For Immediate Release
Saturday, June 4, 2022
Contact: Hannah Goss, hgoss@azdem.org
Senate Showdown: A Quiet Week in the GOP #AZSen Primary
We’re Joking, Trump’s Endorsement Set the Primary Ablaze, Instigating Infighting and Launching an All-Out Ad War
PHOENIX — Welcome to this week’s edition of the ‘Senate Showdown’ — a weekly roundup of the latest news in Arizona’s “crowded,” “costly,” and “chaotic” GOP Senate primary.
With “no clear frontrunner,” these amateur candidates will be busy duking it out well into the summer, ahead of Arizona’s August primary date. Until then, the Arizona Democratic Party’s ‘Showdown’ is here to help you keep track of this race’s breaking news, cringiest tweets, and nastiest doses of infighting.
Here’s what you missed this week:
YOU’RE HIRED: After months of dangling an endorsement in front of the field and watching as they ripped each other to shreds, Donald Trump has endorsed California tech bro and Thielian puppet Blake Masters. Too bad for Blake, Trump’s endorsement read more like a condemnation of Brnovich than a glowing review of Masters…
AIRWAVE AD ASSAULT (SAY THAT 3X FAST): Trump’s endorsement set this primary ablaze, triggering an all-out attack ad assault on Arizona’s airwaves. Within twenty-four hours of the endorsement news, Lamon launched an ad slamming Masters’ character (valid) and Masters’ team hit back, attacking Lamon’s history of shortchanging Arizonans to make a quick buck (also valid).
BABY’S FIRST AD: Blake Masters has finally saved up enough cash to go up on TV with his first official campaign ad. Despite auctioning off his friends to make a quick buck, Masters has suffered from stagnant, if not weakening, fundraising hauls over the last two quarters. Luckily, he has his very own billionaire benefactor who has already spent $3.8 million on ads to boost his relevancy….
IN IT TO WIN IT: Following Trump’s endorsement announcement, Jim Lamon, Mark Brnovich, and Mick McGuire all released statements with the same message: “I’m staying in,” ensuring that this messy, five-way primary is far from over. Justin Olson did not release a statement, but no one has heard from him in weeks so he honestly just might not have seen the news.
THE DEFINITION OF INCOMPARABLE: Apparently, Blake Masters thinks having to disclose campaign donors is equivalent to ‘Kristallnacht.’ However reprehensible, this is coming from the same man who courted the endorsement of known antisemite Marjorie Taylor Greene, compared Israel to North Korea, and quoted a Nazi leader, so yeah, it’s on brand.
THIS IS THE SONG THAT NEVER ENDS: This week, the field of election conspiracy theorists did what they do best: push outright lies to please the fringe, right-wing members of their party. Lamon and Masters shared calls for officials to start making arrests while Brnovich promised to continue his bogus taxpayer-funded investigations.
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