Arizona: Harry Mitchell

by Jeff Latas
Recently, Russell Pearce did introduce some legislation that will affect the public good and benefit those in need. His legislation on the Military Family Relief Fund is sound, logical, and solves problems encountered by grieving military family members financially struggling after extremely traumatic events that would devastate anyone’s life.

Ironically, the legislation was so good that the Arizona Democratic Veterans' Caucus held a press conference calling on the Arizona legislature to pass SB 1176, a bill that will deliver much needed assistance to Arizona's military families who suffer from hardships presented when a loved one is injured or killed while serving our country.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The House Democrats Blue Dog Coalition purports to "appeal to mainstream values of the American public," and they are "dedicated to a core set of beliefs that transcend partisan politics, including a deep commitment to the financial stability and national security of the United States." There are presently 47 Members of the Blue Dog Coalition, including our own Rep. Gabriel Giffords (AZ-8). Rep. Harry Mitchell (AZ-5) oddly enough is not an official member, but a Blue Dog wannabe (he has applied but has not been accepted).

Giffords frequently votes with the party leadership and will defend her votes, while Mitchell frequently opposes Democratic spending, tax and budget proposals and sends out press releases trumpeting his opposition vote to his own party.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Congressman Harry Mitchell has issued the following press release today:

Mitchell Welcomes President Obama’s Decision to Speak at ASU Commencement

WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell issued the following statement following President Barack Obama’s announcement that he will speak at Arizona State University’s commencement ceremonies on May 13:

“President Obama’s decision to speak at Arizona State University’s commencement ceremonies is and honor for the University, its community and the entire state of Arizona. This exciting news makes me particularly proud as an alumni and adjunct faculty member at ASU, and as a lifelong resident of Tempe.

“President’s Obama’s presence will highlight the excellent work and achievements of ASU and speaks volumes to the quality of faculty and students at the school.

"We were privileged to host the president in the 5th Congressional District earlier in the year at Dobson High Schooland I look forward to greeting him at Arizona State in May.”

The National Journal has released their 2008 Vote Ratings. The results are really no surprise, but after the jump are the ratings for the Arizona delegation, broken up by “issue categories”. I’ll post the Senate ratings later.

Note: The ratings are percentiles, so a member having a rating of 75 would be have a more liberal voting record than three quarters of his or her collegues.

ECONOMY:

Grijalva and Pastor tied with 63 others for most liberal. Flake and Franks tied with six others for least liberal.

SOCIAL:

Grijalva and Pastor tied with 78 others for most liberal. Flake, Franks and Shadegg tied with 42 others for least liberal.