See also: Russell Pearce's Worst Nightmare Bob Worsley Wins Chamber Endorsement See also: Russell Pearce's Woes Indicate the Nativist Moment Has Seen Its Best Days See also: Russell Pearce Blames Victims for Dark Knight Massacre (w/Update)
Only in Mesa. And even then, I would not have believed it, had I not taken the photo myself.
I mean the campaign sign for recalled, disgraced ex-state Senate President Russell Pearce that touts his receiving the Arizona Parents for Education's "Golden Apple" award.
This seems to be the same award Pearce boasted about during the recall election, and which I wrote about in August of last year. Essentially, the organization shills for online schools, and its award is practically meaningless.
But, obviously, what makes the sign so priceless is its misspelling of the word "Education." I spotted the sign at the intersection of McKellips Road and Harris Drive in Legislative District 25, where Pearce is staging a comeback and faces an uphill climb against nice-guy businessman Bob Worsley in the GOP primary for state Senate there.
This was the only sign of its kind I saw featuring the "Eduction" add-on. However, there were other signs with add-ons. I spotted a couple of other yellow thingees pimping Pearce as the "Hero of the Taxpayer."
One add-on in red and white claims Pearce is "Supported by Arizona Teacher's [sic] Association."
Pearce is not known for his support of education, to say the least. I've never heard of this particular organization, but its members must suffer from mass psychosis. As the Arizona Republic noted in an article last year, Pearce supported a budget that "cut $148 million from K-12 education."
So I guess if you're for de-funding K-12 education, Russell Pearce is your man. I'm still hunting for more (actually any) info on the ATA. It's not listed with the Arizona Corporation Commission, for instance. At least not under that name. Odd that it would be spelled "Teacher's" instead of "Teachers."
Would love to call this organization and find out whose screw is loose. Feel free to, um, educate me, if you know something, anything about the ATA.
I would phone Pearce & Co. to ask them about this, but they don't like me very much. Plus, I'm guessing that after I pull the trigger on this blog post, it won't be long before a Pearce loyalist or family member (that means you, Talmage) runs out there to rip that yellow piece off.
The signs themselves look like new purchases, and certainly they are a step up from the ones Pearce had been recycling by plastering over the part that says "Keep" from the 2011 recall with rah-rah slogans about Pearce, also rendered in yellow and in a similar font.
It occurred to me that the "Eduction" add-on could be the work of a prankster, but if that were the case, I would expect a more obvious and funnier misspelling. The missing "a" would be a simple enough error to make.
Plus, it's not like Pearce needs any help these days looking like an aggro idiot, what with his comments blaming the Batman massacre on the victims and the recent release of a cache of racist e-mails from Pearce by the American Civil Liberties Union.
Yes, with Russell Pearce in the political game, it's always Christmas in my world. That said, will I miss writing about him when he is pummeled in the primary this August 28?
Nah.
UPDATE JULY 26, 2012 6:14 AM: Late last night I received a call from one Raymond E. Linafelter, who claims to have seen Russell Pearce in the flesh removing the yellow "Eduction" add-on to his sign at Harris and McKellips. He's one of my Facebook "friends," along with a lot of other folks I do not know personally. (I assume he got my cell number from my voice mail at work.)
I've never met Mr. Linafelter, and he sadly did not score a pic of Pearce in flagrante delicto. So there's no way for me to know if this happened or not. (No offense intended to Mr. Linafelter.) But if you want to read his curious account of running across Pearce around midnight, you can check it out on his Facebook page.
