What top Ariz. Republicans are saying about Trump now

PHOENIX — For most of the past year, if they mentioned Donald Trump at all, Arizona's Republican establishment accused him of firing up the "crazies," or of being coarse, ill-informed and inaccurate.

Today, many of the same politicians are coming to terms with the reality-TV star as their party's presumptive presidential nominee.

Despite worries Trump will hurt down-ticket Republican candidates in November, Arizona Republican leaders say they will support him as the GOP nominee. Or they are at least open to doing so.

It is a far cry from the anger and bitterness some Arizona Republicans directed at Trump over the last several months.

Senior U.S. Sen. John McCain found himself in a bruising public feud with the real-estate mogul after Trump mocked McCain as "weak on immigration" and a "war hero" only because he got captured by the North Vietnamese.

Junior U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., last year called Trump's views "coarse, ill-informed and inaccurate" and "not representative of the Republican Party."

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Gov. Doug Ducey, who was conspicuously absent from Trump's three appearances in the state, is now preaching GOP unity and is a delegate to this summer's Republican National Convention in Cleveland.

Around the country, Republicans hoping to keep control of the U.S. Senate have been doing a similar dance with their party's incoming standard-bearer.

Incumbent GOP U.S. senators in potentially competitive races, such as Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, Richard Burr of North Carolina and Mark Kirk of Illinois, are facing Democratic opponents eager to use their support of Trump against them, as tepid or vague as it may be in some instances.

'It's hard to support him'

During the primary campaign, Trump had the support of few incumbent Arizona elected officials.

State Treasurer Jeff DeWit and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio were his most prominent backers, along with former governor Jan Brewer, whom Trump suggested may be considered as his running mate.

Now Arizona's Republican Capitol Hill delegation appears to have come around to Trump even though some still have misgivings.

In particular, McCain's willingness to back Trump as the GOP nominee, in light of their well-established animosity, has drawn national attention.

McCain, the Senate Armed Services Committee chairman and the 2008 GOP nominee, previously has expressed concerns about Trump's "uninformed and indeed dangerous statements on national security issues."

In an interview last year with the New Yorker, McCain complained that Trump was firing up the "crazies" in Arizona. Trump hit back by ridiculing McCain for getting captured by the enemy during the Vietnam War. McCain, a Navy aviator who was shot down over Hanoi, was held as a POW for more than five years.

When pressed to elaborate on why he would back Trump given Trump's history of badmouthing him, McCain said, "Because I'm a proud Republican. I am a Ronald Reagan-Teddy Roosevelt Republican, and I support the Republican Party. And the Republicans have chosen the nominee for the party. I think that makes sense."

For his part, Trump this month has seemed interested in making peace with McCain, whom he called "a good guy." He stopped short of saying he regretted his POW attack, noting "some people liked what I said" about McCain and that Trump's poll numbers improved after his remarks.

"You know, frankly, I like John McCain, and John McCain is a hero," Trump told national radio personality Don Imus. "Also heroes are people that are, you know, whether they get caught or don’t get caught, they’re all heroes as far as I’m concerned. And that’s the way it should be.”

Flake did not rule out eventually supporting Trump, his past harsh criticism notwithstanding. McCain and Flake both plan to skip the GOP convention in Cleveland.

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"I'm hoping to be able to support him. I want to support the nominee," Flake told The Arizona Republic. "It's never a comfortable position to be in, to not support the Republican nominee. Given some of the positions he's taken, and when he goes after the senior senator in your state, in such a horrible manner, it's hard to support him."

U.S. Rep. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., who represents a swing district in southern Arizona and could face a tough Democratic challenger this fall, also hesitated in endorsing Trump. But like Flake she said she will consider Trump over the next six months.

"We’re in uncharted waters with two presumptive nominees who are viewed unfavorably by the majority of Americans," McSally said in a written statement. "More specifically I have concerns about statements Mr. Trump has made regarding women, but I also respect the will of the voters."

Political liability or asset?

In states such as Arizona, which has a significant Latino population, reconciliation with Trump could have ramifications for Republicans such as McCain, who this year is seeking a sixth, six-year term.

Trump's campaign has been characterized by harsh rhetoric aimed at undocumented immigrants from Mexico, whom he has vowed to deport in large numbers.

But the potential fallout involves more than just Latino voters.

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Trump has suggested banning Muslims, at least temporarily, from traveling to the United States.

He also has made offensive statements about or mocked women and people with disabilities. Along the way, Trump, who at one time was a registered Democrat and who has contributed to Democratic candidates, also has antagonized conservatives with his not-always-conservative economic- and foreign-policy prescriptions.

Although McCain is not going to the convention, he wouldn't rule out campaigning with Trump at some point. "I think it would have to depend on the circumstances, but my focus is on my own campaign," McCain said.

Democrats have seized on Republicans' unease with Trump as a line of attack.

D.B. Mitchell, spokesman for McCain's likely general-election opponent, U.S. Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, D-Ariz., said: “John McCain has already shown his ‘straight talk’ days are over and he’s changed after 33 years in Washington. But McCain should be denouncing Donald Trump’s hateful, racist comments, not continuing to pledge support to him."

U.S. Rep. Matt Salmon, R-Ariz., who is not seeking re-election to his solidly Republican East Valley congressional district, dismissed as "way overblown" fears that Trump will have a negative down-ballot impact.

"He's tapped into something in the American people that no one else has. He's run essentially the first reality-TV presidential campaign," Salmon said.

Better than the alternative

Salmon, who is an Arizona delegate to the national GOP convention, initially endorsed unsuccessful Republican hopeful U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and subsequently backed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, once the Texan became the most viable alternative to Trump.

But he said that supporting Trump, now that he's set to be the party's nominee, is "a no-brainer for me," given that Hillary Clinton, a former U.S. secretary of State and U.S. senator, is likely to be the Democratic nominee.

U.S. Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., the senior Republican in the state's House delegation, once called Trump "incontrovertibly, the weakest general-election candidate in the Republican field" and as recently as April was describing himself as "unequivocally committed to Mr. Cruz."

Now Franks says he would have no problem voting for Trump over Clinton.

“I have very strongly opposed Donald Trump in this Republican primary election because, as a conservative, I cannot trust Donald Trump to do the right thing," Franks said in a written statement. "However, I know we can all deeply trust Hillary Clinton to do exactly the wrong thing every time. Her election and subsequent Supreme Court nominations would vitiate the United States Constitution and undermine this Republic for a generation and beyond."

'Exactly what our country needs'

Other Republicans have no reservations about their support for Trump.

DeWit, the pro-Trump state treasurer, is Trump’s Arizona campaign chairman, regularly touting the candidate on cable news and on social media.

“I think he’s exactly what our country needs,” DeWit said last week.  “He’s a business leader."

Contributing: Mary Jo Pitzl, Alia Beard Rau, Yvonne Wingett Sanchez and Rebekah L. Sanders, The Arizona Republic. Follow Dan Nowicki on Twitter: @dannowicki