Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords wasted no time in getting an ad running against Republican Jesse Kelly, who won last night’s GOP contest and the chance to face the incumbent Democrat in November.
Giffords had this to say in a press release: “Congratulations to Jesse Kelly on receiving the Republican Party’s nomination tonight. I look forward to a serious discussion about Southern Arizona’s future with Mr. Kelly over the next 10 weeks.”
The National Republican Congressional Committee blasted Giffords in a press release:
Often described as a close ally to President Obama and the White House, Democrat incumbent and loyal lapdog Gabby Giffords embodies everything that is wrong with the out-of-touch Democrat majority. She has voted for the failed Democrat agenda almost 90 percent of the time and has readily supported everything from a failed trillion-dollar stimulus to a job-killing national energy tax and a disastrous healthcare bill. This kind of unbridled support may have won her popularity amongst the partisan Democratic caucus, but not with Arizona voters. However, Giffords’ biggest political weakness stems from her reluctance to
stand in favor of stronger border security measures — likely the most important issue on the minds of voters in this border district. After repeatedly putting Arizona’s economic vitality and jobs on the line, Giffords is now at risk of losing her own in November.
Republican nominee Jesse Kelly has a proven track record as a leader, having served in the United States Marine Corps during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He currently works as a project manager, running multi-million dollar infrastructure projects for his family’s construction business based in Tucson. In addition to his efforts in defending American freedoms and creating jobs in his local community, Jesse is also a proud husband and father to his wife Aubrey and infant son James.
After putting Arizona jobs at risk, Giffords may lose her own in November. With Kelly posing a strong challenge from the right and voter frustration mounting, it appears Giffords will finally be held accountable for her job-killing agenda this fall.
And the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee fired back at Kelly:
Jesse Kelly may have scored a come-from-behind victory in the Republican primary, but a closer look at his record shows just how out-of-touch Kelly is with the needs of southern Arizonans.
Kelly has called for “eliminate[ing] Social Security” which he also calls “the biggest pyramid scheme in history” and advocates privatizing Medicare — tearing the safety net out from underneath southern Arizonans.
Kelly wants to hike taxes by 23 percent on food, gas and clothes for middle class Arizonans, while reducing to zero taxes on corporations. He even called for reducing and eventually doing away with the minimum wage.
“There’s no question, Jesse Kelly’s views are not only out of the mainstream but dangerous for southern Arizonans,” said Andy Stone, Western Regional Press Secretary for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Kelly may be good for a sound bite, but he’s wrong for Arizona.”
This article appears in Aug 19-25, 2010.
who is the author here for the Giffords campaign? has this person never taken a college level economics course? if he/she did they would know that the minimum wage is the single biggest stimbling block to ANY business, ever. This is the truth! look it up. Kelly is purposing this due to the fact that it declines business growth and makes in impossible to keep up with inflation if we raise this burden on businesses each time its on the table. Fact is, businesses have less jobs and are less productive if they have a burden like the minimum wage.
He wants to get rid of social security because it is not being used in the manner it was intended for, and it costs our country and our taxes billions. People are retiring on the basis that they can “count on the social security covering them.” The program was introduced in the fourties for people coming out the depression and WWII who could no longer work at all, not for the leisure effects it has on america today. Get a clue.
Medicare – its a little bit of a trust issue but he wants to privatize healthcare because the government SHOULD NOT BE IN CONTROL OF IT! Dont you remember constitutional provinces? like for example that the point of the American experiment was to LIMIT the governemnt, not let them control everything, thinking they know best – WAKE UP! They dont! Business leaders know best, period. ITs a trust issue, its one or the other, and I choose private business. They know how to grow, save, and produce… not spend, spend, and spend us into debt like the governemnt.
My name is Shaun McAfee and i support Jesse Kelly.
Perhaps you mean small business Shaun, but the cost of health care, and the current privatization of that, is a huge cost to employer and/or employee and is another huge stumbling block to small businesses (who don’t have the leverage that larger companies do). The health care reform package provided financial support for these small businesses but jesse want to repeal that however. I would also assert that the minimum wage is not even close to a livable wage and to lower it further would only mean more need for those individuals to rely on government services to survive. These days older more experience people are taking low-income wages just to have a job and you want to further reduce their ability to support families? If it goes any lower kids living at home will be hired over older workers who actually need the income to survive.
Business leaders know best? The last few years have shown me that business leaders act in their own self interests and the interests of rich investors, not the interest of US employees or the country or the outsourcing of jobs to other countries, and mortgage and securities fraud would never have happened. Unfortunately a lot of the business leaders these days took bail out money (or stimulus money jesse?) while also giving huge bonuses and exorbitant paychecks.
Also, I must say that is the first time that I heard that ‘the point of the American experiment was to limit government’ – it was to form a different type of government (not a monarchy or dictatorship) to provide individuals representation that has a say where their taxes go (not eliminate them) and to provide protection for basic human rights.
Business leaders know best, huh? Businesses like DOW chemical, BP, and Monsanto? Let’s face it, businesses now how to make money, not take care of people. Social Security and Health Care are not the obstacles to business success, people are. People are a necessary means to an end and little more. The privatization and deregulation during the Bush administration was behind the near collapse of our economy, not social security and minimum wage. When we leave the decisions on how to take care of the population to business, we cease to be a population of individuals and become a population of disposable dollar signs.
My name is Tim Gibbs and completely support Gabrielle Giffords!
Upfront! I support Giffords. As a 65 year old I can tell you I know very few people who depend on social security for their total income. However, in fact I do know some, and none of them are in that position because they were lazy or stupid. Sometimes they made bad decisions, didn’t or couldn’t get enough education to get them out of minimum wage jobs all their lives, had too many children to support properly, couldn’t afford preventive medical care because minimum wage jobs don’t provide insurance, had trouble affording birth control, lost their houses or cars, and were often ripped off by American businesses and employers. Didn’t we just watch that Wall Street debacle in the last few years? Life isn’t perfect for everyone. The safety net in fact matters greatly, and all those things Kelly wants to eliminate are part of the safety net. Maybe he doesn’t realize as you get older your body breaks down and you get sick with debilitating disease or conditions that interfere with working. Medicare or death is the choice for an astounding number of people. Giffords gets it!