McSally’s bipartisan politics shine in primary race
The stakes are high for whoever wins retiring U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake’s seat.
Politico ranked Arizona No. 4 of 10 Senate races with the potential to change political parties, particularly if the matchup is between U.S. Reps. Martha McSally and Kyrsten Sinema.
But talking about that race would be skipping ahead, and you’ll have to forgive us for that.
What’s at stake in the primary?
Some folks (including, apparently, McSally) have already written off the August primary, because frequent polling suggests that she already has the Republican nomination in the bag.
But the polls could be wrong. And conservative voters could still turn out en masse for McSally’s challengers. The tea leaves in Arizona – and across the nation – are hard to read this year.
That’s why your informed vote in the primary matters. You don’t want to leave a race with possible national implications to everyone else, do you?
Is it really a race to the right?
Most coverage of this race has focused on how McSally has moved right – particularly on immigration – to make herself more competitive in a three-way race with former state Sen. Kelli Ward and former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.
McSally disputes this characterization, saying she has always touted strong border security and that she has voted Trump’s position on issues 97 percent of the time.
But McSally is speaking more favorably these days about the president she once distanced herself from. And she did remove her sponsorship from a more moderate bill to protect DACA recipients from deportation and join Republicanonly efforts to tie DACA with border wall funding, which also were unsuccessful.
That puts her in a precarious position, should she win the primary, because while some on the right have said she hasn’t moved far enough right to be a true conservative, others on the left have criticized her for moving too far that way, making her out of touch with most general-election voters.
McSally has been walking that tightrope for months.
So, is immigration the main issue?
Yes, and that makes sense for a border state like Arizona, which acutely experiences the benefits and consequences of legal and illegal immigration.
Arizona is home to a large number of “dreamers,” those who were brought to this country illegally as children, and has about 4 percent of the nation’s DACA recipients, who were granted temporary work permits to remain in the country.
That program is expiring, and for months Congress has been arguing over what to do to help them – and which party is to blame for the inaction.
Whoever wins this seat will hold a key vote on future immigration legislation.
Ward has been most vocal in her support for a border wall, saying that it must be funded before we offer what Ward calls “amnesty” to DACA recipients.
McSally, meanwhile, was careful in an interview with The Republic to tout funding for border security, not just a border wall, noting that while she agrees there should be some sort of physical barrier, border security includes other components. She also has written that border security must be funded alongside a DACA solution – not necessarily before it.
Arpaio did not meet with or complete our candidate questionnaire, but his website touts both the border wall and additional measures to secure the border. He also has said that DACA recipients should be deported.
Where do the candidates stand on other issues?
Let’s face it: If you’re voting for Arpaio, you probably don’t care where he stands on tariffs. Even as sheriff, he was long on bluster and short on specifics. So, not surprisingly, there are a lot of blanks in his platform. But as for McSally and Ward:
❚ Both want to keep NAFTA, citing its benefits to Arizona farmers and manufacturers, but say the trade agreement should be updated.
❚ Both say they would vote for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and note that, in general, justices should interpret the Constitution based on its authors’ original intent.
❚ Both say they’d vote to make temporary tax cuts on individuals permanent. Ward says she’d lower the corporate rate even further and do more to consolidate tax brackets. McSally said she’d keep the corporate rate where it is and only that the tax code is something to continuously update.
❚ Ward calls Obamacare a “cancer” and wants to repeal it; McSally initially signaled support for a repeal but then signed on to a bipartisan fix, saying you fight the battle you’re in, not the one you wish you had.
Has McSally really changed her stripes?
Of the three GOP candidates, McSally is the only one with experience making policy in Congress. She has a track record of working with folks on the other side of the aisle to get things done.
Sure, most of McSally’s accomplishments in the House have been smaller bills. But in this hyper-partisan atmosphere, even passing small bills is a feat.
McSally has been vague throughout the primary. She has no “issues” section on her website, did not fill out our candidate questionnaire and is refusing to debate Ward.
That’s disappointing, because this is an open Senate seat. Voters deserve as many specifics from the candidates’ own mouths as possible to make an informed choice.
Maybe McSally is pulling a John McCain (remember his “build the danged fence” moment?) to survive a hotly contested primary from two conservative challengers.
If she wins the primary – McSally is the most qualified for a Senate seat, though Ward has more command of the issues than many give her credit for – we hope she pivots back to being the bipartisan fighter from a swing district.
The Senate needs more people like her with the ability to represent diverse constituents.