Although he is running for re-election as a moderate Democrat willing to reach across the aisle to make government work for his constituents, Tom O’Halleran’s short time in Washington has proven him to be anything but a centrist.Touting his membership in the Problem Solvers Caucus, a bipartisan group of representatives striving for compromise (although their definition of compromise tends to entail Democrats taking far more from Republicans than they give), O’Halleran has focused his campaign on the middle class, speaking in vague, generic talking points as to not give himself up as a hyper partisan Democrat. Unfortunately for O’Halleran, voters have seen right through his political facade.
Throughout his first term in Washington, O’Halleran has served as a loyal member of Nancy Pelosi’s Democratic Party, a supporter of the left’s favorite pet projects and causes, including open borders and gun control. According to Numbers USA, a leading nonpartisan immigration watchdog group, O’Halleran is on par with the most radical elements of the Democratic Party on the issues of illegal immigration and border security. In fact, his score of 0% on Numbers USA’s Immigration Reduction Report Card places him a point below Pelosi, achieving a grade of F-.
Much like the issue of immigration, O’Halleran lays an egg when it comes to protecting Americans’ 2nd Amendment rights. A ‘frequent flier’ when it comes to issuing half hearted statements calling for more government overreach during times of tragedy, O’Halleran sounded more like David Hogg than a member of the greatest legislative body in the world as he used the Parkland, Florida slaughter of 17 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students and employees to prop up the left’s anti gun agenda. ‘This problem is only getting worse,’ said O’Halleran of gun violence in our nation’s schools. America’s students, teachers, and parents will live in ‘fear and terror’ until Congress acts to restrict access to guns, even among law abiding citizens. Despite O’Halleran’s claims, schools are safer now than ever before, and acts of gun violence are actually DECREASING nationwide.
Like Numbers USA, the National Rifle Association (NRA) has taken note of O’Halleran’s far-left stances, and has also issued a failing grade of 0% to the Democrat Congressman under the group’s rating system. Unfortunately for O’Halleran, Arizona is not California. Arizonans cherish their 2nd Amendment rights, and the state has made a point of welcoming gun owners with open arms, becoming a beacon of hope in the fight for constitutional carry and concealed carry reciprocity, which O’Halleran voted against at the national level in Congress. Additionally, Guns and Ammo magazine has repeatedly named Arizona the best state in the Union for gun owners, citing constitutional carry, Governor Ducey’s actions against background check requirements, strong self-defense laws, and a ‘hands off’ approach to black guns. What may be most troubling for O’Halleran is the magazine’s shout out to Arizona’s ‘competitive shooting culture,’ which it calls the ‘most active in the nation.’ In 2018, Democrats and the 2nd Amendment don’t mix, and by toeing the party line on guns, O’Halleran has made it abundantly clear to his constituents that he has no interest in winning the votes of gun owners.
As election season heats up and O’Halleran’s Republican challenger Wendy Rogers builds momentum, the Congressman is filling up his Twitter feed with centrist-sounding content in a desperate effort to hold on to his seat in a district won by President Trump in 2016. In hopes of pulling the wool over the eyes of the voters, O’Halleran is attempting paint himself as a tax cutting, budget balancing Blue Dog Democrat, despite his vocal opposition to the Trump tax cuts, some of the largest in our nation’s history, and enthusiastic willingness to tax American businesses until they flee to China or Mexico. Of course, this is the same song and dance we are used to seeing from Nancy Pelosi’s Democratic Party, and judging by Rogers’ groundswell of support following record setting turnout in the district’s Republican Primary, the voters aren’t buying it.