The Arizona Republic fka The Arizona Republican has long existed to support Republican candidates. But The Republic appears to be having a tough time supporting Arizona’s incumbent Republican congressional delegation.
Back in February, the Arizona Republic editorialized, Our View: Rep. Paul Gosar is a disgrace to Arizona. Somebody please unseat him. The editors were encouraging a primary challenge that didn’t happen. But Gosar does have a credible general election opponent, Dr. David Brill.
And who can forget that Rep. Paul Gosar’s siblings endorse his opponent … on video.Rep. Paul Gosar’s siblings have criticized him before. This time they’ve decided that they could no longer stand by their brother – at all – and have endorsed his opponent, Democrat David Brill. Even providing him with a video to be used as a campaign commercial. “Listen to them.”
The Republic similarly editorialized against the equally awful David Schweikert. 5 reasons a Democrat could win David Schweikert’s seat, even in a Republican stronghold:
Some of us on The Arizona Republic editorial board have been interviewing candidates for endorsement for 20 years or more. And the Democrats running in this race make up one of the strongest panels we’ve seen. All three are accomplished people with energy and magnetism.
If the Democratic Party has suffered from a weak bench in recent decades, those days may be over. We believe we are looking at the future of the party in these three candidates, and that they could be important leaders one day in Arizona.
Anita Malik: The daughter of east Indian immigrants, she knows the district well. She grew up attending Scottsdale public schools. A graduate in computer information systems and finance at Arizona State University with a masters in journalism from the University of Southern California, Malik was the chief operating officer of a content technology company, a job she left to run for Congress.
Her primary focus would be the development of emerging industries in the economy. “Every issue is a jobs issue,” Malik said, and that means she will be looking at all legislation under the lens of job creation. She would promote economic innovation and simplify the tax code.
Her health-care agenda is progressive, calling for universal coverage through Medicare for All. She would allow insurance providers to sell across state lines and would consolidate aspects of Medicare, the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
On the immigration front, she would put DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipients on a path to citizenship.
Then there is right-wing wingnut and conspiracy theorist, Andy Biggs, the former $10 million Publisher’s Clearinghouse winner 26 years ago. Biggs has never met a conspiracy theory he didn’t like to promote. He is into the ‘Deep State’ Conspiracy Theory.
Biggs filed a motion to censure Rep. Maxine Waters over her suggestion that members of the Trump administration should be confronted in public. Oh, the horror of being held accountable for their actions.
Biggs wrote an op-ed for USA Today, The Republic’s parent company, calling Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation a “witch hunt”, despite top Trump campaign officials and advisers having been convicted or plead guilty (and more indictments to come shortly after election day). E.J. Montini of The Republic responded, Rep. Andy Biggs should shut up about Robert Mueller.
And Biggs is hyping anti-immigrant hysteria over the GOP’s propagandistic “crisis” over the caravan in southern Mexico. Look at the caravan’s actions, and you’ll see their wicked intent. Biggs is a Trump twin.
Andy Biggs is a horrible person, but The Republic has not editorialized against Biggs with the same distaste as Reps. Gosar and Schweikert (above), but it should have.
The Republic has the chance to endorse Joan Greene, a pro-business Democrat who wants a single-payer system, declaring health care to be a right. Greene also wants to provide debt-free college and more robust K-12 education in areas like science, technology, engineering and math.
Greene offers a stark contrast to Biggs, who has established himself as one of the most far-right reactionary members of the House in his first term.
He was the only member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus to vote against the GOP-led health-care overhaul that passed that chamber only to fail in the Senate with Arizona Sen. John McCain’s dramatic thumbs down. Biggs voted against his party’s plans because he viewed them as doing too little to repeal the Affordable Care Act, former President Barack Obama’s signature legislative achievement.
Biggs has supported funding President Donald Trump’s border wall and was among the Trump loyalists who supported impeaching Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who oversees the special counsel’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and possible obstruction of justice afterward.
It’s time for The Republic editors to step up and do the right thing with an endorsement of Joan Greene.
Hear, hear!