Don Sorchych My ViewJUNE 16, 2010

Shadegg’s seat

 

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Early voting begins on July 27 and the elections are held on Aug. 24. So it seems candidates are running at full speed.

The Daisy Mountain VFW held a well-organized forum for 10 Republican candidates seeking to fill John Shadegg’s Congressional seat made available by his decision to not seek reelection.

bil canfield editorial cartoon
For a while there were 14 candidates, but the lack of sufficient signatures reduced the current total to the 10 appearing on Wednesday night.

The candidates were seated in alphabetical order at a long table where they shared four microphones. Each candidate was given two minutes to say their hellos and abbreviated platforms.

After their brief introductions, committee-selected questions were asked of each candidate, rotating the order sequentially.

The meeting ended after allowing three minutes for closing speeches.

The candidates were practiced after numerous forums. If you want to know more about them, they all have websites:
Bob Branch, college professor, at: Branch2010.com
Sam Crump, attorney, at: samcrump.com
Pamela Gorman, former state senator, at: gorman2010.com
Leann Hull, businesswoman, at: leeannhullforcongress.com
Steve Moak, businessman, at: moakforcongress.com
Paulina Morris, attorney, at: paulinaforcongress.com
Vernon Parker, consultant, at: parker2010.com
Ben Quayle, attorney, at: quayleforcongress.com
Jim Waring, former state Senator, at: jimwaring.com
Ed Winkler, retired businessman, at: winklerforcongress.com

In forums like these you will hear what candidates think you want to hear. Most had conservative messages, which may or may not be representative of their performance in Washington. Washington has a way of shaping many into unrecognizable forms. Barry Goldwater was unusual because he told the truth, as he saw it, and the devil be damned.

John McCain is a good example of a legislator who tells you what he wants you to hear. He is now playing Mr. Conservative. Do you really believe that? McCain will not only vote for amnesty, he will cross the aisle and help his cause with Democrat support. If he wins, his six year term will be his last. What does he care if Arizona voters don’t like it? And further, you can thank Obama’s Chicago thug administration to McCain’s unwillingness to tell the public what a disaster Obama would be. There was plentiful truth in such a prediction based on public information, although there is more damaging information Obama has buried with the help of attorneys.

It is scary that McCain’s huge war chest is allowing snarling and half truth ads to damage J.D. Hayworh, but I am afraid it is working. McCain, if he wins, will further prove that elections can be bought. At last look McCain had over $15 million while J.D. only had only a little more that one million.

I hope the voting public shrugs aside McCain’s promises and expenditures and send him home. But the same voting public voted for an 18 percent increase in sales tax.

Why?

Because the recipients of that largesse put $2.5 million into a propaganda campaign while dissidents had no funding to oppose it.

Obama’s huge war chest was another example of the power of large campaign funds. More recently, in California, former eBay CEO Meg Whitman spent $80 million of her own money to win the Republican primary.

I have seen no recent polls on the competition but the consensus seems to be that Quayle is leading. I will say that, although this is his first run for office, he was impressive. Since his father, Dan Quayle, has a reach nationwide I have no doubt Ben’s campaign chest will swell.

I have said Vernon Parker had an early start due to hiring Rose & Allen. Joe Arpaio’s endorsement hasn’t hurt either. The connection with Rose & Allen probably resulted in the endorsement, since Arpaio uses the firm also.

Parker was the only candidate that decided to hot dog it. Rather than speak from the assigned table position he got up, ignored the microphone and strolled into the audience to give his introduction. I would call that a narcissistic gesture.

Parker has yet to sue the government for the statements made about his employment with the Small Business Association. He filed An Notice of Claim, but his attorney Paul Charlton has not returned calls. Former U.S. attorney Charleton was one of eight U.S attorneys booted by the Bush administration. Linda Bentley is researching the statements and will write an article before early voting.

Jim Waring made a statement that he, unlike his colleagues, did not meet with lobbyists and did noble things like helping battered women. Well I know of one case where he pimped a bill to reduce a Republican Precinct Committeeman’s tax bill. He also met with the president of the CCUSD school board and failed in trying to allow school boards to use bond funds for other purposes than the reason the bond was voted for in the first place. Mark Warren, school board president at the time, did not have school board approval to do this; he apparently did it on his own.

Another that lost my vote was Paulina Morris who proudly affirmed she had fully supported proposition 100, the 18 percent state sales tax increase. That is a RINO attitude if there ever was one.

I am disappointed that Sam Crump has only raised $66,375. He is an impressive conservative and his endorsement by the 100 percent anti-illegal alien and former Congressman Tom Tancredo speaks volumes. Let’s hope he is able to get his message out.

Pam Gorman is another impressive conservative who has raised $37,318. She has had the backing of the local tea party and has a good voting record in the state Senate.

Carl Moak has raised $320,465, second to Quayle. Moak has a business background and gave a conservative presentation.

Edwin Winkler is retired from IBM, has two small businesses, served on the Paradise Valley City Council and as mayor. He has raised $47,840 and also gave a stirringly conservative speech.

I am told there have been numerous forums and I suspect that any of the web pages I gave above will help you to find them. Sonoran News wishes most of the candidate’s success.