KJZZ’s Friday NewsCap revisits some of the biggest stories of the week from Arizona and beyond.
To talk about a new Democratic presidential ticket, an Arizona leader being considered to join that ticket and more, The Show sat down with former state lawmaker Paul Boyer and attorney Tom Ryan.
Conversation highlights
On Kamala Harris changing the presidential race in Arizona
MARK BRODIE: Tom, let me start with you on the change in ticket. President Biden on Sunday announced that he was withdrawing from the race. It seems as though the Democratic Party has really coalesced around Vice President Kamala Harris to be the party’s nominee. In Arizona, does this change the race at all?
TOM RYAN: Well, I think it does. I think there had been appropriately expressed certain concern over the age of Joe Biden. His debate performance was less than stellar. In fact, it was a bit scary and quite disappointing, unfortunately. Joe has been a good man and a great president, but I think it’s impressive that he recognized it was time for him to step aside.
I think you’re going to see Arizonans — especially Democrats and independents and even some moderate Republicans — embrace the Harris and whoever she picks as her vice presidential candidate ticket this November.
BRODIE: Paul, what do you think? Does this change the nature of the race? We’ve seen, for example, pretty much every poll that’s come out has shown former President Trump leading President Biden in Arizona. Does having Vice President Harris at the top of the ticket change that, do you think?
PAUL BOYER: Well, I think once people get to know who Kamala Harris really is — and in spite of what the media is now saying, she really was the lead, Biden’s point person on the border and how much of a disaster that’s been in Arizona in particular — I think that she’s going to struggle in Arizona in particular. I still think that Trump pulls it out.
BRODIE: Do you think that it affects other states? Obviously we’re an Arizona-based show. But does having somebody other than Joe Biden at the top of the Democratic ticket maybe help in other states?
BOYER: I think it certainly does. But again, I think she’s wrong on on energy. I think she’s wrong on life. I think she’s wrong on what's going on in the Middle East right now. And so I think that once she’s defined as a candidate — because remember she was only polling at 1% in a Democratic primary when she last ran in 2020, and she got out before she even appeared on any ballots.
And so I think she’s a weak candidate generally. She's there because Joe Biden, physically, he couldn’t continue. And that’s the only reason why she’s gotten to where she’s gotten.
On Harris' record on immigration and energy
BRODIE: Tom, I want to ask you about something Paul mentioned in terms of the border and immigration, because that obviously is a big issue, especially among Republicans in this election. And (Harris) was sort of the point person on trying to get to the root causes of why the situation was what it was. In a place like Arizona, does that become a drag for her?
RYAN: I think it could. But let me explain two things. Number one, the Biden administration worked with leaders in the Senate — Republican leaders in the Senate — to develop a bipartisan funding agreement to provide increased border security. And Donald Trump said, “Don’t do it because I need this for my campaign here in 2024.” And he deep-sixed it. And so they did. That’s not Biden’s fault or Harris’ fault. That’s, Donald J. Trump’s fault.
Secondly we have to remember arrests are up for illegal immigration. We just arrested, last night, two of the biggest cartel drug dealers. This was effectively the Osama bin laden arrest of the drug trade for here in America, the two they got in New Mexico last night.
But I want to address the energy issue. I’m not sure what it is that is wrong on the energy issue. We are producing more oil and more gas than any other country at any other time in our nation’s history. We are the leader of energy production right now.
It may be that we don’t like to talk about climate change and how fossil fuels affect climate change. I get that. But we’re producing more energy, more gas than anybody else at any other time in our nation’s history. So I think we’re okay on that.
BRODIE: Hey Paul, do you foresee energy policy becoming an issue on the campaign trail? It doesn’t seem like it’s one that has come up much so far.
BOYER: I think it should, because she’s on record saying she’s against fracking. She’s against nuclear. She’s against, of course, oil, against natural gas. She’s against just the normal forms of energy. And we can’t depend on wind and solar. We just can’t.
And so I think once the general public realizes that she’s against all of those, it should be an issue because it’s not only how much we pay at the pump, but it’s really a national security issue.
On Sen. Mark Kelly as a VP pick
BRODIE: So let me ask you this, Paul: We know that Vice President Harris has kind of a condensed timeline to get her campaign up and running and to vet vice presidential candidates. One of those who she has reportedly requested documentation from is Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly. Let’s say, for example, that she picks him. Does that help her in Arizona, having someone like Mark Kelly, who has won two statewide races in the last four years on the ticket?
BOYER: I think it does help her here in Arizona in particular just because, obviously, he’s won two races. He’s popular. He’s got a great background. He's still a neophyte. He’s got a great resume, but as far as politics are concerned and policy, he is new. But yeah, she would help herself by putting Mark Kelly on the ticket.
BRODIE: Do enough to overcome some of the problems, as you referenced, with her record on the border?
BOYER: I don’t know what Mark Kelly really brings to the table other than gun control. I don’t know what else that he has done. I don’t know if he’s championed energy policy or anything of that nature. I know he’s been big on water.
RYAN: Oh, he brings his background as a naval pilot, an astronaut. So defense is huge, especially for here in Arizona. He has guns. He’s a member of the NRA, but he wants to bring sensible gun control back. This whole idea that a good man with a gun can stop a bad man with a gun is crazy just look at Uvalde.
That was a little skinny guy. What were they afraid of? The little skinny guy? Were they afraid of the AR-15-like assault rifle that he had? That’s what’s doing it. And so, yes, he has a sensible approach to gun control. I think it’s going to help the Harris ticket if they nominate him.
BRODIE: All right, so obviously all our crystal balls are fairly cloudy. Do you think Kelly is the pick?
RYAN: No, I’m. I’m thinking it might be Minnesota Gov. (Tim) Waltz.
BRODIE: Really?
RYAN: Yeah.
BRODIE: OK, bit of a dark horse.
RYAN: Bit of a dark horse. Kelly would be a great choice, but I don’t think that’s going to happen. It would create problems here in Arizona. You lose a Democratic senator, so you risk a seat when the U.S. Senate is so close. It creates more than one election cycle for us for that seat.
The only thing that you can say is it’ll give Gov. (Katie) Hobbs a chance to appoint somebody to fill the seat that’s a Democrat. Hopefully she’ll field somebody that would be electable.
BRODIE: Sen. Ryan?
RYAN: No!
BOYER: I think if she’s smart, she’ll pick Josh Shapiro,
BRODIE: The governor of Pennsylvania.
BOYER: That’s right. But I don’t know that she’s going to take the smart approach. I think she's going to do something else. I really think that Mark Kelly is her choice.
RYAN: What about Gov. (Gretchen) Whitmer from Michigan? That’s another — having a female-female, I know that’s scary for …
BRODIE: I think she said that she’s not that interested though, right?
RYAN: Yeah. She did say that. But she they ask for credentials.
On Trump running mate JD Vance visiting Arizona
BRODIE: OK. I want to ask you also Paul, the Republican vice presidential candidate, JD Vance, will be in Glendale — your neck of the woods — next week. We talked about Mark Kelly as fairly new in the Senate. Sen. Vance is also fairly new in the Senate.
What does he bring to the Republican ticket? And what would you imagine him to bring in terms of campaigning? Arizona’s an important state for both campaigns.
BOYER: Sure. I know he’s wrote the book, “The Hillbilly Elegy,” and he apparently represents the middle class, the lower class worker. He's got a great degree, apparently. I don’t really know a whole lot about him, to be honest with you. He wasn’t my number one pick. I was really hoping for (Florida U.S. Sen.) Marco Rubio or (Florida Gov.) Ron DeSantis.
BRODIE: Do you think him coming to Arizona, does that help the Trump-Vance ticket? Do you think having him here as opposed to, for example, former President Trump?
BOYER: Sure. I think any attention that Arizona gets — and we always get a lot of attention, obviously we’re a battleground state. Any attention that a vice presidential candidate brings to Arizona is huge, whether that’s Republican or Democrat. So I think that as Arizonans, we should always welcome that. I don’t know how much more, though. I don’t know if the ceiling is peaked.
On GOP lawsuits challenging Harris' nomination
BRODIE: Is it possible to have a nonpolitical commercial on TV anymore? Like, I don’t even know if there’s any airtime left for the beer and the truck commercials. Tom, let me ask you quickly before we go to break, the state Republican party has joined a lawsuit challenging the Harris campaign’s use of Biden-Harris money.
This was seen as one of the reasons why Kamala Harris would be a good candidate, that she would have access to the tens of millions of dollars that the Biden-Harris ticket had already had. You’re the lawyer in the room.
RYAN: Yes, I think so.
BRODIE: Do you foresee this lawsuit being successful?
RYAN: Not at all. There’s a greater chance that it’s going to snow this afternoon right in Phoenix, Arizona. No, it’s not going to go anywhere. Look, transferring money from campaign to campaign. That ship has sailed. That train left the station. Pick whatever metaphor and mix them, if you like. Grab the bull by the horns and let the chips fall where they may.
That is not going to go anywhere. It's more performative litigation. They’re not going to stop it.
BRODIE: Paul, do you see this lawsuit as a message in any way, or is is just sort of the Republican Party in various states trying to make sure that you’re trying to make it so that the Harris campaign has less money than they think they do?
BOYER: I think it’s really more delay. And look, Trump has been litigated. He’s been in the courtroom for the last, what? Five out of six months. And so I think turnaround is fair play from their perspective. And they’re really just trying to delay that money getting into the Harris campaign.
