In a rare lapse of Party discipline, Democrat representative Victoria Steele is accusing House Minority Leader Chad Campbell of threatening her for endorsing liberal elite, Fred Duval, in the Arizona’s governor race.
Steel told the Yellow Sheet that Campbell called her and threatened retribution. According to the Sheet, Steele said Campbell threatened to kill her legislation and committee assignments next year.
“He did say, ‘I have a long memory and I will never forget what you did,’” Steele said according to the Sheet. “I think it was mostly in the heat of the moment. He was not happy. He was angry. I don’t think he meant it. He was just venting. He was just pissed off and letting off steam,” the Sheet quoted Steele.
Campbell is denying Steel’s claim. He told the Sheet, “I never threatened her with anything.” Campbell told the Sheet that he did call her but that he simply said she should have given him a heads up. Campbell said that he was owed a call especially in light of the fact that he helped her and Representative Ethan Orr get funding for their mental healthcare plan.
“All I could expect in return is a common courtesy call from her to tell [me] that she was endorsing him,” Campbell told the Sheet. Campbell said that Steele had broken “our trust.”
The Medicaid expansion meddling by Governor Brewer into the business of the Legislature has caused much confusion and rifts. Just this week, Representative Adam Kwasman claimed that Orr and T.J. Shope had endorsed him and were serving on his Congressional Exploratory Steering Committee, only to have the two express surprise at Kwasman’s claim. Shope told the Sheet that he was surprised to see his name among the many co-chairs “he figured Kwasman wouldn’t even want his name on the committee, considering the harsh words Kwasman had for Shope and the other Republicans who supported Medicaid expansion – not to mention the backlash the 14 supporters of Medicaid are facing from party activists,” reported the Sheet.
The Sheet reported that Shope said he texted Orr when he saw both of their names the press release, and Orr was surprised too .
“The disarray after the Medicaid expansion fight has left few legislators trusting each other,” said one Capitol source, “and even fewer voters trusting them.”