[Vision2020] Vaughn Ward . . . and The Rest of the Story (Part 2)

[Tom Hansen]

"Ward told the Associated Press on Thursday that his job as Nevada
director for McCain’s presidential bid made it difficult to break away
from the frenzied pace that defined the final days in a key battleground
state."

Like he's never heard of the absentee ballot . . .

Jeesh!

Courtesy of today's (May 14, 2010) Spokesman-Review.

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Vaughn Ward failed to vote in 2008 general election
McCain campaign kept him from polls, he says
Jessie L. Bonner Associated Press

BOISE – U.S. House hopeful Vaughn Ward worked on Sen. John McCain’s bid
for the presidency two years ago, but he didn’t vote for him – or anyone
else – in the 2008 general election.

Ward told the Associated Press on Thursday that his job as Nevada director
for McCain’s presidential bid made it difficult to break away from the
frenzied pace that defined the final days in a key battleground state.

“I was managing the entire operation, and it became apparent I was not
going to be able to fly home to vote,” Ward said. “The important point is
I was out there fighting for the campaign.”

Ward also said the window for requesting an absentee ballot had closed by
the time he realized he wouldn’t be able to return as planned to cast his
ballot in Idaho.

Ward registered to vote in the May 2008 primary with an Ada County
address, a residence that belongs to his campaign treasurer Lowell
Bengoechea, according to public records. Ward and his wife, Kristen, had
lived with Bengoechea while they were shopping for a home in Eagle, he
said.

The couple now rent a home about a mile from Bengoechea’s house. Ward also
has a listed property in Cascade, Idaho, and a home in Virginia.

The U.S. Marine major is running in this month’s GOP primary against state
Rep. Raul Labrador, an attorney who voted both in the 2008 primary and
general election, according to Ada County election records.

“Mr. Ward’s use of a house that was not his residence as a registered
place to vote is so clearly a part of a pattern of parachuting into a land
that’s not his,” said Labrador spokesman Dennis Mansfield.

“He’s a homeowner in Virginia who slept on a couch in Idaho and didn’t
even bother to vote.”

Ward has not endorsed McCain, who helped him launch his political career
and now faces a strong primary challenge in Arizona from former Rep. J.D.
Hayworth. McCain and former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin have
endorsed Ward.

During a live televised debate Tuesday, Ward pointed out that he and
McCain differ on several issues, including global warming, immigration and
not drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

“I’m proud of the opportunity that I had to be a part of my party in our
effort to try to gain control of the presidency,” Ward said, “but that
doesn’t necessarily mean that I’m going to back anybody who was part of
that effort.”

About 77 percent of Idaho’s then 863,538 registered voters cast ballots in
the 2008 presidential race, and 61 percent of voters chose Republican
McCain as the candidate best equipped to manage the economic turmoil
nationwide, an issue that was listed as their chief concern in an
Associated Press exit poll.

While Ward didn’t vote in the last general election, he emphasized that
there are many ways to participate in the political process, such as
working on a campaign or attending debates and volunteering.

“I want Idahoans to participate in the Idaho political process,” Ward
said. “I’m committed to that.”

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Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"The Pessimist complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to change
and the Realist adjusts his sails."

- Unknown