Republican Gov. Brewer abruptly announced she would lead a European trade delegation today and will be out of the country for two weeks. The delegation, her office announced in a news release, will travel to Germany and France and will focus on expanding business investment, tourism and job growth in Arizona. The delegation includes officials with the Arizona Commerce Authority and the Arizona Office of Tourism. They will meet with industry and government officials in Germany and France, both top export partners to Arizona. Officials will also attend a Global Business Dialogue conference in Berlin, which is organized in part with the Thunderbird School of Global Management, The American Chamber of Commerce in Germany and the U.S. Embassy in Berlin. Arizona officials will then fly ... Continue reading →

A parade pf VIP Republicans will head to Tampa in August for the GOP Convention, where they wil anoint Mitt Romney their party's officials presidential candidate. Gov. Jan Brewer, queen bee of the state's Republicans, will lead the parade, followed by Gov. Gregory Mendoza of the Gila River Indian Community, Secretary of State Ken Bennett, Treasurer Doug Ducey, Senate President Steve Pierce, Speaker of the House Andy Tobin … and the list goes on to include a total of 29 delegates. Curiously missing from the list? Arizona's No. 3, aka Attorney General Tom Horne. "I saw that," he told The Republic on Tuesday. "I made some calls myself, and I was told it was an oversight and not intentional. Since I'm not a delegate, I'm ... Continue reading →

Arizona Secretary of State Ken Bennett, who oversees state elections, reversed his stance on endorsing candidates this election cycle, saying detractors would still criticize him based on endorsements he made years ago. During a televised debate with his Democratic opponent in 2010, Bennett, a Republican, told the audience it was improper for elections officials to weigh in on partisan issues. Bennett is now co-chairman for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's Arizona campaign. Bennett seeks verification of Obama's citizenship "I do not feel it's appropriate that I take a position on either the propositions that the voters will be voting on, or endorsing candidates in elections," Bennett said. "And Chris (Deschene) has done the same as far as not endorsing candidates, and I think we both ... Continue reading →

Russell Pearce is still in Rumors have run rampant over the past 24 hours or so that Russell Pearce was going to bow out of his bid for Mesa's Legislative District 25 Senate seat. Pearce, the author of Arizona's controversial immigration law Senate Bill 1070, lost his Senate seat in a November recall election. Pearce, a Republican, was unreachable by phone Friday morning, but did send a very brief e-mail responding to our inquiry as to the accuracy of the rumors. "Not true," Pearce said in the e-mail. As of now, Pearce is still running. In the primary, he'll face Bob Worsley, a political newcomer who founded and later sold the in-flight Web retailer SkyMall. Friday, May 11, 2012 at 12:51 PM Report a Violation ... Continue reading →