Arizona congressional nominee Ron Barber released a statement Thursday expressing his support for President Obama’s reelection after he refused to say whether he would vote for him in a debate Wednesday night. Barber is running against Jesse Kelly in Arizona’s 8th District in a special election on June 12. The seat was held by Gabrielle Giffords.
Republicans pounced on the incident Thursday morning, passing around a video of Barber’s dodge on Twitter.
Barber deputy campaign director Jessica Schultz cleared up the matter with the following statement:
Ron’s point last night was that the election on June 12 isn’t about president Obama, or any other national figure–it’s about who is going to do the best job fighting for middle class families in southern Arizona. While Ron does not agree with the president on everything, of course Ron has supported and will support President Obama in the election. His primary focus as a member of Congress will be standing up for Southern Arizonans.
