Laurie Roberts: The “kook” pot calling the kettle….

Right on the heels of a column earlier this week “Brnovich not the guy to investigate APS-Corp Com links” in which Laurie Roberts actually sounded like the investigative sleuth she purports to be —- she reverts back to her infantile “Kook” name calling.

In the earlier column she points out that Attorney General Mark Brnovich is too beholden to Arizona Public Service Co. to investigate major corruption claims against the utility made by a whistleblower (Letter here courtesy of 12 News) regarding cozy deal making between then-Corporation Commission chairman Gary Pierce and the company’s CEO as the utility was seeking a rate increase. APS, the largest electric utility in the state is regulated by the Arizona Corporation Commission. Arizona Public Service’s parent company, Pinnacle West, dumped $425,000 into Brnovich’s campaign coffers last year which raises the question why the power provider was so keen to influence the Attorney General’s race.

Just weeks ago, Roberts was loathe to mention Brnovich’s name. Now it’s headline material.

Yet it’s her fixation on conservatives she deems “Kooks” that continues to grasp her attention. Now she has gone even further than her usual derogatory snipes at individuals, by deeming the entire state of Arizona “Kooksville.”  In Roberts’ extremist view, legislative leaders are hard at work “to declare our independence from federal gun laws, from the Affordable Care Act, from the Environmental Protection Agency, from the Department of Justice, from Barack Obama and from just about anything else associated with the state’s most detested f-word. Federal, that is.”

There’s a slew of legislation rattling Roberts, including House Bills 2055, 2058, 2368, 2643, (Committee on Federalism & States’ Rights) and  Senate Bill 1330 (Public Safety, Military & Technology Committee) along with 2014’s Proposition 122.

Watch for Roberts to begin providing cover for soon-to-be 79-year-old John McCain as he gears up for another 6-year senate term. She’s already going after state Sen. Kelli Ward (R-LD5). The Lake Havasu lawmaker/physician is only rumored to be considering a challenge to McCain, but the status quo wagons are already beginning to circle.

Jeb a sure loser for GOP: Reject Bush imperial dynasty

The Sunday news programs parade a panoply of potential GOP presidential candidates, giving each their obligatory sound bites followed by analysis by the panelists gauging their viability. Each in turn is weighed as to suitability to run against the  already anointed Democrat—- a problem-plagued,  Cher-like candidate known far and wide by a single name.

Although the list of potential Republican candidates is long, the party establishment powerbrokers, strategists and the eager media, appear to have already selected their donor-amassing candidate. But for multitudes of “Bush weary” conservatives, Jeb Bush is a dynasty too far.

Phyllis Schlafly, still going strong at age 90, has long argued that the American conservative movement’s purpose is to influence, not echo, the Republican Party. In this column in the Washington Times, she warns against letting the party’s “kingmakers,” the Wall Street elite and their acquiescing political consultant class coronate former Florida governor Jeb Bush.

Mincing no words, Mrs. Schlafly makes her case in a 2015 update to her landmark book a half-century ago titled “A Choice, Not an Echo,” which in 1964 became the motto of Barry Goldwater’s grassroots movement.

In her update, Mrs. Schlafly -— founder of the Eagle Forum —- argues that her party too often picks losers as candidates because of a stranglehold by the political consultant-big business-Wall Street crowd, which makes a bundle from championing moderates over conservatives.

She warns that may be happening again in 2016 in the persona of Jeb Bush, noting “closed-door events have been held for Republican mega-donors to select who will get the big money that went last time to Mitt Romney,” and that the mainstream media already are cheering on Jeb Bush. Read the complete article by Ralph Z. Hallow here

Then carve out the time to acquaint yourself with Mexico-born Columba Bush, Jeb’s wife. The revealing article, “Bush Spouse Backs Jeb, but Is Wary of Family Business,”  in the New York Times is written by  Patrick Healy and Sheryl Gay Stolberg.  It’s easy to see why it took a trio, including researcher Kitty Bennett, to compile this informative piece.

Today we ask our readers to share who your “2016 Dream Ticket’ would be —- and why? We can do better than what’s being shoved our way by the Karl Rove elites.

Wising up: Ivy League students reject socialism

University President says health fee is “for the common good”

Cornell University students are obviously smart enough to know they shouldn’t have to pay a penalty for not buying the school’s health insurance if they already have coverage, but that’s exactly what a new policy at the Ivy League school requires.

The $350 “health fee” for opting out of the school’s insurance plan was announced in a memo from school President David Skorton, who is also a medical doctor. It was posted Feb. 5, on Cornell’s website, according to higher education blog The College Fix. But the implications are just beginning to sink in with the student body, and many attending the Ithaca, N.Y., school are now staging protests. Under Obama’s Affordable Care Act, students must have insurance, but making those already covered pay an extra fee to skip the school’s plan is rightly getting them riled.

According to Skorton, the fee will affect approximately 70% of undergrads, 10% of graduate students, and 30% of professional students. Given the number of students in each of these categories, it is expected to raise about $3.9 million. Additionally, students will have a $10 co-pay for visits to the campus’ health center.

In his statement Skorton noted that Cornell’s health services funding has been “strained” in light of “rising health insurance costs.” His email cites “inequitable access to care” as the reason for introducing this student health fee.

Students who do not opt in to the $2,352 plan will get hit with the $350 fee, which “most likely” won’t be covered by financial aid, according to The Cornell Review. The newspaper said the university plan is run through Aetna, whose CEO is a Cornell MBA grad.

This gut-punch is Skorton’s parting gift to Cornell’s students. The Smithsonian Institution’s Board of Regents named him to lead the world’s largest museum and research complex. He will assume his new post July 2015.

“David Skorton has demonstrated keen vision and skilled leadership as the president of two great American universities,” Supreme Court Chief Justice and Smithsonian Chancellor John Roberts lauded in a statement. “His character, experience and talents are an ideal match for the Smithsonian’s broad and dynamic range of interests, endeavors and aspirations.”

Justice Roberts, it will long be remembered, was the deciding vote on Obamacare. The Republican appointee stunned the nation as he sided with the liberals on the court.

It would be interesting to know what percentage of these now protesting Ivy Leaguers voted for Barack Obama —- and if those who did would do so again.

Breitbart covers AZ’s education standoffs

All dots lead back to John McCain

Breitbart’s Big Government, a premier national news site, finds Arizona’s Douglas/Ducey battle worthy of coverage. The report, Battle Lines Drawn Between Anti-Common Core Superintendent and Arizona Governor covers newly elected Gov. Doug Ducey’s overreaches and Superintendent of Public Instruction Diane Douglas’ actions and responses. 

Tucked in among the facts most state residents have been following and on which we have reported, is a fascinating connection that has previously been missed. In addition to Ducey bringing Common Core enthusiast Lisa Graham Keegan onboard his new education subcommittee, he has included Matthew Ladner, described as “a close associate of Common Core champion Jeb Bush.”

Keegan is a former-RINO-turned-Independent who endorsed Douglas’ radical leftist educrat challenger while lobbing insults at Douglas. She met the threshold of Republican establishment allegiance by serving as education advisor for John McCain’s failed presidential campaign.

And Matthew Ladner? Prior to joining the Foundation for Excellence in Education, founded by Jeb Bush and funded by liberals, Ladner worked for Clint Bolick at the Alliance for School Choice. Bolick then moved to the Libertarian Goldwater Institute, oddly favored by the leftwing Arizona Republic newspaper. Ladner followed. Clint Bolick and Jeb Bush co-authored a book, “Immigration Wars: Forging an American Solution,” which in retrospect sounds like a blueprint for Obama’s egregious amnesty actions.

We’ll connect the dots. Arizona’s junior Sen. Jeff Flake is John McCain’s doppelganger. Both are longtime proponents of amnesty for illegals. Flake, supported by McCain for the seat previously held by Jon Kyl, is a former Executive Director of the Goldwater Institute. Clint Bolick’s wife has twice run for a state legislative seat, losing both times.  This 2010 event was a Who’s Who of well-heeled McCain supporters. In this short video clip, Bush calls illegal immigration “an act of love” that “shouldn’t rile people up.’ Here Bush and Bolick openly push for amnesty minus the pretenses.

This is a gang that shoots in one direction —– aiming back at the law-abiding Arizona taxpayers forced to fund their schemes, while charging forward to open the border floodgates. If one doesn’t reach the destination, reinforcements are supplied by the Chambers of Commerce, and their illegal alien profiteer members.

Diane Douglas and Doug Ducey: A messy split

Just before Valentine’s Day, Cupid’s arrow misses the heart and hits the jugular

Superintendent of Public Instruction Diane Douglas and Gov. Doug Ducey, both newly elected Republicans, are engaged in a public battle over education authority.

The most recent skirmish centers on Douglas’ firing of the executive director and her assistant at the 11-member state Board of Education. Ducey promptly reinstated the two women, claiming Douglas lacks the ability to remove them. Douglas, on the other hand, says she clearly has the constitutional authority.  She shot back with this 2-page letter informing Gov. Ducey she did not see his name on the ballot for state superintendent. 

“It is no surprise that his office supports retaining two liberal staff who have publicly stated they will block all efforts to repeal or change Common Core and backs the newly elected President of the Board of Education who is a charter school operator and stands to profit from the Governor’s policy of pushing through AZ Merit to lower school scores so that more students can be removed to charter schools,” Douglas stated. “I swore to uphold the Constitution and the laws of the State of Arizona with my hand upon the Bible. I take that oath very seriously and will continue to do so. I also promised the voters of the state to replace Common Core and will not falter in my best efforts to keep my promise, regardless of whether the Governor honors his campaign rhetoric to do the same,” Douglas reminded Ducey.

From the onset of his Jan. 5 inauguration, Ducey with massive budgetary woes and plenty of statewide issues on his plate, has been inappropriately focused on education matters. He recently held an education town hall which omitted Douglas but included Lisa Graham Keegan a former RINO turned Independent, who endorsed Douglas’ Democrat challenger. Keegan, a Common Core advocate, was the education policy advisor for John McCain’s failed presidential bid. Superintendent Douglas made public the fact that Gov. Ducey has refused to take calls or meet with her since his swearing-in.

Douglas was recognized as the lone conservative among the statewide top-tier of elected officials, waging a winning grassroots campaign due to her resolute opposition to the fed’s heavy handedness in promoting the increasingly unpopular Common Core. Her message resonated with voters, carrying her across the finish line with a stunning 58 to 41 Primary victory, trouncing the incumbent. In the General Election she defeated a heavily funded, leftist educrat opponent.

The conservative base of the Republican Party supported Diane Douglas. As the establishment choice, Doug Ducey had the backing and financial network of the elites. He was also the beneficiary of scattered votes in a 6-way Republican primary field. A Libertarian and Americans Elect candidate further diluted the pool.

Doug Ducey may win this battle, but will ultimately lose the war. Messing with the base is not politically astute.

Obama spews whoppers as global tensions worsen

During Monday’s press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Barack Obama responded to a reporter asking if he was angry with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for accepting Speaker John Boehner’s invitation to address Congress.

Included in Obama’s response was this insulting and untruthful nugget: “We have a practice of not meeting with leaders right before their elections, two weeks before their elections,” adding, “As much as I love Angela, if she was two weeks away from an election, she probably would not have received an invitation to the White House. And I suspect she wouldn’t have asked for one. So, you know, the — so, you know, this is just — some of this just has to do with how we do business.”

With that barbed comment Obama implies that he knows what Merkel would do, though he has never dealt with the Chancellor at a time when the U.S. was about to sell out her nation in a perilous nuclear deal with a neighbor committed to destroying Germany —- the situation Netanyahu is facing with Iran. Netanyahu’s March 3 address will focus on the dangers of a nuclear Iran.

In fact, Obama did meet with Merkel just two months prior to her 2013 election and has met with other world leaders under similar circumstances.

Even the leftist editorial board of the Washington Post expresses “major concerns” over the  Obama administration’s risky nuclear negotiations with Iran.

Obama’s fabricated rule regarding not meeting with foreign leaders close to an election doesn’t explain why Secretary of State John Kerry and VP Joe Biden met with Netanyahu’s chief political rival Isaac Herzog this past weekend.

Breitbart exposes an anti-Netanyahu group called “One Voice,” which has rented offices in Israel.  Reportedly funded by liberal American donors, the campaign team is suspiciously led by Obama’s 2012 national field director Jeremy Bird.

WND provides an in-depth report on Bird, who is “taking his wildly successful Chicago-esque, Alinsky brand of community organizing to Tel Aviv,” where the field specialist has been making headlines for his paid consultancy to V15, an Israeli organization working to defeat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu” in the March 17, General Election.

The back story to Obama’s double-standard  manner of just “doing business” is jaw-droppingly deceptive.

Looking small: Ducey disses Douglas

Is Lisa Graham Keegan Ducey’s shadow education superintendent?

KPHO TV 5, the local CBS affiliate, reports on the most recent Republican snub lobbed in the direction of Diane Douglas, Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction. This time the salvo comes from newly elected Gov. Doug Ducey, a fellow Republican, who neither informed Douglas of his education town hall nor invited her to participate in the Thursday event.

Since his Jan. 5, inauguration, Ducey has focused on education issues —- clearly excluding the state schools chief. Previously it was state Republican Party chairman Robert Graham who omitted Douglas from this “Your Republican Team” mailer in advance of the General Election.

Douglas was recognized as the lone conservative among the statewide top-tier of elected officials, waging a winning grassroots campaign due to her resolute opposition to the fed’s heavy handedness in promoting the increasingly unpopular Common Core. Her message resonated with voters, carrying her across the finish line with a stunning 58 to 41 Primary victory.  In the General Election she defeated a heavily funded, leftist educrat opponent.

Yet right out of the chute, and before his actual swearing-in, Governor-elect Ducey announced the formation of an education subcommittee which included Common Core enthusiast Lisa Graham Keegan, a former RINO turned Independent, who endorsed Douglas’ Democrat challenger.

During the campaign, Keegan attacked Douglas, stating she was “promoting a sort of a paranoia” by opposing the federal education scheme. Keegan, who was John McCain’s education advisor during his doomed presidential bid, referred to Douglas’ opposition to Common Core as “destructive.”

In announcing the formation of his education team, Ducey claimed he was looking “forward to working with education professionals to identify the best policies to improve our schools, find the most talented people to assume key positions in my administration and ensure we are putting Arizona students, teachers and parents first.”

Ducey’s town hall brush-off of Douglas while Keegan participated in the forum, puts a lie to his claim of “working together” for the betterment of Arizona’s students, teachers and parents. The Arizona Constitution provides for both a governor and a superintendent of public instruction in addition to other elected state officers. Each job has specific duties and oversight. It’s time for Gov. Ducey to govern and let the actual superintendent do her job.