Arizona Republican Party

Legislators Propose Forcing High School Students to Swear to Defend Constitution in Order to Graduate

"Finally, our state legislators are making sure Arizona's teenagers will ask for the Lord's help defending the Constitution before they're allowed to earn a high school diploma." --NobodyIf a handful of Republican state legislators have their way, high school students in Arizona would not be allowed ... More >>

Arizona GOP's Proposed Bylaws Revive Joe McCarthy, Witch Hunts, Loyalty Oaths

The Arizona Republican Party is the gift that keeps on giving. Last week, the Maricopa County GOP picked raging aggro gay-hater A.J. LaFaro as its chairman, a choice Dems are giddy over because it leaves the local Republican Party in the complete control of wigged-out moonhowlers, further alienati ... More >>

Joe Arpaio's Birther Bud Tom Morrissey Punks Out of GOP Chair Race; Russell Pearce Could Still Play Spoiler to Bob Graham

GOP blogging badass Jeff Vath of PolitocoMafioso fame was the first to report the news that Arizona Republican Party Chair Tom Morrissey is punking out on his bid for re-election at the party's January 26 state committee meeting, where new officers will be elected. Morrissey has since issued a st ... More >>

Is Arizona GOP Chairman Tom Morrissey a "Birther"?

Arizona Republican Party chairman Tom Morrissey insists he is not a "birther."However, Morrissey says, "In my opinion, what I have seen from the president, produced as a birth certificate, does not convince me that it is a real document."See also:-Arizona GOP Chairman Tom Morrissey Says He's Not a " ... More >>

GOP, Congressman Jeff Flake, Under Fire Over Misleading Robocalls, State Democrats Ask FBI to Investigate Congressman's Calls

Carl Blackburn's answering machine picked up a curious robocall from the Arizona Republican Party a couple days ago -- and it sounded like the local Catholic church was directly urging voters to vote Republican. It went like this: "The St. Margaret's Catholic Church, 2435 East McArthur Drive in Te ... More >>

Bill Montgomery Joins in on Useless Demand for Kyrsten Sinema's Client List as an Attorney

Over the past couple of weeks, the Arizona Republican Party, supporting Republican congressional candidate Vernon Parker, has demanded that Parker's Democratic opponent, Kyrsten Sinema, release a list of her clients as a criminal-defense attorney.The odds of that happening are pretty close to zero, ... More >>

Joe Arpaio's Republican National Convention Role Doesn't Exist, So He'll Be at a Nearby Zoo

Sheriff Joe Arpaio will be in Tampa next week during the Republican National Convention.He's not actually part of the convention, though -- he'll be giving a speech to an audience of people and exotic animals at a zoo about seven miles away from the Tampa Bay Times Forum, where the actual GOP heavyw ... More >>

Richard Carmona Helping Injured Republican Has State GOP Spokesman Concerned About HIPAA Violations

When word got out last week that Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Richard Carmona gave some medical advice to a Republican campaign worker with an apparent leg injury, fellow Democrats were loving the feel-good moment.The Arizona Republican Party -- or at least, its spokesman -- is suspicious of a " ... More >>

Jan Brewer Not Pointing Her Finger at Something in You Write the Caption

Governor Jan Brewer was in Washington this week to defend the controversial immigration law known as SB 1070 -- or as Brewer called it, a trip to "defend our state against President Obama, Eric Holder and the Justice Department."Brewer's been taking full advantage of 1070's date with the Supreme Cou ... More >>

Debbie Lesko's Freedom-Hating Anti-Birth-Control Bill

Republicans. I know some of them are sane here in Sand Land, but you wouldn't know it by their wingnutty hijinks in the state Legislature this year, where they've placed a birther-bill, a late-term abortion ban and a state-funded border militia ahead of doing anything to aid the economy, bring jobs ... More >>

Mitt Romney's Fallen to Just Three Points Ahead in Arizona: Could Paul Babeu's Scandal Sink Him in Sand Land?

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney leads ex-U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania Rick Santorum by a mere three percentage points as they and other Republican candidates speed toward Arizona's GOP presidential primary, just one week away. This, according to a survey just released by the North Caroli ... More >>

Russell Pearce's Ban Amnesty Now Shills Old Canards for Cash

Twelve-point loser, radio lip-flapper and second vice chair of the Arizona GOP Russell Pearce owes his entire political existence, such as it is, to illegal immigrants and the racist lies he spews about them on a regular basis.Former Arizona GOP executive director Sean McCaffrey has given the marble ... More >>

Russell Pearce Nabs First Vice Chair, Ron Paul Dominates Straw Poll at State GOP Meeting

Ex-state Senate President Russell Pearce began slithering back into relevancy this Saturday during the Arizona GOP's winter meeting, held at Phoenix's Church for the Nations, where he was elected to the party's First Vice Chair position.Despite an embarrassing 12-point loss to fellow Republican Jerr ... More >>

Russell Pearce Scores GOP Chairman Tom Morrissey's Endorsement for First Vice Chair

Unless you frequent right wing blogs such as Sonoran Alliance or SeeingRedAZ, you may have missed the tidbit that disgraced ex-state Senator Russell Pearce has won the endorsement of Arizona GOP Chair Tom Morrissey for the unpaid position Pearce is seeking: First Vice Chair of the Arizona Republican ... More >>

Arizona GOP Presidential Primary Likely Another Race For Second Place; Mitt Romney Holds Double-Digit Lead

​Arizona's GOP presidential primary, like New Hampshire's, will likely be another race for second place -- according to a recently released poll, former Massachusetts Governor (and one-time Joe Arpaio butt-smoocher) Mitt Romney has a double-digit lead over each of his opponents in the "Colt Single ... More >>

Russell Pearce, Wanna-Be First Vice Chair of the State GOP?

File this one under, "Something wicked this way comes." The non-crazy GOP blog Politico Mafioso is reporting that disgraced nativist standard bearer, recalled ex-state Senate President Russell Pearce is seeking the position of First Vice Chair of the Arizona Republican Party, where he'd be carrying ... More >>

Russell Pearce's Supporters' Claims of "Massive Voter Registration Fraud" Contradicted by Elections Officials

Will Linda Bentley's bogus allegations save this guy? Not a chance...As of Monday morning, Maricopa County Elections Director Karen Osborne said the county had validated 10,356 signatures from petitions seeking the recall of state Senate President Russell Pearce. That's 2,600 more than the 7,75 ... More >>

Jan Brewer's Special Session, and the GOP's Hypocrisy

Senate President Pearce: A life spent sucking on the public spigot...Extending unemployment benefits to around 15,000 Arizonans still looking for work should be a no-brainer, assuming the wingnuts at the state Capitol had a pound of gray matter among 'em.It's federal money that's pumped into the sta ... More >>

Brett Mecum Gets the Boot From Position as Arizona GOP's Executive Director, Sources Say

The Arizona GOP apparently has had enough of Brett Mecum, a.k.a. Captain Fellatio (pictured above).​Brett Mecum, the now-former executive director of the Arizona Republican Party, has been given the ax by the state GOP, multiple sources within the Party confirm to New Times.Frankly, we're sh ... More >>

April 28 In Blogs: Mark Spencer, Spanish Fly Mexican Beach Club, Jet Life, Gourmutt, and Mark Spinks

​​​In the 24-hour news cycle, it can be difficult to keep up. We have the solution. Check back on Valley Fever every evening for highlights from each of New Times' blogs. Today's entries:

Republican Party Chairman Tom Morrissey's GOP Headquarters Heating Up -- and it's Not Just the Broken Air Conditioner

Some GOPers aren't happy with newly elected state Republican Party Chairman Tom Morrissey.​The air conditioning at Arizona's Republican Party headquarters is broken, it's been broken, and it may be a while until it's fixed. But it's not just the temperature that's heating up within the state's Gra ... More >>

Fiesta Bowl Fiasco: Arizona Dems Make it Political -- Despite Some of Their Own Having Benefitted From John Junker's (Ahem) Generosity

​By now you probably know about the Fiesta Bowl's decision to ax CEO John Junker following an internal investigation into how he was spending the organization's money, but it's the alleged illegal contributions to the campaigns of Valley politicos that has Arizona Democrats fuming.Junker, the ... More >>

Michele Bachmann's Coming to Town; Just When You Thought Arizona Was at Its Capacity for Nutty Politicians

house.gov​Arizona's just about overflowing with wacky politicos: Governor Jan Brewer, Senate President Russell Pearce, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, maybe Sarah Palin, and many, many others. But it apparently ain't a party until Tea Party overlord Michele Bachmann shows up. The Arizona Repu ... More >>

Randy Pullen Out as Arizona GOP Chair

Glory days: Pullen being sworn in as chairman in 2009, after defeating Lisa Allen Randy Pullen, chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, has announced via Twitter that he will not seek reelection at the next state party meeting on January 22. This follows the news that Pullen had no ... More >>

Nov. 18 In Blogs: Randy Pullen, Have Sex With a Guy With a Mustache Day, Roger Clyne, Turkey Tips, and Gustavo Arellano

​​​In the 24-hour news cycle, it can be difficult to keep up. We have the solution. Check back on Valley Fever every evening for highlights from each of New Times' blogs. Today's entries:

Wes Gullett, Former John McCain Operative, to Run For Mayor of Phoenix

www.uli.org Wes Gullett​We heard a little rumor the other day that Wes Gullett, a deputy campaign manager for Senator John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign and a long-time operative within Arizona's GOP, planned on running for mayor of Phoenix. Today, Gullett confirmed the rumor -- ... More >>

Conflicting Poll Numbers For AG's Race Prompt "Thank You" to Republicans From Arizona Dems

www.vote-az.orgDemocratic candidate for attorney general, Felecia Rotellini​As always, we take all polls with a grain of salt. And two polls -- one released by the Arizona Republican Party, and one released by the Republican candidate for Attorney General, Tom Horne -- are part of the reason why.T ... More >>

Barack Obama's Medical Check-Up Resurrects Obama-Cig Photo Used by the Arizona GOP

​President Obama went to the doctor yesterday for his first check-up since taking office. The appointment revealed that the hope and change hero takes anti-inflammatory medication to relieve chronic tendinitis in his left knee, and that he should eat better to lower his cholesterol. It also reveal ... More >>

County GOP Leader Wants "Fraud Audit" of Party's Books After $50K is Found Missing From Spending Report

www.marketoracle.com​Arizona Republican Party Executive Director Brett Mecum seems to think that the $50,000 left off of the organization's latest spending report is "all good," but another GOP bigwig is calling for an independent audit of the party's books. Yuma County Republican Party Cha ... More >>

GOPer Brett Mecum Says Party's Unreported $50k is "All Good"

Arizona Republican Party Executive Director Brett Mecum​The Arizona Republican Party is reported to have received $50,000 from the National Republican Committee to help build a grassroots effort to help strengthen the party. However, the latest spending reports show no record of the transact ... More >>

GOPer Brett Mecum Called "Creepy Around Women" in Criminal Stalking Complaint

Mecum's mug shot following his arrest for criminal speeding back in May​Arizona Republican Party Executive Director Brett Mecum is "creepy around women," according to a complaint filed with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.A criminal complaint, dredged up by the Yellow Sheet, was filed a ... More >>

Republican Party and Sheriff's Command Association Players Sued by Former Sheriff's Candidate Dan Saban

  Dan Saban​Dan Saban, former candidate for sheriff of Maricopa County, has filed a lawsuit against the Arizona Republican Party and those involved with the shady SCA, a.k.a. Sheriff's Command Association. It could be argued that the public was -- and continues to be -- damaged by the ... More >>

Andrew Thomas "Hasn't Decided" What to Do About SCA

The indecisive Andrew Thomas ...​Maricopa County Elections Department Director Karen Osborne referred the SCA case to his office earlier this month -- saying she'd found reasonable cause to believe that "a number of individuals and entities acted alone and in concert" to violate state campaign fin ... More >>

Randy Pullen, Under Investigation by AG Goddard, Now Calls for Goddard to Be Investigated

​Arizona Republican Party Chairman Randy Pullen called for an investigation into Attorney General Terry Goddard at a press conference yesterday -- but failed to mention that Goddard's office is currently investigating Pullen.In fact, in Pullen's remarks, which you can see in this video posted to w ... More >>

Joel Fox Met with Chris Baker to Discuss SCA Donation -- GOP Consultant Now Linked to Scandal

​It's one mystery solved, a few more to go.Thanks to documents unsealed today in Pinal County Superior Court at New Times' behest, we now know the liaison between the Arizona Republican Party and Sheriff's Captain Joel Fox.It's a Republican campaign consultant, Chris Baker.Arizona Re ... More >>

SCA Donors Knew Their Money was Going to Sheriff Joe Arpaio -- and That Could Mean Trouble for the State GOP

All the Sheriff's Men: The SCA Campaign-Finance Scandal is Linked to Sheriff Joe Arpaio's Chief Deputy David Hendershott

Speed-Camera Case Against State Republican Party Director Brett Mecum Dismissed by Judge

  No surprise here: Anti-photo-enforcement Judge John Keegan has dismissed the speed camera case against Arizona Republican Party Director Brett Mecum. Keegan, justice of the peace for the Arrowhead Justice Court, has tossed hundreds of photo-enforcement cases because he believes the syste ... More >>

County: Republican Party had Negative Balance After Illegal Donation Returned; Implies Money Went to Smear Ads

The Arizona Republican Party last year returned the dirty $105,000 donated by the mysterious "Sheriff's Command Association." But in doing so, it left the party with a massive negative balance. That's because it had already spent a good chunk of the money, app ... More >>

The Bird Documents Randy Pullen’s Smear of Lisa James and Hobnobs with Democrats and Republicans

Dems Don Bivens, Maria Weeg Get Love from Sonoran Alliance; Sean McCaffrey Leaves AZ GOP

Maria Weeg, aka, "the Weeg-ster": Her resemblance to erstwhile Dukakis campaign aide Susan Estrich, is striking.It's gotta be cold comfort for Arizona Democratic Party Chairman "Dandy" Don Bivens and Executive Director Maria Weeg to be getting love from the ideological Cro-Magnons over at the Sonora ... More >>

The Dirty on Nik Richie, Post-it Note Ninjas, and SCA-Gate — All Within This Owl’s Talons

SCA-Gate Investigator to MCSO Commander Joel Fox: Show Us the Records

An independent law firm investigating whether a Maricopa County Sheriff's Office commander illegally funneled money to the Arizona Republican Party is demanding that the commander produce a list of donors by December 1. But, in a letter to that investigator, Commander Joel Fox (pictu ... More >>

John McCain Graciously Lost so AZ Can Have a GOP Governor

Our own Senator John McCain reportedly put out a statement today in support of President-Elect Barack Obama's pick of Governor Janet Napolitano as head of homeland security. Um, duh.

Secretary of State Finds "Reasonable Cause" to Believe Arizona GOP Broke the Law

By Sarah Fenske The Arizona Secretary of State has found "reasonable cause" to believe the Arizona Republican Party broke the law by accepting $105,000 in contributions from a high ranking member of Sheriff Joe Arpaio's staff. The finding came last week, according to public records obtained by New ... More >>

The AZ GOP Slandered Dan Saban and Used Funny Money for Sheriff Joe. This Lifelong Republican Has Had Enough

Gerald Richard Says Arpaio-Henchman David Hendershott Offered Up Damaging Info on Dan Saban (w/Update).

Nudist GOP camps for kids? Sure, just keep your hands off my Horst Kraus.

Primary Post-Mortem

You know it was a weird election if The Spike is actually missing John McCain

A peek at how the power companies played the political game in 1998: