Alliance of White Anti-Racists Everywhere – Los Angeles
Maricopa County Sheriff
Bad Week for Nativist Attorney Kris Kobach
01 year ago
Following up on widespread claims that anti-immigrant attorney Kris Kobach was being paid large sums by the Maricopa County Sheriff’’s Office, Stephen Lemons of Feathered Bastard got a hold of the official contract between MCSO and Kobach.
Kris Kobach, the far right-wing nativist attorney Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s hired to train the MCSO in immigration matters, is receiving $300 per hour, plus expenses, including airline tickets to and from Arizona.
Though Arpaio’s Chief Deputy David Hendershott surmised in his recent deposition in the civil rights lawsuit Melendres vs. Arpaio that Kobach was making anywhere from $250-$300 per hour, to be paid from the MCSO’s RICO slush fund, I just got the official contract with Kobach from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.
Read the entire article here.
Another blog exposed Kobach’s nativist-for-hire racket and losing tendencies this week. Krazykriskobach.com is dedicated to ensuring “that Kris Kobach does not ever hold an elected office again. We are not a group of Republicans, nor are we partisan Democrats. We’re simply a group of attentive Kansans literally sickened by the thought of Mr. Kobach ever collecting another dime of salary from Kansas taxpayers.”
The last few months have been less than ideal for Kris Kobach, Kansas’ Kraziest politico. First, news surfaced that Kobach’s tenure at the Kansas GOP was marred by serious mismanagement that may eventually result in some hefty fines for the new Administration.
Shortly after that, Kobach’s quest to enrich his personal finances by suing state governments suffered another embarrassing defeat when he lost a major ruling in Idaho. This week brought a fresh blow to Kris’ personal tax-payer funded bank account, when a City Council in Albertville, Alabama decided to pass on Kobach’s legal services.
Why? Because he is too damn pricey, and his track record is awful. One City Council member describes him as being only “46 percent accurate”. That’s like flipping a coin except you have to pay $300,000 to hire a lawyer employed by a hate group and your odds are worse.
The Albertville City Council determined that Kobach’s inexplicably expensive legal services were not worth it to the taxpayers. Which isn’t surprising, because he’s running a racket.
In a post last month, krazykriskobach.com wrote:
Kris Kobach has turned his anti-immigration platform into a quest for personal profit. By way of examples, he was paid more than $100,000 for a failed lawsuit in Pennsylvania, and up to $275,000 for his role in a Missouri lawsuit.
If that sounds like a racket, keep in mind that it costs the taxpayers a lot more to defend against his legal antics. Kansas taxpayers personally had to foot a $175,000 tab to defend against another one of his lawsuits in 2004 (he lost this one too).
Yikes! Looks like the public is starting to put the pieces together on Kobach. The big picture seems to be that of a scummy politician making gobs of money off hate.
Ten Thousand March Against Arpaio
02 years ago
Yesterday’s march in Phoenix, Arizona drew 10,000 supporters locally and nationally. According to the Press Association:
Ten thousand immigrant rights advocates have marched in front of a county jail in Phoenix against Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s anti-immigration policies.
A small group of demonstrators clashed with police officers in riot gear. Organisers said the protest was intended to show officials in Washington that Sheriff Arpaio has failed to handle immigration enforcement and that Congress and the Obama administration need to come up with a way for immigrant workers to come to America legally.
The marchers walked from a west Phoenix park to the Durango Jail Complex, a collection of five jails, where officials played music, including a record by singer Linda Ronstadt, to drown out noise made by protesters. Ronstadt took part in Saturday’s protest. Protesters chanted “Joe must go” as they approached the jail complex. One person carried a sign that said “We are human” and bore a picture of a lawman with a wolf’s face. A family of five wore T-shirts saying “Who would Jesus deport?”
Read more to see photos from yesterday’s march…
March Today in Phoenix, Arizona
02 years ago
As you are reading this blog, close to 10,000 people are taking to the streets in Phoenix, Arizona in a show of solidarity against the oppressive authority of Sheriff Joe Arpaio and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. Over the past two days in Phoenix I have had the chance to meet people from all walks of life who have descended upon Maricopa County – ground zero in the immigration battle. People here have been planning the march against Sheriff Joe since May of 2009.
There is a tremendous sense of fear, anticipation, and excitement in the air. The good folks at Puente, AZ who have organized the march remain incredibly calm as 10 am approaches, the time the march is due to start. I arrived Thursday at the Tonatierra a beautiful blue and orange building which serves as the home of Puente as well as a community center which caters to people from all parts of Mexico.
I arrived just in time to sit in on a sign-making class conducted by Hernesto, an artist from LA, and Orlando, a local Puente activist. Before I knew it, I was shedding my buttoned shirt and khaki pants for a white t-shirt and some shorts to help in the sign-making. The most eye-catching and powerful sign is the image of a monarch butterfly, a symbol that has a lot of significance to the immigrants and immigration activists here in Arizona. Each year, the monarch migrates from Canada south to Mexico and back again. The question often asked in this part of the country is ‘if it is natural for an animal such as a butterfly to migrate, then why should we as humans be restricted from migrating?’
The scene at Tonatierra is dominated by artists and activists. Before the community center existed, the neighborhood around it was completely run down and desolate but in recent years it has been converted into an activist/artist haven complete with an (almost) vegan coffee shop. I went to lunch nearby with one of the artists, Francisco, who told me his story of being arrested by Sheriff’s Joe’s cronies and being thrown into the tented village for the night. Not only did he have to wear the now infamous pink underwear, but he had the unfortunate luck to be stuck in the tents on the only night of the year that it snowed in Phoenix. He can look back at the situation now and laugh, but he said he will never forget the suffering he was caused at the hands of the Sheriff. I am staying at a Quaker house not too far from Tonatierra with three dedicated organizers, Jason, Tenacity, and Peter, who could not be more hospitable towards me. They told me the history of their battle against racism and bigotry in this county as well as what to expect at the big march tomorrow.
I have spent most of today (Friday) making phone calls to people all across Phoenix encouraging them to come to the march as well as helping to make more signs. Seeing men, women, and children of all backgrounds coming together to make signs was a very powerful thing that will stay with me for a long time. This evening we had a delicious dinner followed by prep for the march and a moving prayer from a Rabbi who came from LA and some locals with roots deep in the heartland of Mexico.
All the signs are the march will be peaceful everyone is not letting their guard down. Arpaio looks set to show his face tomorrow and when he does he will cast his gaze upon 10,000 people who have come from all parts of the country to take a stand against the hate and fear that he has brought to this county.
Keep checking Imagine2050 in the coming days for a full recap and video of this groundbreaking march against bigotry!