FOLLOWING MONEY IN ARIZONA'S POLITICS: Flake's 2nd Quarter Contributions Slow, But Now Has $2 Million In Bank

Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) has practically cleared the field for the Republican nomination to replace Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ).  His fundraising slowed a bit in the 2nd quarter (ended June 30), but he managed to increase his campaign's cash on hand figure to just more than $2 million dollars. ($2,002,620.56, to be exact.)

You will recall that he raised more than $1 million in the six weeks after he announced his candidacy.  In the 13 subsequent weeks, he raised $830,226.10.  A slower pace, but still not too shabby.

His expenses did skyrocket as his campaign matured.  He again spent big (more than $80,000) on direct mail efforts in the 2nd quarter, and loaded up on consultants and fundraising expenses.  His expenditures were approximately $88,000 in the 1st quarter; this period, they rose to $390,000.  ($389,432.42, to be exact.)

A couple of Republicans have reported raising some money for the primary, Douglas McKee ($19,752 cash on hand) and Bryan Hackbarth (former mayor of Youngtown, $206 cash on hand with $1,000 debt).  Many more high profile Republicans who were reportedly interested in the race have either taken a pass or remained on the sidelines.  No Democrats have filed yet, although a couple have started "exploratory committees".















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WHO KNEW?: Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake Had Been "Left For Dead", Made Comeback Due To "Conservatives and Tea Party Supporters" --Washington Post

Arizonans might be surprised to learn that long-time East Valley Congressman and leading GOP candidate for U.S. Senate, Jeff Flake (R-CD6) had been "left for dead" and has made an "unlikely political comeback" that can be contrasted with the falls of the likes of Ensign, Edwards and Weiner (among others).  But, that is exactly what the Washington Post is reporting in today's edition (page A15) in its profile of Flake.

The surprise comes not because voters in Flake's Congressional district (East Valley) ever have come close to voting him out, but because he had thwarted the expected upward trajectory within the House Republicans by speaking out bluntly against earmarks.  (Gasp!)

In any event, it is an interesting article for Arizonans to review.  And, as Flake apparently acknowledged several times in being interviewed for the story, he did feel that he went through "some tough days" when he was being punished by the GOP leadership for his "bad behavior."


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COMMENTARY: How Logically Broke Are We? Rep. Jeff Flake Stretches Too Far

(The following includes a bit more personal feelings than I typically express in a report.  Therefore, it has been labeled as "commentary".)

I had lots of plans (but little time) for the posts I was going to make upon my return to the desert in time for tonight's Home Run Derby.  But, this e-mail I just received changed those plans.

Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6 and Senate candidate) sends out a weekly "So Just How Broke Are We" news release.  He tries to tie OUR COUNTRY'S fiscal situation to some newsy tidbit/holiday/etc in a way that is clever and designed to get some notice.  I often enjoy them and occasionally (privately) critique them.  I have tremendous respect for the Congressman's views and his persistence in working on governmental fiscal issues.  I have never tried to gauge how many people read and/or are influenced by this weekly series.

But, the illogic in the one that just came out passed beyond "too cutesy", in my sometimes-humble opinion.  To throw in a baseball term in honor of the All-Star Game, he stretched too far and stepped away from his base.

Maybe if a few of us give the candidate for U.S. Senate some feedback on it, it will prompt him (his office?) to work on the analogies - and, to maybe not try so hard to be timely/cutesy/clever/etc.    Here it is:

An English scientist now believes that the first person to reach the age of 150 has already been born and could be followed within 20 years by that the first person to reach the age of 1,000.
          Though living to either of these ages would certainly be a feat, even more astonishing would be the age to which a person would need to live in order to pay down the U.S. debt, based on the average annual wage per U.S. citizen of $40,711 according to 2009 data. The U.S. is so broke that a person would need to reach the ripe old age of approximately 354 million to completely pay down our (current) $14.4 trillion debt.
          “Let’s not stick to same old same old when it comes to reducing our debt,” said Flake. (emphasis in original)

Flake is running to replace Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) next year.  He raised more than $1 million in the six weeks after he announced his candidacy.  It would take the average Arizonan (using Flake's average annual wage for a U.S. citizen and assuming Arizonans' average is the same) 25.37 YEARS to match Flake's campaign contributions for only that 6-WEEK period.

Thank God more than one person contributes to his campaign, and thank God we all contribute - in one way or another - to our government.  This kind of illogic does not help our national discussion on these serious issues; it harms it.  And, I sincerely doubt that that is Rep. Flake's intent.

The amount of my *tremendous respect* plummeted this morning; and, multiplied by the number of average Arizonans who also see the illogic in his press release, the amount could take uncalculated years of releases to recover it.

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WATCH: Sarah Palin Hasn't "Really Considered" Running For Arizona Senate Seat

It took a spur-of-the-moment, look-who-is-here-walking-through-our-airport interview to finally find out that Sarah Palin has not even "really considered" running to be John McCain's Arizona Senate mate.  Channel 15 (KNXV ABC15, Phoenix) was set up to film a father-son reunion at Sky Harbor airport Friday afternoon when McCain's former running mate walked by.

Reporter Corey Rangel had the presence of mind to start asking her questions, and got her to acknowledge that a Senate run is not what motivated her purchase of a home here: 

"That's not what my plan is, no.  I haven't really considered that at all.  But, thanks for asking.  You have some great senators here, though. I appreciate both of them."

Daughter Piper provided the excuse to end the interview without answering the question about her presidential aspirations.  And, the question about her temporary escape of what is supposed to be her latest bus tour will have to wait for the next inadvertent interview.



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FOLLOWING MONEY UPDATE: Arpaio Campaign Confirms Over $3 Million In Campaign Account, More Than $5 Million Raised, and Still Flirting With Senate Run

It is confirmed.  Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has crossed $5 Million and $3 Million milestones even before he has committed to running for re-election as Sheriff.

Monday, Arizona's Politics reported that Arpaio was "formally kicking off" his campaign for a 6th term in office, via a fundraising e-mail.  Tuesday, we reported on Arpaio's amazing fundraising machine that had collected nearly $4.7 Million in the two years immediately after his last election.

Since his last campaign finance report only covered the period through Nov. 22, 2010, and his next one will not be filed for many more months - due to a now-quaint quirk in the reporting system that did not anticipate permanent campaigns - our report could only speculate that Arpaio had now crossed the thresholds since late November, based upon his past performance and conservative guesstimates.

Re-Elect Arpaio Campaign Manager Chad Willems confirmed to Arizona's Politics yesterday (via e-mail) that the campaign has indeed raised more than $5 Million in small (less than $430) individual contributions, and that the campaign coffers contain more than $3 Million.  (See, Tuesday's post for overview of what the $2 Million was spent on.)

By comparison, Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) had about $630,000 in the bank after his (easy) House race last November, and raised slightly more than $1 Million ($1,031,172.37) in the six weeks after he announced that he would try to replace Jon Kyl in the U.S. Senate.  His cash on hand is (as of March 31, 2011) a comparatively paltry $1.5 Million ($1,570,977.90).

The comparison is somewhat relevant because Willems stated yesterday that Arpaio has not yet made a final decision on whether or not to run for the opening Senate seat.  Conceivably, he could switch gears from his just announced formal re-election kick-off.  (Not sure whether state and/or federal campaign finance laws would permit the re-purposing.)


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UPDATE: Arpaio Campaign Confirms Over $3 Million In Campaign Account, More Than $5 Million Raised, and Still Flirting With Senate Run

It is confirmed.  Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has crossed $5 Million and $3 Million milestones even before he has committed to running for re-election as Sheriff.

Monday, Arizona's Politics reported that Arpaio was "formally kicking off" his campaign for a 6th term in office, via a fundraising e-mail.  Tuesday, we reported on Arpaio's amazing fundraising machine that had collected nearly $4.7 Million in the two years immediately after his last election.

Since his last campaign finance report only covered the period through Nov. 22, 2010, and his next one will not be filed for many more months - due to a now-quaint quirk in the reporting system that did not anticipate permanent campaigns - our report could only speculate that Arpaio had now crossed the thresholds since late November, based upon his past performance and conservative guesstimates.

Re-Elect Arpaio Campaign Manager Chad Willems confirmed to Arizona's Politics yesterday (via e-mail) that the campaign has indeed raised more than $5 Million in small (less than $430) individual contributions, and that the campaign coffers contain more than $3 Million.  (See, Tuesday's post for overview of what the $2 Million was spent on.)

By comparison, Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) had about $630,000 in the bank after his (easy) House race last November, and raised slightly more than $1 Million ($1,031,172.37) in the six weeks after he announced that he would try to replace Jon Kyl in the U.S. Senate.  His cash on hand is (as of March 31, 2011) a comparatively paltry $1.5 Million ($1,570,977.90).

The comparison is somewhat relevant because Willems stated yesterday that Arpaio has not yet made a final decision on whether or not to run for the opening Senate seat.  Conceivably, he could switch gears from his just announced formal re-election kick-off.  (Not sure whether state and/or federal campaign finance laws would permit the re-purposing.)


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Arizona Poll Numbers: Romney Ahead Of Obama By Four, Giffords Seven Ahead Of Flake; Bad News For Sarah Palin, J.D. Hayworth

New poll numbers show Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-CD8) ahead of fellow Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) by 48%-41% for the soon-to-be-vacated Senate seat, and that former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney would inch out President Barack Obama for Arizona's electoral votes.  Public Policy Polling ("PPP") - an organization hired mainly by Democrats but which has been one of the most accurate and unbiased pollsters - released the numbers, which also contained bad news for Republicans Sarah Palin and J.D. Hayworth and Democrat Phil Gordon.

For the Senate seat, the automated voice response poll showed Giffords leading all possible Republican challengers.  If she is unwilling or unable to run for the office being vacated by Sen. Jon Kyl, then Flake and former Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard (D) are the next strongest candidates.  Head to head, they are tied at 45% each.

The other candidates tested were Democrats (Phoenix Mayor) Phil Brown and (Rep.) Ed Pastor, and Republicans (Former AK Gov. and VP candidate) Sarah Palin and (Former Rep.) J.D. Hayworth.  Palin and Hayworth both trailed any Democrat they were matched up against, and showed high favorable/unfavorable marks (32-62 and 21-56, respectively).

On the Presidential side, Barack Obama has made up several points in hypothetical head-to-head match-ups with Romney, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, and has lengthened a lead against Palin.  Obama also handily leads celebrity Donald Trump.  The backbone for Obama's gains appear to be in picking up favor among independent voters.  His favorable/unfavorable ratings among independents in Arizona is now 49-45, and he leads Romney by 17 percentage points among them - a big change from a poll in January, when they were tied.  However, Romney still leads 48-44%, just outside the poll's margin of error.

The pollsters surveyed 623 Arizonans, had a 3.9% margin of error, and did not try to limit its automated poll to registered or likely voters.  Conventional wisdom is that such polls are more likely to lean towards Democratic candidates.  The poll was not paid for by any candidate or political organization. 


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SIGNS, SIGNS, EVERYWHERE SIGNS: Pro-Joe (Arpaio) Group Goes To the Digital Billboards

In February, the freelancing "Defend Sheriff Joe" 527 group raised $20,000 to encourage Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio to run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Jon Kyl.  While that effort does not appear to have achieved its stated goal, the group is now spending that money to run digital billboards around Phoenix thanking the sheriff.

These three billboards will run on a rotating basis during the next few weeks.  Former Paradise Valley Mayor and Congressional candidate Vernon Parker is the chair of the 527 group, and states that the ads are "to remind the community what a good job he is doing."

As noted in February, "Defend Sheriff Joe" has approximately $100,000 cash on hand, and paid nearly $15,000 to the Republican political consulting firm Lincoln Strategy Group (Nathan Sproul) last year.

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FOLLOWING MONEY IN ARIZONA'S POLITICS: It's Official: Rep. Flake Raises More Than $1 Million In First Six Weeks

(My apologies if you ended up on this post, but were actually looking for the May 18 post on Joe Arpaio's fundraising machine.  Here is that link.)


It is now official:  Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) raised slightly more than $1 million in the first six weeks of his campaign to replace Sen. Jon Kyl in the U.S. Senate.  That headstart has established him as the frontrunner for the seat and no doubt kept several other politicians from jumping into the race.

His quarterly campaign report shows that the first-out-of-the-box senatorial candidate took in $1,031,172.37, against expenditures of $88,246.08.  As of March 31, 2011, Flake had $1,570,977.90 cash on hand (ended his last House campaign in the black).

Flake announced his candidacy on February 14, so those contributions (except for about $24,000 received in the two weeks before the announcement) came in very quickly.  The conservative group Club For Growth has already claimed credit for bringing in more than 1/3 ($350,000) of Flake's monies.



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BREAKING: Rep. Trent Franks NOT Running To Replace Sen. Jon Kyl

Moments after posting a story about Arizona Rep. Trent Franks possibly announcing a senatorial campaign tomorrow when appearing with Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, and about his call for "a second Civil War", came news that Franks will not enter the race.

Although we have not located the actual statement yet (on either his congressional website, his campaign - from 2010 - website, or his Twitter feed), the Star (and, earlier, Hotline) has the meat of it:

“After diligently and prayerfully trying to consider every aspect a potential Senate bid would entail, I have sincerely concluded that mounting a Senate bid at this time would not be what is best for my family, nor what would best allow me to serve my country at this critical time in her history."
Hotline also has a quote from the already-announced Rep. Jeff Flake (which was not on his websites or Twitter feed, either):  "Trent is a good friend and I'm glad I won't have to face off against him in a campaign."


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WATCH: Arizona Rep. Trent Franks Hoping To Lead African-Americans Into "Second Civil War"

Arizona Rep. Trent Franks, who may declare his candidacy for the soon-to-be-vacant U.S. Senate seat, is hoping to lead African-Americans in a "second Civil War". 

Franks has received attention in the past for both his very strong stances against abortion and for asserting that the African-American community is more devastated by abortion than it was by slavery (when that community had not yet earned its hyphen).  However, Arizona's Politics had not actually heard him call for a "second Civil War" until today, when the following video on YouTube popped up on the monitor.

First, the background on how Arizona's Politics came to see this video and write this post.  The possibility that Rep. Franks may announce his candidacy for the Senate seat being vacated by Jon Kyl tomorrow, when he is at a fundraiser with Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), got the ball rolling.  Wondering if there is video of Franks past appearances with Bachmann, we searched and found Franks praising his colleague (but not of return praise):

"Michele Bachmann has such a gentle and kind demeanor that she's kind of considered the sweetheart of the Congress.  But, I will tell you that she also has the heart of a Valkyrie, and the people of America are responding to her voice to rescue this country like perhaps noone else in Congress."

Searching for return praise, Arizona's Politics then came across an interview that Franks did with Peter Shinn for ProLife Unity on July 14, 2009.  A movie was being shown that day in a Congressional office building about how abortion is a Black genocide that originated after the Civil War.  Franks repeatedly gave high praise to the film and issued his call to arms:

Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake Opens Campaign For Senate Trying To Erase Sharpie Support For Comprehensive Immigration Reform

Well, this should make tomorrow's Congressional delegation group press conference near the border more interesting.  Or, maybe it will be less interesting.  Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) has given up on his support for comprehensive immigration reform because he believes it is "a dead end".

Tomorrow's press conference with fellow former-comprehensive-immigration-reform-supporter Sen. John McCain and Arizona's three freshman Republican Congresspeople (Paul Gosar, Ben Quayle, David Schweikert) is designed to wrap up their visit to the Arizona-Mexico border.  Where there might have been a diversity of opinions, there will now be unanimity (unless McCain picks that unlikely spot to return to his support for comprehensive reform).  Then again, reporters could choose to challenge Flake's Senate campaign conversion.

(Kudos to Republic reporter Dan Nowicki for also noting the "strikingly similar" language; outgoing Senator Jon Kyl used the same analogy to explain throwing his position into reverse.)



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Former Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano Latest To Take Self Out of Senate Campaign

Arizona's Politics has been somewhat remiss in chronicling all those taking themselves out of the campaign to replace Sen. Jon Kyl in 2012.  Former Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano just removed herself this morning, according to a statement.

This New Times post does a good job of listing the others who recently have done likewise.


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Arizona Rep. Trent Franks Discussed Senate Campaign With Sheriff Arpaio Yesterday

Yesterday, Arizona's Politics reported that Arizona Rep. Trent Franks (R-CD2) had called Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio earlier in the day to discuss the Republican primary race to replace Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ).  That was relayed to us by Arpaio's campaign manager Chad Willems - who is also responsible for the insta-poll which has received a lot of attention.  We asked Franks' office for confirmation.

We received the 4th-term Congressman's response last evening from Press Secretary Ben Carnes.  On the day after his colleague, Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) made his candidacy official, Franks reiterated that he is "weighing all of his options" and is still "seriously considering" the race, and confirmed that he discussed the prospects of either or both Franks and Arpaio entering the race.  However, he assumed his call to Arpaio was private, "and, consequently, has no further comment."  The full statement is after the jump.

Feeling Each Other Out; Arizona Rep. Trent Franks and Sheriff Joe Arpaio Talk Opening Senate Seat; Arpaio Would Be Impacted By "Huge Groundswell"

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has given at least a couple of interviews today (and one over the weekend to Channel 10 flirting with the possibility that he may run for the seat opening up (in January 2013) when Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) retires.  Arizona's Politics has learned that at least one other possible contender - already in Congress - thinks there might be something to it;  Rep. Trent Franks (R-CD2) called the Sheriff earlier today to ask if he was planning to run.

According to Chad Willems, Arpaio's campaign manager (for whatever he may or may not run for next year), Franks called.  He likely received the same "maybe" that Arpaio is giving to the media, because Willems indicates that Arpaio does not yet know if it would be the right thing for him to do.

Willems tells Arizona's Politics that Arpaio has a large fundraising operation, already has approximately $3 million in his re-election campaign account that could legally be transferred to a run for federal office, and has familiarity with Washington from his previous jobs there (with the DEA).  The decision will be a personal one, says Willems.

Willems gave props to the "impressive" response to the DefendSheriffJoe (independent) fundraising-to-urge-Joe-to-run; it raised nearly $20,000 (from 500+ people) in five days, which will go to more polling and fundraising.  However, Willems says it will be "interesting to see if there's a huge groundswell... that would certainly impact Arpaio's decision."

Franks' phone call to Arpaio may just be an expression of friendly interest.  Or, it may be the best indication yet that a second member of Arizona's current Congressional delegation may be ready to try to step up to the more exclusive chamber.  Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) has already announced his candidacy.

By the way, the polls released today by the Summit Consulting Group that show Arpaio leading Flake and others among likely Republican primary election voters has a margin of error of 3%.  That is according to Summit President, Chad Willems.  (Yes, the same Chad Willems.)


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Group Raises Nearly $20,000 Over Weekend To Urge Arpaio To Run For Senate; Combined With Survey Results, Pressure Mounts

Last week, Arizona's Politics reported on the e-mail effort to raise a $25,000 "money bomb"/love note by the end of Valentine's Day to urge Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio to run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ).  DefendSheriffJoe.com - a 527 non-profit organization - got close to their goal and raised $19,349 in five short days.

Chairman Vernon Parker notes that it is "truly impressive" that more than 500 people made an average $37.64 contribution to put their money where their mouths are.  "That’s what a grassroots movement looks like," said Parker.

Their voices may be getting heard.  On Sunday, Arpaio - who has often flirted with running for other offices - told a Phoenix television station (Channel 10, Fox) that he would not rule it out and that he would "sure rock the boat on Capitol Hill" if he was elected and that it would be "exciting".

A Republican-leaning political group (Summit Consulting Group) also released a quickie survey of "likely Republican primary election voters" showing Arpaio as the top pick for the 2012 Republican primary for the Senate seat.  Arpaio drew 21.3% to Rep. Jeff Flake's (R-CD6, who announced yesterday) 16.8% and former Rep. J.D. Hayworth's 16.6%.  No word yet on the margin of error of the survey.

According to the organization, the $20,000 DefendSheriffJoe "money bomb" will likely be used to do more polling to convince Arpaio to run, and to then raise more money for an ad campaign.




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OFFICIAL: Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake's Announcing Candidacy For U.S. Senate

Hard to complain that Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) kept us waiting too long.  After all, it was only this past Thursday that Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) announced that he will not seek re-election in 2012, and Friday is not the best day to make news.  Yet, KPHO (Phoenix Channel 5, CBS) alone began reporting this morning that he made an announcement yesterday.

Flake's office informed us moments ago that the announcement is good as of 8:00a.m. Arizona time and will be available shortly.  We will post it when we get it. 


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Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake Set To Launch Run For U.S. Senate Seat Being Vacated By Kyl; But, No Official Announcement Yet

(Later: Flake's Congressional office confirmed that there was a press conference at 8:00a.m. Arizona time. When this post was made, there was no confirmation - except for the somewhat-ambiguous KPHO story -available on the internet of the announcement.)

KPHO (Phoenix Channel 5) is reporting that Arizona Rep. Jeff Flake has already made an announcement that he is running for the U.S. Senate seat of Jon Kyl.  However, according to Flake's Washington office moments ago, they are still "working on it".

No doubt, it will come shortly.  It just does not seem to yet be available.


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Quick Roundup Of Some Of More Interesting Speculations About Arizona's 2012 U.S. Senate Race

Arizona's Politics tried to bring some straightforward coverage of the Jon Kyl retirement announcement and the reactions it engendered.  And, if you have not yet seen our posts about Kyl's net worth declining while in the Senate, and about the fundraising effort designed to urge Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio to run for the seat... well, please click on and read those before reading the articles linked below!

Most of the articles and columns speculating about who will run to be the 11th (according to comments made by Kyl yesterday) U.S. Senator from Arizona were pretty standard fare.  However, some did add to the big picture.  Arizona Republic D.C. reporter Dan Nowicki apparently spoke with Rep. Jeff Flake (R-CD6) last week and confirmed that he is interested.  Real Clear Politics added that they found Arizona sources who said that former Arizona Governor (current Homeland Security Secy.) Janet Napolitano "has already begun calling out to activists in the state to gauge support."

This Talking Points Memo report cites an anonymous Arizona Democratic source as trying to forestall other Democrats from getting into the race until the recovering Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-CD8) makes a decision as to whether she is willing/able to run for the seat.  Yes, her recovery seems to be proceeding miraculously, but this surprised the heck out of me.  The Washington Times advanced the Giffords angle last night by getting well-known Arizona pollster Bruce Merrill to state (on the record) that she would be a "shoo-in" if she is able to and decides to run.

Oh, I almost forgot:  I did try to find my own mini-scoop in the speculation sweepstakes.  At about noon, I came across this brief tweet from former Rep. Harry Mitchell: "Things are going to get interesting."  I could not resist replying thusly: "@HarryEMitchell Fmr staffers Tweeted they'd like YOU to run; any other comment than "things are going to get interesting"? Are you running?"  Mitchell has not tweeted since.



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WATCH: Arizona Sen. Jon Kyl Mocks Dems On Tax Cut Votes, Then Says He Understands, Then Says GOP Won't Budge

As Arizona junior Sen. Jon Kyl's staff puts it, in his segment on Fox News last night, the Senator "explains... the games being played by congressional Democrats...."  Actually, the staff got it a bit more accurately when they titled the video "Inside a Game of Chicken" - because it takes two (at least) to play "chicken".

Kyl spends the first part of the interview mocking the Democrats (prodded by host Greta Van Susteren) for having the votes in the House and the Senate before they can "get serious about negotiating".  He finally tells Greta that he is - against his usual inclinations - defending the President in holding the meeting earlier this week, and that he understands why the Democrats have to hold these votes before they can negotiate.

He then ruins the possible we-can-compromise moment by reiterating that while the Democrats will be ready to negotiate next week, the Republicans won't budge.  "Game of Chicken", indeed.

By the way, Greta did try to get Kyl to budge off his line by noting that, in fairness to the Democrats, the GOP Senators have already written a letter saying they wouldn't budge.

As for the START treaty, Kyl is trying to soften the picture a bit by stressing that there will not be any harm to national security if it does get pushed back (because of the Democrats' tax cut extending delay) to next year.




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