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Thank You Ruth McClung

November 5, 2010 By 18 Comments

Last year in June, I was very excited to introduce our readers to a young lady named Ruth McClung. In April, I had met this bright-eyed brilliant physicist at a town hall I had organized as part of the Tea Party movement. She wasn’t even an announced candidate at the time and given my propensity to help young conservatives, I encouraged her and exhorted her to be bold in what she would be setting out to accomplish. Over the months as I watched her campaign continue to gain momentum, I met with her and her family on occasion helping out in any way I could. I could see she was no ordinary candidate but rather someone who was genuinely concerned and humble to take on the call to public office. Anyone could see that she was going to go the distance and run her race well.

Tonight, I and thousands of others are heartbroken to learn that Ruth’s race for the US Congress is over. After several days of counting ballots, the numbers have not worked out in her favor. I know many people are saddened while others are angry but we have to accept that we cannot win every battle.

Tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of people here in Arizona and across the country rallied behind this incredible young woman who proved that nothing was insurmountable. And while she did not win by the number of votes cast at the ballot box, she won in the huge number of hearts of people across the state and country. I know her opponent cannot say the same thing about his race

I have been very blessed to know Ruth McClung and her family, Michael, Gini and Tom. They are the most honest, sincere and wonderful people I have met in political circles. I am sure there are many people like myself who would say the same about Ruth and her family.

As I commented on her Facebook page earlier, “Ruth, you have blessed the people of CD-7 more than you will ever know. Thank you for giving the citizens of your district the best choice in a candidate they have ever known. You deserve huge credit for giving one of the biggest liberals in the US Congress the run of his life! I especially appreciate the huge sacrifice you and your family made in this endeavor. We thank you and wish you success in whatever you take on next. You will always have an “army” of loyal supporters standing behind you.”

Thank you Ruth!

Filed Under: Campaigns & Elections

Wes Gullett in the Phoenix Mayoral Hunt?

November 5, 2010 By 14 Comments

With the 2010 General Election almost behind us, Sonoran Alliance is beginning to hear names surface for the upcoming City of Phoenix mayoral campaign. One of those names is Wes Gullett, the former right-hand man of Senator John McCain. As of today, no paperwork has been filed with the City of Phoenix. FYI: Gullet’s bio is available online but we’ll post it here:

Wes Gullett is a founding partner in the firm FirstStrategic, Communications & Public Affairs. He works primarily on strategic planning projects and representing businesses engaged in public policy efforts.

He has directed and worked on numerous public policy projects at FirstStrategic, including successful efforts passing Propositions 203 and 100. Gullett’s main focus is on providing corporate leaders with strategic communications advice so that they can accomplish their objectives.

Gullett served as Deputy Campaign Manager for McCain 2000 during John McCain’s campaign for the Republican Presidential Nomination. His principal duties were overseeing www.mccain2000.com, the pioneering effort to bring web technology and web applications to a major political campaign. This Internet program was heralded as the first serious effort to bring Presidential politics to the Internet. Time, Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report as well as the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post and the San Jose Mercury News reported on the spectacular success of the McCain Internet Campaign. Gullett also served as the co-leader of the McCain 2008 Arizona Campaign Leadership team.

In addition to working on political campaigns, Gullett has worked in the consulting world for the past 12 years. He was a partner in the Phoenix public affairs firm of HighGround, Inc. Prior to his current venture, Wes Gullett formed Integrated Web Strategy, LLC, a company that provides Internet consulting services for business, organizations and political campaigns.

Gullett has extensive experience in government. He was Chief of Staff for Arizona Governor Fife Symington from July 1993 to April 1996. In addition he served as Administrative Assistant to U.S. Senator John McCain. He also served as Senator McCain’s 1992 Campaign Manager. Gullett’s tenure with McCain was seven years and included Administrative Assistant, Community Relations Director and Northern Arizona/Maricopa County Field Director for McCain for Senate (1986).

Gullett served three years on Capitol Hill working for the U.S. Senate Republican Conference (1983-86). At the Conference, Gullett served as senior media producer. As the senior producer, Gullett oversaw the daily production of several radio and television programs.

Gullett is a native of Ottumwa, Iowa and attended The University of Iowa. He and his wife, former Arizona Representative Deb Gullett, have three children – Kelly, Katie and Nikki – and reside in Phoenix.

Filed Under: Campaigns & Elections, Personalities