Interview Primer
I first met Howard Shanker way back in pre-school, where we became fast friends. Through our experiences together in religious school and summer camp, I came to know Howard as a bright and kind fellow, as well as a loyal friend.
Professionally, I'm very impressed with Howard's passion and commitment toward environmental issues, through his work as an environmental attorney. When he mentioned to me that he was planning to run for Congress, to represent the northern region of Arizona, I offered to help in any way I could. That said, meet Howard!
-CG
Can you talk a bit about the nature of your district, your background as an environmental attorney, and how those ingredients inspired you to throw your hat into the congressional ring?
Congressional District 1 in Arizona is the largest geographic Congressional District in the country. It is roughly the size of Pennsylvania. It includes places like Sedona and Flagstaff and the Verde Valley. It also includes towns in the copper mining basin, like Hayden and Globe. It includes places like Casa Grande and other parts of Pinal County that are dealing with issues of rapid growth and inadequate infrastructure.
The District also includes the vast majority of the Navajo Nation - the part that is in Arizona. As well as various Yavapai and Apache Tribes. Approximately 24% of the District is Native American.
The incumbent, Republican Rick Renzi, is under investigation by the FBI. He has stepped down from all his committees and apparently removed himself from the Republican fund raising machine. There is the possibility of a special election if he resigns and/or goes to jail. Even if Renzi does not get indicted, it appears unlikely that he will be running for reelection.
As an attorney, I have been representing environmental organizations, community groups, and civil rights groups for about 15 years in Arizona. I have had some landmark cases in the District and throughout Arizona that have helped shape the environment. For example, about 10 years ago, I was able to stop the federal government from exchanging about 300 or 400 acres of land on the southern edge of the Grand Canyon National Park - for commercial development. There was not enough water for the project and it would have negatively impacted the economies of Flagstaff, Tusayan, and Williams (all cities in the District).
Most recently, I represented 4 tribes, including the Navajo Nation in a suit to keep the federal government from allowing the use of reclaimed waste water to make snow on the San Francisco Peaks -- an area that is sacred to 13 of the tribes in the southwestern United States and environmentally sensitive. I was able to win a landmark decision for the tribes in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals - against the federal government.
I have had numerous cases defending the environment and the people from the federal and state government. At some point, an attorney can only do so much under existing law. We need better laws to help protect the environment and the people from industry and governmental excesses. We need better leaders who have a commitment to shared prosperity, sustainable economic development, and policies that promote development of renewable sources of energy -- as opposed to the subsidizing big oil as a mainstay of an energy policy. In fact, between the unjustifiable war in Iraq and the wholesale privatization of essential government functions (often on a no bid basis), there does not seem to be much right going on in Washington. I feel compelled to run for office. Outrage can be a strong motivating factor. Combine this with a sense of commitment to public service and there you have it.
Based on the situation with Renzi, the incumbent, a Democrat may have a real shot at his seat in 2008. The first hurdle, however, is getting the Arizona Democratic party's support. What's that process and experience like?
In 2002, 2004 and 2006, the Democratic Party and the DCCC essentially selected a party insider to run for the seat, even though there were a number of well qualified Democratic candidates. The result was two fold: (1) we continue to lose the election in CD1; and (2) the Party and process has lost a lot of credibility. Unfortunately, I find myself in a similar situation. The Democratic Party has, once again, selected a party insider to run for this same seat. The insider does not have the same grass roots support that I do, she does not have the wide spread support of the tribes or environmental organizations in the District, and (in my estimation) she is neither passionate about anything, nor dynamic. Indeed, she remains hesitant to express opinions on any issue -- until the people helping her with her policy statements have given her the green light, which apparently has yet to take place. I do not think that she can win a general election.
The one place that this hurts me is in my ability to raise money. Raising large sums of money is necessary to the process. We not only need to pay staff, we need to be able to run commercials, print flyers, and get our message out in general. Also, unfortunately, the Party (and others) view the amount of money a candidate can raise as an independent measure of credibility -- notwithstanding credentials, positions on issues, ability to advocate, and commitment to serve. That being said, we had an excellent partial first quarter with regard to raising money. Traditional methods of raising money are, however, becoming less and less accessible. As a result, we need all the help we can get. An indigenous rights band called Blackfire (check them out on the web) is playing a benefit concert for me in September. We have other events planned as well, but we will have to continue to raise money to stay viable. This is an important cross-roads in time. If we continue to fail to steer the country in the right direction now, it may be too late in the future. We need to address global warming and the war. We need to stop financing our rising debt by borrowing from foreign nations that, if not now, will soon have the ability to influence our economy and policies.
That's a distressing, but not unexpected, report about the state of party politics. In that politics is a back room game of back scratching, the Democrats are not much different from the Republicans. Considering the situation, have you given thought to running as an independent?
Even though there are a number of independents in the district, they are not well organized. Unfortunately, I do not think that an independent can win. On the other hand, many people are so fed up with party politics (and are extremely committed to me because of my work and accomplishments - not my rhetoric), that they are trying to convince me to run as an independent if I do not prevail in the primary. I intend to win the primary and the general election. If, however, I do not prevail in the primary, I don't want to be a "spoiler," handing the election over to a Republican -- even if there may not be much difference between the Republican and the Democratic candidate. I am, however, confident that I will win the primary, at which point I have no doubt, the Democratic machine will be my best friend -- go figure.
Democrats took hold of Congress in 2006 with the winds of change at their backs. How do you think they have performed, so far, and how difficult to you think it will be to actually change the entrenched business of politics once you're a House member?
Democrats took control of Congress but they still cannot override a Presidential veto. The Democrats have done some good (and some not so good) already. The impression I have is that some Democrats feel like they have to somehow pander to the right on various issues in order to stay in office. There is validity to the proposition that an elected official has to represent all of his or her constituents. There should, however, also be a number of issues that are important to any elected official (why else would they run) on which they take a specific and well enunciated stand that doesn't change unless presented with compelling facts that justify a change in position. I think that many of our Representatives may be missing, or sacrificing, some of this passion or commitment on issues like the war, the environment, alternative energy, fiscal responsibility, in exchange for political expediency. Compromise in Congress is essential, but like anything else, there has to be a good reason warranting any particular compromise or decision.
It will likely be difficult to change the entrenched "politics as usual" once I am in office -- but not impossible and we need to start somewhere. As I discussed in response to one of your earlier questions, I represent environmental, Native American, civil rights, and community groups in litigation against the federal and state government on a regular basis. In other words, my chosen career path can be compared to banging your head against a wall for a living. I strongly believe that if you bang your head against a wall long enough, eventually the wall is going to break. Realistically, as a junior Congressman I could likely begin to chip away at "politics as usual" from the outside. Given enough grass roots support and a little time, however, I have no doubt that the wall will break.
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