Bob Haran, Legislative District 6, Phoenix -- Uniting the party is a good objective, we could start by not having losing candidates for state chairman attacking the current state chairman.

We can unite the party by agreeing that we will put our country before party and principle before politics.

We will be a stronger party if the power in the party comes from the bottom up and not from the top down, this is a political party, not a business.

We will be a better party if we respect each other's First Amendment right to free speech and refrain from stifling the voices of those who disagree with the actions of their elected representatives.

We can grow as a party if we are honest with the people and don't play word games and call an amnesty an amnesty and not something else.

George Teegarden, Treasurer, LD 11 --

Dear Lisa,

"I’m very concerned about the direction that some criticism has taken, most especially toward U.S. Senator Jon Kyl, who has served our state and our nation with great dedication for two decades now. I was forwarded an email today containing a letter from Congressman Trent Franks who addressed this issue so eloquently that I would like to quote directly from his letter:
 

“I understand that some people may disagree with Senator Kyl's position on immigration reform. However, I believe that the vitriolic rhetoric recently used by some to condemn Jon Kyl is highly inappropriate and shameful. I urge anyone who may disagree with Senator Kyl to do so respectfully and to refrain from attacking the personal integrity of this honorable man,” wrote Congressman Franks, according to the email."

John McCain decreed yesterday that his immigration bill would be the law and that there would be no dissent...
...To remind you of the law as laid down by Senator McCain, here is what he said:

We can and must complete this legislation sooner rather than later. We all know that this issue can be caught up in extracurricular politics unless we move forward as quickly as possible.

You are the "extracurricular" --your views, your reaction, your vote. Simply put, Senator McCain's contempt for you is complete...

The idea that a secret bill of huge importance and around which there is extraordinary public interest, and one not yet even fully drafted, could be introduced on Monday and through the Senate in less than two weeks is repugnant to the idea of representative democracy.

What conservatives and Republicans must recognize is that the White House has broken with them. What President Bush is doing, and has been doing for some time, is sundering a great political coalition. This is sad, and it holds implications not only for one political party but for the American future.

Now conservatives and Republicans are going to have to win back their party. They are going to have to break from those who have already broken from them. This will require courage, serious thinking and an ability to do what psychologists used to call letting go. This will be painful, but it's time. It's more than time.

Cathi starts her defense by saying she is not voicing any opinion on the immigration issue or pending bill.  That is the first problem.  Cathi should be screaming from the hill tops about the evils of this bill.  It will destroy all she has been diligently working to accomplish for over a decade.  We believe strongly that our medical system is about to break with the burden of baby boomers looming on top of 20 million illegals.  The calls have already begun for "Hillary care." With that we will have abortion and euthanasia on demand.

The second problem is placing friendship above national security. We would hope that with the threat to our national security, friendship would become secondary. We have a very serious threat to the survival of our country as well as western civilization, and Cathi chooses to place friendship above taking action. We do not feel that this is an exaggeration. The rhetoric is strong because we feel frustrated on how to stop this legislation. People are furious that Kyl worked with Kennedy behind closed doors to produce this abomination, and now with McCain's assistance is trying to force feed it down our throats.

Our legislators have a terrible record of protecting our borders or keeping their word. This bill cuts by more than half the length of the Duncan Hunter fence legislation passed and funded just last year. Do we believe Kyl, Bush, McCain and Flake or do we believe Lou Dobbs and Hugh Hewitt?   Post 9/11/01, our borders should have been secured by 9/11/02.

We are defending our country because our government refuses to do so. We tell the truth and we tell it strongly.  We feel BETRAYED! This betrayal needs straight, honest, and loud objection. 

Cathi says Senator Kyl is a man of integrity & honor, a solid vote for traditional family values, right to life, traditional marriage between one man and one woman, that he has never abandoned his principles for political expediency and  has worked hard to advance conservative principles. She never had a reason to not trust Senator Kyl's explanations or doubt his motives.

Wow, that's quite a defense. Allow us a few examples of rebuttal. First of all, let's start with the 12 million illegals Kyl continually uses in his references. He and our government officials have been using this bogus figure for 5 years. Reliable sources place the figure at over 20 million (www.immigrationcounters.com) and climbing rapidly.  

Kyl has consistently appointed, endorsed and raised funds for officials and candidates who have been adamantly opposed to the principles of the Center for Az Policy.  When we first entered the AZ GOP office during the terms of Chairman Bob Fannin and Executive Director Ann Lynch (Kyl's people), we were dismayed to discover pamphlets in the literature rack for the recruitment of WISH (pro-abortion) Republicans. During the same period, articles appeared in newspapers of Fannin promoting the WISH List and of Lynch being one of their prominent members. 

Kyl has recently endorsed Senator Carolyn Allen (WISH list and homosexual agenda advocate in the AZ Senate) against a proven supporter of CAP legislation, Representative Colette Rosati, in the 2006 Republican Senate primary in Dist. 8. He just hosted a fundraiser for U.S. Senator Susan Collins, who has a liberal advocacy record similar to Allen's. 

Senator Kyl had his same staffer, Ann Lynch, lead a $20,000 campaign by the Republican elite, some McCain staff and supporters ( surprise, 9 of them appeared on Janet's web site as "Republicans for Janet"), to replace the reliably social conservative leadership in Dist. 11 last year.  He, along with 9 other elected Republican leaders, (now fondly known as "the Gang of 10") authored a letter of recommendation to impress the Dist.11 PCs to support McCain's slate. Blessedly, the good, strong PCs were not impressed and they all lost.

Senator Kyl dutifully lead this effort (3 AZ congressmen also followed marching orders) to unseat platform Republican leadership in favor of McCain's slate. Cathi, that is what was unwarranted and unconscionable, and would give many a Republican a reason not to trust Senator Kyl's explanation or motives. Pure political hardball to take out a few gnats with a battleship crew.

Senator Kyl has also strongly endorsed Senator McCain for President. McCain has voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment, and through McCain finance reform, against political free speech. For example, it prevents National Right To Life's efforts to inform voters 60 days before an election. McCain has also repeatedly voted for federal funding of both fetal tissue research and embryonic stem cell research. All of these votes are opposed to CAP's positions.

We would not call McCain's positions conservative. If he were elected president in place of almost any other Republican the pro-family agenda would likely suffer. We would not call Senator's Kyl's position as AZ Campaign Manager for McCain "advancing conservative principles".  How could Kyl state he has an "enforce the border first" position and at the same time support McCain for president? It doesn't compute, except as an act of political expediency. Kyl is following McCain and taking our Republican party off the cliff.

Last Monday Barry Young asked Senator Kyl why only 2 miles of Duncan Hunter's fence had been built. Kyl knew very well what fence Barry was referring to and yet he misled the listeners. Kyl responded that Hunter was incorrect and that 80 miles had already been built in the San Diego area alone. Of course Hunter had that fence built years ago. Hunter's new legislation authorized 854 miles of fence from AZ to Texas last year. We wouldn't call this a principled response. Today, Congressman Hunter gave an update on the fence on the J.D. Hayworth show, and said about 12 miles had been built.

Now let's address the Illegal Immigration bill itself that Kyl worked out in secret with Sen.Kennedy and is attempting to rush through. Hugh Hewitt, a well-known constitutional lawyer, (and many others) has already shown Kyl's bill to be a fraud and sham. A great number of commentators have described what a travesty the secretive process has been with this bill. 

We can agree Cathi, Kyl is very intelligent. Unfortunately, that makes it all the more clear that he is well aware of what he has wrought. We question, however, his keen strategic mind since Ted Kennedy checkmated him into the "great compromise" for which the Republicans will take the hit.  This bill could destroy the Republican Party as well as the country's historical framework, and Kyl certainly must know this. Is it any wonder the populace is outraged? 

It appears he has purposely deceived us, and that constitutes a betrayal of the trust we placed on his word for "border enforcement first" in his 2006 campaign. Citizens last fall told us through their vote that we have spoiled the Republican brand, the only home for social conservatives.  In discouragement, they stayed home or voted for Democrats like Mitchell and Napolitano who used Republican issues such as "secure the border" to get elected.  

We would hope that instead of praising Senator Kyl, you would tell the Senator that it is not too late. He should kill this bill and reestablish the credibility of Congress by honoring the legislation they passed last year to build 854 miles of border fence and secure our southern border. A temporary worker's program will only be effective with a secured border certified by a reliable source.   

We pray that the name of Jon Kyl will not be sullied and forever linked with this apparently ill conceived legislation, which may accomplish what no war could--the demise of our beloved country.       

Rob and Marne Haney  

"America will never be destroyed from the outside.  If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." Abraham Lincoln