2010 will be the year for grassroots candidates not tied to the “political class” that has had their chance in public office. In AZ CD-8 there have been two candidates who have been working hard for the past year building organizations to take out liberal Congresswoman Gabirelle Giffords – Brian Miller and Jesse Kelly.
Then – alas – State Senator Jonathan Paton opts to run. I have spoken with Senator Paton and he seems like a nice enough guy but he has yet to answer specifically what was wrong with Miller or Kelly? His supporters say Miller and Kelly can’t win – I’m not so sure.
The most important task is to defeat the attitude that BIG GOVERNMENT IS THE ANSWER AND WE MUST PAYadvocated by liberals like Giffords. This should not be about incumbents looking for a promotion, unless there is quantifiable research (i.e. polling) that demonstrates that Kelly or Miller CANNOT win. I, for one, do not believe it exists.
Frankly, I have met both Kelly and Miller and they both impress me as being the real McCoy.
I find Miller more credible than Kelly, but they’re both good candidates. I can’t understand why Paton would enter the race. He offers nothing more positive than they do and certainly won’t run more effectively against Giffords. More of the same isn’t the way to win in 2010.
Dave