Republican AZ Legislative Priorities

Republicans control our Legislature by a thin margin. As a result, they can jam through some pretty awful legislation. Our Legislative Committee Chair provided this grim report at this morning’s Monthly Democratic Action Meeting. 2021 LEGISLATIVE SESSION SUPPRESS THE VOTE: 25 bills designed to make voting more difficult – particularly voting by mail PEVL Purge […]

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Biden’s Initial Actions on Guns

Today, President Biden and Attorney General Garland announced the following six initial actions to reduce the epidemic of gun violence that our nation labors under: The Justice Department, within 30 days, will issue a proposed rule to help stop the proliferation of “ghost guns.” The Justice Department, within 60 days, will issue a proposed rule […]

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The American Jobs Plan Will Invest in America in a Way We Have Not Invested Since We Built Interstate Highways and Won the Space Race

While the American Rescue Plan is changing the course of the pandemic and delivering relief for working families, this is no time to build back to the way things were. This is the moment to reimagine and rebuild a new economy. The American Jobs Plan is an investment in America that will create millions of […]

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What’s in the American Rescue Plan?

The COVID-19 pandemic and the corresponding economic crisis have undermined the health andeconomic wellbeing of American workers. Millions of Americans, many of whom are people of color,immigrants, and low-wage workers, continue to put their lives on the line every day to keep thecountry functioning through the pandemic. And more than 9.5 million workers have lost […]

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Stop Voter Suppression

With the American Rescue Plan set to address the economic and health crises, it’s now time to turn to the For the People and John Lewis Voting Rights Acts. The bills pushed by Republican legislators to suppress votes create the same level of crisis for our constitutional democracy as COVID caused our health and economy. […]

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Wrong-Headed Way to Reopen Economy by AZ Legislature

The Arizona legislature, dominated of course by Republicans, wants to prevent lawsuits against businesses that have ignored commonsense health guidelines during the pandemic, Lobbyists claim these restrictions are “key to Arizona’s comeback.” But if the normal disincentives for negligent behavior are removed during a pandemic, won’t that discourage people from coming out of their homes […]

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Why the Minimum Wage Hike Belongs in the COVID Relief Bill

Let’s start with an important statement laid out by Paul Krugman over a month ago: “There is indeed a radical party in America, one that, aside from hating democracy, has crazy ideas about how the world works and is at odds with the views of most voters. And it’s not the Democrats.” In fact, it’s […]

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American Rescue Plan

Here’s a quick summary of what’s in Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan — and what shouldn’t be added. What’s in the American Rescue Plan Get $1,400 direct relief checks to Americans, on top of $600 checks previously approved for a total of $2,000 in direct aid Enhance unemployment benefits and extend pandemic unemployment programs Increase the minimum […]

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Democrats Battle for Democracy

An Arizona perspective on the filibuster: It need not be all or nothing, but Congress needs to do big things. Eric Levitz published an intriguing article in The New Yorker this week. He opens with this: For the Democratic Party as an institution, the stakes of enacting major reforms over the next two years are […]

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50 Things That Are Better Already

Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post Columnist President Biden has not completed his first week in office, but already there is much to celebrate. Let’s count the ways: 1. You can ignore Twitter 2. The White House briefing room is not an Orwellian nightmare of lies 3. We are now confronting white domestic terrorism 4. We are not paying for golf trips […]

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