Democrat Matt Heinz is quoted in a National Journal article comparing his Congressional District 2 rival Ann Kirkpatrick to a meth addict.
In an lengthy overview of the CD2 race a week before the seven-way Democratic primary, Heinz told National Journal that Kirkpatrick is essentially addicted to being a member of Congress.
"All she can think about is, 'What do I have to do to put that damnable little pin onto my lapel,'" he said. "That’s all she can see and I understand it because I’ve had to treat people with meth addiction."
The Kirkpatrick campaign pushed backed, criticizing the emergency physician.
Abigail O’Brien, spokesperson for Kirkpatrick for Congress, said his comments were sexist.
“Matt Heinz looks at Ann Kirkpatrick and sees a woman standing in his way. His decision to smear her as a meth addict —just for having the guts to run for office — shows that he has learned exactly the wrong lessons from Donald Trump. We don’t need a sexist representative in Congress," O’Brien said.
Heinz did not back away from his comment.
“The record shows that Ann Kirkpatrick will say and do anything to get what she feels entitled to — she’s not southern Arizonan, she doesn’t pay taxes here and she doesn’t share our progressive values, he said.
Former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords also criticized Heinz, saying he owed both Kirkpatrick and the voters an apology.
“While I've supported Ann, I've refrained from criticizing her opponent, Matt Heinz, who I know from his repeated runs for Congress and legislature. Matt committed to Mark and me that he'd run a positive race, saying he had "no interest in running a nasty or negative campaign in the primary" and that there would be "no personal attacks" from him or his team,” she said in a statement to the Star.
”Today, it's clear that he wasn't telling truth when he said that. His recent comments likening Ann to a "meth addict" because of her desire to serve Southern Arizona in Congress are, in my opinion, disqualifying. Even worse, they trade on sexist attacks on women's ambition that are too common in our politics.”
