Tucson Weekly: The Skinny (May 29

HOW TO SHOOT OFF YOUR OWN FOOT: When there's a multiple-issue bond election and it features some items you really want, conventional Skinny political wisdom says shut up about the other people's issues that you might not like. Attacking their stuff could trigger retribution.
In one of the dumber banzai charges in the history of Pima County politics, the Greater Tucson Chamber of Bozos urged a "no" vote on open space acquisition; The Southern Arizona Home Builders Ass. went almost as far by refusing to endorse the issue.
This opened up the political debate on the rest of the bond issues, specifically the developer pork and subsidies that were part of the flood control and sewer bond proposals. Chances are very good that had the Chamber and SAHBA shut up, these two items wouldn't have been hammered nearly as hard as they were.
The net result was a 68 percent victory for the open space proposal, as opposed to 51 percent and 54 percent for the flood control and sewer proposals. Before the Chamber jerks opened their mouths, however, the original poll numbers were reversed: Open space was only at about 60 percent, while flood control and sewers were big winners at over 70 percent each. But once the Chamber made its farting noises, open space proponents went to work, and critics of Chamber-supported pork had no reason to remain quiet.
While both developer subsidies passed, the narrow margin clearly indicates the voters of this valley are beginning to wise up. Their passage of open space by a better than two-to-one margin clearly points to the future of Pima County politics.
And it says something about the amount of political muscle the Chamber has, too. Remember that when you see Chamber honcho Jack Camper in those TV ads, explaining how the Chamber works for you.
BLAME THE CORPSE: Well, just a few days into the trial of Gov. J. Fife Deadbeat III, the defense strategy is pretty clear: Blame the accountants.
We've think we've heard this one before, back when former Gov. Ev Mecham was facing his troubles. As we recall, it went: "Willard did it"--Willard being the brother of Ev, and the man who handled his campaign books.
Now, it seems, the key to getting Fife off the hook is laying the blame with accountant John Yeoman, who, you might remember, skipped off this mortal coil in a suspicious traffic accident before the trial began.
Which reminds us of what former Symington aide George Leckie said after his acquittal on bid-rigging charges related to Symington's notorious Project SLIM, which poured several million dollars into the coffers of national accounting firm Coopers & Lybrand, where John Yeoman handled Fife's books.
Federal prosecutors alleged that Leckie, who sat on the panel overseeing the Project SLIM bidding process, gave Yeoman the other firms' bids, which allowed Coopers & Lybrand to lower their bid by $400,000 and win the Project SLIM contract. A jury disagreed and acquitted Leckie.
Leckie told reporters he hoped his acquittal would send a message of hope to the Governor.
The plot thickened the next day, however, when the judge in Leckie's case released a statement from Yeoman admitting that Leckie had handed him the competitive bids under a table--and scrawled on a napkin, no less. Because Yeoman was dead, however, the statement was inadmissible in Leckie's trial.
So what message was Leckie hoping Fife would get from his acquittal? Our guess is: The accountant is dead, so they'll never have the proof they need to convict you, Fife.
John Yeoman's death was undoubtedly one the greatest blessings ever to come Gov. Deadbeat's way. Now, to save his own neck, all Fife needs to do is drag a dead friend's reputation through the mud.
It's a task he's been training for all his pampered life.
AN INSANELY BAD IDEA: About 700 folks showed up at the Tucson Convention Center Tuesday to see what action the Pima County Board of Supervisors would take regarding a resolution opposing the proposed Rosemont Ranch land swap between the U.S. Forest Service and mining giant ASARCO, Inc.
This issue is a no-brainer: ASARCO officials want to give the Forest Service about 2,000 acres, located mostly in northern Arizona, in exchange for 13,000 acres of southern Arizona's beautiful Santa Rita Mountains located just west of scenic Highway 83 (the road to Sonoita), so they can add a monstrous open-pit copper mine to Tucson's horizon. And to add injury to insult, ASARCO is currently the number-one polluter in Arizona.
The action had been postponed from mid-May because the supes board room was packed by ASARCO employees. They'd been bused in from the Green Valley Mission Mine with a promise they'd be paid for their time. Opponents to the land swap had been forced to stand out in the hall.
Supervisor Raul Grijalva, who'd put the item on the agenda, proposed the postponement. Supervisor Mike Boyd (Motto: "There's no big-bucks corporation I won't bend over for!" ) wanted to go forward with the hearing, saying, "Those folks out in the hall can hear perfectly fine."
This week's episode involved a policy-opinion resolution which could be construed only as an advisory at best. That didn't stop about 700 ASARCO supporters from showing up, however. And they looked real cute in their snazzy white caps.
Supervisor Sharon Bronson noted the draft resolution contained a provision asking ASARCO to withdraw its proposal for the land swap, but the provision had no real force.
The final vote was 2-2, with final action again postponed until June 3, when the late supervisor John Even's replacement is seated and can vote to break the tie. Grijalva and Bronson voted for the resolution. Boyd voted nay, but he did let the ASARCO big-wigs present know that he was none too happy about their suing Pima County over our strict air quality requirements. Way to waffle again, Mikey.
Curiously, there was no appearance from anyone with the U.S. Forest Service. But they're probably still smarting from that butt whacking they took last March from the Tucson City Council, whose members voted 7-0 in favor of no land swap.
You'd think that at least Steven Christiansen, the Forest Service's Rosemont Project coordinator, would have shown his face. But then maybe he's sensitive about the fact that his $55,000 annual salary is paid by ASARCO.
ASARCO is also paying for the required environmental impact statement on the Rosemont Ranch land swap. Grijalva said this gave the appearance of the game being rigged before it started; he suggested a nonpartisan third party--i.e. not the feds, not a mining company--select someone to do the impact statement. ASARCO officials replied this would be fine with them. Easy for them to agree--their 1995 land exchange proposal left the issuance of an environmental impact study contract to the already-corrupted Forest Service.
After the ASARCO brass did their spin job, they brought up some of Tucson's Growth Lobby cheeseballs to support their position. Stan Abrams, hereinafter referred to as The Evil One, urged the supes to vote no, saying, "We already have an enormous amount of open space in Pima County."
Copper mining employs only 1 percent of the state's workforce. This mine would destroy a unique and gorgeous landscape. We say screw ASARCO, and screw the bastards who favor this abomination.
LATEST BRENDA EVEN PIMP JOB: What kind of Pima County supervisor Brenda Even would make is illustrated by the Growth Lobby's campaign on her behalf. First we have most of the establishment media dubbing her the "front-runner" and concentrating their attention on her, to the detriment of the other 20 candidates for the post vacated by the death of her husband, John. Then we hear the stories about numerous Republicans, including former John Even aide Barbara Huffstetler, being heavily muscled to "get out of the way for Brenda."
And now we have the ultimate in presumption, a letter supporting Even signed by City Council members Janet Marcus and Shirley Scott, state representatives Herschella Horton and Lou Ann Preble, and Pima County Recorder F. Ann Rodriguez. The letter they've signed bears the letterhead "Elected Women of Pima County."
Excuse us, but there's no such organization as Elected Women of Pima County. And, by our count, there are another eight female office holders in Pima County who had enough good sense to mind their own business--they didn't sign the letter. Among the non-signers is Supervisor Sharon Bronson, who'll be voting on John Even's replacement.
We suggest the bush-league PR firm that came up with this Mickey Mouse approach go back to the drawing board. With friends like these, Brenda Even needs no enemies.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE: Former U.S. Sen. Dennis DeConcini was once again a bridesmaid as he became the first runner-up for the post of Ambassador to Italy. The Clinton Administration, obviously working under the principle of "what have you done for me lately," chose New Jersey Congressman Thomas Foglietta for the job. That's the second time a major appointment was available and DeConcini--who seriously damaged any hope he had of being re-elected in 1994 by voting with President Clinton back when Clinton needed him--didn't get it. (The first opportunity DeConcini lost out on was a slot on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals). Sorry, Dennis, it would have been nice for Arizona, but maybe Bill can still find you a slot in Chad or Uzbekistan.

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