Oh, Vernon, why hast thou deceived me? UPDATED 10-1-12 9:55pm

Remember last week when Republican Vernon Parker, nominee for Congress in Arizona's new Ninth District, issued an OFFICIAL statement saying he had agreed to debate his Democratic opponent Kyrsten Sinema? From Parker's letter to Sinema:

Today I have informed KTVK and KPNX that I will participate in their proposed debates.

He lied.

Either that, or nobody bothered to tell the Sinema campaign when any events other than the very brief -- no audience -- encounter on Arizona Horizon (October 18) will take place.

Despite repeated attempts to contact Parker's campaign and his communication director, Alyssa Pivirotto (they apparently figure it will benefit them to keep information from the public, or from the readers of the Arizona Eagletarian anyway), nobody has returned calls or email messages.

It still boggles my mind that Parker is willing to accept Speaker John Boehner's invitation to give the WEAKLY, er... weekly GOP address, a 4-minute video taped script read (on September 29). I agree with him that it is FAR easier to read a teleprompter in front of a video camera than to think on one's feet (even sitting down) going back and forth for a live audience or even just a debate moderator with your opponent sitting right next to you. For the record, he DID give it weakly, too.

His script was full of holes. I would LOVE to hear him respond to rapid fire questioning from Sinema or even KPNX political reporter Brahm Resnik.

If Parker's camp relents and comes out of hiding, I will let you know.

By the way, the events page on Parker's website has NOTHING listed after September. Since we are now in October, that is another indication of a stealth campaign.

Does the guy really even want to get elected? Or does he think CD9 voters can't see through his cowardice?

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The deadline for registration in order to cast a ballot in this year's general election is October 9. In Arizona, early voting begins October 11.

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UPDATE

The 12News (KPNX) political director told me this afternoon that Parker has agreed to be on Sunday Square Off (8am, Sunday mornings) on October 21 but INSISTED that he NOT appear together with Sinema. Parker and Sinema are scheduled for separate tapings on October 19.

5:20pm UPDATE

Dennis Welch, political reporter for KTVK also said that separate tapings for Parker and Sinema have already taken place. He is checking to see if any other arrangements had been made for a joint appearance at that TV station, but he had not heard of any thus far.

In another development in this race, the Arizona Republic reported on Saturday that Parker is standing by his old friend Nathan Sproul. Of course, this is not even close to the first time Pivirotto has gotten her signals crossed up. In light of Sproul's latest newsworthy "escapades," most Republicans are wisely distancing themselves from him. But not Parker. Sproul, you may have heard, is the subject of a voter registration fraud investigation in Florida.

Vernon Parker, a Republican running in the state's new 9th Congressional District, clarified Friday that Nathan Sproul, a veteran GOP political consultant caught up in a voter-registration controversy in Florida, was not fired by his 2010 congressional campaign. In doing so, Parker contradicted his spokeswoman, Alyssa Pivirotto, who had told The Arizona Republic that Sproul had been fired. Parker said it was unfortunate that the statement went out and that he didn't want it to appear that he was abandoning Sproul in a time of difficulty. 

UPDATE 9:50pm 10-1-2012

Earlier today, Vernon Parker appeared on KFYI radio (THIS morning) doubling down on his PREVARICATION.




Fast forward to the 13:55 mark to hear Parker disingenuously claim that he wants a public debate where "I really do wish that it would be and I'm gonna really work to make sure the debate is in a public forum where she can bring her people and I can bring mine. And we can stand up and talk to the people."

This "man" is a coward.