In Arizona CD8, Quien Es Mas Macho?

NPR's (Tucson-based Southwest Correspondent) Ted Robbins had a very good piece about the CD8 race between incumbent Gabrielle Giffords and challenger Jesse Kelly on "Morning Edition" this morning.  (Here is link to transcript and audio.)  The story focused on border issues, even as Robbins concluded that Social Security, the Bush-era tax cuts, and the health care bill will be the "issues beyond the border (that) will probably decide the race". 

Why? "Because when it comes to border security and immigration, the candidates running for Arizona's 8th Congressional seat seem to have only two lines — hard and harder." 

Great closing line.  And, Robbins had a quotable line near the beginning of the four-minute report:

"There's an old saying in Spanish — Quien es mas macho? (Who's tougher?) — that sums up the debate in the district over border security and immigration.


Democrat Gabrielle Giffords, the two-term incumbent, can't afford to look soft, so there isn't any talk of immigration reform. Instead, she reminds voters how she fought to get $600 million for border security this summer."

(I tried fact checking the origin of the "quien es mas macho" line, to no avail. My guess is it belongs to Bill Murray.)

By the way, the Morning Edition hosts got some mileage out of the theme for this story.  At the top of the hour tease, Steve Inskeep promo'd the story and then claimed to be tough; fill-in host Ari Shapiro introduced himself as being "not tough".  My vote for toughest of the day goes to Ted Robbins!

(Disclaimer: The paths of mas macho Ted Robbins and I crossed in Tucson for a brief period more than two decades ago.  We covered stories for different organizations, and spent a small amount of time in the same newsroom.)

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