RSS Feed MenuThe GOP’s Tea Party insurgency has officially set its sights on 2008 GOP Presidential candidate John McCain, its most ambitious target to date.
Earlier today, JD Hayworth, former “class of 1994” Congressman and Arizona talk radio host, officially entered the Arizona Republican Senate primary.
As if to brandish his far-right (and immigration hawk) credibility, Hayworth took the stage today in Phoenix with Sherriff Joe Arpaio and Minuteman Militia founder and (now former) GOP Senate candidate Chris Simcox.
Hayworth then cast his candidacy as a populist uprising against Washington:
You and I will be part of what will be a classic political match-up, with confrontation: John McCain and the Washington establishment on one side, and “WE THE PEOPLE” on the other. The other side has the establishment but we will take you – and everyone else.
For a majority of the speech, the former Congressman channeled the far-right’s most common complaints about McCain, slamming the Arizona Senator’s support for a proposed spending freeze, the 2009 economic stimulus package, cap and trade legislation, the shuttering of Guantanamo, and, of course, McCain’s own 2007 immigration bill.
Hayworth is McCain’s first serious primary challenge since entering the Senate. Rasmussen’s most recent survey gives McCain a large lead over Hayworth, but the challenger may gain momentum after his announcement.
The big question, however, is whether Hayworth can harness sufficient GOP grassroots anger at McCain and Washington to upend an Arizona and national political institution.
Though McCain has carried Arizona with large victories in the past, his statewide victories relied heavily on moderates, independents and voters from both parties and not the Republican rank-and-file.
Jim_M // Feb 15, 2010 at 10:12 pm
McCain’s time came and went years ago.
A great American, a bad senator and a horrendous Republican.
It will be tough for JD to beat him. But I hope he does.
mike farmer // Feb 15, 2010 at 10:28 pm
Unless Hayworth unequivocably denounces the birthers, he won’t win, and he won’t deserve to win. He can’t cynically play to the worst of the conservative base and gain wide support.
Jim_M // Feb 16, 2010 at 12:02 am
I had NO idea he was in with the birther crowd. Maybe Sheriff Joe should run =)
mike farmer // Feb 16, 2010 at 7:27 am
I don’t think he is “in” the birther movement — when asked about it, though, he continues to ask that Obama produce documents. This makes me believe he doesn’t think the issue is settled.
GOProud // Feb 16, 2010 at 7:30 am
former Rep Hayworth is a lot like other farRight conservative darhhhlings –like FreddieThompson or SarahPalin– lots of hot air (some of it brought to the game by the farLeft) but little “there” there. He’s spent the last few years building a fortune in the rash, harsh, angry, ugly world of talk radio on the AM dial… where dinosaurs still reign and anyone can pander to an audience that still thinks a rotary dial phone on the wall of the kitchen is just fine.
primaries are about competition; let Hayworth bring it on. McCain will still be standing the day after E-Day ‘10 –albeit with even more independent and moderate Democrat support than before.
Carney // Feb 16, 2010 at 9:00 am
What’s wrong with asking Obama to produce his birth certificate, and why won’t we do it?
Carney // Feb 16, 2010 at 9:01 am
Why won’t HE do it, that is. FrumForum really needs to catch up to 1995 and allow editing of past posts.
ProfNickD // Feb 16, 2010 at 5:19 pm
McCain is a moderate-conservative Republican, although unreliably so on certain issues. His lifetime ACu rating is 81.4 but in 2008 was 63.
http://www.acuratings.org/2008all.htm#AZ
J.D. Hayworth is more conservative than McCain, and more consistently so: his lifetime ACU rating is 97.5% and in 2006 was 95%.
http://www.acuratings.org/ratingsarchive/2006/2006House.htm
When the term “far-right” is used in a context such as this, it is flung around as a cheap pejorative suggesting a person is fascist, which Hayworth manifestly is not.
The issues that Hayworth attacks McCain on are perfectly legitimate conservative complaints: closing Guantanamo, cap and trade, unrestricted immigration, etc.
(Indeed, I would suggest that Hayworth is, in fact, in the mainstream of public opinion on these issues.)
So, is the FrumForum suggesting that these are either: a.) losing issues or 2.) “fascist” issues? If so, please provide evidence.
Otherwise, stop using “far-right” to describe “conservative” if you want to be taken seriously.
JonF // Feb 16, 2010 at 6:53 pm
Re: The issues that Hayworth attacks McCain on are perfectly legitimate conservative complaints: closing Guantanamo, cap and trade, unrestricted immigration, etc.
Please provide some evidence that McCain backs “unrestricted immigration”, and I mean literally, not just that he backs a more open policy than you regard as wise.