arizona Legislature for nearly four months.

With Russell Pearce as president of the Arizona Senate, 2011 has been a particularly rough year: corporate tax cuts, birther bills, guns-for-everyone-everywhere bills, anchor baby bills, everyone-should-be-a-border-patrol-agent bills, and a who-needs-education-or-healthcare-or-parks-when-you-got-prisons budget. Heavy sigh… (Wait a minute… did I miss something? Was there a jobs bill proposed this session?)

Down here in Baja Arizona, we have been repeatedly and unfairly targeted by the Arizona Legislature. I’ve lost track of all of the specifically anti-Tucson or anti-Pima County legislation that is winding its way through the rented halls of the Arizona Legislature. Some of the most egregious bills were sponsored by or promoted by one of our one Baja Arizona Senators– Frank “let’s-shoot-varmints-in-the-night” Antenori.

Now that Governor Jan Brewer has stood up to the Arizona Legislature and actually VETOED two of the crazier bills– guns near campuses and the birther bill– I’m hoping she’ll keep going. Governor, there are many more bills worthy of your veto pen!

Let’s make this easy and not confuse the situation with lots of numbers … Jan, honey, pretty please veto anything in these categories…trust me… you can do it!

1. Anything proposed by Antenori. This includes his bills to give Pima County infrastructure to the town of Marana and his plans to become king of Tucson by regulating how many employees the city can hire and which contracts go out for bid. (Last time I checked, Antenori didn’t hold any elected offices in our city or county government.)
2. Anything that is discriminatory against a group or individual. In addition to all of the anti-children, anti-sick people, and anti-immigrant legislation, this category would include all of the anti-Tucson and anti-Pima County legislation not proposed by our so-called Senator (see #1). It also would include Pearce’s obvious political ploy to give millions of dollars to Maricopa and Pinal Counties for border security but leaves out Pima County (which actually borders Mexico) because he doesn’t like our sheriff.
3. Anything that is none of the Legislature’s business.
   3a. The Legislature has no business sticking its nose into the management of University Medical Center, the University of Arizona College of Medicine, or the newly formed UA Healthcare (HB2067). Would you want Pearce or Antenori deciding who should get medical care and what care should be given? Oops… that’s right. Arizona’s Death Panels have been hard at work destroying healthcare in our state. Don’t let them take over one of out best hospitals! Doctors and professional healthcare administrators should run healthcare institutions– not wacky ideologues.
   3b. The Legislature has no business dictating the types of housing that can be built in Tucson. HB 2005 (AKA the Mini-Dorm Proliferation Act of 2011) states that when a municipality has issued a building permit for construction of a residential structure located within two miles of either a military base or a state-owned educational facility (such as the University of Arizona), then any use of the structure for residential purposes under one lease agreement by members of the U.S. Military or by faculty, employees or students of the educational facility is deemed to be in accordance with zoning regulations (regardless of how the area is really zoned). To make matters worse, the amendment is retroactive to Jan 1, 2010 OR the issuance of the permit, whichever came first. In other words, it would allow MINI-DORMS to be legal in R-1 and R-2 zoned areas! This bill is to be voted on soon by the Senate.
4. Anything that would cut jobs instead of creating jobs. OK… sorry, Jan, I tried to trick you on this one because NONE of the Legislation suggested by the majority party this session creates a single job but several pieces of legislation will actually increase unemployment– particularly the cuts to healthcare and education– or hurt workers.
5. Anything that is the responsibility of another branch of government. The Arizona Legislature has a particularly “all knowing” aura about it this year. Not only are they taking on tasks that belong to the federal government (like immigration and border security), they are taking on tasks that belong to the cities and counties (as mentioned above).

You’re the decider, Jan. Please?

Dear Readers, there are several things you can do to maybe influence the final votes of this legislative session. Here are links to contact information for Senate members and House members. Bug them!

You also can sign Councilman Steve Kozachik’s keep-your-stinkin’-hands-off Tucson petition. Go, Koz, thanks for standing up to your own party to protect the rights of Baja Arizona!

In signing Arizona’s devastatingly regressive Teapublican budget, Governor Jan Brewer chose to side with Legislative radicals– rather than the people, the business leaders, the healthcare professionals and hospitals, or the children of Arizona.

The most disturbing part of this whole exercise is her continuation of the BIG LIE that she is protecting education, as she promised to do when she duped Arizona voters into an additional sales tax in 2010 to protect education from the types of cuts she signed into law this week.

In recent weeks, business leaders warned Brewer and Legislative Teapublicans that continuing to cut education would further harm Arizona’s economic competitiveness. From the Arizona Daily Star…

“The bottom line is that I’ve been the crusader for education,” Brewer said after the meeting. “I’ve led the charge to protect education. And I’m continuing to try … to protect education as we move through this budget process.” [The Big Lie.]

The governor said, though, nothing Barrett [former CEO of Intel] or anyone said would cause her to back off her proposal to cut university funding, or to scale back another part of her budget which would pare state aid to community colleges by half.

“We are going to do the best job that we can with the dollars that we have to deliver the best education to everyone,” she said, from preschool through college. [The Big Lie, again.]

Senate President Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, also said he has no second thoughts about the deeper education spending cuts his chamber approved.

Now that the budget has been signed, the Governor is trying to apply as much lipstick to that pig as possible. From the Arizona Capitol Times…

Calling it a milestone on Arizona’s road to recovery, Gov. Jan Brewer signed a fiscal year 2012 budget that she said made painful – but necessary – cuts that would protect the state’s fiscal health for years to come.

Brewer acknowledged that many of the budget cuts will be difficult to implement, but said she had done as much as possible to protect priorities like education, public safety and safety-net programs for the vulnerable. [This, of course, is just BS.] She said the budget – Arizona’s first structurally balanced spending plan in several years – would reduce the size and scope of government, while helping the state keep future budgets balanced.

“If Arizona is to reclaim its standing as a national leader in economic growth, its state government must be cost-effective, efficient and fiscally stable,” Brewer wrote today in a letter to House Speaker Kirk Adams and Senate President Russell Pearce. “This budget plan puts the state on the right path in all three categories.” [Thus, totally ignoring what the business leaders told them.]

The budget included $183 million in K-12 education cuts, with $35 million backfilled by federal funds. Brewer acknowledged that the cuts were deeper she wanted … but said the majority of the cuts come from specific programs, such as vocational classes, instead of classroom spending.

“My goal was to avoid severely eroding base support for schools and core education programs. [Repeating another version of the Big Lie.] I believe this budget accomplishes that,” she wrote. [Emphasis added.]

More specifics from AZCentral.com…

Critics have charged the governor with reneging on her promise to protect education, even though they acknowledge Brewer’s proposals were less harmful than those of legislative Republicans.

The Arizona Education Network, a Tucson-based group of education advocates, said Brewer and the Legislature “have violated the public’s trust with these deep cuts.” [Duh. She lied to us.]

In addition to about $150 million in cuts to K-12, the budget reduces university funding by $198 million and takes $70 million from the community-college system.

[Andrei] Cherny, [chair] of the [Arizona] Democratic Party, said that the budget decimates Arizona education and that Democrats will remind voters of that in next year’s elections.

The budget also cuts $50 million from the Department of Economic Security, which provides the state’s safety-net programs, and $53 million from the Department of Health Services.

The budget reduces funds that have kept the state’s parks system on life support; advocates say the cuts mean some parks will have to close.

Arizona’s attack on education reminded me of the classic Pink Floyd video above. The famous “We don’t need no education” line is about 2 minutes. Do Pearce, Brewer, and, of course, Attorney General Tom Horne want Arizona students to march in lock step like the uniformed zombies envisioned by Pink Floyd? You betcha. Citizens who are stupid, poor, and sick are easier to control and more willing to work for pennies.

What they failed to mention in any of the above articles is that cutting funding from healthcare and education means cutting good-paying jobs in the private and public sectors. This is truly government against the people– less education for our children, less healthcare for the poor and the unemployed, fewer jobs, higher unemployment.

When will this downward spiral end?