Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) has damaged himself incalculably as a national Republican leader by meekly accepting Donald Trump—the man who insulted him and his war record directly and personally—as his presidential nominee. Has this hurt him enough in his home state to deny him his Senate seat? Democratic challenger Ann Kirkpatrick believes it is, and she's got the well-organized and disciplined campaign to back that up.
"The biggest vulnerability I hear about John McCain is that he didn't stand up to Trump when Trump insulted him. People are just saying: ‘If he doesn't stand up for himself, he won't stand up for us'," Kirkpatrick says. "People just say ‘it's time. It's time.'" […]
"I looked at this race for a couple of months, I did a lot of study. You know, I think Arizona's been trending toward turning blue for the last 20 years," Kirkpatrick says. "It's just an issue of bringing people out to vote." […]
Kirkpatrick is steady and on-message in an interview, hammering McCain as an absentee senator more concerned with the national limelight while touting her relentless focus on the economy to help places like "hurting" Miami [AZ]. But Kirkpatrick shows her political acumen several times during an interview. She answers a question about whether Clinton is trustworthy directly ("Yes, I do") and readily tosses out a critique of Clinton's trade position.
"I'm opposed to the TPP and I think she's waffled a little bit on that," Kirkpatrick said. "We're watching that carefully."
Kirkpatrick is going to get a major assist from the Clinton campaign, which is expanding the map with a major ad buy in this red state, beginning with the hard-hitting "Role Models" ad that has been running in swing states all summer.
The six-figure investment by the Clinton campaign will be a regular reminder to habitual McCain voters—and everyone who is terrified by Trump—that their hero has remained steadfastly with the guy who has bullied and humiliated him.
Can you chip in with $3 to help Ann Kirkpatrick retire John McCain and turn the Senate blue?