Arizona Capitol Times Your Inside Source for Arizona Government, Politics and Business

The U.S. Supreme Court drew the line in what is and is not a state’s role in immigration enforcement in both the Legal Arizona Workers Act (Employer Sanctions) and SB1070 opinions.

The Democratic Party has been foolish in its rush to question and attack U.S. Rep. Jeff Flake’s commitment to civil and human rights, all in the name of defending black South Africans. The argument offered up by the party that most black Americans hold membership in today, sadly reminds many of those same blacks of the positions the party had taken in the 1940s and 1960s.

David Martin’s June 8 guest opinion article, “Transportation funding is neither Democrat nor Republican — it’s American,” which supports 2004’s Proposition 400 imposition of a 20-year, half-cent sales tax in Maricopa County to fund regional transit projects, is misguided.

As a lifelong Republican activist, I have consistently tried to get the Republican Party to be a stronger force for individual liberty. I believe that if the Republican Party has a future, that future depends on its adoption of libertarian views — fiscal conservatism is not enough. While there are some limited government positions that both libertarians and conservatives agree on, we need a revolutionary strategy to combat the advancement of socialism under the current administration in Washington.

What a gun-crying shame. We’re all less safe with the veto of the well-written no-guns-in- buildings law, incorrectly labeled by the media and rights-deniers as the “guns-in-buildings” law.

As people of faith and religious leaders in our communities, we oppose House Bill 2625. Should HB2625 land on your desk, we urge you to veto this bill. HB2625 is not about religious freedom. In fact, it is just the opposite. This bill allows employers to impose their religious beliefs on their employees.

If Karen Santorum — mother of six, wife of GOP presidential contender Rick Santorum — had been subjected to Arizona’s proposed “wrongful birth, wrongful life” legislation back in 1997, she could have very possibly died.

Sen. Nancy Barto’s relentless quest to redefine contractual law escalated to new levels in the Arizona Capitol Times article, “Bill advances targeting HOA authority over roadway restrictions.” In the March 2 article, she attempted to propose a nonsensical argument where she and her friend claim ownership of a vehicle owned by someone else. I can’t follow it. You read it and try to figure it out. In the meantime, let me give another, more real world example.

Now that many coal plants in the West are nearing the end of their intended life, utilities and regulators are faced with a critical choice: Do we sink hundreds of millions into existing coal plants so they can meet health standards or do we invest those funds in the transition to cleaner, cost-effective electricity systems using the West’s abundant solar, wind, geothermal and energy efficiency resources?

Arizona suffers from a critical shortage of physicians that is compounded by the downturn in national and state economies and the subsequent loss of many jobs. Five years ago, the Legislature took steps to address these issues by supporting the expansion of the University of Arizona’s College of Medicine in downtown Phoenix.