May we all please stick to the facts regarding Governor Brewer, the state senate, and Arizona’s Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC)? In clearly written language, the voters of Arizona specifically charged the governor and state senate with the obligation to watch over the IRC.
Here’s what the Arizona Constitution says: “After having been served written notice and provided with an opportunity for a response, a member of the Independent Redistricting Commission may be removed by the governor, with the concurrence of two-thirds of the [state] senate, for substantial neglect of duty, gross misconduct in office, or inability to discharge the duties of office.”
The Arizona Constitution prohibits the IRC from gerrymandering the districts—yet that’s exactly what the IRC did. The AZ Constitution requires the districts to: 1. be compact, 2. respect communities of interest, and 3. respect natural boundaries. Only once these requirements are met first, can the IRC then make the districts competitive.
However in this case, the IRC sacrificed those requirements in order to first create competitive districts. No one denies that the districts were gerrymandered. Just one example: Newly-drawn Congressional District 1 has Kingman down to Yuma swinging over to include Prescott and Payson down to Queen Creek — all in the same district. This is quite literally by definition, “unconstitutional”. Thus, what has occurred is a clear violation of the constitutional requirements.
Wendy Rogers
Tempe
Cerulean posted at 7:02 am on Fri, Nov 4, 2011.
Wendy,
The authors of the law disagree with you!!
All three, one Republican, one Democrat and an Independent said that the clause Brewer is using to oust the Independent representative “falls far short of the original intent of the law”.
They (Turner, Burke and Eschinger) said that "egregious" meant something more like “ taking a bribe, peddling influence, or being physically or mentally incapable of doing the job.”
“Turner [the Republican] said he and his co-authors failed to anticipate the current situation, where one party controls the Governor's Office and holds a two-thirds super-majority in the Senate.
That effectively takes away the check and balance of the removal procedure. A divided government, or a Senate without a single-party super majority, would be more hesitant to oust a commissioner, he said.”
http://www.azcentral.com/news/election/azelections/articles/2011/11/03/20111103brewer-gop-blasted-redistrict-panel-ouster.html#comments
Mike McClellan posted at 8:16 am on Fri, Nov 4, 2011.
Ms. Rogers neglects on salient point in her defense of what the Governor and the Republicans in the state senate did:
The so-called "gerrymandered" map Rogers complains about is a preliminary one. Which is why the commission's been holding hearings about it.
So how is a preliminary map an example of either "gross misconduct" or "neglect of duty," particularly in light of the last time the commission redistricted, when the final map looked much different from the preliminary one?
Ms. Rogers claims the actions by Brewer, Pearce, et. al. are constitutional; I guess we'll see today or early next week if our state Supreme Court agrees.
Dale Whiting posted at 8:44 am on Fri, Nov 4, 2011.
Wendy,
But did voters charge our Legislature to watch with partesan eyes? I think not! Once again, Cerulean makes an excellent point!
Rational Human posted at 8:58 pm on Fri, Nov 4, 2011.
egregious: Adjective
1. conspicuously and outrageously bad or reprehensible; "a crying shame"; "an egregious lie"; "flagrant violation of human rights"; "a glaring error"; "gross ineptitude"; "gross injustice"; "rank treachery"
I think all of that applies to Mathis. I think the courts will refuse to enter the fray, but if they do there's no question that they will side with Brewer. Read the redistricting law yourself and you will see that she used nothing but competitiveness in coming up with what are obviously and heavily gerrymandered districts. This democratic power grab was rightfully stopped in it's tracks and will go no further.
Diogenes Lantern posted at 9:19 pm on Sun, Nov 6, 2011.
Mathis voted with the Democrats on all major issues.
Mathis was the commissioner that did not allow the Republican commissioners to have their own legal counsel so the Democrats had two lawyers.
In defiance of the Constitution, Mathis appointed 2 vice-chair instead of one.
Mathis’ presentation of a donut-hole map, and the instructions to the Commission was a violation of the Constitutional requirement that the maps work from a grid and make adjustments to that grid.
The Commission voted to use 2004 and 2006 Voting Records as well as 2208 and 2010. Mathis failed to honor this vote and excluded 2004 and 2006 data.
Mathis was the commissioner that rounded up the votes for Strategic Telemetry, Obama’s campaign advisor and a microtargeter,“miner of voting data”. Strategic Telemetry had and has zero credentials as a mapper, twice the cost as competitors, and needed 3 additional contractors to show them how to map, etc.
Mathis is charged with Bid Rigging, Vote Trading, Ballot Shredding, and Back Door sessions by the State Attorney General’s Office.
Mathis unlawfully altered the scoring on the mapping consultant in order that her preferred company was chosen.
The State Procurement Office reviews any state contracts. The Procurement Director left the Strategic Telemetry negotiations over charges of fraud.
Mathis then hired Ray Blandine to be the Executive Director ,former manager in the Democrat Phoenix Mayor’s office, to vet and sign the ST Contract.
Mathis privately created her own Congressional district map and forced a vote on that map on the same day it was introduced and passed 3-2 with the normal Democrat/Republican split. The Republicans had no time for review.
Mathis has refused to cooperate with the Attorney General’s open meeting law investigation of the IRC costing taxpayers $300 an hour per attorney for 3-4 lawyers.
Mathis hired a criminal lawyer(s) to defend herself and the other two Democrats at State expense.
After seven days of testimony in front of the Joint Legislative Committee on Redistricting, there is overwhelming evidence that Mathis and the IRC has produced unconstitutional congressional and legislative draft maps
Diogenes Lantern posted at 9:20 pm on Sun, Nov 6, 2011.
Mathis voted with the Democrats on all major issues. Definitely not an Independent.
Mathis was the commissioner that did not allow the Republican commissioners to have their own legal counsel so the Democrats had two lawyers.
In defiance of the Constitution, Mathis appointed 2 vice-chair instead of one.
Mathis’ presentation of a donut-hole map, and the instructions to the Commission was a violation of the Constitutional requirement that the maps work from a grid and make adjustments to that grid.
The Commission voted to use 2004 and 2006 Voting Records as well as 2208 and 2010. Mathis failed to honor this vote and excluded 2004 and 2006 data.
Mathis was the commissioner that rounded up the votes for Strategic Telemetry, Obama’s campaign advisor and a microtargeter,“miner of voting data”. Strategic Telemetry had and has zero credentials as a mapper, twice the cost as competitors, and needed 3 additional contractors to show them how to map, etc.
Mathis is charged with Bid Rigging, Vote Trading, Ballot Shredding, and Back Door sessions by the State Attorney General’s Office.
Mathis unlawfully altered the scoring on the mapping consultant in order that her preferred company was chosen.
The State Procurement Office reviews any state contracts. The Procurement Director left the Strategic Telemetry negotiations over charges of fraud.
Mathis then hired Ray Blandine to be the Executive Director ,former manager in the Democrat Phoenix Mayor’s office, to vet and sign the ST Contract.
Mathis privately created her own Congressional district map and forced a vote on that map on the same day it was introduced and passed 3-2 with the normal Democrat/Republican split. The Republicans had no time for review.
Mathis has refused to cooperate with the Attorney General’s open meeting law investigation of the IRC costing taxpayers $300 an hour per attorney for 3-4 lawyers.
Mathis hired a criminal lawyer(s) to defend herself and the other two Democrats at State expense.
After seven days of testimony in front of the Joint Legislative Committee on Redistricting, there is overwhelming evidence that Mathis and the IRC has produced unconstitutional congressional and legislative draft maps