Arizona GOP Senate Primary Has “Increasingly Turned Negative” As “Debate Gets Heated Between Blake Masters, Jim Lamon”

CBS News: “The ads have increasingly turned negative, the final primary debate also featured plenty of attacks”

KTAR: “Candidates began throwing jabs in the opening minutes of the hourlong debate”

News coverage is highlighting how Arizona GOP Senate candidates “faced off in a tense debate Wednesday night” as Masters and Lamon “began throwing jabs in the opening minutes” and “exchanged sharp words throughout the hour-long debate”  – all while “the ads have increasingly turned negative” in what has become “one of the most expensive primary campaigns of this cycle.”

See for yourself:

CBS News: Arizona GOP Senate candidates sharpen attacks in final debate
By Musadiq Bidar
July 14, 2022

• The Republican candidates for Senate faced off in a tense debate Wednesday night.

• With primary day less than three weeks away, recent polls suggest the race could come down to the wire. Ad spending from the top candidates and their supporters is turning the Arizona GOP Senate primary into one of the most expensive primary campaigns of this cycle.

• While the ads have increasingly turned negative, the final primary debate also featured plenty of attacks. Masters and Lamon exchanged sharp words throughout the hour-long debate.

• Lamon said Arizona voters don’t want a “young politician” in Washington, D.C., an apparent swipe at his 35-year-old opponent Masters… He also called Masters, who is backed by big tech billionaire and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, a “California globalist.”

• Masters fired back at Lamon saying, “I’ve spent more years of my life in Arizona than Jim Lamon.”

• “You can tell from his accent, he’s from a different part of the country. We welcome people here, that’s fine,” Masters said. “But I am Arizonan, and this is a bulls— attack.”

• Masters repeatedly mentioned his endorsement from Trump as he sought to fend off Lamon’s attacks. “We need to implement these America first policies,” Masters said. “President Trump trusts me to do that. He met with Jim Lamon, he thought he was a bozo.”

• While Masters and Lamon spent much of the debate attacking each other, one top-polling candidate was notably missing from the stage. State Attorney General Mark Brnovich was invited, and met the criteria for qualifying, but opted not to attend.

KTAR: Arizona’s GOP US Senate debate gets heated between Blake Masters, Jim Lamon
By Torrence Dunham
July 14, 2022

• The two leading candidates began throwing jabs in the opening minutes of the hourlong debate, with Lamon accusing Masters of previously being for open borders.

• “The border guys know a fake when they see it,” Lamon said.

• Masters responded “Jim Lamon ladies and gentleman, keeping it classy,” before bringing up his endorsement from the former president.

• Masters fired back at Lamon again during a discussion about inflation and energy prices… “He (Trump) met with Jim Lamon, he thought he was a bozo,” Masters said.

• Lamon… responded by accusing Masters of being owned by big tech companies. “Look no farther than who’s holding the purse for this guy,” Lamon said. “$17 million dollars coming out of big tech California globalist guy who will owe that too… he’s owned right now and will be in the U.S. Senate.”

• The two also sparred in a heated exchange over the amount of time spent in Arizona.

Newsmax: Lamon, Masters Slug It Out at Newsmax Arizona Debate
By Eric Mack
July 13, 2022

• Lamon challenged Masters on once supporting immigration, being “owned” by his wealthy donors, and not working to “fix” Big Tech when Masters was a part of that powerful and wealthy industry.

• “We cannot have someone who is inexperienced, someone who is young, who has not gone through the rigors, someone who is a global capitalist from California who, by the way, never answered the question of why did he write what he said about having open borders,” Lamon told the crowd.

• Lamon responded he is not beholden to wealthy donors like Masters would be, saying “no one is going to control me or own me; he’s owned right now and will be in U.S. Senate.”

• “This guy [Masters] took a slap also at the National Border Patrol Council, all 21,000 members, in the last debate,” Lamon said. “He’s taken it again. This shot – you need to understand – that’s California talk, buddy, not Arizona.”

Roll Call: Trump visit, debate put focus on GOP Senate race in Arizona
By Niels Lesniewski
July 13, 2022

• Lamon said in an interview he thinks Arizona GOP voters are “not looking for somebody who’s a puppet for big tech, you know — globalist guy,” referring to Masters, who’s received massive financial backing from tech billionaire Peter Thiel, for whom he previously worked.

• The New York Times… [reported] on commentaries posted by a young Masters in a Crossfit chat room espousing a libertarian view skeptical of U.S. involvement in World Wars I and II.

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