Arizona Senate Race 2010 Update: J. D. Hayworth Officially Enters Race Against John McCain

I would like to make a correction to an entry I made on January 22, 2010, and provide an update.

The correction is as follows:

Effective January 22, 2010, J. D. Hayworth resigned his position as afternoon talk show host at AM 550 KFYI.

However, it was not until today that J. D. Hayworth officially announced his intention to run in the Republican primary race for Senate.

Now, for the update:

Former Congressman and conservative talk-radio host J.D. Hayworth officially kicked off his campaign challenging Arizona Senator John McCain on Monday.

Hayworth began his campaign with a rally in Phoenix followed by a three-day statewide tour.

Meanwhile, McCain held his own campaign event at nearly the same time in nearby Tempe, with more than two dozen mayors from across the state vowing to support him.

The primary showdown between two well-known Arizona Republicans promises to be the toughest re-election battle of McCain's congressional career. Conservatives in Arizona have long been skeptical of McCain, who carved out a niche as a "maverick" Senator working with Democrats on many issues.

McCain has plans to bring in national names such as Palin, Joe the Plumber (although Joe may have different plans), and Senator-Elect Scott Brown to stump for him throughout the campaign.

Hayworth stated on local radio recently that he is not intimidated by McCain's celebrity line-up.

Locally, Hayworth has received the endorsement of well-known Sheriff Joe Arpiao, and at the national level he has received an endorsement from commentator and Conservative writer Patrick J. Buchanan.

Additionally, Chris Simcox, one of the founders of the well known Minuteman Civil Defense Corps (MCDC), joined Hayworth today at his announcement. Simcox announced his withdrawal from the Republican primary and pledged his full support for Hayworth.

Hayworth said today in his announcement speech, "There are two John McCains, the one who campaigns like a conservative and the one who legislates like a liberal."

Hayworth also made a point to be clear about his respect for McCain's service to America, saying, "I have the utmost respect and admiration for what John McCain has given our country. But I do have serious and profound disagreements with John about the choices he’s made as Senator."

Hayworth will campaign on the concept of his being a consistent Conservative, and certainly hopes to ride the wave of anti-incumbency that is currently sweeping the nation. Hayworth has a more Conservative record during his time in Congress, as I detailed in my January 22 post.

McCain will attempt to brand Hayworth as fiscally irresponsible. McCain has already been airing advertisements on radio attempting to associate Hayworth with "The Bridge to Nowhere" and a spending bill that funded research on snakes in Guam. The snakes were a part of H.R. 1588, otherwise known as the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2004, and in addition to Hayworth, both Arizona Senators Jon Kyl and McCain voted for the bill. Additionally and worth noting, Hayworth has a better lifetime rating from Citizens Against Government Waste.

McCain has millions of dollars at his disposal, and will no doubt be the recipient of favoritism in most local and national media, as is proven by this Arizona Republic article and this Politico article. For a good laugh at what the left considers journalism with integrity, check out this piece of "work" from Daily Kos.

I believe Hayworth understands that being low-key and maintaining fiscal responsibility, as well as running a positive campaign, are going to be keys to victory.

While Hayworth does have some issues in his past as a Congressional representative, I sincerely believe that his loss in 2006 combined with his years spent reconnecting with the people as a local radio talk-show host have brought Hayworth a new-found concept of responsibility and humility with regards to the people's Senate seat.

Meanwhile, McCain voted for the $850 billion bailout of the big banks (TARP) which included $150 billion in pork, proposed a $300 billion bailout for mortgage lenders and, according to the Heritage Foundation, sponsored an amnesty bill in 2007 that would have cost taxpayers $2.6 trillion over the long-term.