This egregious abuse of power must be answered in everyway we can with phone calls, emails, and letters to the Governor, Republican legislators and the Arizona Chamber of Commerce who put them in power.

The Governor’s phone number is (602) 542-4331 or 1-800-253-0883

You can find your legislator’s phone number and email address at http://www.azleg.gov/.

You can reach the Arizona Congressional Delegation through the toll-free Capital Switch board: 1-866-220-0044 or 1-877-851-6437 and reach both the Senators and your Representative.

The number of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce is 602-248-9172.

It’s been a busy week for the Arizona Democratic Party and our new chair, Andrei Cherny. It’s also been an important week as we set the tone for the party’s new direction and provide a strong message to counter the Russell Pearce Republicans who run the state Capitol.

One of the things Andrei has asked us to do, based on conversations with many of you, is to help Democrats be more assertive in getting our message out. We need your help – at backyard BBQs, in the grocery store aisle, in talking to your friends. So, moving forward, we will begin providing weekly talking points to statewide PCs every Friday, in order to help unify and strengthen our message as Arizona Democrats. Here are some basic talking points for this week:

On what Arizona Democrats stand for:

• Today in Arizona, Democrats represent Arizona’s mainstream, while the Russell Pearce Republicans represent only the extreme.
• Just this week, while Arizona’s economy keeps sinking, the Russell Pearce Republicans introduced a so-called “birther bill,” cited Roe v. Wade as a cause of the Tucson attacks, and are seeking to undermine the basic idea that everyone born in America is equal to anyone else.
• The Arizona Democratic Party is now the “big tent” party where Democrats, independents and fed-up Republicans can work together to move our state forward.
• Arizona Democrats are focused on what really matters to Arizonans — a stronger economy, safer streets, and better schools.
• The Russell Pearce Republicans are stuffing more kids in each classroom and kicking kids off healthcare. They’re taking cops off our streets and letting criminals out of jail and back into our communities. They’ve sold our state Capitol to big banks in New York, and they haven’t lifted a finger to help create jobs.

On the 14th Amendment bills:

• First of all, Arizona Democrats believe illegal immigration is wrong and are in favor of strong measures to crack down on the smuggling rings and cartels that are driving this problem.
• At a time when Arizona should be fighting for a stronger future, the Russell Pearce Republicans want to refight the Civil War. When we should be striding into the 21st century, their motto seems to be “Bring Back the Worst Ideas of the 19th Century.”
• These GOP bills are un-American and go against the very idea of America — anyone born here is as American as anyone else.
• This legislation is a waste of taxpayer money and it solves nothing. It’s also a glaring example of the wrong priorities of the Russell Pearce Republicans.
• Their obsession with frivolous legislation is an insult to all those Arizonans who are losing their jobs, their homes or their health care.

Over the last few weeks, a special-interest group with a partisan political agenda has run misleading ads to create a culture of fear across the country.These ads, which the nonpartisan, non-profit FactCheck.org has called “false” and “misleading,” have caused a great deal of confusion about an important debate in Congress. They even alleged our ability to conduct “surveillance against terrorists is crippled.”

This is patently false.

Through the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, our intelligence community has the full ability and authority to intercept suspected terrorist communications to prevent attacks. FISA is not, as some have implied, going to expire.

Read the rest of Congressman Harry Mitchell’s article at:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/opinions/articles/0318mitchell18.html

Respond to the article:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/opinions/sendaletter.html

Let Harry know we appreciate it when he steps up:

D.C. Office: 2434 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, D.C.
20515
(202) 225-2190
District Office: 7201 East Camelback Road, Suite 335, Scottsdale,
Arizona 85251
(480) 946-2411

or online:
http://mitchell.house.gov/contact/

The DFA-MC Media Response Team is active and you are invited to join in at:

http://groups.google.com/group/dfa-mc