This post also appeared on my blog Rum, Romanism and Rebellion.
The Republicans have finally found themselves a candidate to run against Governor Janet Napolitano next year. No, I don't mean Teresa Ottesen or Keith DeGreen; I mean a serious candidate.
Former State Senate President
John Greene made a
quick announcement today. I found it very suprising; I hadn't seen his name floated before. Turns out that he made a point of not letting his name hang out there or taking the time to set up any sort of organization. He just decided to announce. Sort of refreshing...well...not really.
Greene was President of the Senate durring the bad old days of the Symington administration. He used his office on behalf of Symington to go after enemies, most particularly State School Superintendent Lisa Graham Keegan, a frequent critic of the administration. He was later named director of the State Department of Insurance.
He made a run for Attorney General in 2002. The race turned ugly in the last month, with Andrew Peyton Thomas calling Greene and the other candidate, Foster Robberson, "liberals." Well, he didn't actually stop there. His attacks on Greene and Robberson went so far that they prompted Republican National Committeeman Mike Hellon to say that he wouldn't vote for Thomas if he won the primary. One would think that this would have helped Greene, but he got hit with allegations regarding his campaign finances just before the primary. He got soundly thumped.
Despite his taking point in the Symington platoon, he is moderate on social issues. He angered conservatives by not allowing hearings on many abortion bills during his Senate presidency. There was a feeling that discussion of abortion would cause problems in the Republican caucus, but also, Greene is genuinely pro-choice. I have also read that he is moderate on gay rights, but given where the Arizona Republican Party is these days, its hard to know how far right "moderate" actually is.
His positions on social issues may prompt other Republicans who have been thinking about it to make it official. Current State Senate President Ken Bennett, State House Speaker Jim Weiers and Representative Eddie Farnsworth are all social conservatives who have been making noises about joining the race.
Evidently, the name of Surgeon General Richard Carmona has fallen off of Republican lips. They have found out that he is has been registered as an independent since 1996. Well, duh, I already knew that. It's so hard for people from Phoenix to actually come to Tucson to check such things. Or heck, too hard to pick up the phone. Carmona's recent interview with the New York Times where he revealed that he had smoked marijuana and supports stem cell research probably didn't help either. By the way, both of these, another duh, I already knew that. These guys oughta really consult me. I'd really worry about a Republican consulting me, though.