On the same day that state Sen. Jonathan Paton resigned, Tucson City Councilman Rodney Glassman, who is exploring a run for U.S. Sen. John McCain’s seat this year, chimed in with a press release of his own, vowing to stay on the Tucson City Council at least until April so he can work on the city of Tucson’s budget woes.
Glassman tells The Range he sent out the bulletin because he “wanted reassure my constituents that my No. 1 priority is and will continue to be advocating for their priorities during these important upcoming budget discussions.”
But we suspect Glassman, the only Democrat who is talking about a real challenge to McCain, will still make the jump to the campaign trail later this year, especially now that J.D. Hayworth has challenged McCain from the right. Hell, if J.D. pulls off an upset victory, Glassman might actually have a shot at winning in November.
(BTW: I’ll be joining Bill Buckmaster over at Arizona Illustrated to interview Hayworth next Tuesday, March 2. Tune in at 6:30 p.m. on Channel 6.)
If Glassman does challenge McCain, he’ll have to give up his City Council seat under Arizona’s resign-to-run law. That means his council colleagues will get to name his replacement.
So far, the only person showing much interest in the seat is Paul Cunningham, son of former state lawmaker and Napolitano budget maven George Cunningham.
This article appears in Feb 18-24, 2010.
I think that it should also be said that Paul is man that has enormous heart and has a pretty good grasp on what we as a community needs.
George Cunningham is a great man, who did wonders for the state of Arizona and
the city of Tucson. With that being said, i do believe that it is time for his
son Paul Cunningham to shine. Paul takes pride in being a native Tucsonian. Paul not only cares about his community, but he takes an active part is trying to help both the youth of our community as well as make a difference in the community we all live in. Paul has a love for Tucson that goes beyond measures. From organizing events to benefit teenagers through Team Tucson (an organization he helped found) to coaching youth soccer to taking an active interest in the Rio Nuevo project; Paul not only listens, but he cares and he tries his best to make a difference. Paul isn’t just a “talker” he is a do-er. He is one of a kind and someone that you can count on.