Duty Calls
Rep. Jonathan Paton is in Iraq and will miss the first month of session.

State Rep. Jonathan Paton had what amounted to a permission slip from Uncle Sam to miss the beginning of the Arizona Legislature’s regular session Jan. 8.
The 35-year-old Republican from Tucson is serving a five-month deployment in Iraq as an Army Reserve intelligence officer.
Paton said he felt sad to miss the beginning of the legislative session, mainly because his father and other family members were in attendance. Paton’s father, John, sat in Paton’s seat during the House’s initial floor session as lawmakers gave him a standing ovation.
“I love the beginning of session, mainly because of everything that’s happening,” Paton said in an e-mail interview over the weekend. “I probably won’t miss the: “um, Mr. Speaker… Is this mike on? Um, point of personal privilege to introduce my aunt Erna who was also served as my campaign manager… blah blah blah.”
Paton has been in the Army Reserve since 1999, and subsequently became an officer. Now a 1st lieutenant, he volunteered to be mobilized for deployment. He underwent training at Fort Benning, Ga., and Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista, last summer, after the 2006 legislative session ended.
He left for Iraq in September shortly after he and a fellow incumbent won a four-way primary for their district’s two House seats. He was in Iraq when re-elected in November.
In Iraq, Paton works in a small intelligence unit at Camp Slayer in Baghdad that performs training, equipment maintenance and data analysis for field units.
On Jan. 8, he said during a brief telephone interview, he started the day with a five-mile march with a 50-pound pack for physical training and worked a long day that included arranging to send troubleshooting teams to units’ forward operating bases. His own duties have taken him to Fallujah and other locations around Iraq.
Paton has said in interviews that he volunteered for Iraq because he believes in the mission and wanted to help win it, and he said in the e-mail interview that his volunteering for Iraq “was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”
“I’m working with some of the best soldiers and Marines the military has to offer. It gives me a pretty interesting perspective about my district too,” Paton said in the e-mail, referring to Fort Huachuca.
“It’s pretty good,” Paton said by telephone when asked about his morale. “It’s been a rough week. We’ve had a lot of small arms fire and a lot of mortar fire. We had somebody get hit in the chow hall the other day, and I was in the chow hall when it happened. That was pretty bad. You get shot at every day.”
Highlights of his time in Iraq, he said, included meeting Sen. John McCain and other U.S. senators and their briefing with top commanders. “All of this ‘surge’ talk we’re hearing now was discussed back then. It was amazing to hear them debate that and hear the commander’s perspective. I felt like I was watching history,” he wrote.
On the other hand, Paton added, “As interesting as that was, every time I travel in a Blackhawk or Chinook makes me want to resign my commission as an intel officer and become a helicopter gunner.”
Paton is expected to leave Iraq in mid-February and then briefly stay at Fort Bliss in Texas before returning to Arizona. “As soon as I get back I’ll be at the Legislature the next day,” he said.
Paton said he can’t conduct formal legislative duties while in the military but is able to answer e-mails and help constituents when he can. He keeps in contact with two other legislators from his district to discuss subjects of mutual concern.
“When a District 30 specific issue comes up they keep me informed and we come up with a plan about how to deal with it,” he said.
McClure prefiles bills for Paton’s use later
The district’s second representative, Republican Rep. Marian McClure of Tucson, said she’s pre-filed about 10 extra bills as vehicles for Paton’s later use for his legislative proposals.
“I can e-mail him and he’s never more than 24 hours from answering, and sometimes if I’m up at midnight and e-mail him I have an answer in a couple of minutes,” McClure said. “I worry more about his personal safety than anything important he will miss in the session.”
Paton said he has legislation in mind on accountability for the state Department of Homeland Security, a newly created agency whose duties include distributing grants to local governments. “I’ve got a lot of things on my plate, big and small, that I’ve been working since before I came here,” he said from Iraq.
Paton’s absence temporarily reduces Republicans’ already reduced majority in the 60-member House to 32. The GOP lost six House seats to Democrats in the November election.
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