Democrats are looking to play up a former Florida congressman’s support of a Republican congressional candidate in Arizona in one of the most competitive races in the nation.
Over the past weekend, Democrats slammed Republican hopeful Martha McSally, a retired U.S. Air Force officer and college professor, for getting the support of former U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Fla. McSally is running against U.S. Rep. Ron Barber, D-Ariz., in a rematch from 2012 when the Democrat won by less than 1 percent. Barber is considered by most national analysts to be one of the most vulnerable congressmen in the nation.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) noted on Saturday that a PAC affiliated with the former Florida congressman — the Allen West Guardian Fund — reserved $45,000 for digital ads on McSally’s behalf. Tyrone Gayle, a spokesman for the DCCC, brought up West’s record on Saturday and called on McSally to “denounce” him and turn down the money.
“You can tell a lot about Martha McSally from the company she keeps – so it’s no surprise that she is allowing a self-proclaimed extremist who has compared Social Security to slavery, called the Dream Act ‘reprehensible,’ and thinks student loans are ‘communist,’ to prop up her campaign,” said Gayle. “If Martha McSally really wanted to ‘stand up to her party,’ she would denounce Allen West and refuse his campaign contributions.”
Barber had called for McSally to distance herself from West last month. West looked to use Barber’s call to rally conservatives.
“The attacks aren’t just on our candidates, or just on me, my friends, they are attacks on you, your principles and what we know to be right for our country,” West wrote supporters right after Barber called on McSally to reject his support.
West continued his support for McSally on Monday.
“Retired Air Force Col. Martha McSally should be back in the cockpit to fly missions in D.C.,” West insisted on Monday, attempting to mobilize Republicans before early voting starts in Arizona on Oct. 8.
Despite losing to Democratic challenger Patrick Murphy by a close margin in 2012, West has left the door open to a political comeback in 2016, hinting at possibly running for the U.S. Senate if U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., does not run for a second term. West has backed 13 conservative Republican candidates across the country this election cycle, but Miami-Dade School Board member Carlos Curbelo, the Republican taking on U.S. Rep. Joe Garcia, D-Fla., is the only candidate from the Sunshine State West has endorsed for this year’s general election.
West is set to make one more endorsement for a Republican congressional candidate later this month. Over the weekend, West noted it comes down to four Republican candidates: Wendy Rogers in Arizona, former U.S. Rep. Charles Djou, R-Hawaii, state Rep. Mike Bost in Illinois and state Rep. Marilinda Garcia in New Hampshire.
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