2006 State of the State

Jan. 9, 2006

Transcript:

Michael Grant:
Tonight on Horizon, Governor Napolitano outlines the issues she plans to tackle this year. We'll show you the 2006 State of the State Address in its entirety. And a response to the address by republican leaders. Good evening. I'm Michael Grant welcome to Horizon. The 47th legislative session got underway today marked by Governor Janet Napolitano's state of the state speech. She touched on topics as varied as education, methamphetamines and proposing a $100 million border security package. The speech also marking the opening of the governor's re-election bid. In this special one-hour Horizon we'll present the state of the state speech in its entirety followed by republican response and then a discussion with two political experts on the implications of the address. But first, Governor Janet Napolitano and her 2006 State of the State Address.

Gov. Janet Napolitano:
President Bennett, Speaker Wires, Chief Justice McGregor and members of the Supreme Court, members of our congressional delegation, tribal leaders, honored guests, my fellow Arizona ands. The state of Arizona is strong and getting stronger. I stand before you today proud of the ground we have covered together, proud of the work we are doing. I am determined to build on our to make Arizona stronger still. An Arizona that is safe, strong, and prosper rouse prosperous for every Arizonan. For the past three years that has been our guidepost, safe, strong, and prosperous for all. My friends, that is and must remain the work of our hands. Yes. You can clap. [applause] together to protect our people from threats that are home grown, lab made or imported. Together, to raise children who are healthy and wise. Together, to grow our economy and expand the circle of prosperity by pursuing breakthroughs in science and technology that will transform us into a nerve center of new ideas. Safe, strong, and prosperous. It's what Arizona ns want and deserve. [applause] One of the great joys that accompanies the privilege of being governor is the chance to travel across our state, to meet the people that make Arizona what it is and to hear directly from you about what kind of future you want to build. You want us to keep moving forward, to set our sights even higher, to work every day to build an Arizona that is ever more safe, ever more strong, every more prosperous. My friends, that is exactly what we will continue to do. [applause] To make us safer, I will propose a comprehensive $100 million border security package that provides state and local law enforcement with the resources they need to uphold the rule of law at our border. In addition, I will propose tough but fair measures to help parents protect their children from sexual offenders and to help law enforcement crack down on methamphetamine manufacture and distribution. [applause] And I will propose a plan to begin to offer safe harbor finally to all those who suffer the effects of domestic violence. [applause] to make us stronger we will take bold steps to give our children a world class education up to and including an university degree. [applause] We will take up the challenge of accessible and affordable healthcare. [applause] We will urge new initiatives to immediate the meet the demands of our current rate of growth including transportation and water. [applause] to expand Arizona's prosperity we will provide $100 million in smart tax relief that strengthens our economy, invest in new technologies that will create the jobs of the future. [applause] and finally, we will continue to manage the state finances responsibly like every family with careful planning and common sense. We will pay our bills, invest in those things that will bring the best long-term payoff and put money away in savings so we can deal with the inevitable cries cease of the future. We all know that the future of Arizona ultimately depends on the reach and grasp of our children. The reach of their imaginations and the grasp of their abilities. Nothing is more important to a child's future than his or her parents. But great schools can make an enormous difference. Better-educated children dream bigger dreams and get better jobs. Better thinkers and more qualified workers attract more profitable businesses. The standard of living goes up across the state, tour ability to offer the very best to our children grows, and the payoff continues for generations. Strong families, strong children, strong schools, strong state. [applause] To make our education system the very best it can be, I call the legislature to do four things: expand voluntary all day kindergarten it is available to every parent who wants it for his or her children. Increase teacher compensation so that we begin to pay teachers at a competitive rate for the critical work we ask them to do. [applause] Provide professional development and ongoing training to keep our best teachers in the classroom. [applause] And support increased funding for our community colleges and universities, including increased student aid, so that all Arizona ns, young people and people already working who need new skills have access to a world class higher education. [applause] Parents have demanded voluntary full day kindergarten. Two years ago you approved it. This year, let's complete it. Young minds are hungry for information and develop quickly. The more they learn the more they can learn. Let's of voluntary, full day kindergarten to every parent who wants it and let's do it this year. . [cheers] [applause] We're not going to have better kindergarten and then forget about everything that comes after it. We need better first grade, better second grade, better, better and better until we are the best. That is the only standard we should have for education in Arizona. The best. [applause] We know that nothing is more important to success in education than qualified teachers. We expect our students to be more technologically lit rat, more grounded in math and science and more adept at life long learning than ever before. We can expect no lesson our teachers. But we cannot expect the best from our teachers as long as we continue to pay them a paltry sum. We need to bring teacher pay in line with teacher responsibility. [applause] Teaching shouldn't be the last resort for student as they enter college and begin to think about future careers. Our state universities report that when the economy is good and college students believe they have other options, applications to colleges of education go down. It is time to stop underpaying the people in whose hands we entrust the future of our children. [applause] I offer you this challenge today: let's give a pay raise to every teacher in Arizona. [Cheers and applause] In my budget I will propose a two-year plan to bring teacher salaries to a realistic level and to fix our glaring lack of education development. I am asking you to pass legislation that will set the base salary so every teacher in Arizona makes at least $30,000 a year and that's just the start. [applause] In addition, I ask you to appropriate the dollars necessary to ensure that every teacher also receives a raise this year. Not just the beginning ones. Let's make a commitment together. In Arizona teachers will be paid a wage that matches the trust we place in them, not one that be lines it. [applause] Next, we need to recognize that the education of the teachers themselves shunt just stop when they graduate from college. To teach with excellence they have to keep learning, stay in step with the world of knowledge. It's how they best teach their students. That's professional development. And it is our job to ensure that teachers get it. We need to hold them accountable for mastering it and we need 20 to reward them when they do. The bad news is we have no statewide system for professional development. The good news is that we have a very limited but highly successful program called career ladder that has been providing professional development in 28 Arizona school districts with great results for more than a decade. Career ladder does exactly what we've been talking about. It provides professional development, value waits teacher performance based on students performance and rewards teachers for success with increases in pay. It's here. It's ours. And it works. Now, let's take the career ladder concept statewide, and in the second part of my plan I will ask you to provide funds to the state board of education so that school districts receive the assistance and guidance they need to fully implement teacher professional development and integrate any professional development system with the master teacher program we've been building for the last two years. [cheers and applause] Finally, we need to make sure that what we teach and how we teach is the right preparation for success and prosperity in the 21st century. We have already begun the work of making our educational goals from preschool through college meet the real life demands of today's economy and job market. We need to replace old teaching systems with methods that take advantage of new knowledge about the way children learn. We need to adapt old curriculum to reflect new understanding of what our children need to succeed in a world that is rapidly changing. And once they're successfully through the elementary and secondary grades we need to make it easier for students to go to college. I propose that we increase substantially the amount of student aid we provide and that we hold down the rate of tuition increases at our state universities. [applause] Our universities and community colleges are more than academic centers. They're economic engines that produce a smart, skilled work force. They deserve our full support. A great public education system that starts early, stays strong, and graduates young people prepared for the 21st century. That's how we keep Arizona strong. [applause] So when those young women and men are ready to enter the work force, they have the right to expect a thriving Arizona economy where they can make the most of what they learned. When I took office in 2003, Arizona was in a full-fledged fiscal crisis with a $1 billion deficit. Unchecked, that deficit would have continued to grow, eventually starving our ability to provide all kind of critical services. But we came together and we eliminated the deficit. We did not raise taxes. We did not cut education. We were thoughtful, compassionate, and responsible. We were lean but never mean. And we managed our way out of debt and back into solvency. The state of Arizona is prosperous again. [applause] Our revenues are healthy. Our economic outlook is strong. We've learned -- and I for one will never allow us to be unprepared for a financial crisis. Economies ebb and flow. Revenues go up and down. Expenses are not always predictable. The economy has cycled up. It may one-day cycle down again. And this time we're going to be ready. My friends, the long-term economic security of our state is most definitely our job and our legacy. So make no mistake. When it comes to budget policy, responsibility is word one on my watch. [applause] This is what responsibility means. We pay our debts, we invest in initiatives like education that will mean big future payoffs and we save money to deal with the crisis down the road. Three years ago, business leaders came to us and said, "if you can provide us with targeted tax relief we'll reinvest in Arizona and create good jobs". So we worked with them and it's working for Arizona. We reduced the property taxes for businesses. And the sales factor bill that you passed into law last year is responsible for bringing a $3 billion-Intel fabrication plant to chandler and thousands more jobs to Arizona. We've helped business, which helps our people in turn by creating jobs. And with smart, targeted tax relief we can continue to help families meet the climbing costs of daily life starting with healthcare, school supplies and gasoline. There are a million people in Arizona who do not have health insurance. Most are hard-working people who want coverage for themselves and their families but their employers don't offer it and they don't make enough to afford it on their own. One quarter of the uninsured work in very small businesses. Those with fewer than 25 employees, where the high cost of health insurance forces too many business owners to choose between providing healthcare or providing jobs. Today, I propose that we offer a tax credit to every one of those small businesses currently providing health insurance to their employees and businesses that start offering health insurance will have the same credit available at a later date. [applause] It's a helping hand to those already doing the right thing, and it's an incentive that will make it easier for businesses that want to but are struggling themselves. And to match the employer credit, I am proposing a healthcare premium subsidy for low-income workers to help them pay their share of the premium costs. [applause] In addition to making health insurance more affordable. We need to increase the number of doctors working in Arizona. To that end, I am proposing a program to increase the number of physician programs which will help bring doctors to under served area especially in rural Arizona. Coupled with a resident med medical school in Phoenix, more residents will mean more doctors for our people. We will continue to help people with the sky rocketing cost of prescription drugs. We've had great success with the copper card, reducing the prescription costs for thousands of Arizona seniors. This year we will extend the copper cards success to all of our citizens. [applause] And just as we're all concerned about healthcare, every parent has to be concerned with the annual sticker shock known as back to school. I propose that we offer parents some help in getting their children back to school in a way that will be good for business in the process. Let's have a three-day, back to school sales tax holiday. No state sales tax on school supplies, clothes, or up to $1,000 worth of equipment computer equipment. Businesses will do well, parents will do well, and children are will do the best which is what we're looking for. [applause] And when gasoline prices went through the roof last year, Arizona families were hit hard. It is time for us to give those same families some relief on the costs of their cars and trucks. Today, I propose that we cut Arizona's vehicle license tax and as an added incentive we cut it in a way that rewards drivers who choose to conserve gasoline. The better gas mileage your car or truck gets, the bigger the cut in the license fee. [applause] And if a vehicle gets maximum mileage per gallon, let's get rid of the license tax altogether. [cheers and applause] At the same time, let's repay vehicle license tax moneys we borrowed to beat the deficit. This year, we can cut the vehicle license tax and pay off our debts. It's good policy, we can afford it. So let's make it happen. [applause] A thriving economy means an economy that takes advantage of the jobs and technology of the future. We want Arizona to be the high tech powerhouse it can be. We need to invest in the research and innovation that will produce it. To that end, I ask you to support creation of innovation Arizona. That will be the public part of a public-private partnership to improve Arizona's science and technology standing in the world. Innovation Arizona has two charges. First, to provide funding that will attract world-class researchers to Arizona. And second, to support research into new products and technologies that can be commercialized and brought to the market. We're going to emphasize the cutting edge in everything we do here, whether it's sustainable systems technology, nano- tech, biotech, defense tech, ear row space tech or new communication and information technologies. Together we will continue to make Arizona a leader in the 21st century economy. [applause] Arizona continues to change and grow. Thousands of new families come to Arizona and they choose to stay. To remain strong, we must work to preserve our unique quality of life and we must work together, coordinating among cities, town towns, counties and the state to work together to deal with issues like transportation, land use and water. For Arizona to be stronger economically we must be better stewards of our lands, fore risks and uncertainties and water. I ask Arizona ns to approve a program to better manage our trust land. I urge the legislature to give our local communities more tools to deal with the ever-increasing demands on our water and I propose substantial new investment in the water infrastructure we must have to meet our growing needs. [applause] With an eye to the future and good planning now, Arizona can show the world how a desert state grows and thrives even in the midst of a long-term drought. Arizona's fire season threatens yet again to be among the worst. We've seen the devastating fire losses sustained in Texas and Oklahoma already this year. The memories of the fires in Arizona remain far too fresh. We've worked hard to recover. We've worked hard to manage the threat. In fact, we now have more cities and towns with community wildfire protection plans than any other state in the nation. [applause] Yet we all need to do more. Federal and local governments, business and private landowners need to think ahead and prepare for the coming fire season. There is more money in my budget for fire suppression and for treatments to prevent fire. But let me say this again because it is important: every Arizonans has a role to play here. And as the discussion of fire makes clear, the safety of our people is of paramount importance. Today I ask every one of you to make this commitment. Before the year is over we will take at least these four steps to dramatically improve the safety of our families and our children. We will step up where the federal government has let us down and impose the rule of law at the border. [applause] We will increase our ability to protect families from sex offenders. We will have a plan to offer shelter to every victim of domestic violence who asks for it. And we will shut down the methamphetamine supply chain. [applause] Let us begin with our border. Last august I declared an emergency at the Arizona-Mexico border. That finally got the federal government's attention. And I applaud them for beginning to move equipment and manpower to Arizona. Until that movement is complete, however, the state of Arizona is going to step in because the situation demands it and our citizens deserve it. Today, I am proposing a four-part plan to crack down on illegal immigration. My plan is tough. It's realistic. And my budget includes $100 million to fund it. The legislature should adopt this plan, and for the first time approve the funding it takes for the work we immediate to do. First, we're going to come down hard on the criminals that have made human trafficking their business and human suffering their stock in trade. These human traffickers are vicious criminals who exploit misery and prey on fear. We're going to find them, break their criminal syndicates apart and bring the full weight of the law down on them. [applause] We're going to continue to step up our efforts to track and uncover the fraudulent documents that allow people to live illegally in the shadows. We will expand our high tech approach to intercepting stolen vehicles headed to Mexico before they are used to return to this country carrying loads of illegal immigrants. Second, we will strengthen the border with the people and equipment we need to fight crime and increase border security for lawful commerce, tourism and legal immigration. The federal government has promised more border patrol agents for Arizona. But until they are here I have asked Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld to allow for us to station the National Guard at our border. That financial support would allow the guard to expand its presence and become even more involved in enforcing the rule of law at the border. I also propose that we give the department of public safety the manpower it needs to keep up with the overwhelming enforcement challenge. And I want to make sure that law enforcement in the cities and towns that have been hit hardest by illegal immigration have the tools, training and personnel they need. Third, we are going to get real about one of the root causes of this problem. People come here because they want work. And employers here are willing to hire them. If we want to stop illegal immigration we've got to stop the demand. Last year, I issued an executive order to make clear that the state will not contract with employers who hire people who are here illegally. Now, I ask you to expand that effort. Those who continue to intentionally hire illegal immigrants should face substantial fines and pen also penalties. [applause] And finally, I am not going to let up on the federal government. America's borders are Washington's job. Of course we're going to step up and protect our citizens when the federal government fail them. But this is a federal problem and we expect the federal government to do its part. It's time that Arizona taxpayers be relieved of carrying the full burden of Washington's mistakes. Tough and realistic immigration reform including a guest worker program must be enacted this year. [applause] Our congressional delegation should come together, pass comprehensive immigration reform, work with Mexico to reform their economic systems to end the flow of illegal migration and get Washington to reimburse us for the costs we bear to hold up a broken system. [applause] Just as we work to protect our borders, we want to work here at home to protect our families. There are 11,000 registered sex offenders in Arizona. They have torn families' apart and shattered lives. Some of their victims may never truly recover. No one should live in fear that they're helpless to stop any one of these predators before he or she strikes again. I propose a simple change in the law that will allow us for the first time to electronically track registered sex offenders. We should also expand sex offender registration law to include and we should remove the statute of limitations for prosecuting felony sex offenses. [applause] Together we can send a message to sexual predators. If you think Arizona will let you get away with it, you are dead wrong. We will track you. We will throw the book at you. And we will keep our families safe. Sadly, there are many different kinds of abuse. Far too many Arizonans, many of them mothers, are victims of domestic violence. Yet nod today, when a woman is attacked and seeks shelter she is turned away more often than she is taken in. Two out of three women in Arizona who seek shelter for domestic violence are turned away for the simple reason that there is no room. Now, in government many problems are complicated. Many policies the subject of legitimate debate. This problem is different. There's no room for disagreement and no question about what to do. When two-thirds of the women who are victims of domestic violence cannot find shelter, our job is simple. Provide more beds. Find them. Build them. Buy them. But we must take those women and their children in. Today I ask you to pledge your support to a simple, straightforward proposal. We will not send victims of domestic violence back into the betraying arms of their attackers. We will not send their children to sleep in the back seat of a car. We will begin to add the shelter necessary to allow these women and children safety and hope. [applause] We also need to address the biggest drug crime in Arizona, methamphetamines. You've almost certainly seen the pictures. A home that looks just like every other one in the neighborhood except for the yellow crime scene tape and the officers in HAZMAT suits coming out, arms filled with chemical jugs. The inside of a house where meth has been cooking is unforgettable. The smell is vial. The chemicals are explosive. Far too often the only conscious inhabitants are all but abandoned children, children who live in meth houses are usually forgotten while their parents go on a high that can last for days. Surrounded by poison, they're hungry, dirty, and afraid. No illegal drug is more responsible for violent crime in Arizona. Methamphetamine is number one. And the key ingredients are easier to get than antibiotics. The basic building block of meth is a non-prescription decongestant called Pseudophedrine. An increasing amount of methamphetamine is imported illegally across our southern border, but all local meth cooker needs is a trip to the corner store. With a very simple set of measures we can take significant steps to put those meth cookers here and across the border out of business. Our attorney general has been a leader in the fight to shut the doors on the meth supply line. I applaud him for his work. [applause] Several Arizona cities have already put cold medicines with this inch greed ingredient behind the counter. This year, send me a tough meth bill I can sign into law. Last year's bill was a start but it wasn't strong enough. Next, the Arizona state board of pharmacy has already taken aggressive steps to inspect businesses and attract sued e fed rain sales. I've asked them to do more. With your support the board can expand its monitoring system to include non-prescription drugs, giving us another tool for tracking sales of meth making chemicals. In the enhanced order enforcement I have already discussed will further squeeze the dealers who try to import this dangerous drug. With this combination, a tougher law, more thorough and faster tracking and enhanced law enforcement, we have a plan that can successfully tackle the meth problem. [applause]
I cannot leave the subject of the safety of our citizens without thinking of and thinking about our military veterans. We came through the federal base reduction process this year and protected all of our major insulation installations. It took the hard work of our military affairs, ledge ores and community leaders to hold on to their bases and their missions. Now we have an obligation to protect the people who have protected all of us. There are 585,000 veterans in Arizona with more coming home all the time. Nearly every one of them is entitled to federal benefits, but the process is not simple. And it is not fast. The state provides veterans benefits counselors; as well we should, to help vets navigate the federal maize of paper and regulation. We know for a fact that individuals who work with the benefits counselor will receive substantially more than those who do not. Here is tragedy. For those 585,000 Arizona vets, we have exactly 19 veterans benefits counselors. That's statewide and that's just wrong. In my budget, I propose that we triple the number of veteran's benefits counselors this year. Our vets have earned every benefit they are entitled to. And we must give them every bit of help they need. [applause] I have proposed before and I will include in my budget again funding necessary to create a new veterans cemetery in northern Arizona and to build a veterans home in southern Arizona. [applause] I cannot walk away from this podium today without also thanking state employees. You've gone for a long time with minimal, really virtually no increase in pay. Yet you've hung in there, worked hard and remained committed to making Arizona what you believe it can be. You deserve a raise. And I know this legislature agrees with me. My budget proposes, and I urge the legislature to enact, a substantial increase in the paycheck of our state employees. [applause] It's a new year. Time to reflect on where we have been, the loved ones we have lost, the lives we have led. And it is time to recommit to the work we do for Arizona: creating a state that is safe, strong and prosperous. A place we want to call home for ourselves, for our children, for our children's children and the children after them. This is the Arizona we have been building. This is the Arizona we are proud of. This is the Arizona that is our home. God bless you. God bless Arizona. Thank you. [applause]

Michael Grant:
Upcoming session promises to be fairly contentious as several controversial issues are going to be considered during this election year. Mike Sauceda was at the capitol this afternoon for the governor's address, brings us the immediate republican response.

Mike Sauceda:
Hundreds of protesters showed up at the state capitol today to express their displeasure with proposals from the governor and lawmakers to crack down on illegal immigration. Arizona's republican leaders didn't seem to be too unhappy with many of the governor's agenda items she outlined in her address.

Sen. Ken Bennett:
We just wanted to take a few minutes and respond to the governor's state of the state address. We were very pleased almost to the point of being ecstatic to see that she is embracing some policies and ideas that we have been saying for a long time need to move Arizona forward. Last week the speaker and I both identified a proposal at the chamber of commerce to spend up to one hundred million on illegal immigration and immigration reform in our state. And low and behold today, that exact number comes out in the state of the state address. So we are very pleased to see that she sees this as the kind of emergency that really needs to have some resources put behind it.

Mike Sauceda:
House Speaker Jim Weiers also said the governor and republican leadership agree on a lot this year and said it could mean a faster session.

Rep. Jim Weiers:
The things we have agreed upon is we do believe in a substantial raise for the state employees. We do believe that immigration is at the key point of what we need to be looking at. It touches every part of the budget that we're going to be doing. The governor has said that she beliefs there needs to be tax relief. We'll see exactly where she does it, why she does it and what part of the economy she's doing it.

Mike Sauceda:
Even where there was some disagreement, like on the governor's call for $100 million in targeted tax cuts, Senate President Bennett says it was not inch surmountable.

Sen. Ken Bennett:
Even when you agree on what you want to do, you can have a lot of discussion about how to go about doing it. In the area of tax relief, she threw out $100 million number today. The speaker and I talked about at least $250 million last week. We're going to obviously be looking at broad-based, the kind of tax relief that will attract new businesses. We heard some things today that I think we might be able to embrace and consider.

Rep. Jim Weiers:
I don't know that I would characterize us as that far apart. The difference between 100 and 250 sounds like a large difference. But in a $9 billion budget, $100 million or 150.

Mike Sauceda:
Weiers did criticize the governor's call for one tax cut, a drop in the vehicle lights sense tax with the governor calling for a greater cut for fuel efficient vehicles.

Rep. Jim Weiers:
I heard the governor talking about coming out with VLT relief. And at the core of that relief would be nothing more than coming up with some sort of a program on what kind of gas mileage you get. But you know, I see a problem there for a couple of reasons. A lot of times people have bigger vehicles -- and I know there are exceptions and I don't want questions as to, well, you know this or you know that. I don't know anything. I do know when you have the larger families they've got the bigger cars which means they have the worst gas mileage. The governor would suggest because you have a large family that needs a big vehicle you're not going to get as big a tax break as somebody who can only afford a small car. Then on the other hand you've got the poorest of poor that don't have the money to go out and get the newer vehicles that are going to be able to give you the better gas mileage. They're stuck in the car 15 or 20 miles per gallon over what the average is.

Mike Sauceda:
So what are the top priorities for republican leadership in the legislature this year?

Sen. Ken Bennett:
I think tax relief will be one of our top pry priorities along with truth in budgeting, along with illegal immigration, along with increases in education funding, along with state employee pay, along with accountability. All of those things are going to be amongst our top priorities and tax relief will be one of the highest priorities.

Mike Sauceda:
There's no doubt that illegal immigration will be the big issue of the session. With today's protesters bringing home that point.

Sen. Ken Bennett:
I think that illustrates the magnitude of this issue. And the intensity of feelings on both sides, which is why I think we believe that it's going to take a comprehensive solution, it's going to take a lot of resources. We're tickled to see that she has come to the number that we suggested last week instead of the 1.5 million last year. Only a couple hundred thousand of which has been spent so far. So anxious to see a comprehensive solution. I think it's going to involve maybe the National Guard, efforts at the border, efforts in the work place; it's going to involve guest worker programs, all kinds of different things.

Michael Grant:
Tomorrow night on Horizon the President of the State Senate, Ken Bennett, Speaker of the House Jim Weiers will talk about the agenda for this years' legislative session. But joining us now Alfredo Gutierrez, former Arizona gubernatorial candidate and political consultant and Jim Coughlin. Gentlemen, welcome to the show. Welcome to a new year. As we were watching the governor's State of the State, the word "triangulation" kept coming up. Did she triangulate the state of the state well, particularly for an election year?

Alfredo Gutierrez:
What she just did is eat their lunch. They're out there looking in the paper bag wondering what happened. In purely political terms it was a superb performance and it left the republican opposition simply in a quandary as to where to go.

Michael Grant:
Because she gives Latinos like education, immigration.

Alfredo Gutierrez:
Exactly. On those areas where they've been opposed. Clearly kindergarten, for example, which she is taking from a five-year span to a two-year span. They're so overwhelmingly popular that republicans are afraid to take her on. And so we're left with almost no issues. Now, obviously when we get the details of all this they'll find something to argue about. But not today.

Michael Grant:
Was it an effective preemptive strike, do you think, Chuck?

Chuck Coughlin:
I think so. I think things you've got to think about were things she didn't talk about. She didn't talk about the word accountability. That wasn't in any part of her education speech. I think republicans and her will find great deal to agree about how much more money will go into education but the republican leadership will ask for accountability standards to make sure we get the value out of the dollars. And then on -- he's serious. No. She's good at that. And then on the other issue of the trust or the National Guard at the border? She stepped out on that. But again not a lot of details into those kinds of proposals. So again I would agree with Alfredo. There isn't a lot to disagree about today. But the devils in the detail the. Probably talk about it tomorrow. There is a truth in budgeting process. There's over 15 forms that fund education funding alone. I think the republicans would like to see simpler formulas, money on students that people can understand. And accountability measures that will be part of the republican package. There we'll find some disagreement, I'm sure.

Michael Grant:
Alfredo, democrats and for that matter a lot of republicans have always been suspicious of using the national guard at the border. Were you surprise the at all by that?

Alfredo Gutierrez:
First of all on the accountability point I just want to make the point that you and I have been reading a state of the states for perhaps 25 or 30 years. This is the first one that hasn't contained the word accountability. Someone should be fired. Instantly for that.

Michael Grant:
It's right there at the beginning of Webster's dictionary.

Alfredo Gutierrez:
Absolutely. It's the beginning of every State of the State. I was frankly not surprised. I'm not surprised for this reason, Michael. The ugliness of this issue, illegal immigration, undocumented workers, et cetera, is just rising at a level that is astonishing from proposition 200 to the present. It would have been stunning and perhaps the end of a career for democratic governor to propose this five years ago. And yet today, I suspect that one, most democrats are going to say, fine, okay, thank you very much. And it's going to divide the Hispanic community. Those Hispanics who are primarily English English-speaking who have been here 3 or 4 generations are going to say, well, let's see how it works.

Michael Grant:
Does support for a guest worker program help at all in that political case?

Alfredo Gutierrez:
It absolutely does. What's missing in the balance of all of this -- and the governor alluded to it -- is the state can do so much but it really isn't going to take that next step to resolving this issue without a guest worker program. And that really becomes a federal issue. But the governor can't win on waiting for congress to act. And so she took a step that's frankly with immigrant applicants, Spanish speaking Arizona ns and democrats, she is going to pay a price for. But the political calculus is that most Hispanic voters are bilingual and in the third generation.

Michael Grant:
Chuck, interestingly enough, you pointed out there's this half million a day elephant in the room. The governor did not address. That's the English language learning that has potential fines from the Flores case.

Chuck Coughlin:
Yes. That was the major subject of disagreement at the close of the last legislative session when the republican leadership felt they had an agreement with the governor and the governor subsequently vetoed some legislation. Another thing that was missing today, Michael, she was talking to us broadly as a group I think today rather than talking to the people who have the votes down there. Because ultimately, her agenda either succeeds or fails on the number of votes she can garner in the legislature. What I was surprised at was she didn't turn around with both Senate President Bennett and Speaker Weiers there, extend her hand and acknowledge the difficulty they had yesterday and said let's move forward and didn't talk about the Flores case in the speech. It didn't address the realities of the situation down there. And I expect there's going to be a big rumble down at 1700 West Washington for the next three or four months.

Michael Grant:
Would you expect the -- there were a series of bills the governor vetoed last year generally on the subject of immigration, id, local option to use local law enforcement to enforce immigration laws. Would you expect the legislature to be sending those across her desk to force her to make some difficult decisions in an election year?

Chuck Coughlin:
I do. I expect they'll send the Flores bill back up there. They'll say that they want accountability that those programs are teaching kids English and bringing them to proficiency. I expect they'll send some of those bills that you just mentioned back up there as lit must tests early on to see how she's going to play this session. And that's going to be -- I think the tail of the tape there will tell us a lot about how this session is going to go.

Michael Grant:
Does she reverse field on any of those subjects, Alfredo? Or does she stay the course?

Alfredo Gutierrez:
In the issue of immigration as I've said before she's only going to throw as many of us under the bus as necessary. No excess immigrant will be under the bus. In general, however, let's look back over the past few years. The fact of the matter is that they have sent her any number of bills specifically to embarrass her. And waiting for that one bill that was going to do it, do the trick. The fact in every instance she has dominated the legislature and won this battle. And I think it's about to happen again. Particularly republicans have to be very concerned about what's going on nationally. You might have 20, 40, 60 republican congressmen indicted, at least scandalized.

Michael Grant:
Maybe two democrats.

Alfredo Gutierrez:
Maybe one or two. But looking at mostly republicans. Let's face it. And I know that there are republicans that say, well, that's a national scandal that won't affect us. Look at water gate. It threw the republicans out in various states, this being one of them. So a national scandal is very specific to a party. So they're going to be very careful at the end of the day here. And they have to be very careful with her because she's particularly skillful and not.

Chuck Coughlin:
My colleague points out that she successfully has taken several of their issues and exploited them. One would argue that would be a success for republicans as he just admitted, part of that -- the immigration lobby got thrown under the bus here. Part of the republican mantra is enforce the laws as we have them today. I would consider that a moving of this governor towards the center on some of niece issues. Putting the National Guard on the border as he said five years ago unmanageable. I remember when I worked for Governor Simonton we discussed that aspect and he refused to do it at this time because of his respect for the Mexican government and the specific respects for the governor of Sonora. To say those kinds of things now to see how far this issue has come will say to me that she is tacking in the republican's direction in terms of issues. From my benefit that's good for everyone.

Michael Grant:
Let me shift to taxes. It seems to me that you've got two issues shaping up here. Number one, how much. And number two, where. You think the republicans will -- she seemed to be indicating -- we didn't get very many details here, but she seemed to be indicating some specific focus, maybe tax credits relief, that kind of thing. Is a large part of this discussion going to be broader-based tax relief as opposed to focus tax relief?

Chuck Coughlin:
I think the republicans are going to look at more systemic relief. Income tax reductions, those types of long-term benefits. Her proposals today as outlined roughly today looked at a three-day sales tax window break, some tax credits for small businesses that pay healthcare. Which I think is a wonderful idea.

Michael Grant:
Maybe some high tech.

Chuck Coughlin:
Maybe some high tech. She had some specific lobs that she threw into the pen today. But I think republicans will look at more systemic cuts. Because after all, state revenues are up 20% this year. Over the last few years they're up 15%. The budget has continued to go up and up and up as our revenues have gone up. So republicans want to stem some of that tide of the growth of government.

Michael Grant:
You now, Alfredo, interestingly enough and I think you were involved in one of these debates about 3.5 years ago, every one was complaining that we get too many tax credits and tax breaks for focused -- including the governor.

Alfredo Gutierrez:
Now we have the governor apparently -- and I say apparently because the speech on this point, as in many others, was insinuated certain things rather than said them explicitly. But the insinuation was clear that we are about to see a whole set of proposal the for new tax credits. Aid at specific industry, specific activity. The kind of thing that we thought three years ago was one of the great evils. You have to look as this speech, certainly in terms of policy as chuck just did. But you also have to look at it as the first major speak speech of the re-election campaign. If you look at it in those terms, this was a brilliant speech. And that's what I mean by eating their lunch. Because I think that republican leadership is looking at this in purely political term the, Michael.

Michael Grant:
Alfredo, thank you very much for joining us. Chuck Coughlin, thanks to you as well.

Chuck Coughlin:
Thank you, Michael.

Producer:
Republican leaders from the state house of representatives and the Arizona state senate give their take on governor Janet Napolitano's State of the State Address. Senate President Ken Bennett and House Speaker Jim Weiers join Michael grant to talk about their agenda for the 2006 legislative session. That's Tuesday at 7 pm on Horizon.

Michael Grant:
And Wednesday we'll take a look at the federal order requiring Arizona to provide adequate funding for English language learning programs. Thank you very much for joining us on this Monday state of the state. I'm Michael Grant. Have a great one. Good night.