National Republican Congressional Committee

A day after U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Tucson) released a TV ad touting her record on border security, national Republicans and state Sen. Pres. Tim Bee (R-Tucson) are using votes Giffords cast in Congress to make the case that she isn't as tough as she claims.

"Gabby Giffords’ campaign is apparently suffering from a severe case of selective memory,” said National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Brendan Buck in a press release. “While she likes to claim she is ‘tough’ on immigration, her record clearly states otherwise. Giffords can gab until she’s red in the face, but at the end of the day she is going to have to answer for her abysmal record on illegal immigration.”

Among the legislative accomplishments Giffords highlights in the new ad are efforts to put 3,000 more agents at the border and measures to stop drug trafficking.

However, Tim Bee, Giffords's opponent in the 8th Congressional District, is saying that other votes reveal her record to be less than stellar on border issues.

Susan Bitter Smith, one of the Republican primary candidates in the 5th Congressional District jockeying for the chance to take on U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe) in the general election, held a "virtual" fundraiser Wednesday for donors in Washington, D.C. and across the country.

The event may have been virtual, but the money is real. Bitter Smith told PolitickerAZ.com that the conference call brought her campaign $10,000.

"It ended up being actually quite an interesting event," said Bitter Smith. "The only thing they didn't get was obviously the soda and cheese and crackers."

A Democratic polling firm has U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Tucson) beating her 8th Congressional District challenger state Sen. Pres. Tim Bee (R-Tucson) by 25 points. A Bee internal poll only has her up by seven, and under the 50 percent threshold. With no third opinion, the truth remains elusive.

Pres. Bush hosted a fundraiser for Bee in Tucson on Friday, which the campaign estimates brought in $500,000 to be split among his campaign, the Republican National Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Pima County Republican Party Federal Fund. At the same time, Bee released a poll, conducted by Margaret Kenski, a highly-regarded Republican pollster, that shows Giffords holds a seven point lead over Bee, 47 percent to 40 percent, with 13 percent undecided.

The continuing allegations of ethics violations against U.S. Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) may have consequences for Democratic politicians across the country, including in Arizona. Today, in their third such attack, the National Republican Congressional Committee is calling on 1st Congressional District candidate Ann Kirkpatrick to return campaign contributions she received from Rangel. The NRCC had previously called for U.S. Reps. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe) and Gabrielle Giffords (D-Tucson) to do the same.

“Ann Kirkpatrick is not a voice for change, she is status-quo politician willing to get elected to Congress any way she can,” said NRCC Spokesman Ken Spain in a press release. “If Kirkpatrick wants to separate herself from a corrupt politician and an unpopular Democrat Majority in Congress, she will return the campaign checks she took from Rep. Charlie Rangel.”

U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe)Seth Scott, campaign manager for the re-election campaign of U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe), is responding to charges of inaction by Mitchell on the issue of the nation's energy crisis, which has been the main line of attack against the freshman Democrat.

"Harry has been talking about energy for two years now," Scott told PolitickerAZ.com. "To say that his position isn't clear indicates some people haven't been paying attention."

Mitchell has come under fire from his prospective opponents, who are engaged in a six-way Republican primary to face him on the general election ballot, as well as the National Republican Congressional Committee for what they characterize as the failures of the Democratic-controlled U.S. House, and Mitchell in specific, to take action on high gas prices.

President George W. Bush is coming to Tucson on July 18 to "honor" state Senate President and 8th Congressional District candidate Tim Bee (R-Tucson).

According to the invitation, the event will take place at the home of Jackie and William Bell, and is being hosted by auto dealership magnate Jim Click, National Rifle Association President Sandra Froman, lawyer and real estate developer Duff Hearon and former Carondelet Foundation CEO Jannie Cox.

The event is being mounted by the Tim Bee Arizona Trust, a joint fundraising venture of Tim Bee for Congress, the National Republican Committee, the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Pima County Republican Party Federal Campaign. Contributors of $10,000 or more get a VIP reception and photo op with Pres. Bush, while donations of $1,000 to $9,999 earn the donor breakfast at the event.

The National Republican Congressional Committee has called on U.S. Reps. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe) and Gabrielle Giffords (D-Tucson) to denounce "socialist" comments by a Democratic House member, as Giffords voiced her support for a bill to encourage oil companies to use exisiting leases of government lands.

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.) said, "Should the people of the United States own oil refineries? Maybe so." He claimed he thought it was a "good idea" at the time, though Hinchey admitted later in a FOX News interview that he doesn't think the idea will fly.

The NRCC followed up by challenging Reps. Giffords and Mitchell to "weigh in on this newest proposal to socialize America’s energy industry."

For the third time in a week, the National Republican Congressional Committee is going after U.S. Reps. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe) and Gabrielle Giffords (D-Tucson) over the price of gasoline, while the Mitchell campaign hits back.

In one of its most scathing indictments to date against the two freshman Democrats, the NRCC called them "staunch opponent[s] of sensible solutions to the energy crisis" and accused them of having a "'do-nothing' approach" to high gas prices.

Specifically, the releases against Giffords and Mitchell were critical of their "voting...to block the House from debating any amendment aimed at reducing the cost of gas." The amendment was offered by Arizona U.S. Rep. John Shadegg (R-Phoenix), but was blocked by the Rules Committee that limited amendments to one section of the bill.

The National Republican Congressional Committee is blasting U.S. Reps. Harry Mitchell (D-5) and Gabrielle Giffords (D-8) for not supporting the expansion of domestic oil production, saying the two freshman Democrats are "out of touch." Citing a recent Gallup Poll, the NRCC claims that House Democrats' refusal to get behind opening up new drilling sites stands at odds with the desires of the majority of Americans.

The poll in question showed that 57 percent of those surveyed support "drilling in U.S. coastal and wilderness areas now off limits." Democrats have long opposed opening up these areas, particularly the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).

Neither Reps. Giffords nor Mitchell have specifically come out against opening up ANWR or the expansion of offshore drilling, but both have spent much of their first year-and-a-half in office fighting for renewable energy tax credits and other energy programs favored by Democrats.

The National Republican Congressional Committee is taking its counterpart, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, to task over their support of CD1 candidate Ann Kirkpatrick. Ken Spain, spokesman for the NRCC, criticized Kirkpatrick as the "hand-picked Washington candidate" after the DCCC added her to its Red to Blue list, which helps Democratic challengers with fundraising and organization.

“Despite repeated claims that they would remain neutral in primaries, the DCCC has decided to make Ann Kirkpatrick the hand-picked Washington candidate of choice" said Spain in an email. "That is because they know she will be a rubber stamp for Nancy Pelosi and her liberal agenda of higher taxes, government-run healthcare, and soaring energy costs.”

The DCCC, however, denies that her inclusion in the program amounts to an endorsement, saying it is only a reflection of her strength as a candidate.