Letters to the Editor by Nicholas Moorehouse

October 12, 2022

     Have you noticed how many ballot propositions are about raising local sales taxes? In a state where GOP politicians are running on a “low tax” platform, this seems counterintuitive, to say the least. Perhaps we need to unpack this quandary.

     Turns out the Arizona GOP only means “low tax” if you’re in the “high income bracket." We’re being asked to raise sales tax in order to fund public education, first responders’ salary increases and road construction. All this after the Arizona GOP pushed through an income tax cut aimed primarily at benefiting the wealthy.

Their new “flat income tax” scheme blasted through the Legislature without any hearings or public input gives working and low-income families less than $100 per year, while those earning in excess of $200K get thousands! The annual net revenue loss is estimated to be over $1 billion. The depleted pot also necessitates the increase in the most regressive of taxes — sales tax!

      We’re being scammed in Arizona. The voucher expansion is stealing from public schools to pay $7K per wealthy student and now this income tax fiasco. From governor through every statewide office and the Arizona Legislature, the GOP is taking working families and small businesses to the cleaners. It’s time to say, “Enough is enough." It’s time to vote the scammers and liars out of office.

     The Casa Grande area is a good place to start cleaning house. Legislative 16 has two career educators on the ballot. They’re committed to working on a state budget and tax system that’s fair to all Arizonans. Please cast your 2022 vote for Taylor Kerby (Senate) and Keith Seaman (House). It’s time we stood up for ourselves!

September 12, 2022

     As predicted in a recent Dispatch letter, early results of the school voucher expansion (ESA) show a boon for the already well-to-do. According to the Arizona Department of Education, 75% of applications for this $7K bonanza are from families whose students do not and have never attended public school. This renders as false the GOP and Ducey’s contention: “These kids are trapped in failing public schools. It’s time to set these families free."

     Families easily able to afford up to $30K on private and religious education are eagerly lining up to get the $7K they can now use for their next Porsche, yacht or home in the tropics. When they get this unneeded bonus, they won’t even bother to thank you, Mr. and Ms. Arizona taxpayer, as you pick up the tab! Gee, too bad we already voted against this in 2018 — oh well, in Arizona the voters don’t really matter.

     Voucher expansion, along with currently proposed ballot initiatives (Props. 128, 129 and 132), are all intended to undermine and circumvent the will of Arizona voters. The GOP-controlled Legislature and governor will continue to thumb their collective noses and say “too bad suckers." It’s time to knock these tyrants out of office.

     I’m voting for Taylor Kerby and Keith Seaman in Legislative District 16. I’m voting for Katie Hobbs for governor. These and all D candidates have pledged to protect Arizona’s voters, families and public education from future tax theft to benefit the wealthy. Please join me in restoring integrity to our state government.

July 18, 2022

     There were two remarkably interesting letters to the editor in your July 16 publication. One, eloquently penned by Sandra Brown, called on Republicans to step up, speak up and support members of their party, like Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, who are exposing Trumpist extremists that inanely trumpet their ideology that, left unabated, will in the end destroy their own party if not our democratic republic, i.e., Jan. 6.

     The other, from B. Marsh, puts forth the usual simplistic Trumpist talking points regarding inflation, gas prices and oil production (it’s all President Biden’s fault), “open borders” (as if there is no government presence at the border), empty store shelves and formula shortages (last I was in the grocery store the shelves were full) and aid to the Ukraine (why wouldn’t we help them fight off a Russian invasion?).

     These are the usual Trumpist talking points, devoid of critical thought or analysis. Ignorant of the effects of a still present pandemic, supply chain issues, worldwide inflation, the U.S. producing more oil than ever, the need to support democracy around the world and the “push/pull” factors responsible for migrants leaving their countries and loved ones.

     Thoughtful action, such as Sandra Brown calls for, can bring about productive discussion and positive solutions that might very well save us from the inevitable loss of our rights, and in the end our nation, if Trumpism goes unchecked and unchallenged. Thank you, Sandra Brown, for your call to action.

March 31, 2022

     Which sounds more like a U.S. president whose priority is democracy and American values?   Trump in Helsinki (2018) when asked if he believed the American intelligence community about Russian meddling in the 2016 election: “President Putin says it’s not Russia, I don’t see any reason why it would be.”  Biden in Poland (2020) while addressing NATO allies and the world regarding Putin’s terrorist massacre of the Ukrainian people: “He cannot remain in power.”  

     Both presidential statements have come under scrutiny. Trump took the side of a murderous dictator who considers America his existential enemy. Biden spoke from the heart and echoed what most Americans truly believe. I’ll take the guy on the side of democracy and American values over those of a tyrant every time.  

     Even after attempting to coerce Ukraine to help his 2020 reelection by withholding military aid, Trump is still contacting Russia to dig up political dirty lies about his political foes. A federal judge has now publicly stated that Trump more than likely committed crimes in his effort to overthrow the results of a legitimate election. Those crimes likely include incitement of the Jan. 6 insurrection.  

     And yet, we have GOP leaders continuing to support election lies and a serious effort to destroy our democratic republic. Propaganda and conspiracy spreaders such as Tucker Carlson get more Russian air time than Tolstoy. Has America not seen enough to realize how fragile democracy is and how closely the domestic and foreign enemies are aligned?  

     The choice is yours, voters of America: tyranny or democracy?  

February 6, 2022

    Speaking at the Jan. 19 Pinal County Supervisors meeting, Noel Reck, treasurer of the Democrats of Casa Grande Club, questioned the request of $100,000 by the Sheriff’s Office as a contingency fund to reimburse the Sheriff’s Office for overtime, travel and other expenses relating to protecting Arizona’s border. (Dispatch Jan. 22-23). Reck said that immigration is a complex issue that won’t be solved by a foray into Pima County for the benefit of the American Sheriff Network. He noted, “I’m sure there are many local agencies, dealing first-hand with the issues involved, that would love to partner with you (the county) and use this money in a far more productive manner. 

     Mr. Reck also suggested an audit of expenses incurred by the county for public safety at the Jan. 15 Trump rally, noting that he thought it would be necessary to “avoid being stiffed, as has been the case for so many cities and counties where these rallies have been held.”

     Thank you, Mr. Reck, for speaking up.

January 4, 2022

     If elected, they are coming for your guns in 2022 or 2024. No, not the Democrats, the authoritarian Republicans. 

     Democracy guarantees our rights. It is our common devotion to democracy that guarantees freedom of speech and religion and your right to bear arms. Today, a dedicated blue line of Democrats stands in the way of authoritarianism as democracy itself is threatened.

     Led by Trump, the authoritarians have already undermined our democracy. They used the democratic process to gain power, then worked to weaken democracy from the inside. A main requirement of democracy is that power will be transferred peaceably to the winner of an election. This happened in every election for every local, state and national office in 2020 except for the office of president. Strange, isn’t it? Trump declared himself the winner of the presidential election though he had lost by over 7 million votes. He refused to recognize the actual winner and convinced his followers that democrats had stolen the election. This led to a loss of confidence in elections themselves — another serious and intentional undermining of democracy — aided and abetted by Republican state legislatures and governors as they speedily worked to make voting more difficult in order to secure their own power. In Congress, Republicans have so far stopped efforts by Democrats to protect voting rights.

     No issue is more important in the coming elections than the preservation of our democracy. It is up to each one of us to stand up for democracy even if it means for Republicans and independents who believe in democracy, that they stand with Democrats. This is a critical moment in American history with many issues to consider, but none more critical than the preservation of our democracy.

November 23, 2021

     The Jan. 6 insurrectionists trying to overturn an election, threaten members of Congress and call for the hanging of the American vice president are called patriotic tourists. The Capitol Police officer who fired in defense of our nation’s Capitol and our elected representatives is called a villain, while the insurrectionist he shot is portrayed as a martyr and hero. Paul Gosar posts a photoshopped video depicting him murdering a congresswoman and threatening the life of the president and it’s called a joke. A 17-year-old goes to a neighboring state smoldering in unrest, with an illegally obtained military-style weapon, kills two and wounds another, and is now considered a hero and offered a job working for Congress.

     The FBI has identified “right wing domestic terror” as the highest concern for large-scale violence in the U.S. Each of the incidents listed above are being cheered by all of the groups listed in the FBI report. They include Proud Boys, the Oath Keepers, the KKK, QAnon and sadly the Republican Party. Violent threats against elected members of Congress to local school boards are growing and escalating at an alarming rate. While the GOP gives insincere lip service to being against it, they continue to actively promote violence at every level. The list above is the GOP pattern of shame.

When considered along with other court decisions and social media postings, we can easily predict what happens next. Regardless of race, those who demonstrate with BLM and other such organizations can expect “assault rifle militia” from everywhere to show up and use any flimsy motivation to justify “self-defense” and shoot people. Now, angry, immature and bigoted cult members feel emboldened to repeat the vigilantism given legal permission. A Kenosha courtroom has made American streets less safe. And the GOP is happy to see the pattern of shame continue.

September 28, 2021

     Supervisor Steve Miller, Board of Supervisors chair, apologized in a column (Dispatch, Sept. 9) to constituents after three members of the five-man board had voted down a $3.2 million federal grant to help the county with the COVID-19 pandemic. Miller attributed the vote to intentional misleading information provided by Supervisor Cavanaugh and to the term “equity.” He said he believed the issue of equity was the driving force behind the denial of the grant. A look at Cavanaugh’s column rebuttal (Dispatch, Sept. 21) confirms that.

     Supervisor Kevin Cavanaugh views “equity” as a “flawed political ideology.” He sees the grant as, “the continuation of a political movement that was a result of football players taking a knee to protest police brutality.”

     “Equity” as defined by President Biden’s executive order, to which Cavanaugh referred, means "...the consistent and systematic fair, just and impartial treatment of all individuals..." The definition goes on to identify those individuals as minorities and groups who are commonly underserved or not treated fairly.

     Based on his column, Supervisor Cavanaugh is opposed to federally supported fair treatment of all individuals because that does not conform to his own right-wing political ideology. Cavanaugh believes that through “equity” the federal government seeks to take control of local governments and to “turn Pinal citizens into a political product.” This is the stuff of conspiracies. Supervisor Cavanaugh appears to be more centered on his national, personal political ideology than on politically impartial service to the residents of Pinal County.

    By contrast, Supervisor Miller says, “As an elected official, I am given the charge to represent my constituents, not to impose my personal beliefs or philosophy that would impede on a worthy opportunity for the people I represent.”

     As a constituent, I believe the board should reconsider the vote.

August 19, 2021

     An Aug. 14 letter to the editor got the climate change science timeline completely backwards. I’m guessing an engineering degree and “several science classes” left the writer at a disadvantage to the PhDs around the world dedicating their entire careers to the issue.

     The study of global warning came about because scientists noticed several red flags. Ice sheets were melting, ocean temperatures and levels were rising, many habitats were becoming endangered and species were becoming extinct at alarming rates. They launched an investigation into the causes. After many years of study, they found clear and unequivocal evidence that the Earth’s average temperature was rising quicker than should have been expected. They found that, while there might be natural reasons for initiating the temperature rise, the more serious damage was due to the carbon and methane humans were dumping into the atmosphere. People were exacerbating and accelerating the problem. The work was based on using proven scientific methods for tracing cause and effect.      Climate is a complicated phenomenon that takes place over decades and centuries. The impact of even the slightest changes gets amplified over time, potentially becoming catastrophic. Local weather is temporary and not useful in determining what’s going on with the bigger picture. Contrary to our local engineer’s thinking, Arizona’s temperature on any given day is meaningless.    

     As climate scientists continue to warn of impending permanent damage, the fossil fuel industry digs in to protect its profits. Their target audience is the poorly informed. Should we leave this issue unaddressed when we have an opportunity to take action? Should we ignore increasingly destructive warning signs before we say, “enough is enough”? Or should we spend a night at the Holiday Inn Express and claim we know better than those darn scientists?     

     The clock is ticking