Truth-Telling Brewer Team Needs to Clarify Baseless Claim

Gov. Jan Brewer likes to tell voters that she is the "truth teller in chief," and yet she has provided no facts to back up a host of claims about illegal immigration and even her campaign team seems to admit that claim was specious.

Brewer said Thursday most illegal immigrants are drug runners, rather than migrants looking for honest work, albeit in the wrong way. Friday, she stood by her assertions without any evidence to back it up. Today, her campaign consultant told the Arizona Guardian that Brewer “will try to do better with the numbers in the future,” but wouldn't say she misspoke.

Which is it?

Brewer has decided to package herself as the candidate whose message is rooted in facts and straight talk -- so a clarification would simply fit with her campaign theme.

Pima County Democratic Party Chair Jeff Rogers is asking Gov. Brewer to clarify.

“If she didn't misspeak, why does she have to do better with numbers?” Rogers asked. “If her numbers were wrong, wouldn't the truth-teller-in-chief stand up and say she was wrong. Or is she repudiating her own campaign?”

Brewer may, in fact, think that she can manufacture “facts” out of whole cloth but that makes her unfit for the job of governor, Rogers said.

“If she’s wrong, she should admit it and apologize,” Rogers said. “But if she actually believes this nonsense and bases her policies on falsehoods, then she is unfit for office.”

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