By: Zach Richter San Tan Valley Today

On Feb. 17,2010 J.D. Hayworth made his first public appearance since announcing that he was running for John McCain's senate seat on Feb. 15.

Hayworth adresses a crowd of supporters in Gold Canyon

Hayworth began his speech by clarifying that he was not running against McCain as an individual, simply against his policy decisions. "I am not running against McCain," he said. "It is not personal, just political disagreement."

He went on to talk about the political advertisements the McCain camp has launched so far saying that McCain voted for a 150 million dollar earmark bill despite the fact that there is a commercial where the issue of earmarks arises. He also took a firm stand on the "Snakes in Guam" ad, stating that McCain voted in favor of the legislation as well. "A half truth equals a whole falsehood," he remarked.

Hayworth then spoke about the ways in which McCain had strayed from his conservative roots; mentioning that he asked for 300 billion dollars to buy up all the bad mortgages in the country, an idea he got from Hilary Clinton. "John's problem is not that he likes Hilary," Hayworth commented, "but that on a number of issues he acts like Hilary."

He commented on McCain's long record of government service, including four years in the House and 24 in the Senate. Hayworth went on to thank Senator McCain for his service and welcome him home. He then made sure to add that as a senator he promises to only serve two consecutive terms.

After his opening statements, Hayworth took questions from the crowd. While none of the them were particularly hard hitting, he did make a point to mention that the questions were not prepared ahead of time.

One of the questions referenced the fact that Congressmen aren't necessarily bound by the laws they make. Hayworth made his stand on this issue exceedingly clear. "The House and Senate should not be exempt from the laws they pass," he said. He then decreed that one of his first acts as senator will be to draft legislation stating that the legislature should live as the citizenry lives.

When the question about national spending arose Hayworth staunchly laid down his opinion. He stated that if there is any money left from the stimulus package it should go directly to the reduction of the national debt. He went on to say that if there were more conservatives in power they could be counted on to "hold the line" when it comes to spending.

Hayworth was equally staunch about his belief that military appropriations bills should be free from riders. He mentioned the recent hold up to a bill because of the addition of anti-hate speech legislation. He then quickly decried McCain's anti-torture addition to a 2005 appropriations bill, saying that enemy combatants don't deserve the rights American citizens receive.

When the question of gun rights reared it's inevitable head, Hayworth was quick to point out that in his last year in office he received an A rating from the NRA. He was equally quick to point out that McCain received a C rating for trying to add regulations to gun shows.

When it comes to the issue of illegal immigration, Hayworth isn't bashful, "I wrote the book," he said. "Everything I feared is quickly coming to pass." Most politicians see the issue as a political one. Hayworth sees it as, "An invasion to be stopped," unsurprisingly, he is endorsed by Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

When the question of Iran's nuclear program came up, Hayworth called it the most startling development of our age. He criticized the president for not doing enough and inferred that he would support an American forced Iranian regime change using any means necessary.

Overall it seemed that Hayworth had one consistent message, he is running because he believes the people of Arizona need a new voice. "I won't go to the Senate to run a race for leadership, I will go to serve you," he said.