Here are two videos from the HonkNo campaign that occurred today. These are both from Tucson and right outside CD-8’s Gabrielle Giffords’ Congressional office on the southwest corner of Pima and Swan Road.

February 25, 2010

Dear Scottsdale/CD5 Taxpayer:

Three upcoming taxpayer events are listed below. Be sure to check out the picture of our gigantic inflatable ATM machine, which we will deploy in front of Scottsdale City Hall for the rally against the Bed Tax on Tuesday afternoon, March 2:

http://www.americansforprosperity.org/022510-three-big-taxpayer-events-scottsdale

(ATM stands for “Already Taxed to the Max.” The message of our upcoming statewide ATM campaign is that politicians should stop treating taxpayers like an ATM machine whenever they get short on cash.)

If that link doesn’t work for you, just go to www.aztaxpayers.org and scroll down under What’s New until you see the photo.

Event Type: Tea Party Protest
Topic: HONKING for Health Care Freedom
City: Scottsdale
Date: Saturday, February 27
Time: 1:00 to 3:00 pm
Host(s): Scottsdale Tea Party Patriots
Location: Harry Mitchell District Office, Camelback and Scottsdale Road, SE corner.
Ideological Orientation of Host(s): Patriotic/Free-Market/ Conservative/Libertarian/Constitutionalist
Contact/Sign Ideas: Judy Hoelscher, judy@shadowlakes.com
More Info: http://www.meetup.com/Scottsdale-Tea-Party/calendar/12706997/ Keep calling Congressman Mitchell! His Scottsdale number is 480-946-2411. DC number: 202-225-2190.

Here is a video from our last Honking event, in Flagstaff:
http://www.americansforprosperity.org/021710-video-honking-health-care-freedom-flagstaff

Event Type: Rally Against the Prop 200 Bed Tax
City: Scottsdale
Date: Tuesday, March 2
Time: 4:30 to 5:30 pm
Host(s): AFP Arizona, Scottsdale Tea Party Patriots, Stop the Tax – NO on 200
Ideological Orientation of Host(s): Patriotic/Free-Market/ Conservative/Libertarian/Constitutionalist
More info on the Bed Tax: http://www.goldwaterinstitute.org/article/4423
Media Inquiries: Ryan O’Daniel, (480) 941-0781, Tom Jenney, (602) 478-0146
Protest Info: Among other fun things, AFP Arizona will deploy its giant ATM machine, to make the point that the people of Scottsdale are Already Taxed to the Max. We are encouraging the people of Scottsdale to vote NO on the Prop 200 Bed Tax.

Event Type: Tea Party Meeting
Topic(s): Defending American Freedom
City: Scottsdale
Date: Tuesday, March 2
Time: 5:15 to 7:30 pm
Host(s): Scottsdale Tea Party Patriots
Location: Arabian Trail Library, 10187 E. McDowell Mountain Ranch Road, 85255
Ideological Orientation of Host(s): Patriotic/Free-Market/ Conservative/Libertarian/Constitutionalist
Contact: Honey Marques, h.marquesz@cox.net, (808) 283-3661
More Info: http://www.meetup.com/Scottsdale-Tea-Party/calendar/12374001
More statewide taxpayer events are posted at www.aztaxpayers.org. Scroll down to the top items under What’s New.

For Liberty,

–Tom
Tom Jenney
Arizona Director
Americans for Prosperity
(Arizona Federation of Taxpayers)
www.aztaxpayers.org
tjenney@afphq.org
(602) 478-0146

The Insurgency has begun!

Something tells me we are going to see a lot more of these!

(H/T to NobleThinking.com!)

Grassroots to Protest “Carbon Crooks” Thursday in Scottsdale

SCOTTSDALE—The Arizona chapter of Americans for Prosperity (AFP) announced today that it will team up with the Scottsdale Tea Party and FreedomWorks to protest economically damaging “cap-and-tax” legislation at the Edison Electric Institute’s annual board of directors meeting in Scottsdale on Thursday morning, January 7.

The protests will take place from 8:00 to 11:00 a.m. at the Scottsdale Road entrance to the Fairmont Scottsdale Hotel, at 7575 East Princess Drive, in Scottsdale (85255) and will feature marchers holding signs with slogans such as “Welcome, Carbon Crooks!” Above the Fairmont, an aerial protest banner will read, “EEI: Don’t wreck America with cap and tax.” AFP national policy director Phil Kerpen will be present to answer questions from the press and the public about the economic effects of the cap-and-trade proposals moving in Congress. Arizona Senator Sylvia Allen (R-Eastern Counties) is also scheduled to speak.

“The cap-and-tax bill would do serious damage to America’s economy and standard of living, said Kerpen. “The electric utility industry should be fighting the legislation with all its resources, but instead, it’s lobbying in favor of cap-and-tax in the vain hope of cutting a deal with the Obama administration and Democrats in Congress.”

The aerial banner will be sponsored by JunkScience.com publisher Steve Milloy, who explained that the electric utility industry is apparently giving up on efforts make profits by producing more electricity and selling it at competitive prices. “Instead,” Milloy said, “in exchange for supporting the Obama administration agenda, the utilities want government-guaranteed profits for selling less electricity. That means consumers and taxpayers will be picking up the tab—paying more for energy and getting less.”

The protests will occur as EPA administrator Lisa Jackson and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) address the utility CEOs inside the resort. “The presence of Administrator Jackson and Sen. Graham, along with such notorious rentseeking CEOs as John Rowe of Exelon and Jeff Sterba of PNM Resources should be of great interest to grassroots activists,” said AFP Arizona director Tom Jenney. “We need to expose the huge corporate welfare handouts hidden in the cap-and-trade legislation.”

Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is a nationwide organization of citizen leaders committed to advancing every individual’s right to economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and scope of government is the best safeguard to ensuring individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens in support of restraining state and federal government growth, and returning government to its constitutional limits. AFP has more than 500,000 members, including members in all 50 states, and 24 state chapters. For more information, visit www.americansforprosperity.org

Photo courtesy of the Arizona Republic

In a strikingly bizarre twist, grocery store employees at Safeway and Fry’s Grocery have been picketing the stores’ union this week in order to stop it from picketing. The  United Food & Commercial Union Local 99 is threatening to go on strike this Friday at 6pm over health insurance. Their reason? Safeway and Fry’s are planning on starting to charge employees a minimal cost for health insurance – $5 – $15/wk – which they now provide for free. The union is refusing to accept any cost at all. Even this minimal cost! Considering how expensive healthcare is, it seems ridiculous that the union can force the company to continue providing all health insurance for free.

Many Safeway and Fry’s employees realize this, and do not want to be out of work indefinitely during this down economy, right before Christmas.  Estimates are that over 20,000 employees will be affected. Non-union employees may be prevented from working during the strike, and will receive no compensation. Union employees will receive $100/week in strike pay, a piddly amount, not much to tide them over. Arizona is a right to work state, meaning employees are not required to join unions. A strike will likely affect the non-union employees who just want to work.  This is unfair.

Safeway and Fry’s have been preparing for the strike by hiring temporary workers to fill in. Out of care for their longtime employees, they are only hiring temporary employees, not permanent replacements. The two chains are sticking together, agreeing that if the union goes on strike against one chain, the other chain will lock its union employees out.

It is irresponsible of the union to be calling for a strike based on demands for free healthcare, especially at this time of year when the employees don’t want it. The unions aren’t representing the employees, they are representing the interests of the socialist bosses who run them. Most Americans realize that healthcare isn’t free, no matter how hard Obama and the Democrats in Congress try to ram it down our throats.

The last strike like this occurred in California against subsidiaries of Safeway and Fry’s in 2003, lasting 20 weeks and costing the stores billions of dollars.

It is looking like a satisfactory agreement will not be achieved by 6pm Friday night. If so, the union will  start picketing certain stores. They may only target Safeway, since Safeway has been struggling financially more than Fry’s. Or they may target just a few stores. Regardless, be prepared to shop at Safeway and Fry’s this weekend. Even if you don’t regularly shop at those stores, please consider stopping by to encourage them and keep their sales up. I am holding off my weekly shopping until this weekend and intend to buy extra purchases in addition there, instead of making an extra trip to Walmart to buy certain items cheaper. Don’t let a few socialists running the unions force their unrealistic demands upon employees against their will, causing them to suffer this Christmas season. Even the Arizona Republic has editorialized against the union strike! The union no longer represents the interests of its employees.

The National Right to Work Foundation is offering free legal aid to employees during the strike. There is some concern that union officials will try and prohibit union members from working during the strike, and NRWF wants to make sure union members know their rights. Union members have a right to continue working during the strike, however they may want to resign from the union in order to avoid oppressive union disciplinary actions and fines. They can also sign a decertification petition to hold a secret ballot election to remove the union hierarchy from the workplace.

Here is video from today’s TEA Party at the State Capitol.

If you have please send me a link and I’ll get it up.

Here are more:

Please join me and thousands of others across the State of Arizona tomorrow as we rally and assert our rights and the principles of the 9-12 Project to restore American values.

I will actually be speaking on behalf of Americans for Prosperity as part of the lineup at the State Capitol while Tom Jenney, our State Director, joins ranks with the good folks of Yuma. (Also watch for my interview on AZFamily/Channel 3 around 9 AM).

If you can’t make the Phoenix rally, plan on attending any of the smaller local Tea Party events. Americans for Prosperity – Arizona has a listing of events being held around the state.

Tomorrow’s Phoenix event is sponsored by The Greater Phoenix Tea Party Patriots, KKNT-960 AM and AnyStreet.org.

Gotta love the videography work of  Mike at AgapeMedia.net for his great coverage of the protest(s) that took place at Gabrielle Giffords’ office on Friday night.

Here’s something you don’t usually see: hundreds of protesters gathered on a Friday night, in the rain for a political protest of a sitting congressman. OK, the rain actually broke long enough for the protesters to make their point (3 hours). I’m estimating that there were about 500-600 protesters over the course of the event.

Yet, no sign of Gabrielle Giffords whose office was the venue for the event. Lots of true patriots in attendance as well as several former elected officials, current elected officials and candidates in waiting.

I have to hand it to the Tucson Tea Party folks, they sure know how to throw a protest complete with T-shirts and excited and angry citizens.

Here is one of the interviews I shot of a young lady who was well spoken, not paid to be there and not a member of any union.

Hat tip to Gila Courier for chasing down the truth on the gentleman who carried the AR-15 assault weapon at the Obama protest.

Here is the video the guys at WeAreChangeAZ shot of the “incident.”

“Chris” who wore the AR-15 is a Libertarian and ardent defender of the 2nd Amendment.

One interesting confirmation is during the video clip there is an exchange between a blond woman and Chris. You will see her refer to her feeling and how the big black gun makes her feel uncomfortable. This is a classic example of how the liberal worldview is driven by emotions and not logic.