ARIZONA - The State of ALEC

I don’t normally write about prison privatization because there are a couple of other people out there that do it a hell of lot better than I could even think of doing.

But today – two different stories came together on the same day that need your attention.

Two stories that will show you how damn dumb ALEC states are – and what happens when you leave ALEC legislators in control.

Both of the stories have to do with Arizona.  So I’m going to stick my finger in the face of Arizona.

Arizona – The ALEC capitol of the world.

Arizona – Where the legislators love their ALEC.

I wish Arizona would secede to Mexico - until they get rid of their ALEC controlled legislature.

First from Daily Kos:

If you're a state hellbent on turning corrections over to the for-profit prison industry, what do you do when an annual survey shows that private jails are often more expensive than the old fashioned public variety? Especially if, by law, the state may contract for private prisons only if they prove to be less expensive? Simple, just eliminate that pesky study.

    Buried in the $8.6 billion budget proposal passed at the state Capitol this week is a plan to "eliminate the requirement for a quality and cost review of private prison contracts." It means there would no longer be an annual review of how private prisons operate. CBS5.com

And then you have this article

Brewer,legislative leaders announce budget deal

For example, the agreement takes $50 million from a $97.7 million mortgage-settlement fund that Arizona won as part of a multistate lawsuit over fraudulent lending practices. The money is intended for foreclosure prevention and to help reverse the negative effects of the housing collapse that hit Arizona.

The budget agreement taps that $50 million to pay for private-prison contracts to provide an extra 500 maximum-security beds.

Let’s see

Arizona is going to spend more money – money meant for people who were victims of fraudulent mortgage lending practices –  to pay for more private prison – which a state funded survey show are more expensive than publicly run facilities.

This is what happens when you have an ALUMNI of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) for governor and 90+ members of the legislature are ALEC members.

This is what happens when the ALEC privatization "model" legislation experiment – which is a "model" that has NEVER been proven to work – gets out of hand.

If the survey shows that AZ prison privatization cost more

       – get rid of the survey

And then

Spend more money on privatization of AZ prisons
     - money that was not designated to be spent on private prisons.

But then - you gotta do, what you gotta do - to make sure that ALEC corporate profit sector members are kept happy.
 

F#cking amazing – and the majority of Arizonians are sitting on their a$$ complaining about government.

Just sitting by and watching the Brewer world go by and not doing a damn thing.

ALL ALEC members must not be re-elected!

Got that Arizona?