pho·ny : false or deceiving; not truthful; concocted: a phony explanation.
It appears that Tony “the Phony” Bouie has been caught in a lie. In two recent appearances he has claimed that he was originally a registered Democrat, but then he registered as a Republican in the 1990′s in Hillsborough County, Florida. He then claims he registered Democrat when he moved to Arizona in 2001. And finally, he says he registered Republican when he decided to run for State Representative in District 6.
Well, a search of the elections office records in Florida turns up no Republican registration for Tony V. Bouie. It does show he was registered as a Democrat from 1996-1999. However, even this contradicts Tony the Phony’s own statement that he registered Republican right after he got his first NFL paycheck and realized how much money was taken out in taxes. He made this statement in front of the Arizona Republic editorial board on August 14, 2008.
To add to the mystery, Tony the Phony even announced at a public forum on August 12, 2008, that his opponent (Carl Seel) was wrong when he claimed Bouie had been a registered Democrat his whole life until he decided to run for office. In fact, said Tony the Phony, he had previously been a Republican for 9 years. Really?! We would love to see proof of that. Now he’s come out and admitted he wasn’t telling the truth in a press release. Bet the Republic isn’t too happy to hear they were duped. Nor are District 6 voters.
And finally, if Tony the Phony was ever a Republican, it is interesting that he never mentioned that fact to State Representative Sam Crump, who asked Bouie on April 25, 2008, why he had been a life-long Democrat until he decided to run for office. Tony the Phony’s response at that time was, “As an African-American I just registered the way my parents did and the way most blacks do.”
Now, those who would like to see fewer conservatives in the Legislature are resorting to the race card. We’ve seen it in Russell Pearce’s race and now we are seeing it in Sam Crump’s race. The Yellow Sheet gossip rag recently reported quoted an anonymous “insider” who said that many Republicans are questioning why Crump has not endorsed challenger Tony Bouie over Carl Seel. The insider says that everyone seems to be endorsing Bouie except Crump, which raises concerns that Crump’s non-endorsement is racially motivated. Now there’s a stretch.
Besides failing to acknowledge Crump’s tireless efforts in time and money on behalf of his orphanage in Uganda, the Yellow Sheet’s investigative efforts didn’t bother to report that Crump had already told the YS that he doesn’t support Bouie because Bouie is not a reliable conservative Republican. Bouie stated just a few months ago that he didn’t know whether he supported employer sanctions, and now that he has been coached by Chris Baker, Bouie has seen the light and embraces employer sanctions. Bouie has refused to sign the No New Taxes pledge but claims he is against higher taxes. Bouie is in favor of affirmative action, granting special preferences for businesses owned by minorities and women. And finally, Bouie has two separate positions on abortion. No wonder Crump sees that Bouie is really Tony The Phony!
