It hasn't been a good day for Arizona's Senate President Russell Pearce. And that makes it a great day for the rest of us. The author of SB 1070, and the sponsor of just about every other xenophobic bill introduced in the legislature, is facing a recall election in District 18. The organization that led the recall, Citizens for a Better Arizona (CBA), turned in more than 18,000 signatures from the Mesa district, when only about 7,700 were needed. More than 10,000 names were verified by the Secretary of State's Office, and Governor Brewer set the recall election for November 8.
Initially, Pearce and his mean-spirited toadies dismissed and then tried to stall the recall drive. When that didn't work they pivoted, inventing legal maneuvers to block the fall election. Today, a judge slapped down that scheme too. The recall is on, November 8! This is a huge victory for CBA and anyone who believes in civil rights, a concept Russell Pearce placed on the endangered species list for Arizona.
PHOENIX — A judge says a Nov. 8 recall election against a politician who authored Arizona's controversial immigration enforcement law can go ahead as planned.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Hugh Hegyi (HEG'-ee) on Friday threw out most of a lawsuit that alleged flaws in the recall drive against state Senate President Russell Pearce and sought to have the election called off. AP
The Long and Winding Road
When the recall started, many pundits and Pearce himself, bragging about his popularity with voters, laughed it off as a pack of pitiable activists tilting at windmills. When it became apparent the recall was indeed collecting signatures at a rapid rate, Pearce's flunkies carped that the effort was led by "outside agitators." Both Governor Brewer and Sheriff Joe Arpaio sent email blasts on behalf of Pearce, claiming that "extremists" are behind the recall -- Brewer even blathering that there's "no hope" for Arizona without Pearce. Former Republican Congressman and Foghorn Leghorn stand-in J.D. Hayworth even called recall volunteers "the very same socialist thugs who carry swastikas." Make up your alleged mind, J.D.; of course, they were neither, as you can see in this clip:
Man, look at those scary socialists! Or are they Nazis? As the video shows, the recall drive was organized and carried out by regular Arizonans, not outside extremists. And I don't see even one swastika. Some volunteers were Republicans from Pearce's district who were fed up with his pit bull tactics; others were fellow Mormons who were nauseated and embarrassed by the old twit's anti-Mexican viciousness. More than 90 percent of the donations CBA received were from Arizonans, not out-of-state moneybags.
Truth is, it's been Pearce, through Tom Tancredo's "Team America" front group, who's been begging for "outside" cash. Team America's website links to hate groups like VDARE, spreading Pearce's appeal for bucks to knuckle-draggers everywhere. Tancredo's email blast even reminded corporations that "there's no limit" to what they can donate to help Russ. Tom Terrific was wrong there, Arizona election laws prohibit corporate donations. Oops!
Magical Mystery Tour
Also trying to trip up the recall, far-right websites and other nativist mouthpieces have been blabbering since the signatures were verified that the recall process must've been corrupt. After all, there can't be that many people in District 18 who hate Senator Pearce, can there? The crackpot Sonoran News shouted in a big headline about "massive voter fraud," and the story was picked up by winger sites nationally. Problem is, the article about fake signatures turned out to be wrong, smearing an innocent woman in the process.
The next slow-the-recall shenanigan came from Pearce's attorney, Lisa Hauser, who filed suit to stop the election, claiming that the recall process was invalid. She said, for example, that people didn't not know they were signing a petition that could result in a recall election, even though "RECALL PEARCE" appeared on every page. Okaaay.
This past Monday, then, Hauser appeared before Judge Hugh Hegyi to argue her case. Unfortunately for Pearce's side, the recall process was designed by the Secretary of State, not Citizens for a Better Arizona, which gathered the signatures. In other words, the petition forms CBA used, which Hauser claimed violated State law, were provided by the Secretary of State. So Hauser had the unenviable task of arguing before Judge Hegyi that the State didn't know its job.
Today's ruling said the State, in fact, does know its job, putting the brakes on Pearce's remaining legal challenge. Other recall news over the do-hickey can't make him too happy either.
With a Little Help from My Friends
More recall news dribbled out today that won't please the Pearce camp. There's no limit to the number of candidates who can run in the November election; as long as each person gathers 621 signatures their name will appear on the ballot. A lot of candidates would help the Senator, because all those names would likely split the anti-Pearce vote. Happily, today one of the more formidable names withdrew:
Tommy Cattey, the 62-year-old audiologist and retired minister who was the first to announce his candidacy in the recall election against Arizona Senate President Russell Pearce, has dropped out of the race and thrown his support to challenger Jerry Lewis. Arizona Republic
With any luck, November 8 will be a two-man contest between Pearce and the man Cattey is supporting, Jerry Lewis, who must be the Senator's worst nightmare. Lewis is a squeaky-clean educator, businessman, and popular Mormon leader who's lived in District 18 more than 30 years. Moderates and the remaining sane fringe of the Republican party sought someone who represented the opposite of Pearce's obnoxious bigotry, and they found their man in Lewis.
Former candidate Cattey said he's dropping out of the race and backing Jerry Lewis because he believes Lewis will "bring humanity to the office of the senate." Lewis is no flaming liberal by any means, and he holds conservative views on most issues, but what we haven't heard coming out of his mouth is the venomous hate and arrogance that has come to define Pearce's tenure as Senate President. Even if Lewis wins and Arizona sends another conservative to the legislature, he won't be Senate President -- scheduling bills, selecting committee chairs, running the Capitol like his own fiefdom, and, along with his former boss Sheriff Joe Arpaio, making Arizona look like a bunch of Bull Connor troglodytes (no offense to troglodytes).
I've Got A Feelin'
The only other person remaining in the race is Olivia Cortez. Who? Nobody knows anything about the 58-year-old retired mystery woman, and she hasn't made herself available for interviews. Talk on the street is that she's a Pearce plant -- a woman with a Hispanic name who might steal even a few votes. I wouldn't put it past Pearce's slimeball team. Already someone has taken out a fake Twitter account in Jerry Lewis's name, using his actual campaign photo, posting Tweets that make him look like an open-border, socialist, gay-friendly Daily Kos blogger.
For almost three weeks, a Twitter account posing as Jerry Lewis, the Mesa Republican running against Senate President Russell Pearce in an upcoming recall election, has posted tweets promoting gay pornography and illegal immigration, aligning Lewis with extreme liberal causes and calling out politicians who are backing Lewis. Arizona Capitol Times
Lewis is considering a lawsuit. In the meantime, Olivia Cortez denies she's in the race to help Pearce, but get this: she's never been involved in a campaign at any level, she has no political experience, she has no campaign organization helping her, she apparently has no war chest, she hasn't released any campaign ads or materials, she won't talk to the press or hold public events, and she has no political platform or philosophy other than "to offer the voters a choice."
You know what choice to make, District 18! Don't Let Me Down