Hat tip to my good friends at Gila Courier for finding this recent editorial in the Green Valley News.

The good news is that the General Election got a whole lot easier for the Republican nominee with editorials like this in retirement communities like Green Valley. 

The whole editorial is full of great money quotes so I’ll reprint it here:

Giffords hiding from GV, Sahuarita
Published: Tuesday, August 11, 2009 3:10 PM MDT
Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has seen what has happened to her House and Senate colleagues over the past week at healthcare town hall meetings across the country and she’s hunkering down.

Some would say she’s hiding.

Giffords cancelled public appearances Thursday at American Legion Post #66 in Sahuarita and at Pima Community College, and announced that she has combined and moved them to a heavily secured Air Force base.

Probably because it’s trickier for protesters to get past soldiers with guns.

Giffords’ communications director insists that combining the appearances – during which she’ll talk about the new GI Bill – was necessary because of growing interest that required a bigger venue.

Baloney. (And that’s putting it kindly.)
This same staff member said Giffords had no public healthcare forums planned despite questions and confusion among constituents that is growing by the hour. Then he said Giffords couldn’t possibly schedule a healthcare town hall now because it takes a lot of time to line up a venue and the staff to make it happen.

That’s an odd statement given that they secured the auditorium at Davis-Monthan AFB virtually on a moment’s notice.

To be sure, Giffords hasn’t escaped without bruises in all of this. She was met with shouts in Douglas a week ago during a “Congress on Your Corner” event at a grocery store, and protesters have targeted her in Sierra Vista and Tucson in the past week.

What do they want? Answers.

Her official response: “Southern Arizonans want a civil discussion on reforming our health insurance system, and we must call for an immediate end to the manipulation and misleading statements by outside special interest groups. We deserve a full and honest debate on this critical issue.”

We sure do, so let’s start talking.

I’m guessing just about any school in Congressional District 8 (or any of several rec centers in Green Valley) would be eager to host a town hall meeting on short notice. (And, I should add, if a member of Congress has trouble booking a hall in the face of the most high-profile matter in the country, we’re all in trouble.)

But the fact is Giffords doesn’t want to talk to you right now. Maybe next month when things blow over.

It’s understandable, of course. How much real work can get done amid angry shouts and sign-waving – she said just that a week ago in Sierra Vista. But Giffords needs to remember that anger stems from frustration, and frustration manifests itself in what should be interpreted as nothing less than a demand for answers.

So here’s or proposal: Come to Green Valley. We’ll book the venue and promise the exchange will be civil and informative. The local radio station, KGVY, has even offered to stream it live from another location if that makes Giffords more comfortable.

But come. And help us all make sense of this.

- Dan Shearer, editor

Local Democrats have decided to try a new tactic to sell the federal healthcare takeover to citizens in Arizona. The national party has enrolled the help of THE most liberal state legislator in Arizona to lead the charge, Kyrsten Sinema.

Next Thursday, Krysten Sinema (D-15) along with Nancy Young Wright (D-26) and Pat Fleming (D-25) will appear at a special town hall forum in Marana. The event will be held at the Heritage Highland’s Clubhouse in the Dove Mountain Ballroom in Marana from 10 AM to noon.

If this sounds familiar, it is. It certainly is to me and that’s because I have been organizing town hall forums across the state on behalf of Americans for Prosperity since April. Apparently, the Democrats figured out that our model of town hall’ing is popular and working with Arizonans. However, I do think they’re going to be in for a shock when the discover that they may not attract a friendly crowd – that is, unless they bus “their” people in and utilize local media to stage the event. Something tells me it may not go exactly as they plan.

A little more background information on who’s participating. Kyrsten Sinema was selected by the Obama Administration to serve on the White House Health Reform Task Force. She was the only legislator from Arizona to be chosen and that’s because the Obama Administration wanted the most “progressive” lawmaker from the State of Arizona. Kyrsten is their gal.

In the press release issued by House Democrats, Young Wright is quoted:

I know the retirees and seniors I represent struggle with the rising costs of health care every day. I want to make sure I hear their ideas about options for the best quality and affordable health care, especially in tough economic times like these.

This is your opportunity to let Representatives Sinema, Young Wright and Fleming know how you feel.

One final note that definitely irritates me. As I have put the Americans for Prosperity town halls together, I have invited BOTH Republicans AND Democrats to participate. I doubt that Representatives Vic Williams David Stevens or Senator Al Melvin were invited to these events.

Here is a link to the map of the event if you care to attend. 

Related Article: “Legislators to host health care forum in Yuma” – Yuma Sun