Electionwatch: Mary Kim Titla is best candidate for Congress in CD-1

Looking at the four Democratic candidates running for the Rick Renzi Congressional seat in CD-1, only one stands out above the crowd - Channel 12 newscaster Mary Kim Titla. As a newscaster, she knows the issues in Arizona better than anyone. She is a Native American born and raised on the San Carlos Apache Reservation who best represents the interests of this district with its large Native American population. Since Arizona is home to many Native American tribes, it is appalling that not a single one of our Congressional delegation is Native American. Mary Kim's experience with Native American issues is unmatched and she would represent them well in Congress.

Two of the other candidates, Howard Shanker and Jeffrey Brown, are little-known contenders who would not be able to beat Republican candidate and talkshow host Sidney Hay in the general election. Brown's bio strangely begins with a long section about what his parents are doing, which is weird for a grown man. He boasts about working for a Republican, Arizona Representative John Nelson, which puts his Democratic credentials in question. He lists extensive involvement with the GLBT community. While it would be a progressive step to have a gay Congressman from Arizona (particularly since Jim Kolbe is no longer in office), Brown seems too much like a one-issue candidate on this, which hurts his electability in this rural area.

The fourth Democrat in the race, former state representative Ann Kirkpatrick, would bring more of the same tired old policies we've seen for years in government. This is the year of Obama, this the year of change. We don't need more of the same rhetoric we've heard for years from either political party, including our own.

Here is an excerpt from Mary Kim's bio:

In 1987 Mary Kim became the first Native American TV reporter in Arizona when KVOA TV in Tucson hired her. She worked at KVOA for 6 years. KPNX TV hired her in 1993. She worked there until resigning in late 2005 to publish Native Youth Magazine online. Mary Kim has earned numerous awards for her TV news reporting and for the e-zine she created. She was recently inducted into the Walter Cronkite Hall of Fame at Arizona State University.