A war of words erupted between Tobin and the Arizona Conservative Coalition (formerly the Pachyderm Coalition) early this week, and it is showing no signs of abating. At the center of the escalating tension is the group’s ranking system, which is based on a set of criteria that aims to show how conservative a Republican is.

As the country’s attention shifts to two cases on same-sex marriage that are before the US Supreme Court this week, Center for Arizona Policy President Cathi Herrod made a vigorous argument in defense of marriage between a man and a woman, telling supporters in an email that it is the “engine that drives the country.”

Before this morning’s (March 25) federal court trial, the Republican story has been that Dem commissioners and the IRC’s independent chairwoman worked together to thwart the desires of GOP commissioners, all the while advancing map proposals pushed by Dems. But Miranda’s name was not connected to that theory.

Few politicos believe the Campbell recall has a snowball’s chance of succeeding, and an increasingly prevalent school of thought is that the recall effort is actually a boon to the minority leader’s 2014 gubernatorial aspirations, since it gives him a platform to raise his public profile. And thanks to the vagaries of the state campaign finance laws governing recalls, it may be more of a boon than people realize.

The reaction to LaFaro’s remarks yesterday (March 20) about Brewer triggered a tsunami of backlash, and by this morning, several politicos and lawmakers were calling for LaFaro’s resignation. So far, no one has stepped forward to defend his remarks, although some said they believe the governor has abandoned the party’s conservative principles. Tobin took to Twitter to denounce LaFaro.

Heather Casey and her team organized a lunchtime press conference at the Capitol today (March 20) to introduce the candidate who is targeting Carter, but the event resulted in her trying to give reporters the silent treatment when it came to her opposition of Medicaid expansion.

AHCCCS expansion foes appear to have followed through on their promise to field a primary opponent for Carter because of her support of Brewer’s proposal, as Heather Casey today filed a committee for the House in LD15. Because she didn’t return multiple phone messages, little is known about Casey.

While the committee may not be Campbell’s official committee, he is tied to it.

The IRC met last night (March 14) to revisit what has become routine: mounting legal costs and dwindling funds. The commission is just about out of money, and the bills for March haven’t even arrived yet. Executive Director Ray Bladine has opened negotiations with top Legislative staff, and has formally submitted a request for a $551,000 FY13 supplemental.

One lobbyist pushing for the AHCCCS expansion told our reporter today that GOP lawmakers will eventually “become more and more comfortable with the idea that they don’t need to be afraid of the PCs,” but said that the effort could be hastened if the business community stepped up to the plate in a bigger way