The most dangerous thing we can do as voters is to do nothing in this upcoming election. 

We encourage our points of contact to get to the polls and vote out the Tea Party Republican restrictionists and obstructionists. 

There is a dangerous evil in the Republican ranks that stinks of anti-semitism and bigotry. 

From the ADL:

Ties Between Anti-Immigrant Movement and Eugenics

In the wake of a major push for immigration reform from both political parties in the United States, politicians and major figures on the right are re-examining their relationship with the anti-immigrant movement. A close examination of the history of the movement reveals another reason for politicians to distance themselves: key members of the anti-immigrant movement have promoted eugenics – the practice of selective breeding with the aim of “race betterment,” a policy practiced by the Nazis.

John Tanton, the architect of the modern day anti-immigrant movement, wrote a paper in 1975 titled, “The Case for Passive Eugenics.” In the paper, Tanton promotes a “passive” form of eugenics, which he clearly considered more palatable to the public. He cited as an example the practice of “restricting childbearing to the years of maximum reproductive efficiency, between the ages of 20 and 35.” In the paper, Tanton also noted, “Hitler’s reign in Nazi Germany did little to advance the discussion of eugenics among sensitive persons.” Tanton later formed a pro-eugenics organization, the Society for Genetic Education (SAGE).

Tanton was also a friend of Harry Weyher, the former president of the Pioneer Fund. The New York Times has described the Pioneer Fund as having been established for the express purpose of promoting research into eugenics and as having sponsored projects based on the notion that blacks are genetically less intelligent than whites.

Through his relationship with Weyher, Tanton received funding from the Pioneer Fund that helped him grow the Federation of American Immigration Reform (FAIR), one of the leading anti-immigrant organizations in the country today. In total, FAIR solicited and received over $1 million from the Pioneer Fund over a number of years. Californians for Population Stabilization (CAPS), the leading anti-immigrant group in California, also received funding from the Pioneer Fund.

Tanton, who in addition to FAIR helped found the anti-immigrant group Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), was an advocate of population control and saw immigration as its biggest threat. Tanton also feared changes to the demographics of the United States. In a letter Tanton asserted, “I've come to the point of view that for European-American society and culture to persist requires a European-American majority, and a clear one at that."

There are other ties between the figures involved in the eugenicist and anti-immigrant movements. Donald Collins, former FAIR board member and current co-chair of FAIR’s advisory board, is also on the advisory committee of and contributor to the Journal of Social Political and Economic Studies (JSPES), a publication founded and edited by Roger Pearson, a longtime eugenicist and anti-Semite who has received funding from the Pioneer Fund for his promotion of eugenics.  In a book he wrote on eugenics Pearson once asserted, “If a nation with a more advanced, more specialized, or in any way superior set of genes mingles with, instead of exterminating an inferior tribe, then it commits racial suicide...” Pearson and Tanton are acquainted, having written cordial letters to each other on a number of occasions.

Work from a number of anti-immigrant figures has appeared in JSPES, including articles from Steven Camarota of CIS, Phil Cafaro of Progressives for Immigration Reform and Jack Martin of FAIR.  The articles do not promote eugenics but instead call for a reduction in immigration to the United States.  Some advocate for population control, something Pearson and Tanton both clearly favor.

We know Independent registered voters can vote in primary elections, and below is a story that should receive more attention.   It is a reminder to our growing independent registered voters to vote in the primary elections as we continue to organize Chicano / Latino independents across the Nation.  I love tough challenges, but we ought to remember, both major Parties (D and R) will always try to minimize the key swing independent voters like us.  That said ... we also know both D's and R's are the first to $pend millions and millions of dollars reaching out to us to vote for them.  More and more independent voter groups (ahead of the voting curve) are organizing and connecting across our Nation to support Open Primaries.  Eventually, we will see our goals come into fruition as long as we persevere the uphill battles.  

By Joseph Garcia: 

Dear independent voter: Please read your mail — and cast your ballot

Everything’s e-mail these days.

But if I could write a letter to independent voters, those much-maligned, unaligned ragged individuals of rugged individualism who now quietly make up the largest and loosely knitted group of Arizona’s electorate, it would go something like this:

Dear Independent Voter:

It seems like nobody writes letters anymore. Instead, our mailboxes are filled with ads for pre-approved credit cards … and bills for post-approved credit cards. But that’s not why I’m writing to you. I just wanted to make sure that, in sifting through the piles of junk mail, you didn’t miss an important postcard.

No, not the “wish you were here,” ocean-view postcard from your friend vacationing in San Diego. The important one is in nondescript black and white, has that trademark-boring “official” look and deals with the Aug. 26 primary election.

I know: You’re an independent voter; you don’t vote in primary elections.

Why? Because you can’t, right?

Wrong.

Independent voters in Arizona have the right to cast either a Republican or Democrat ballot in the primary and not lose any of the previously undisclosed privilege of being of/an independent voter — but you must choose one or the other.

The vast majority of independent voters I’ve come across — even those in the know who should know better — don’t know they actually can vote in party primaries. They still mistakenly think they’re prohibited, uninvited to the party by the parties.

That was true — back when postage stamps were 32 cents. But in 1998, Arizona law was changed to allow independent voters to cast either a Republican or Democratic ballot (but not both, since that practice remains prohibited for obvious reasons).

Anyway, apparently the party-primary invitation has not been delivered or such notifications were dismissed as “junk” and thrown away along with all those fast-food coupons and furniture ads cluttering the mailbox.

Look, Arizonans are notorious for not voting in primaries (28 percent in 2012, according to the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office), but independents are worse. Much worse. How much worse? Just one in 10 independents (and even less, by some official counts) voted in the 2012 primary election, according to elections officials.

Forget San Diego. That “wish you were here” postcard might as well have been sent from the ballot box.

But independents can collectively change that. If you’re on the early voting list, just sign and return the aforementioned black-and-white official postcard sent to your address, and check the box for either a Republican or Democrat primary ballot. Just do so by July 12, and make sure you sign it.

Hey, the postage is even paid.

Independents can also call their local county elections division (602-506-1511 in Maricopa County, 520-724-6830 for Pima County) for more information about primary voting methods and options (including on-site precinct voting), or go online to the various elections websites.

The important thing is to take action so you can vote.

Why vote in the primary, you ask? Well, for starters, here in the Grand Canyon State (also known as the Safe District State, with its many non-competitive legislative districts heavily favoring either Republican or Democratic candidates by voter registration), the primary is often, essentially, the general election in terms of deciding the outcome.

If you wait until November before voting, the races often are already run and the winners long decided.

But independents also should take into account the importance of primaries in federal and statewide races.

For example, there are three candidates seeking the GOP nomination in the Congressional District 1 race; three more Republicans in the District 2 contest; two Republicans in both District 8 and District 9; and five Democrats in District 7.

The governor’s contest is another good example: There are eight declared Republican candidates (including one write-in candidate) for the state’s top office. The GOP winner will advance to the general election to face the lone Democrat, along with a Libertarian and independent candidate.

It’s very possible the GOP primary winner will be the next governor (although the Democratic candidate will do his best to thwart such a succession of Republican power in the executive office). Shouldn’t independent voters have a say in choosing the very best leaders for Arizona, starting with the primary choices?

If you answered “yes,” independents, you now know what you can and should do.

If you answered “no,” you’re most likely still tethered to a major political party — or too busy sending “wish you were here” postcards from San Diego to be bothered by Arizona matters.

Sooner or later, though, we all have to come back from our day at the beach and face the harsh reality of living in Arizona: Voting matters.

With some 35 percent of the electorate, independent voters certainly have the numbers to shape the future. But so far, the growing ranks of independents have been practicing addition by subtraction (as in continuing to register to vote in record numbers, but not actually voting in primaries and seldom in general elections). That sum of that equation is a net zero in terms of impact.

In writing this letter, I wonder aloud: Can independents finally be counted on to help determine Arizona’s path? Or will independents remain a paper tiger in the digital jungles of voter registration rolls?

Our state awaits your reply.

Independently yours,

Joe

P.S. The new cat is fine. Very independent.

 “I was no party man myself, and the first wish of my heart was, if parties did exist, to reconcile them.” -- George Washington

"I don’t think the Republican party is a party full of the almighty God nor is the Democratic party. They both have weaknesses … And I’m not inextricably bound to either party." -- Martin Luther King Jr. 

It appears Speaker Boehner and immigration policy wonk aide via Becky Tallent want to leave with a legacy that will tax immigrants without representation.  Essentially taxation without representation undoes what the Boston Tea Party Revolution stood for.  Yet, Speaker Boehner ignores the billions of dollars immigrants pay into federal and state tax coffers every year. 

 According to the Tax Lawyer, a paper published by Section of Taxation, American bar Association with the assistance of Georgetown University Law Center: 

"...each year undocumented immigrants add billions of dollars in sales, excise, property, income, and payroll taxes—including Social Security, Medicare, and unemployment taxes—to federal, state, and local coffers. Hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants file annual federal and state income tax returns..."

The Tea Party was the culmination of a resistance movement throughout British America against the Tea Act, which had been passed by the British Parliament in 1773. Colonists objected to the Tea Act because they believed that it violated their rights as Englishmen to "No taxation without representation," that is, be taxed only by their own elected representatives and not by a British parliament in which they were not represented.    

Today's modern day resistance are registered independent voters who surpass registered Republican and Democratic voter blocks on a national basis. According to the Gallup, "Forty-two percent of Americans, on average, identified as political independents in 2013, the highest Gallup has measured since it began conducting interviews by telephone 25 years ago. Meanwhile, Republican identification fell to 25%, the lowest over that time span. At 31%, Democratic identification is unchanged from the last four years but down from 36% in 2008." 

Somos Independents -- a group led by women and Mexican American / Latina(o) independent registered voters refuse to support taxation without representation ideas mentioned in Speaker Boehner's proposal.    Our group does not consist of naive politically undereducated undocumented DREAM Act students who have been splintered by the GOP, and in fact we know there are some undocumented DREAM Act student immigrants who are willing to take less not knowing the political consequences due to being in desperate situations.  Speaker Boehner knows that introducing taxation without representation ideals chip away at what sparked our American Revolution.

People who are taxed ought to be represented, and we must not support an underclass.

"The current Congress has an average 9.2 percent approval rating and 84.2 percent disapproval rating. ... These numbers point to a grave problem: the House of Representatives is utterly unrepresentative.