"Sheriff Joe" Ally Running for Attorney General in Arizona

[pinboy3niner]

Still doubting Thomas on immigration?

by E. J. Montini - Jun. 18, 2010 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic


The origin of SB 1070 and Arizona's emergence as the focal point of our national immigration debate can be traced to the summer of 2004 when an obscure 37-year-old candidate in a six-person Republican primary for Maricopa County attorney posted campaign signs with what seemed like a laughably naive slogan: "Stop Illegal Immigration."
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That 37-year-old candidate was Andrew Thomas, who went on to win the election and, as Maricopa County Attorney, to provide Sheriff Joe Arpaio the legal opinion that allowed "Sheriff Joe" to charge smuggled aliens as criminal co-conspirators in their smuggling. The story continues:

Thomas was re-elected in 2008 but since leaving office to run again for attorney general, he hasn't received nearly the national attention that has fallen to state Sen. Russell Pearce or Arpaio. In addition to running a campaign, he's also fighting ethics charges filed against him with the state Bar. Still, Thomas told me that the folks he meets around the state recognize his role in the immigration fight.
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"The attorney general has different powers than the county attorney does," he said. "However, one thing he can do under current law is to offer to provide all 15 counties with assistant attorneys general to prosecute immigration cases."

But only if those counties are willing to prosecute smugglers and the immigrants who conspired to be smuggled, Thomas said. Something that only he did as county attorney.


Read more:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2010/06/18/20100618Montini0618.html

Arizona's current AG, Democrat Terry Goddard--who was just named by his peers as Attorney General of the Year--is challenging Gov. Jan Brewer for that office. (Goddard's father served as Governor of Arizona from 1965 to 1967.) Wiki describes Goddard's early political career:

Goddard's first serious foray into electoral politics came in 1982, when he led the successful push for members of the Phoenix City Council to be elected from districts, instead of by a majority of all voters citywide. This allowed minorities from certain parts of Phoenix to be elected and represent their home areas and giving those areas a voice on the council. The next election saw the election of the city's first Latino and African-American to the council in over a decade. The measure is credited with significantly opening up Phoenix city government, and in 1984 Goddard was elected Mayor. Within a decade, all of the members of the City Council who had been elected at-large, and who had been considered unbeatable under the previous system, were no longer serving on the Council. Goddard was re-elected four times, serving through 1990.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_Goddard

When Goddard leaves the AG's office, he could be replaced by somebody like Thomas or Thomas' Republican primary challenger, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne--the guy behind Arizona's law banning ethnic studies. Three Democrats are running for the party's nomination for AG.

[classysassy]

1. The republican party in arizona

is an awful group of right wing white boys and gals that will take this state back into the past century if left unchecked.