Thomas, Horne take off gloves in GOP race for AG

Both men have their perfunctory campaign websites, but each also set up a separate website devoted to revealing "the truth" about his opponent.

So voters who want Andrew Thomas' take on schools chief Tom Horne will read Horne is a "confessed con artist" who supports two of the biggest evil "A" words in the conservative dictionary - abortion and amnesty - according to Thomas' website.

And those who want Horne's inside dish on former Maricopa County Attorney Thomas will read Thomas is power-hungry and vindictive, given his predilection for prosecuting political enemies, including judges, Horne's website states. "If a prosecutor can intimidate judges, nobody has any constitutional rights," Horne said.

The characterizations - which both candidates naturally dismiss as untrue - don't stop there.

Thomas likes to bring up Horne's six speeding citations in recent years - although Horne counters he's been ticket-free for a year and he's been driving so slowly "that my car won't talk to me" anymore.

Horne, 65, brings up Thomas' book, "Crime and the Sacking of America," published in 1994, in which Thomas suggests the need to investigate whether there is some "unique explanatory trait or cluster of traits to distinguish blacks as especially susceptible to criminality." An outraged Horne said, "To smear an entire race as being more prone to crime is about as outrageous as I can imagine."

Thomas, 42, said the book was written nearly 20 years ago when he was a law school student at Harvard. "My views have changed on a lot of things in that period of time," he said. Although he said he's "not going to go through the whole book and update it," he said voters can look at how he performed as county attorney if they have any questions about how he would govern as attorney general.

Thomas, who has worked in tandem with Sheriff Joe Arpaio on immigration enforcement, said voters will see he's the one with the track record on reducing crime.

Offenders with violent offenses had to plead guilty to the most serious charge, a policy that effectively "ended plea bargaining as we know it for serious violent offenders," Thomas said. His prosecutors were told to withhold probation as an option in plea agreements for all second-time felons except low-level drug offenders.

Like Horne, Thomas said one of his priorities will be to stop illegal immigration.

How? Thomas said county attorneys have not been enforcing human smuggling laws, so he will assign staff to enforce that statute in all 15 counties, "given that there appears to be a lack of political will to fully enforce that law."

Thomas said Horne has been ineffective as schools chief because statewide SAT test scores have fallen to the lowest in a decade. Horne, however, said more students are taking the test, and the results are higher than the national average.

"The other key difference is, I'm a conservative," Thomas said. "I don't just play one in election years."

But Thomas acknowledged he does seem to make enemies, so, "If the voters want someone who won't upset the apple cart, vote for Tom."

Thomas has long been controversial. In the 2002 primary for attorney general, then-Republican National Committeeman Mike Hellon wrote a letter blasting Thomas' "intemperate personal attacks, false and irresponsible characterizations and hysterical rhetoric," saying he was unfit to be the GOP nominee.

Thomas' high-profile, drawn-out spats with Maricopa County officials - he's filed civil and criminal lawsuits against members of the Board of Supervisors, county staff and four judges - have raised concerns. An indictment against one of the supervisors was thrown out in February by a Pima County Superior Court judge who ruled, based on "substantial evidence," that Thomas attempted to gain political advantage by prosecuting those who opposed him politically.

Horne said that kind of reputation as an "out-of-control prosecutor" is not conducive to business growth. He said people may fear they could be the next target if they get crosswise with Thomas in any way.

Thomas said the prosecutions were justified, and notes it's a handful of cases compared to the 200,000 felony cases that were prosecuted in his tenure.

Horne, who was a lawyer in private practice for three decades, said he has brought conservative principles to his current role as state schools chief. He is perhaps most known in the Tucson area for going round and round with Tucson Unified School District over its ethnic studies program.

The Supreme Court in 2009 sided with Horne, he points out, in overturning a court order requiring the state spend millions more in its instruction of English language learners. That case, Horne said, shows he has good legal instincts, saved the state money and will persevere on principle.

Like Thomas, Horne said he would fight illegal immigration. Horne said he would reopen the Douglas AG's office, add more staff to the Nogales office and beef up the civil remedies unit that seizes assets from drug smugglers.

"I would lead the effort to pressure the federal government to finish the fence and secure the border," Horne said. While that hasn't worked for others, Horne notes, "Every office has a bully pulpit. You've seen me use mine as superintendent."

Horne has not escaped his own charges of racism. He's been protested by ethnic studies students, and was asked point blank at a forum in Phoenix why he hates Mexicans. Reiterating he believes in treating people as individuals, he said he is being targeted by people who believe in "reverse racism."

As for Thomas' reference to Horne as a "con artist," that stems from 1970, when an investment company Horne started as a Harvard law school student went belly-up. The Securities and Exchange Commission gave Horne a lifetime ban, saying he filed false financial reports. Horne also failed to disclose the bankruptcy on current annual reports filed with the Corporation Commission. Thomas said the case shows Horne is untrustworthy, but Horne said it was 40 years ago.

Horne said he voted to ban partial-birth abortion and to support parental consent when he was in the Legislature. He voted against a bill banning federal funding of abortions because of a technical problem he had with it. He will not say what his own opinion is on abortion, explaining that it's his job as attorney general to enforce all abortion laws.

Thomas said Horne's refusal to state his personal view on abortion is "dishonest," because "every thinking person has a view on it." Thomas said there is precedent for attorneys general to opt out of defending laws they don't agree with, so Horne's viewpoints are relevant.

Thomas criticizes Horne over amnesty, relying on a newspaper article that implied Horne supported the DREAM Act. The act would provide a path to citizenship for students who, among other criteria, had good grades and had been in the country for years. Horne said the reporter got it wrong and his view was mischaracterized. "I'm fervently against amnesty," he said.

Immigration hawk Tom Tancredo, Thomas said, pulled his endorsement of Horne and gave it to him. "You have no less than (state senator) Russell Pearce, the man of the hour, endorsing me over Tom. That's really the heart of the matter."

Contact reporter Rhonda Bodfield at 573-4243 or rbodfield@azstarnet.com