Valley Fever in Arizona Turns into Recall Fever

Another politician has fallen to the recall fever in the Grand Canyon state. Reporting last week of two other popular and undisputed controversial political figure heads inside Arizona state government, the third person to be placed on the recall list is Governor Brewer herself. A grassroots organization has boldly expressed their desire to remove the governor from office. The group, the Committee to Recall Arizona Governor Jan Brewer has filed the proper papers to start the process. The petition states numerous reasons for the action statement and accuses Brewer of mishandling the state's fiscal budget impeding vital public services that include health care and public education.

The state, experiencing an unusual cold freeze is now enduring another winter storm after the Phoenix newspaper, The Arizona Republic reports that a community organization called "Arizonans for Better Government" filed the paperwork with the Secretary of State's Office last week, saying they will seek as many as 15,000 signatures as part of their recall effort to recall Arizona State Senator Russell Pearce. The group filed its petition with the Secretary of State's office on grounds his "overt disdain for the United States Constitution" thus pitting him against the group's call to remove him from office. The group, described as representatives of the Latino Republicans in the state filed the recall position after it was gleaned two state lawmakers filed pending legislation that would challenge the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and its content on "natural citizenship" as children born on U.S. soil or territory. A group spokesperson said "To try to make innocent babies pay is just not right," Reed said. "His name may not be on these bills, but we believe he is responsible for it, encouraging it and pulling the strings on it." The group will need to collect 7,756 signatures by May 27. [1]

Two weeks ago, Pima County elections officials cleared the way for the recall of Sheriff Dupnik, when it determined that someone who lives outside Pima County "could start up a recall effort against a county official." The newspaper further reports that County Elections Director Brad Nelson told the "Arizona Daily Star Baltes has filed the appropriate paperwork, and he can now gather signatures on recall petitions Just as recent as last week, the political rhetoric and vitriolic mood continues in Arizona as a Utah man, Dan Baltes, an activist for Americans Against Immigration Amnesty wants to begin the process to recall Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik. The Arizona Republic reports in their story that "Baltes says he started the recall after hearing frustration and anger from many people about Dupnik's statements after the Tucson shootings." Mr. Baltes lives in Salt Lake City, Utah. It appears Mr. Baltes is addressing the sheriff's comments on the day of the Tucson tragedy and said that the way it was handled "spurred the decision" to begin the recall process. It is estimated that at least 91,000 signatures of Pima County residents will be required to put the issue of this recall on the ballot. [2]

The official recall petition information on Governor Brewer was filed with the Arizona Secretary of State on January 28, 2011 with a signature deadline of May 28, 2011. The amount of signatures required to bring the recall election to a reality is 432,021 registered voters subject to signature validation. The recall petition states "All signatures MUST be from officially registered Arizona voters residing in the state. All signatures of persons not on the state's official registered voter roster will NOT BE COUNTED! Petition Circulators: Anyone ELIGIBLE to register to vote in Arizona (at least 18 years old; resident of Arizona, etc. may circulate petitions and gather signatures whether or not actually registered to vote. Address to return *signed petitions to: Committee to Recall Arizona Governor Jan Brewer 4980 S. Alma School Rd., Ste. A2-#130 Chandler, AZ 85248.

The language used in the recall petition states "We, the qualified electors of the electoral district from which Janice K. Brewer, Governor of Arizona was elected, demand her recall. The grounds of this demand for recall are as follows:

1. Gross mismanagement of Arizona's finances by Governor Brewer including budget cuts to programs vital to the health, welfare and education of Arizonans that could have been avoided with bipartisan cooperation and willingness to consider alternate proposals to address the state's fiscal challenges.
2. We are ashamed that our state was first in the nation to cut organ transplant funding from its Medicaid program (AHCCCS) which insures the poor and has already resulted in lost lives.
3. It is unacceptable that the Governor has proposed further cuts to AHCCCS funding that would also illegally cancel medical coverage for roughly 280,000 of the state's poor and needy. This defies and undermines the will of the people of Arizona who guaranteed AHCCCS coverage to these individuals with the passage of Proposition 204 in 2000 and constitutes an abuse of gubernatorial power.
4. Arizonans are a people of conscience and we will no longer tolerate the type of heavy-handed governing and unwillingness to consider alternative bipartisan solutions to the state's fiscal challenges that do not compromise the health, welfare and education of the people of this great state. It is time to restore credible leadership to the Office of Governor and to rebuild our state's tattered reputation [3]

An ad on the web listed the following banner for this movement: Look for us and "friend" us on Facebook: Community Page - Committee to Recall Arizona Governor Jan Brewer Organization Page - Committee to recall Arizona GOV. Jan Brewer The facebook social media, titled had 38 persons signed up for discussions and support the cause to remove her from the governor's office, Today the sign in numbers 281 persons signed up and many more are expected before the six months is over. An uphill battle to say the least, the outcome will be most interesting as the peitition makes it around the state for signatures.

Petition as filed:

WHY WE MUST RECALL ARIZONA GOVERNOR JAN BREWER - Arizona Governor Jan Brewer has repeatedly demonstrated that she has lost touch with the people she serves. Instead of restoring the funds for organ transplants previously cut from the state's Medicaid (AHCCCS) budget after public outcry from all over Arizona and the nation, she has now proposed even deeper cuts to AHCCCS. These cuts disproportionately impact the poor in our state by terminating medical coverage for an estimated 280,000 needy Arizonans. Moreover, these proposed cuts are illegal and defy and undermine the will of the people of Arizona who voted to guarantee coverage to these individuals when they passed Proposition 204 in 2000.

This is over the protests of leading physicians and medical providers, health-related organizations, seniors' groups, social services organizations, political leaders and the voters. This is no longer "politics as usual" or a partisan issue. It has become a crisis of conscience. Governor Brewer appears to have lost her moral compass with her willingness to trade the health and welfare of the poor and the sick to serve her unbending agenda. That even one life should be sacrificed so that our great state can service its debts and balance its budget is outside the boundaries of common decency, respect for human life and our inalienable rights. Among the specific cuts proposed by Governor Brewer on January 14, 2011 are: '¢ $541 million from voter-protected health care for working families; '¢ $300 million+ more from education while spending money on corporate (not public) schools; '¢ $60 million in additional homeowner property taxes.

Those who will be directly affected by Gov. Brewer's proposed cuts are: '¢ Every homeowner in the state including those whose property values are already "under water". '¢ Every parent of school age children in the state. '¢ Every public school official, teacher and employee. '¢ Every 2- and 4-year college student, college educator or official, and parent of a college student. '¢ The poor and needy in the state whose healthcare is funded by AHCCCS, particularly childless . adults and individuals with medical conditions that may require organ transplants. The time has come for Arizonans to send a clear and decisive message to Gov. Jan Brewer and Republican legislators in the state who agree with these measures.

Help send that message in the form of a signed petition to RECALL GOVERNOR JAN BREWER. We need a credible, visionary leader who is willing and determined to seek out alternative solutions to the challenges facing our state no matter where they originate . . . who is willing to entertain compromise . . . and who does not view any human being as expendable "for the cause". We need a strong leader, but one who tempers difficult decisions with compassion and decency. And, we need a leader who can help us rebuild our state's tattered reputation along with our confidence in government while restoring our hope for a better future. Both legislators and private parties, the latter including a group of leading physicians in Arizona, have come forward with alternate proposals that would serve to help close the budget gap to ensure continuation of these vital programs.

Governor Brewer stubbornly refuses to entertain compromise or to even explore many of these options. When asked about these issues, she speaks of the need to make "tough decisions" and refers to organ transplants needed by those insured under AHCCCS as "optional" procedures. We can only conclude that Governor Brewer considers the two lives that have already been lost, and the remaining 96 sick and needy Arizonans who have been removed from the transplant list due to the AHCCCS cuts, as "collateral damage" (what the military refers to as "acceptable losses"). "The recall process in Arizona requires signatures equal in number to the combined total of votes cast for the office being recalled in the most recent General Election. This means that we will need 432,021 signatures by 120 days from our Committee's official filing date with the Secretary of state (May 28th, 2011). We are seeking 432 volunteers (individuals and/or organizations) willing to help circulate petitions and gather 1,000 signatures each which is a very doable goal. If you would like to volunteer, please sign up here." [4]

Sources:

Read more:

[1]http://www.azcentral.com/news/election/azelections/articles/2011/01/27/20110127arizona-recall-drive-against-russell-pearce.html#ixzz1CM1q7z00
[2]http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6263162/utah_man_starts_recall_of_arizona_sheriff.html?cat=9
[3]http://www.recallgovernorbrewer.com/index_7.htm
[4] http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Committee-to-Recall-Arizona-Gov-Jan-Brewer/185849488111247