Tag Archives: Rick Scott

News

Arizona Republicans ban race-selection and sex-selection abortions

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Rep. Steve Montenegro
Rep. Steve Montenegro

From Life Site News.

Excerpt:

A bill that would ban abortions based on the race or gender of the baby was passed by the Arizona House of Representatives yesterday, and now goes to Gov. Jan Brewer for approval.

Titled the “Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act of 2011,” the bill would make it a Class 3 felony to perform or in any way coerce someone into receiving an abortion based on the race or gender of the unborn child.

Doctors who violate the law could face prison terms and the loss of their medical license. Any medical professional who fails to report a violation would be subject to a $10,000 fine.

Additionally, the law allows the father of an unborn child, if he is married to the mother, to bring a civil action on the child’s behalf. In the case of an abortion performed on the baby of a minor, the baby’s maternal grandparents would be similarly able to take legal action on the baby’s behalf.

In its original form, the penalty for doctors who violated the law was a $10,000 civil fine. After the Senate modified it to make violation a felony, it returned to the House for approval, and is now headed for the governor’s desk.

Those racist, sexist conservatives! Oh, wait…

A little more about Steve Montenegro:

Steve Montenegro is one of two State Representatives from Legislative District 12. He is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Arizona State University with a B.S. in Political Science.  He also holds an Associate of Arts in Theology from Logos Christian University. Presently, Steve works in the Glendale office of U.S. Congressman Trent Franks, where he represents the office in immigration matters and where he handles constituent casework for residents in the district.

Steve also serves as an Assistant Pastor/Youth Pastor at the Surprise Apostolic Assembly.  As part of his work within his church, he has filled a number of roles including Music Director and Music Teacher.

Steve has made working with young people a real priority in his life.  He spent five years as President of Arizona Messengers of Peace, providing counseling and guidance to youth in need.

He also worked as a Teacher at the Arizona Charter Academy and Superior School, where he focused on excelling students and at-risk high school students.  He understands the importance of allowing parents to be involved in their children’s education: The importance of helping parents decide what kind of education they want for their children.

Steve understands and treasures the gift of freedom, and he shares this message in his daily life.

And of course, he won in 2010, and just look at what he is doing. When I think of what I want my future children to accomplish, I mean things like what Steve Montenegro accomplishes. I want to raise my children to make a difference like Steve did.

If you guys are wondering what I look like, I look a bit like him, but darker skin. My parents are also immigrants. And I hate race-selection and sex-selection abortions. That is one of the reasons why I am a Republican.

We need to pass bills like this in every state. Well, every state where Republicans are in the majority. Democrats favor race-selection and sex-selection abortions. Democrats think that if a woman doesn’t like the race of her unborn child, then she can abort the child. Democrats think that if a woman doesn’t like the sex of her unborn child, then she can abort the child. Democrats are racist. Democrats are sexist. If there were a gay gene, Democrats would support a woman’s right to choose to abort a gay child just because that child was gay. Democrats are homophobic.

What about Florida?

But there’s more good stuff happening in Florida, with Republicans in the legislature introducing a record number of pro-life bills.

Excerpt:

Facing a record number of pro-life bills in the Florida legislature, Governor Rick Scott of Florida has hinted that he will approach the legislation favorably, although he has yet to review them all.

“I’ll review all those bills, but as you know, I’ve been pro-life all my life and I’m going to be a pro-life governor,” said Scott according to local CBS affiliate WCTV.com.

Florida lawmakers have filed at least 18 pro-life bills this year, according to the Miami Herald, part of a nationwide push against abortion on the state level.

One bill prohibiting private insurance plans in state-based health exchanges passed a Senate committee on March 14, alongside another proposing a constitutional amendment prohibiting state tax dollars from being used for any abortions, including in cases of rape or incest.

Last Monday, a measure that would put in place further parental notification requirements was also approved by a House panel.

In June 2010, then-Governor Charlie Crist disappointed pro-life leaders in Florida by vetoing an ultrasound bill widely considered the most significant pro-life measure in Florida’s history. Crist, who initially billed himself as “pro-life,” removed the pro-life section from his campaign website last year and changed party affiliation from Republican to Independent to pit himself against pro-life Republican gubernatorial candidate Marco Rubio.

Among the measures waiting in the wings this year is another measure requiring abortion-bound women to have ultrasounds, which was approved by a House committee Tuesday.

Don’t ever say that elections don’t matter. They do matter, and Christians need to be informed about social issues and policies. We need to vote in a way that restrains evil.

 

 

 

News

Democrat lawmakers flee state to avoid voting on spending cuts

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Video from Gateway Pundit.

Story from the Wall Street Journal.

Excerpt:

Democratic lawmakers fled the state in an effort to torpedo a closely watched vote on what would be the nation’s first major overhaul of union laws in years, as government workers flooded the statehouse for a third day seeking to block passage of the bill.

Surrounded by thousands of tightly packed protesters, including teachers who had been encouraged by union leaders to show up in force, state senators gathered around 11 a.m. to vote on Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s proposal to limit collective-bargaining rights for most state employees.

The governor’s proposal, part of a bill aimed at overcoming a $137 million deficit in the current budget and a projected $3.6 billion hole in the next two years, would allow collective bargaining on wages, but not pensions and health care. Workers would be required to pay more for both.

But a roll call revealed that the 14 Senate Democrats were absent, leaving the chamber short of the 20 votes needed to conduct business.

[…]Late Thursday, Gov. Walker, who could hear chanting every time he opened his office door, blasted the Democrats’ move as a “stunt” and urged them to return to vote on what he called as a “bold political move but a modest, modest proposal” that would preserve benefits for public employees that remained “better than what most people are getting across the state.”

The extraordinary scene was being followed in statehouses across the country, as a test case of both union clout and the political will of newly elected legislators. Wisconsin was at the front edge of voter discontent in 2010, with voters agitated about public spending electing Gov. Walker to succeed Democrat Jim Doyle and handing both houses of the legislature to the GOP.

[…]If the governor’s efforts succeed, other states are expected to try to follow, as governors grapple with deepening deficits. Many new governors in both parties have blamed the states’ fiscal crisis in part on what they say are overly generous benefits and pension obligations granted over many years to organized government workers.

Proposals similar to Gov. Walker’s have been made in New Jersey and Ohio. In Columbus, Ohio, thousands gathered Thursday to protest a Republican proposal that would eliminate collective-bargaining rights for many of that state’s 400,000 public-sector workers.

[…]Gov. Walker first introduced his “budget repair” bill just a week ago, setting off the firestorm that has swept the Capitol. Besides limiting collective-bargaining right for most workers—excepting police, firefighters and others involved in public safety—it would require government workers, who currently contribute little or nothing to their pensions, to contribute 5.8% of their pay to pensions, and pay at least 12.6% of health-care premiums, up from an average of 6%.

In exchange, Gov. Walker has pledged no layoffs or furloughs for the state’s 170,000 public employees. He has said 5,500 state jobs and 5,000 local jobs would be saved under his plan, which would save $30 million in the current budget and $300 million in the two-year budget that begins July 1.

The lawmakers are required by law to report to their posts to vote on all legislation, which is why the police were dispatched to locate them.

Here’s what the fuss is about:

Public Sector Benefits
Public Sector Benefits

And Gov. Walker is not the only one trying to stop the massive transfers of wealth from the productive private sector to non-productive public sector.

Excerpt:

Lawmakers around the country are looking at new ways to prevent budget disasters by changing the rules for overburdened state employee pension funds. But they are meeting stiff resistance from public employee unions.

Two Arizona state lawmakers this week, including the speaker of the House, introduced their plan to salvage the state’s budget by significantly changing the public retirement system.

Following the lead of Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J., a pair of New Jersey assemblymen on Monday put forth their legislative solution to make solvent a fund that’s $54 billion in the red.

Also on Monday, in his first budget address as governor, Florida’s Rick Scott announced his effort to “stabilize and secure” government employee pensions.

The moves are part of a larger battle over pension reform between conservative budget hawks and government worker unions.

The national debt is currently over 14 trillion, and scheduled to be at 26 trillion by 2021.

Michelle Malkin has a breakdown of teacher salaries and benefits here.

News

Republicans in Florida, Indiana and Pennsylvania push school choice

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First, education reform in Florida.

Excerpt:

Michelle Rhee, who gained national attention as the chancellor of schools in Washington, D.C., called Monday for giving students government-funded vouchers to attend private schools, rating principals based on student achievement and getting rid of teacher tenure.

The release of the blueprint was the first formal action of Ms. Rhee’s new advocacy group, StudentsFirst, which she launched in December, after leaving her job heading D.C. schools in October. Ms. Rhee said she was in discussions with the governors of Florida, New Mexico, New Jersey, Tennessee, Nevada and Indiana to adopt part, if not all, of the agenda.

[…]The nation’s two largest teachers’ unions criticized Ms. Rhee’s agenda.[…]The detailed plan Ms. Rhee released Monday focuses on overhauling teacher pay and evaluation plans, giving parents more say in their child’s education and spending tax dollars more wisely.

In addition to doing away with tenure, it calls for ending the practice of paying teachers based on years of service and on the master’s degrees they collect. Ms. Rhee said pay should be based on whether teachers boost student achievement.

She also is calling for districts to get parental consent before placing children in the classrooms of low-performing teachers. Ms. Rhee said firing ineffective teachers can be time-consuming and expensive.

“Too many districts hide the fact that they have ineffective teachers and we are saying, ‘If you can’t change the laws, then you have to give parents the information,’ ” she said.

The blueprint also prods states and districts to adopt “parent trigger” laws that let parents force a major overhaul of a school if more than half of them sign a petition. They could vote to turn the school into a charter school or force the district to get rid of most of the teaching staff.A similar policy was used in Compton, Calif., last year.

Ms. Rhee’s document also calls for an end to what she calls ineffective policies that waste taxpayer money, such as class size reduction policies in the higher grade levels. Her plan, she said, wouldn’t increase spending but would ensure taxpayer money was spent more wisely.

StudentsFirst’s initial foray into policy could be in Florida, where Republican Gov. Rick Scott, who was elected to office in November, appointed Ms. Rhee to his transition team. In a news release, Mr. Scott praised Ms. Rhee’s agenda and said he supported her call to eliminate tenure and expand the number of charter schools, public schools run by independent groups.

And education reform from Indiana. (H/T Heritage Foundation)

Excerpt:

Gov. Mitch Daniels urged the state legislature to finally act on significant reforms to public education and local government in his annual State of the State speech Tuesday, repeating a call for the expansion of charter schools, merit pay for teachers and the elimination of township government.

[…]Now empowered by a Republican majority in both legislative chambers, Daniels said “it’s going to be a session to remember.” He was escorted to the podium by several lawmakers of both parties, including Sen. Earline Rogers, D-Gary.

He said Indiana should let students finish their high school studies a year early and be given scholarships for college studies. Teachers should be rewarded based on student performance, he said, adding that one in three Hoosier children can pass the national math or reading exam.

Meanwhile, he said 99 percent of Indiana teachers are rated “effective.”

“If that were true 99 percent, not one-third, of our students would be passing those national tests,” Daniels said.

Families who can’t find the right public or charter public school, he said, should be able to apply state dollars toward “the non-government school of their choice.”

And finally, education reform in Pennsylvania. (H/T Heritage Foundation)

Excerpt:

Political momentum is building for taxpayer-funded school tuition vouchers, as hundreds of people clogged the Capitol rotunda Tuesday to support the idea of “school choice.”

[…]During the recent campaign, Lt. Gov. Jim Cawley told the boisterous crowd, Gov. Tom Corbett “repeatedly said that things would change in education. Today we start that process of putting children first. State government should be open to and promote charter schools, home schools, private schools and cyber schools” as well as traditional public schools, he said.”I’m more excited and encouraged about the possibility of educational change than I’ve ever been,” said Sen. Jeffrey Piccola, R-Dauphin, who has been advocating state-funded tuition vouchers for 15 years.

[…]His bill, Senate Bill 1, would create a three-phase program for making state-funded vouchers available to low-income students who now have no choice but to go to public schools that consistently score poorly on state proficiency tests.

[…]The Senate Education Committee will hold a hearing on the bill in mid-February, and it could get a Senate vote in March. Since Republicans control both the Senate and House, and since Gov. Tom Corbett supports the school choice idea, the bill is likely to be enacted. But opponents could file a court challenge.

Last week was “School Choice Week“, and there were a lot of events promoting school choice. Republicans noticed these events and participated in them. And now Republicans are making a push to sign bills that help poor students to get better educations. Democrats are opposed to school choice because they are supported by teacher unions who want guaranteed jobs for teachers regardless of performance.

I like that the Republicans are making pushes to cut spending, ban taxpayer funding of abortions, and introduce school choice. These are all issues that I strongly agree with, because they are all pro-child. Children shouldn’t have to pay for the debts their parents run up, children shouldn’t be killed in the womb, and children shouldn’t get a crappy education just so that badly performing schools can stay open. These policies make sense to me. Next, they should introduce a federal law for charter marriages, and introduce a federal voucher program for pre-marital counseling.

Must-see videos on education policy

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