VIEW: ALJ Decision Finding Democratic AG's Front Organization Guilty Of Election Law Violations In Anti-Horne Ad Barrage; Group Ignores Judge's Orders

An Arizona Administrative Law Judge last year found an organization funded solely by the national Democratic Attorneys General Association ("DAGA") in violation of at least three counts of election laws and ordered corrective actions to be taken;  the organization has apparently failed to abide by the ALJ's order.

Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne DID refer HIS complaint against the Committee for Justice and Fairness ("CFJF") to the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, shortly after taking office in January 2011.  The MCAO brought the CFJF in front of an ALJ on August 31, 2011, and his decision was issued on September 23. (Decision posted below)

The ALJ found that the CFJF was primarily funded by the DAGA, that it had failed to register with the Arizona Secretary of State, failed to file required financial reports, and failed to disclose how much had been spent on the ad.  The ALJ ordered CFJF to remedy those violations within 20 days.  As of today's date, no financial reports appear on the Secretary of State's campaign finance database, which is generally updated either in real time or close to real time.

A Google timeline search shows that there was no coverage - news or otherwise - of the ALJ's order, and neither the MCAO, the Secretary of State, nor the AG's office publicized it.

Shortly after Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne took office, Arizona's Politics asked his press office to let us know if the complaint would be pursued.  No response was received, which was understandable given the settling in period.  However, we now know from the decision that the AG's office sent a letter dated January 26, 2011, to the MCAO, forwarding Horne's complaint.  (Horne's Committee had filed the complaint with the Secretary of State's Office.)

As Arizona's Politics previously noted, the penalties for the apparent violations involving the advertisement itself - not identifying major contributor as being DAGA - could be up to three times the amount spent on the advertisement.  We obviously do not yet know how much was spent on the advertisement, but the frequency with which it aired made it apparent that it was a significant amount of money.

That the news of the ALJ's Decision from September is only coming out now because AG Horne is using it as a counterattack when responding to the allegations surrounding the FBI's investigations of his activities with independent expenditure campaigns just increases the irony level surrounding this story.

Of course, just as the allegations regarding the AG's actions are far from resolved, so too are the allegations regarding his opponents - the CFJF, the DAGA, and even the unsuccessful candidate herself.  Mr. Horne took the opportunity yesterday to grace us with some new allegations that Ms. Rotellini may have illegally coordinated with the DAGA/CFJF IE campaign.

Those new allegations, along with the apparent violations surrounding the CFJF/DAGA ad itself that have (apparently) not yet been litigated, should also be investigated.

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JUSTICE & FAIRNESS & IRONY, Continued: AG Tom Horne Killed HIS Complaint Against Anti-Horne Independent Expenditure Campaign (FOLLOWING MONEY IN ARIZONA'S POLITICS)

The following post raises some questions based upon facts observed in reviewing this story. This blog is not intended to be opinion-driven, but will label posts as "commentary" when necessary.

(((UPDATED 1:12pm:  It turns out that AG Horne's office did refer the CFJF/DAGA matter to an independent prosecutor - the Maricopa County Attorney's Office - shortly after taking office, and the MCAO took the CFJF before an Administrative Law Judge for violations of election laws. Details in post to follow.)))

One of the more intriguing aspects of the news about the FBI investigation into Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne has yet to be explored:  He was not just on the receiving end of a complaint relating to the independent expenditure ad campaigns that dominated Arizona media in the fall of 2010; he was a complainant.  He was not just being investigated; he was demanding an investigation.  He was not the target of possible legal action; he was the initiator of legal action.  And, the topper:  a complaint he initiated against the Democratic Attorneys General Association apparently DIED ON HIS DESK!

Say WHAT?!?

Horne's Democratic opponent, Felecia Rotellini, was the beneficiary of a fierce independent expenditure campaign by a group calling itself the Committee for Justice and Fairness ("CFJF").  As reported by Arizona's Politics, that "group" was a front for the Democratic Attorneys General Association ("DAGA").  The ads were apparently in violation of a number of Arizona election laws, and Horne filed suit in Maricopa County Superior Court to stop them.  He was unsuccessful, but he was able to get Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett (Repub.) to file a complaint against CFJF/DAGA with then-Attorney General (and candidate-for-Governor) Terry Goddard (Dem.).

For obvious reasons - both partisan, conflict of interest (Goddard was a member of DAGA), and proximity to the election - the complaint sat in the AG's office until after the election.  It was noted that Goddard could have referred it to an independent prosecutor, even after the election.  Horne inherited his own complaint when he assumed office in January 2011.

Obviously, he also had a conflict of interest and could have referred it out to an independent prosecutor;  he chose not to.   It could have been seen as vindictiveness, or as being unnecessary in light of the result.  In light of the new developments, it could also be seen as not wanting to open oneself up to counterattacks.

The CFJF/DAGA incident deserved - and, deserves - investigation.  When an organization made up of attorneys general of various states engages in political conduct that apparently violates the election laws of one of its member's states, and then denies and hides, it should be held to the strictest scrutiny and be held fully accountable for any violations (ethical and/or legal).  That could - and should - still happen in this case.  As the title of my post on October 22, 2010, put it: "If There's Justice & Fairness, There Will Also Be Irony;  Democratic AGs' Group Could Be Hit Hard, Too"!






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WATCH: The Ad AG Tom Horne Facing Investigation For (FOLLOWING MONEY IN ARIZONA'S POLITICS)

When it was airing in heavy rotation in late October and early November 2010, Arizona's Politics posted the independent expenditure ad that is at the heart of the current investigation into Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne.  We described it as "hammering back" at Democratic opponent Felecia Rotellini because it began airing well after an apparently-illegal (and pretty dirty) independent expenditure ad started tearing apart Horne.  (A post detailing that side of the grimy coin will be up shortly.)



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siPmUBjS7cI

(Here is a link to the Capitol Times story by Jeremy Duda from yesterday, breaking the news of the FBI investigation into Horne in relation to the independent expenditure campaign and the actions taken afterward.  In addition, this morning's front page Republic story - which somehow is already off of the front page of the website - very clearly setting forth the allegations and the semi-responsive responses from Horne and Sproul.)


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Rep. Gosar "Proud" Of Chamber's Award; He's Not Alone

First-term Rep. Paul Gosar (R-CD1-running-for-new-CD4) issued a news release today touting his Spirit of Enterprise Award from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He declared himself "proud" to receive the "prestigious" award, and quoted the Chamber CEO as saying “while many in Congress were busy playing politics, Representative Gosar was working to protect and advance the interests of America’s job creators.”

The only quibble with these proud declarations is that EVERY Republican member of Congress except one received the exact same award (and probably the exact same quote). Even several Democrats voted the way the Chamber - which does not necessarily reflect the views of local and state Chambers of Commerce - wanted them to vote on about a dozen key votes (16 in the House, 11 in the Senate).

Gosar did vote the Chamber way on 15 out of the 16, matched in the Arizona delegation only by Rep. David Schweikert (R-CD5-running-for-new-CD6) and topped by Sen. Jon Kyl (R-running-for-the-exits), who was a perfect 11-for-11.

The ONLY Republican - House or Senate - who did NOT receive the prestigious Chamber award for 2011 was Walter Jones (R-NC). He was a 50-50 Chamber voter. (It would be interesting to learn whether he is as "proud". Alas, his news release today is focused only on attacking the Obama Administration's "new illegal alien policy".

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Gabrielle Giffords Gives Arizona Some Balance In Battle Between Comics and Cartoons

Heard on KJZZ (91.5FM, Phoenix) this morning that there is going to be a comic book featuring/profiling resigned Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (D-CD8). The report featured audio with - if I recall correctly - the creator of the comic.

Unfortunately, KJZZ has not yet posted the story. But, Tucson's Channel 13 has posted its text. And, we can also provide you with this link to the actual Amazon listing. (Apparently, it is only available in digital form so far, although the traditional comic book form is promised, for $3.99.)

This certainly proves that there is a clear distinction between comic book figures and cartoonish characters, and now Arizona's political scene has at least one of each.



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THOUGHT OF THE DAY IN CONTEXT: Gertrude Stein Said TMI Can Cause Loss Of Common Sense

From time to time, I like to check out daily quotations and thoughts of the day - usually at the handy RefDesk.com website. The oft-frustrating thing about such quotations, however, is that they often epitomize the out-of-context problem that I have with so much of today's news reporting. (One of the primary issues that I try to address with this Arizona's Politics blog, actually.) So, an innocent 30-second trip to quote-of-the-day territory will often kick off a mini-research and learning adventure. Occasionally, I will try to post those findings here.

Today's Thought of the Day on www.RefDesk.com comes from American writer/poet Gertrude Stein:

"Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense." - Gertrude Stein

Sounds like it comes from today's society. Only we know that Stein is no longer with us. So, it cried out for some digging. I found that it came from a short piece she wrote (or spoke) shortly before her death (1946). It was published after her death in the Yale Poetry Review:

Gertrude Stein, "Reflection on the Atomic Bomb" (1946)
They asked me what I thought of the atomic bomb. I said I had not been able to take any interest in it.
I like to read detective and mystery stories. I never get enough of them but whenever one of them is or was about death rays and atomic bombs I never could read them. What is the use, if they are really as destructive as all that there is nothing left and if there is nothing there nobody to be interested and nothing to be interested about. If they are not as destructive as all that then they are just a little more or less destructive than other things and that means that in spite of all destruction there are always lots left on this earth to be interested or to be willing and the thing that destroys is just one of the things that concerns the people inventing it or the people starting it off, but really nobody else can do anything about it so you have to just live along like always, so you see the atomic [bomb] is not at all interesting, not any more interesting than any other machine, and machines are only interesting in being invented or in what they do, so why be interested. I never could take any interest in the atomic bomb, I just couldn't any more than in everybody's secret weapon. That it has to be secret makes it dull and meaningless. Sure it will destroy a lot and kill a lot, but it's the living that are interesting not the way of killing them, because if there were not a lot left living how could there be any interest in destruction. Alright, that is the way I feel about it. They think they are interested about the atomic bomb but they really are not not any more than I am. Really not. They may be a little scared, I am not so scared, there is so much to be scared of so what is the use of bothering to be scared, and if you are not scared the atomic bomb is not interesting.

Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense. They listen so much that they forget to be natural. This is a nice story.

Gertrude Stein, 1946

[first published in Yale Poetry Review, December 1947]

(as cited on this University of Pennsylvania page)

Not sure I agree with the late Ms. Stein that it displays a loss of common sense to be interested in the development and proliferation of new weapons of mass destruction. But, it is certainly food for thought, and it certainly is of interest (to me, anyway) to learn the context of her quote.



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WATCH: Senate Candidate Carmona Interviewed On MSNBC About Politicization Of Health Issues

Richard Carmona, the former U.S. Surgeon General who is now running for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Jon Kyl, was interviewed Thursday night by MSNBC's Rachel Maddow. Most of the conversation was about the bills currently in the State Legislature regarding abortion and contraception issues, and the candidate explained why he believes restrictive measures would be "deleterious" to women's health and to the goal of reducing unwanted pregnancies.

Carmona also explained that he chose to run for office because he was upset with the politicization of science, health and technology issues, and that he chose to affiliate with the Democratic party because he did not see a home for himself in the Republican party because of those issues and immigration.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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Sheriff Arpaio Holding New "Press Conference" On President Obama Birth Certificate; Supporters To Petition For End Run Around Governor, Legislature

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has set up his next press conference/event/meeting (it is described as all three) on the alleged President Obama citizenship document forgeries. He and his Tea Party supporters will take over a Sun City church next Saturday (March 31, 1:00pm).

The "historic event" will feature updates by both Arpaio and investigator Mike Zullo*, according to the post (on a site called the Western Center for Journalism**) by a co-organizer, the Surprise Tea Party group. (The other co-organizer is listed as the Sun City West Tea Party group.) The release claims that Arpaio and Zullo will present the preliminary findings and will update; it does not promise that there is any new information or action.

As an additional draw, however, the organizers say they plan to petition Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett (Repub.) and the Legislature to request that the Democratic National Committee provide documentation validating the President's citizenship "satisfactory to Sheriff Arpaio and the Cold Case Posse, the Arizona Legislature, and the Arizona Secretary of State’s office". This would appear to be designed to be similar to the proposed law which Arizona Governor Jan Brewer (Repub.) vetoed last year, and which is presently being considered in the current Legislature. The fate of that bill (currently in the form of a strike-everything amendment to HB2480) is unclear at this time.

Last week, Sheriff Arpaio gave an interview to talk show host Roger Hedgecock, and announced that he would investigate the President's Selective Service registration document for fraud, and would arrest whoever he finds responsible for the allegedly forged birth certificate and other documents which were released by the white House last year.





* Zullo was initially listed as "to be confirmed", but Surprise Tea Party spokesman Brian Reilly confirms his attendance in the comments to the post.

**The Western Center for Journalism was set up by Joseph Farah, the "brains behind WND.com", which has been instrumental in publicizing Arpaio's investigation into the (very) early life of Obama.


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