It's no shock to readers here that Arizona's GOP has occasionally often introduced some batshit crazy candidates to the nation. Who can forget congressional candidate Ron Gould blasting away with his shotgun at an Obamacare manual in the middle of the desert? Continuing the gun theme, there's Pamela Gorman and her Jackie Brown-inspired TV ad. And let's not forget golf wizard Randy Graf, who said his familiarity with the rules of the game gave him an uncanny ability to interpret the US Constitution. All three lost their congressional bids. On the other hand: Joe Arpaio, Trent Franks. Seems you can't be too crazy for the Arizona Republican Party.
So when other GOPers call for your withdrawal from a congressional race because of something you've said, it should be a doozie. Or several doozies. Such is the case of Republican candidate Gary Kiehne, who's learning that the stupid shit he throws around with tea party goobers isn't fit for GOP consumption, even in Arizona (at least in public). Kiehne is a hotel owner who's trying to win the Republican primary to take on Democrat Ann Kirkpatrick in Congressional District 1, one of the largest districts in the country. His campaign is off to a bumpy start:
Kiehne, a first-time candidate in eastern Arizona's 1st District, has come under fire in recent days for a string of controversial statements about mass shooters, immigration and police. Arizona Republic
A trifecta!
Mass shooters: Kiehne said last weekend that almost all mass shootings were committed by Democrats. Who knew? I guess because Jared Loughner was at a Gabby Giffords' rally that makes him a Democrat too.
“If you look at all the fiascos that have occurred, 99 percent of them have been by Democrats pulling their guns out and shooting people,” Kiehne said. “So I don’t think you have a problem with the Republicans.”
It's probably more accurate to say most mass shooters are male, white, and Looney Tune fundies, but Kiehne overlooked that. He later apologized for his bone-headed remark,
saying, "I’ve since learned that the information I based the comment off of was inaccurate and incorrect." His apology failed to cite or footnote this "information."
But so far no apologies for:
Immigration: Some might say the South Vietnamese who aided the US during the war occupy a special place in our nation's immigration policy. Not Kiehne, even though the immigrants followed all the protocols:
At March and April events, he compared Vietnamese refugees who legally immigrated after risking their lives to help the U.S. military to illegal immigrants. Kiehne said the reason more Vietnamese refugees didn't immigrate is "they couldn't swim that far."
It's hard to say who this statement is meant to offend — Vietnamese, Mexicans, or anyone with a heart. Maybe all of the above. What an ass.
Police: It appears some Arizona Republicans just can't open their pie hole without a Nazi or two dribbling out:
Arizona police associations are calling on Republican Gary Kiehne to disband his campaign for Congress over remarks he made comparing police officers carrying out a wildfire evacuation to Nazi SS agents.
Kiehne's spokesperson (now
there's a short-tenure job) was quick to point out that his candidate didn't actually
say the police are Nazis. No, he just compared law officials at evacuation points during a 2011 fire to SS agents, saying they were willing to "shoot you and me." His spokesperson's explanation certainly cleared it up:
Kiehne "always wondered how German soldiers in (World War II) could turn on their own people with martial law, but after seeing martial law implemented during the Wallow Fire, he understood how it could happen."
Maybe Kiehne should get Cliven Bundy to serve as his press agent, since they share so much in common. He could use the help; I noticed the
"Supporters" page on Kiehne's website is empty. Nada, zilch, none. The same as his chances.