Bee vs. Giffords • Senate President Tim Bee and U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords spar over immigration, energy, and the economy in their first debate Sept. 13 at the UofA in Tucson.

A guest-worker program operated on a state-by-state basis will not work, Senate President Tim Bee said during a debate with U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson last weekend.
The candidates for Arizona’s 8th Congressional District dwelled on illegal immigration and border-related issues, which showed that the subjects remain major concerns in Arizona even though the presidential candidates have turned their attentions to other issues such as the economy and national security.
Bee said the U.S. needs a guest-worker program, but not state-by-state.
“I do not believe that we can implement a guest-worker program… on a state-by-state basis. It simply doesn’t work,” Bee said inside a packed Student Union Memorial Center Ballroom at the University of Arizona on Sept. 13. It was the first of three debates between the two candidates before the Nov. 4 general election.
Bee’s comments about the viability of a state-run guest-worker program was surprising considering he co-sponsored a bill during the 2008 legislative session that was intended to create one in Arizona.
Bee signed onto a Senate bill designed to allow Arizona businesses experiencing a labor shortage to hire temporary workers from Mexico. The bill, introduced by Senate Minority Leader Marsha Arzberger, faced stiff opposition from some lawmakers in the Senate.
Sen. Ron Gould of Lake Havasu threatened a barrage of amendments, saying he would not be a party to “selling out” the American worker. The legislation eventually went nowhere: It didn't even get to the floor for a vote after receiving the support of both Bee and House Speaker Jim Weiers.
There was a broad agreement between Bee, a Republican, and Giffords, a Democrat, that the federal government has failed to address illegal immigration. But as far as talking points, Bee might have an advantage on the issue: Giffords is a member of Congress, which did not deliver, while the Arizona Legislature has produced a handful of laws in recent years intended to crack down on illegal immigration.
Later, Bee told the Arizona Capitol Times he supported the state guest-worker bill because “we were trying to send a message to Congress that we need a federal program.”
“You have to have a national policy to make that work because you are dealing with international countries,” Bee said. “I supported it because I believe it was important to send the message, and that's really what Senator Arzberger was trying to do… I mean that bill could not have been enacted without congressional approval anyway."
Arzberger, author of the failed Arizona-only guest-worker bill, said Bee’s remarks during the debate marked a “reversal” of his position on the legislation.
“But I know he is a congressional candidate, and he is obviously changing positions to suit his congressional campaign,” Arzberger said.
Arzberger said Bee “gave firm support” to the program during a speaking engagement earlier this year in Phoenix.
She said she is disappointed with Bee’s remarks but not surprised. The minority leader said she had her suspicions during the session.
“I knew that he was backpedaling on support of the bill,” she said. “I knew that by his actions — not bringing it to the floor — that was what killed the bill.”
The bill’s supporters said they had enough votes to pass it, but Bee gave a number of different “excuses” for not bringing it up for a vote, Arzberger said.
There were two versions of the Arizona-only guest-worker bill. The second version carried changes that reflected the result of negotiation between lawmakers, including immigration hawk Rep. Russell Pearce of Mesa and Weiers. Bee and Weiers co-signed the second version.
Arzberger, who like Bee will reach a term limit this year, also said the guest-worker legislation was more than a message to Washington, D.C. Indeed, she and supporters spent hours creating a “workable program,” she said.
“Arizona would have been in the forefront of the nation in creating this program. It was obviously much more complex. It was not just a message,” she said.
A memorial attached to the bill requested authorization from Congress for the Arizona-only guest-worker program. But Arzberger said she had explained to Bee that the authorization did not necessarily have to come from Congress.
“It could come from the Bush administration. We were looking at other options on the authorization. So, he was well aware it was a full pilot program,” she said.
A key component of Bee’s approach to illegal immigration is a federal guest-worker program, which he said would help solve a huge chunk of the problem at the border and allow the Border Patrol to focus on human smuggling and drugs.
“If we are going to be tough on the employers for hiring illegals, we also have to provide them a legal work force,” Bee told the Capitol Times.
During the one-hour debate, Giffords and Bee also sparred over energy, earmarks and President Bush’s tax cuts.
The candidates highlighted their differences but kept to the issues. The debate’s tone was friendly — friendlier than the memos that have been flying out of the Republican and Democratic camps in recent weeks.
There was less evidence of ideology and more discussion about the bipartisan work each had done — Giffords in Congress and Bee in the state Senate.
“What you heard tonight,” Giffords said in her closing statement, “was a real difference in our approach to problem-solving.”
State Rep. Jonathan Paton, who was in the audience, praised both. “I think they did really well, but I obviously agree with Tim Bee on his issues,” said Paton, a Tucson Republican who went to high school with the two candidates but was a year behind.
The topics of debate were limited because a panel asked the questions. The candidates did not, for example, debate education, even though the event took place at the UofA.
With Bee challenging Giffords and trailing in the polls, he was under more pressure to make the case why she should be replaced. The debate provided an opportunity to draw contrasts between them.
Bee, as expected, pressed the congresswoman on energy, which has emerged as a central issue in this election cycle. Giffords, in turn, cited efforts by Congress to pass a compromise energy bill that will include lifting some restrictions on domestic oil drilling and encourage investment in research and development of alternative energy sources.
They touched on federal earmarks. Giffords said she is committed to making sure her constituents’ tax dollars come back to the district. Bee said he, too, has been passionate about working on behalf of southern Arizona, but he said “bridges to nowhere” and “museums” aren’t the “proper role of government.”
Tom Dunn, Bee's spokesman, said the important thing is to get the message out to the voters about the differences between the two candidates. Dunn said Giffords is “portraying herself as a moderate” when she has voted with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi more than 90 percent of the time.
He said the fact that John McCain is on top of the Republican ticket is a huge help to Bee. Alaska
Gov. Sarah Palin, the GOP vice presidential nominee, also has invigorated the base, he added.
Giffords acknowledged the McCain factor.
“I think that we will have a lot of excited voters coming out to support Senator John McCain. He is from the state of Arizona, and my district — the 8th Congressional District — voted for George W. Bush twice,” Giffords said.
Asked how her campaign is countering that, Giffords said she has always run a grassroots campaign.
“Everything I do is bipartisan. The bills that I sponsored, the work that I do, my advisory groups, my town hall meetings, the work that I do in Congress — bipartisan, non-partisan,” she said. ≠