Don Stapley: Friend of Democrats

Arizona’s Fifth Congressional District is regarded as one of the top 50 most-conservative districts in the entire country. With Congressman Matt Salmon retiring from the U.S. House of Representatives after his current term ends, four individuals have put their names into the hat to replace Salmon in Congress.

Former Maricopa County Supervisor Don Stapley is one of those four individuals who have come forward to succeed Salmon in the U.S. House. Stapley is generally well known in the district – for both his service and his storied family name (though much of his name ID is not positive by any stretch of the imagination). One would wonder why Don Stapley stepped forward to run for Congress with all of the landmines that he has sown for himself throughout the years of his (self) service.

One of those landmines being that Stapley contributed money ($1000, to be exact) to the campaign of a liberal Democrat running for Congress in 2014. Yes – you read that right. Don Stapley contributed $1,000 to his former pal Mary Rose Wilcox when she ran for the U.S. House of Representatives.

The same Mary Rose Wilcox who supported ObamaCare.

The same Mary Rose Wilcox who supported the pro-illegal immigrant DREAM Act.

And the same Mary Rose Wilcox who supports the expansion of gun control.

Don Stapley will probably tell you now on the campaign trail that he opposes ObamaCare, opposes the DREAM Act, and vehemently opposes expansion of gun control. But actions speak louder than words. And Don Stapley’s actions tell voters of Arizona’s Fifth Congressional District just what they need to know about him.

Don Stapley isn’t one to be trusted. The more voters of AZ-05 find out about the real Don Stapley, the more they will reach that same conclusion.

Don's Delusions

Recently, Robert Robb, columnist for the Arizona Republic wrote a piece about the entrance of Don Stapley in the race for Congressional District 5. As Robb points out, Stapley's decision to run for Congress is the epitome of "self delusion," and will likely be the final professional downfall of a man who can't help but to be corrupted by the political system.

Read Robert Robb's column to refresh your memories about who the real Don Stapley was - and still is!

Reposted from azcentral.com: http://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/robertrobb/2016/04/11/don-stapley-innocent-runs-congress/82811302/

Robb: Don Stapley the Innocent runs for Congress

I was shocked that former County Supervisor Don Stapley announced for the open Congressional District 5 seat. It’s a testimony to the capacity for self-delusion by the political animal.

Stapley claims that he was exonerated in the soap opera that engulfed county government during his tenure.

Now, it is true that Stapley was badly abused by Sheriff Joe Arpaio and former County Attorney Andrew Thomas in their maniacal pursuit of an imagined grand conspiracy between the board of supervisors, senior county staff and certain judges. And Stapley has been compensated by county taxpayers for that abuse.

But he hardly came out of the ordeal smelling like a rose.

During the ruction, it became public that Stapley set up a fund ostensibly to run for office in the National Association of Counties. Contributors to it were people who do business with the county.

However, Stapley instead spent a majority of the funds on personal stuff for him and his family. In other words, he leveraged his elected office for personal enrichment.

Stapley wasn’t charged with a crime. But he was pretty much documented to have been a skunk.

A sensible person would have taken the settlement money for the Arpaio-Thomas abuse and retreated from public life. Instead, Stapley says he’s just the man to represent the East Valley in Congress.

Given the low-esteem in which Congress is held these days, perhaps he’s right.

Andy Biggs Leads Fundraising for CD 5

Last week, Andy Biggs posted his Q1 fundraising report, which showed that he had outraised all other declared CD-5 challengers. Biggs' report showed that he had raised $100,325 in the short time that he had been a candidate for Congress and that he had loaned himself another $100,000.

One of Andy Biggs' other opponents Justin Olson reported raising $14,785 and loaning himself $70,000.

The other two declared Republican challengers in CD-5, Bryan Martyn and Don Stapley, filed to run after the quarterly deadline, and thus did not have to file reports. These two individuals will be under enormous pressure to show fundraising strength when the next quarterly report is due.

Christine Jones, an expected challenger in the race, will dump a boatload of money into her campaign should she, in fact, announce.

Immediately after news broke about Biggs' fundraising haul, his opponents attempted to discredit his impressive number by pointing to his $100,000 loan. That figure most certainly will be dwarfed by at least two of the candidates expected to be in the race at the next filing deadline. The difference between Biggs and other candidates is that Biggs commands a substantial share of the grassroots support - vitally imperative to winning the primary.

Andy Biggs is expected to continue with his fundraising prowess - especially once the Arizona Legislature winds down, due to his self-imposed restrictions on fundraising from Capitol lobbyists. Other candidates may attempt to buy this seat, but between the healthy fundraising and hearty support from the grassroots, Andy Biggs has the pole position in the race heading into the summer months.