This is how John McCain could lose his reelection bid in Arizona
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) is up for reelection this year and even by his own estimate, keeping his seat is not exactly going to be a walk in the park. Challenging McCain in Arizona's Aug. 30 primary is former Arizona state senator Kelli Ward, who is aiming to "[exemplify McCain as] everything Republican presidential primary voters had rejected by nominating Trump," Slate writes. And even if McCain makes it past Ward, he'll be facing Democratic Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick in the fall, who is working to paint him and Trump as one and the same.
McCain has endorsed Donald Trump, despite the fact that Trump once dismissed his military experience because he was "captured" during combat. In May, McCain admitted at a private event that "if Donald Trump is at the top of the ticket, here in Arizona, with over 30 percent of the vote being the Hispanic vote, no doubt that this may be the race of my life."
And that's what Kirkpatrick is hoping for. As Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) told Slate, "Latinos are now seeing McCain and Trump as one and the same and even tying things that your average voter would not normally tie together. For example: John McCain not supporting the president's Supreme Court pick? In their minds, from what I'm hearing, it's telling them that he wants Trump to pick the next Supreme Court justice. So it's just starting to jell together."
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Meanwhile, Ward's tea party backers are hearing that John McCain is "not the conservative he claims to be." Ward further warns that the senator's many years in Washington have made him a part of the contemptible establishment.
All this leaves McCain — who will be 80 this summer — with quite a minefield to navigate. But as Slate points out, he's never been one not to show up to a fight. Read more at Slate.
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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