Bob Lord

Bob Lord, who is challenging incumbent U.S. Rep. John Shadegg (R-Phoenix) for the 3rd Congressional District seat, released a "grassroots video" today highlighting Lord's stance on energy issues and attacking Shadegg for "blocking change."

"Arizona could power the entire country with solar energy," said Lord in the video, which portrays him standing in front of his Toyota Prius hybrid. "We just need leaders who are willing to invest in the future."

Lord also lambasted Shadegg for "taking thousands in campaign cash from Big Oil" and "consistently vot[ing] against renewable energy."

Congressional candidate Bob Lord: Campaign photoThe Bob Lord campaign will report that it raised more money in the 2nd quarter than in any previous quarter, according to Lord campaign manager Andrew Eldredge-Martin.

"We're really pleased with how the quarter went, and especially pleased that we now have over 3,000 individual contributors," Eldredge-Martin told PolitickerAZ.com. "It's our best quarter ever."

However, he said the campaign was still receiving contributions sent before the June 30 deadline, and therefore they aren't able to release a total yet.

A looming close to the 2nd quarter reporting period (totals are due at midnight, June 30) means congressional candidates making a final push to ramp up their takes. The 3rd Congressional District race, which pits incumbent U.S. Rep. John Shadegg (R-Phoenix) against Democratic attorney Bob Lord, is no exception.

The candidates are symmetrical in their arguments. Both Lord and Shadegg paint the other as beholden to the establishment of his party, and both argue they need funds to counter attacks the other will mount.

U.S. Rep. Gabrielle GiffordsU.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Tucson) and state Senate President Tim Bee (R-Tucson) disagree about many things: the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the handgun ban in Washington, D.C. isn't among them.

Both Giffords, the freshman Democratic representative from the 8th district, and Bee, who is running against her for the seat, praised the high court's decision.

"I applaud the Supreme Court’s historic decision to protect an individual’s rights," said Bee. "The decision is a victory for Constitutional Rights. The Second Amendment, the right to keep and bear arms, is vitally important and must be held sacrosanct. We will continue our vigilance in the protection of these rights deemed to be the bedrock of our collective freedoms by the Framers and the Ratifiers of the Constitution.”

Both U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe) and 3rd Congressional District Democratic candidate Bob Lord have issued statements in support of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that overturns a handgun ban in Washington, D.C.

"“I strongly support the right of law-abiding Americans to bear arms," said Lord, who is running against U.S. Rep. John Shadegg (R-Phoenix) in the 3rd district. "The right to bear arms is an essential shield against tyranny and critical to our ability to defend our property and our families." While saying guns should be "kept out of the reach of children, felons, and those who have been found to be a danger to themselves or others," Lord vowed, "I will oppose legislation that takes away the rights of law-abiding, responsible gun owners. All our civil liberties deserve protection. I agree with the Supreme Court's opinion today that this right applies to all Americans.”

Mitchell also praised the decision, saying in a press release, "This is an important ruling for those who believe in personal freedoms and understand that the D.C. ban when beyond constitutional limits."

The Arizona Democratic Party is hitting a trio of Republican candidates over their tax policies, echoing an assault against 5th Congressional District Republican candidate David Schweikert by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee last week. Schweikert is joined in the Democrats' crosshairs by 1st Congressional District Republican front-runner Sydney Hay and incumbent U.S. Rep. John Shadegg (R-Phoenix), as the Democrats attempt to paint the three as advocating higher food prices through new taxes.

However, the Schweikert campaign is attempting to turn the attack back around on the Arizona Democrats by taking issue with their characterization of his stance, and leveling a similar charge against U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe).

The Democrats argue that Hay, Schweikert and Shadegg support a national sales tax of 23 percent, which they say would have the effect of raising food prices commensurately. Hay and Schweikert have espoused support for the so-called "FairTax," which proponents claim is a more equitable alternative to the federal income tax, and Shadegg cosponsored H.R. 25, which put the FairTax theory into legislative form. 

The Arizona AFL-CIO has unveiled its endorsements in this year's U.S. House primaries, though only one of the candidates is actually engaged in a primary, and one primary was bypassed altogether.

All candidates who received endorsements were Democrats, and included the four Democratic members of the Arizona House delegation, though none faces a primary. Other recipients were Bob Lord, who is taking on U.S. Rep. John Shadegg (R-Phoenix) in the 3rd Congressional District; John Thrasher, a Democrat who is running for the second time against U.S. Rep. Trent Franks (R-Glendale) in the 2nd Congressional District; and Ann Kirkpatrick, the front-runner in the 1st Congressional District Democratic pack.

"These candidates share our vision of what is important to Arizona’s working families," said Rebekah Friend, the Arizona AFL-CIO's executive director. "It is crucial for the future of Arizona that we elect those who are going to step up to the plate and fight for the issues that will move Arizona forward. We’re convinced that these candidates will do just that."

Arizona’s American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) announced its endorsement of Bob Lord for Congress Friday.

“I am truly honored to have the backing of Arizona's working families,” Bob Lord said. “Having Arizona's working families working with our campaign for change is incredibly important.”

The AFL-CIO union represents 165,000 union members and their families in Arizona.

Joshua Kilroy has run a great campaign early for Tim Nelson.  Find out why this week he is a winner and why Susan Bitter Smith makes the losers list. This week's Winners and Losers.