Being A Progressive Isn't Like A Clothing Style Change Or A New Hair Do-- And Barbara McGuire Isn't A Progressive

Conservative Arizona Democrats McGuire and O'Halleran

Blue Dog Tom O'Halleran served in the Arizona House of Representatives (as a Republican) from 2001 to 2006. He won a state Senate seat 2006 but was defeated in a GOP primary in 2008. He never served in the same chamber at the same time with conservative Democrat Barbara McGuire. She won a state House seat in 2006 and was defeated in 2010. Two years later she won a state Senate seat and lost it to GOP crackpot Frank Pratt-- the same guy who beat O'Halleran-- in 2016. While she served in the legislature she had "A" ratings from the NRA and a 100% from the Arizona Citizens Defense League. Environmental and immigrants rights groups didn't score her quite as well-- a "D" from the Border Action Network and "D"s and "F"s from the Sierra Club.

When she announced she would challenge O'Halleran for his congressional seat. she admitted she is a conservative, something that would be hard to deny with her crappy voting record. My thought was that her presence in the race would help the Blue America-endorsed candidate, Eva Putzova, since the two conservatives would cannibalize each other's support while stalwart progressive Eva Putzova would be able to appeal to Democratic primary voters who want to see Medicare For All, the Green New Deal, a $15 minimum wage, free public colleges, etc.

This week, Jeremy Duda wrote for the Arizona Mirror that "despite" McGuire's "reputation as a 'moderate' during her years in the legislature, she’s challenging him from the left." Huh? That sounds authentic-- not!

According to the website FiveThirtyEight, O’Halleran votes with President Donald Trump 38.8 percent of the time, more than any of the other four Democrats in Arizona’s House delegation. Nationally, only three other Democratic House members vote with Trump more than O’Halleran.

O’Halleran already has one primary challenger, former Flagstaff City Councilwoman Eva Putzova, a progressive. But McGuire told the Arizona Mirror that she, too, will be running against O’Halleran from the left, despite her own 'moderate' record.

“I am a centrist consensus-building lifelong Democrat where, in my opinion, he is and has become far-right leaning,” McGuire said via text message.

McGuire, who lives in Kearney, declined to elaborate on what issues she believes O’Halleran has become too conservative, and said she’ll comment further when she officially launches her campaign later this week.

Funny-- she and O'Halleran are like the Bobbsey Twins. If McGuire was serious as a bona-fide progressive candidate, she would have probably taken down her old website sprinkled with NRA endorsements and pro-Chamber, pro-mining statements. If she was serious as an honest conservative candidate, she would have at least updated her online profile. But she is neither and that begs the question why she is running or who is pulling the strings behind the scene. This is not about her but about the contest between O'Halleran and Putzova. Please consider contributing to the very grassroots campaign of the one progressive champion running in Arizona-- for any federal seat-- so far this cycle: Eva Putzova. You can do that by click on the Blue America 2020 primaries thermometer of the right.

I'm Losing Track Of How Many Republicans The DCCC Has Recruited To Run For Congress This Year

Tom O’Halleran, a 70 year old conservative Republican, served in the Arizona House from 2001 to 2006 and then served in the state Senate until 2009, when he lost his primary to fringe nut Steve Pierce. A former policeman, he makes his living as a bond trader and talk radio host.

In 2014, angry the Republican legislature wasn't dealing with a water issue, he quit the GOP and re-registered as an Independent and ran for the state Senate again when Republican Chester Crandell fell off a horse and died. O’Halleran was defeated by Republican Sylvia Allen. So last August the DCCC recruited him to switch his registration again and run for the House seat conservative New Dem Ann Kirkpatrick is giving up in her suicidal race against John McCain.

You'd be hard-pressed to find the word "Democrat" on his website, which gives you no idea how he's likely to vote in Congress, although there is a big endorsement from defeated right-wing Blue Dog, Ron Barber, who spent most of his short ugly time in Congress crossing the aisle to vote with the Republicans against working families.

His last batch of ratings from groups that watch state legislators included a 50% from Planned Parenthood, a "C" from the Sierra Club, a "D" from immigration rights activists Border Action Network, a 50% from Equality Arizona and, last year, 59% from Stonewall Democrats of Arizona. The state gun nut association gave him an A+.

An actual Democrat, state Senator Barbara McGuire has an exploratory committee for the seat but the DCCC is ignoring her and Kirkpatrick has endorsed O’Halleran. And the GOP will have a lively primary to pick their candidate. In October Studboi1 announced he was also running for the seat, but under the other name he uses, Paul Babeu. He'll be battling it out with Arizona's ex-Secretary of State Ken Bennett and Gary Kiehne, a rich rancher. Studboi1, who goes into graphic descriptions of his genitals on sex hook-up sites, has his own sordid sources of raising money for his campaigns. And the DCCC couldn't come up with anything better than some tired Republican retread to put up for the seat?!?!?!