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Arizona Governor Ducey Appoints McSally to Senate Seat
Governor Doug Ducey just announced the appointment of Rep. Martha McSally to the US Senate. She will serve out the remainder of John McCain’s term, following the four-month-long appointment of Jon Kyl.
“All her life, Martha has put service first — leading in the toughest of fights and at the toughest of times,” said Governor Ducey. “She served 26 years in the military; deployed six times to the Middle East and Afghanistan; was the first woman to fly in combat and command a fighter squadron in combat; and she’s represented Southern Arizona in Congress for the past four years. With her experience and long record of service, Martha is uniquely qualified to step up and fight for Arizona’s interests in the U.S. Senate. I thank her for taking on this significant responsibility and look forward to working with her and Senator-Elect Sinema to get positive things done.”
McSally lost to Rep. Sinema last month in a tight race. She also will need to get right back to campaigning since this Senate seat requires another vote in 2020 and 2022.
Senator Kyl’s resignation from the Senate will be effective December 31, 2018.
Published in General
This is great news. Thank you, Jon.
I know that there is a handful of people who think this is a bad idea. They are just wrong. Mrs. McSally is a very talented lady, and her expertise will be put to great use in the Senate. I am sure that she will win when next she runs.
This is an excellent pick. Seems it may also set up for Ducey to challenge Sinema in 6 years.
Nice. Hopefully McSally learned some lessons about campaigning that will help her hold on to the seat.
Although the Washington Examiner coverage includes a Twitter statement from McCain’s widow indicating approval of this appointment, just days earlier I thought I was seeing headlines to the effect that the McCain family was incandescent in its negativity towards McSally. What is the actual situation here?
On a separate but semi-related note: Why in heck is Ben Domenech the Publisher at The Federalist? Did he (or rather his mother-in-law) simply front the cash and by virtue of that assumed this title/role? His involvement with an otherwise balanced and decent-quality publication has me more than a little concerned, given the potential for undue influence on behalf of the self-regarding “maverick” McCain claque.
Domenech founded The Federalist in 2013 and did not become engaged to Meghan McCain until 2017.
So Arizona is now represented in the US Senate by a communist who hates Arizonans, and a squish that couldn’t defeat a communist who hates Arizonans.
McSally seems to be consistent. EEO pilot, preference given to be a squadron commander (don’t kid yourself that she wasn’t), and now she can’t win on her own, so daddy has to give her a seat. Pathetic.
What’s pathetic is this comment.
So how is it incorrect?
Harsh, but quite possibly true. I am not from Arizona, so being definitive about McSally is difficult for me. However it is quite disconcerting that she couldn’t defeat Sinema and is not very popular amongst some of our Ricochet members from Arizona. The good news is that we will have two years to test her mettle, which her background suggests is quite sturdy, and to understand her politics, which seems to be less than sturdy, Here’s hoping she turns out to be a great asset.
Maybe all true. Arizona recently went through a Republican primary where two challengers offering different performance outlooks failed pathetically with no indication either would have done as well in the general election as McSally. I doubt seriously if any other person appointed now to this position would get as much consensus as McSally. Individual views are valid.
Is that preference given part of the evaluation requirements? Was McSally’s later performance sub-par?
You can count me in on the suspicious. Considering absolutely nothing about McSally and whether or not she’s specifically a good choice I have my qualms about the governor handing a senate seat to the person who lost the last election. It smells very badly of a political class which will get theirs, regardless.
Three things:
Perhaps Arizona is not able to shed allegiance to that political class. I doubt there will be anything approaching an outcry. A handful is probably a good description. Remember Nixon.
Losing an election has nothing to do with the qualifications of the candidate. It is doubtful anyone could defeat Sinema, given the mindset of Arizona voters (as evidenced by some of the Ricochetti from Arizona). Was George H.W. Bush terrible because he lost to a confirmed draft dodger? Or the same for Bob Dole, another war hero? The same goes for John McCain in 2008. The disconcerting feelings should be reserved for the voters, not the candidates.
No, there are voters out there who’d rather have trash represent them than accomplished individuals. And the slur about McSally being an “EEO pilot” is especially rude, given the same could be said about any black, woman, Hispanic, etc. in any profession. I guess Ben Carson is an “EEO surgeon” . . .
.1. She’s not a communist? I think you should look at what she believes and not just her self-selected label. “Progressive” is a euphemism for communist.
2. Sure there’s reason to question her credentials. That’s the greatest evil of affirmative action. You should always assume that a woman or minority is not as good as her peers until proven otherwise. That she couldn’t defeat someone who very openly voiced her disgust for her constituents is quite telling.
3. Now you’re just being pedantic. Sugar daddies come in all forms.
McSally didn’t defeat Sinema because she openly and vigorously embraced Trump. Conservatives like Governor Doug Ducey won landslide victories. But Trump acolytes like Steve Gaynor lost the Secretary of State position due to him running as the authentic Trump candidate.
If you can find it, watch the Trump rally in Arizona back in October. Doug Ducey, Martha McSally and Steve Gaynor all attended. Doug Ducey was not disrespectful in any way, shape or form to Trump. However McSally and Gaynor fully embraced Trump and trumpeted their allegiance to him, and they lost.
Yes, to all of the above. You should always assume it until proven otherwise. That is what affirmative action and the EEO lead us to. That is also the intent. Note that if you’re white they say you have to be a racist, no matter what you do or say. I don’t want to play the politically correct games. I’m not running for office. It is not a requirement that minorities or women be substandard, but it’s wise to be cognizant of the fact that most are placed above their level of skill/intelligence for political reasons, and almost always there will be a better qualified choice that was passed over for their sake.
So Sinema wants to create Gulags throughout the United States? She believes in starvation of the population in areas that disagree with her? She supports mass murder? Please substantiate.
Well, then she was foolish to not understand the voters.
I asked you if McSally’s performance as a pilot and a commander were sub-par but have not seen your response. Is it your position that promotion evaluation panels should not follow orders?
Yes. Her communist policies would eventually lead to that, as they have everywhere else.
It is my position that we should assume that others were more qualified.
I missed where there are gulags, mass murders and forced starvation in Scandinavia.
As you are an attorney, like me, please substantiate your claim.
You know, I’m really very sorry, but I think this makes little sense. You say you know nothing about Mrs. McSally. You are just concerned about the process. This is no way to make sure a Republic like ours gets the best people to guide it forward. For that, we need an informed electorate. If the Governor of a state, who won reelection in a landslide, thinks well enough of this woman’s credentials to appoint her, why must those who don’t even know her question her appointment? At the very least, give her a chance to prove what she can do.
As you’re a lawyer, you should know that Scandinavia is not a country, and those countries are not communist, indeed they are anti-communist. There are certainly communists in those countries, and they have many elements of communism, but they still embrace capitalism. Senema is a communist who wants to overthrow capitalism.
Congratulations, Gary! There is too much calling a person a communist on the part of some on the Right. It does not advance honest discussion. It is a pathetic need to contribute when you have nothing to contribute.
Or it’s being honest and not pretending people are not what they are.
See, here’s where you’re tripping up.
Why do you say yes here to a question regarding any minority, in any position, in any profession being described as an ‘EEO ___’.? I know for a fact that not every minority professional in every field has had the benefit of such an advantage. It is a requirement in a sub-set but not all. Your approach is what causes many to be called the names you lament.