CD3

Calling Bob Lord "well-funded, serious opposition" to Rep. John Shadegg (R-3), Sens. John McCain and John Kyl will host a fundraiser on Shadegg's behalf at the home of attorney Jordan Rose and husband, Rose & Allyn Public Relations partner Jason Rose on Saturday afternoon.

"For most of his career Congressman Shadegg has not had well-funded, serious opposition," reads the invitation. "This year is very different."

A poll commissioned by the Bob Lord campaign shows his rival, Rep. John Shadegg, is underperforming in a district many thought safe for the incumbent at the beginning of the year.

According to the poll, conducted by the Washington, D.C. firm Bennett, Petts & Normington, Shadegg enjoys 75 percent name recognition, but only 31 percent of respondents said they will vote for Shadegg in the upcoming election. This is a drop of eight points from a poll conducted earlier in the year when 39 percent of respondents said they would "definitely" or "probably" vote to re-elect him.

The poll also showed that Sen. John McCain has a slimmer-than-expected margin over newly-crowned Democratic opponent Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), capturing 48 percent to 43 percent if the contest were held today. Pres. George W. Bush won the district in 2004 by 58 percent.

Most people know that 2008 is quite a busy year in Arizona congressional politics, but today the Arizona Capitol Times shed light on just how busy it is. The state boasts four competitive House races - half of its districts - the outcomes of which will help shape Congress for the next two years, but the less-scrutinized races have a wealth of candidates as well.

While the focus may be on contests like the CD1 fight over Rep. Rick Renzi's seat, the CD5 Republican primary and the premier battle between Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and state Sen. Tim Bee in the 8th, voters in all of Arizona's districts will have a choice in November. With the spotlight firmly fixed on the top four, the others have been in the shadows as far as the media is concerned.

Today is different. The Arizona Capitol Times has released a list of all candidates who have filed as congressional competitors for 2008. The litany of incumbents and hopefuls is presented without preference, pretense or puffery, and, at least in this format, all candidates are created equal.

U.S. Rep. John ShadeggWASHINGTON -- Tied to the upcoming Memorial Day holiday, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is launching radio advertisements against U.S. Rep. John Shadegg (R-Phoenix), taking aim at the Congressman for his “present” vote on an Iraq War funding bill last week.

“Republicans in Congress have always promised to fund our troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. But, when it came time to cast a vote to do so, Congressman John Shadegg did not,” an announcer in the ad says. “Our troops can’t choose whether or not to do their jobs. John Shadegg can. Yet, when he was supposed to vote ‘Yes’ or ‘No’, Shadegg chose not to stand up for our troops and instead, did nothing. Our troops stand up for us. They need Congressman Shadegg to stand up for them.”

“Our colleagues on the other side of the aisle have said one thing and done another,” U.S. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), the chair of the DCCC, said on a conference call with reporters today. “We are going to be making sure their constituents know how they voted on this very important piece of legislation.”

According to a report on Politico, the DCCC will be launching a new radio, web ad and robo-call campaign against some Republicans who voted “present” on an Iraq War funding bill last week.  The ads beginning this week will run for one week.  The Democrats are targeting eight Republicans they consider vulnerable in November.  CD3 Republican John Shadegg is on the list of targets.

While Rep. John Shadegg (R-3) painted his vote against the Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act today as a strike against tax increases, Bob Lord, his Democratic rival, portrayed it as "breaking a promise" to support renewable energy.

Shadegg contends that the bill increases taxes on some while giving tax breaks to "trial lawyers and Hollywood movie producers," while Lord maintains that the bill is "critical" to the creation of "green-collar jobs" in Arizona.

PolitickerAZ.com has previously reported that Bob Lord, CD3 Democratic candidate, raised eyebrows at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee with his impressive 2007 fouth quarter numbers.

After beating longtime incumbent Rep. John Shadegg in fundraising for the first three months of the year - by $70,000 - Lord has done more than drawn attention from national Dems: He's drawn Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), DCCC Chairman, who will appear at two fundraisers on behalf of Lord on May 29.

After quitting the CD3 race today, independent Annie Loyd is not planning to throw her support behind either Democrat Bob Lord or Republican U.S. Rep. John Shadegg. Rather, she said, she will devote herself fully to combating what she sees as wrongheaded immigration enforcement practices in the Greater Phoenix area.

The former candidate explained to PolitickerAZ.com why she got out of the race and how she plans to participate in the remaining months of the contest.

Annie LoydAnnie Loyd, independent for Congress in CD3, is running no longer.

Loyd had been incredibly visible for a candidate without party affiliation, and leaves the race with numerous questions, such as whether she will throw her support behind either Democrat Bob Lord or, less likely, Rep. John Shadegg.

She said she sees a need to address the immigration question immediately, and feels running for office to be contrary to her more community-based goals, but left unsaid whether any specific catalyst prompted her to leave the race.

Today Phoenix City Councilman Michael Nowakowski endorsed Bob Lord, Democratic candidate for the U.S. House seat in CD3.

Nowakowski, who represents Phoenix's 7th District, which includes downtown, has been expected to endorse Lord for weeks now. He is the second member of the Phoenix City Council to do so, after Dist. 6 councilman Greg Stanton endorsed him in February. Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon is also backing Lord.