Sean McCaffrey

For Immediate Release: January 7, 2009
Contact: Brett Mecum, 602.957.7770

PULLEN NAMES MECUM INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Phoenix, AZ – Randy Pullen, chairman of the Arizona Republican Party, today named Brett Mecum as interim executive director of the Arizona Republican Party.

“Brett’s background, work ethic, and dedication have earned him my complete confidence,” said Pullen. “Brett knows the personalities, the operations, and what it takes to win. He is the clear choice for the job.”

“I look forward to continuing the work that we started two years ago,” said Mecum. “I have thoroughly enjoyed working for this state Republican Party as both communications and political director. It is truly an exciting time to be an Arizona Republican and I’m ready to continue to grow the Party and get Republicans elected to office.

Arizona Republican Party political director Brett Mecum will take the party's reins as executive director - temporarily, at least.
Mecum, who joined the state party in early 2007, takes over for Sean McCaffrey, who announced his resignation in recent weeks.
"Brett's background, work ethic and dedication have earned him my complete confidence," said state GOP Chairman Randy Pullen. "Brett knows the personalities, the operations and what it takes to win. He is the clear choice for the job."
Jeez, an endorsement like that makes it sound like Mecum may be more than just the "interim" pick.
A lot figures to depend on the outcome ...

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Sean McCaffrey

Sean McCaffrey, executive director of the Arizona Republican Party, is leaving his post at the end of January 2009 and will likely take a job with a political consultancy firm, he announced Wednesday.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to have been a part of Chairman Pullen’s team here at the Arizona Republican Party and I’m very proud of the accomplishments we’ve achieved,” McCaffrey said in a press release. “I look forward to working closely with Chairman Pullen and Republicans across the state to build on those victories in the future. We clearly have the opportunity to expand these majorities and that’s very exciting."

McCaffrey told PolitickerAZ.com that he feels it is the right time to leave, after Republicans increased their majorities in the Arizona House and Senate on Nov. 4.

"It's better to go out on top," said McCaffrey.

On news that Gov. Janet Napolitano is expected to be nominated by President-elect Obama to head the Department of Homeland Security, many Arizona Republicans have reacted favorably, figuring her departure will elevate Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer, a Republican, to the governor's seat and eliminate the threat that Napolitano would run against U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Phoenix) in 2010 - an almost certainly costly, and possibly losing, battle for the GOP.  

However, those at the Arizona Republican Party aren't exactly celebrating. At least not according to party executive director Sean McCaffrey. While McCaffrey said Brewer's elevation would be a good thing, he also indicated that there could be potential pitfalls as well.

"On the plus side you get a Republican governor, and a good one," McCaffrey told PolitickerAZ.com. "The downside of being elevated to that job is that you have to do it."

Who should get the credit for Republican victories in Arizona's legislative races - the Arizona Republican Party or its Democratic counterpart?  

Despite a national Democratic wave and victories for Democrats in the 1st Congressional District, and two of the Arizona Corporation Commission seats, Republicans came away from Election Day with even larger majorities in the Arizona House and Senate.

While the Arizona Republican Party attributed its success to "out-working" the Democrats, Republican strategist and former head of the Arizona Republican Party Nathan Sproul told PolitickerAZ.com he thinks the GOP pick-ups in the Arizona House on Nov. 4 could easily have been gains for the Democrats, had the Arizona Democratic Party not made a "strategic blunder."

"Democrats made the same mistake Republicans made in 2006," said Sproul. "They forgot to play defense."

Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer had set Friday as the deadline for the Arizona Republican Party to respond to a complaint the Arizona Democratic Party filed against it over alleged campaign finance violations, but while it is not known whether the Arizona GOP met the deadline, indications from the Secretary of State's office are that it might not matter.

On Oct. 14, The Arizona Democratic Party filed a complaint against its counterpart over a large contribution from a group then-known as SCA, now known to stand for the Sheriffs Command Association, whose membership was not revealed, and which had not filed as a political committee with the Arizona Secretary of State or the Maricopa County Recorder's Office. 

Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer said she wanted a response to the complaint from the Arizona Republican Party by Friday - including the names of SCA's membership - but as of midday none had arrived. A call put in to the Secretary of State's office at day's end was not returned.

However, it is questionable whether the matter will go anywhere, with or without a timely response from the Arizona GOP.

The Arizona Democratic Party has filed a multi-part complaint against the Arizona Republican Party over $105,000 in donations the state GOP received from a Mesa group called SCA.

According to the latest campaign filing from the Arizona Republican Party, SCA, which is listed as an "unincorporated association of individuals," gave $80,000 to the party on Aug. 21 and another $25,000 on Sep. 10. SCA is the sole entity listed under "individual contributions" in the party's post-primary filing for its state account.

The Democrats allege in a complaint filed Tuesday with Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer that Republicans have violated campaign finance laws by taking money from SCA without obtaining a list of its donors. The Democrats claim this constitutes taking funds from an individual in the name of another individual, which they say is a class 6 felony.

Sean McCaffrey, executive director of the Arizona Republican Party, is hard pressed to explain why the ethics controversies of U.S. Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) haven't been a factor in the campaigns of Arizona Democrats who have received contributions from him.

"I honestly don't know" why not, McCaffrey told PolitickerAZ.com.

The New York City congressman has been embarrassed by numerous revelations about his activities in the past months, from using a rent controlled luxury apartment as a campaign office, to directing congressional funds toward a project bearing his name. Most recently it came to light that Rangel failed to report income from rental properties he owns in the Dominican Republic.

Now an ethics investigation into Rangel's finances is underway, and national and Arizona Republicans have been trying to pressure 3rd Congressional District Democratic congressional candidate Bob Lord and U.S. Reps. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe) and Gabrielle Giffords (D-Tucson) into returning campaign contributions Rangel's fundraising committee gave them.

So far, the effort has been in vain, and the connection between the embattled Rangel and Arizona Democrats has not sparked public controversy.

In an interview with PolitickerAZ.com, Sean McCaffrey, executive director of the Arizona Republican Party, described the party's vision of itself under the leadership of Chairman Randy Pullen, and slammed what he sees as irresponsible journalism surrounding the presidential campaign.

McCaffrey maintained that there is no schism between the Arizona Republican Party and its counterparts on the national and county levels, and explained that any appearance to the contrary was an outgrowth of the party's new role.

"The party exists specifically to assist local candidates," said McCaffrey. "The top of ticket for us will be the governor's race and then legislative races."

The Arizona Republican Party is responding to an attack by the Arizona Democratic Party over comments U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Phoenix) made regarding Social Security, saying U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is not fit to handle the issue.

Speaking at a town hall in Denver on Monday, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee responded to a question regarding the solvency of Social Security by saying:

"Americans have got to understand that we are paying present-day retirees with the taxes paid by young workers in America today. And that's a disgrace - it's an absolute disgrace, and it's got to be fixed."