10 things about Ben Quayle
Rep. Ben Quayle, who lost a GOP primary in Arizona to Rep. David Schweikert on Tuesday, is only 35 years old and served one term in Congress. But he left plenty for the political world to remember him by. Here are 10 facts about the former vice president’s son.
1. Was born November 5, 1976 — only three days after his father Dan was elected to the House of Representatives.
2. Didn’t even get to announce his own candidacy. His father spilled the beans in a Fox News interview.
( Also on POLITICO: Arizona primary election map)
3. A Scottsdale bar, the Spanish Fly, invited Quayle to host a pool party after POLITICO reported earlier this month he was among the lawmakers who took a late-night swim in the Sea of Galilee.
( PHOTOS: Ben Quayle’s life and career)
4. Rev. Jarrett Maupin, a former Phoenix school official and Democratic activist who was once convicted of lying to federal officials, endorsed Quayle in his primary. “He’s my [n-word],” Maupin told the Phoenix New Times. Maupin is black.
5. Tied with nine other Republicans as the most conservative members of the House of Representatives in 2011, according to National Journal’s vote rankings.
6. Was hurt politically by his famous father: a super PAC backing Schweikert ran an ad designed to remind voters of the elder Quayle’s “potatoe” gaffe.
7. Relied on his father’s network to raise money for his first run. George H.W. Bush hosted a fundraiser, and Quayle received donations from John H. Sununu, Bush’s chief of staff and Nicholas Brady, the administration’s Treasury secretary.
8. Quayle’s campaign accused Schweikert of implying the freshman was bisexual by sending out a mailer claiming Quayle “goes both ways” on the issues. Schweikert’s team denied the assertion, but Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) cited the mailer as a reason for endorsing the younger congressman.
9. Both of Quayle’s runs for office were plagued by the revelation he had written for TheDirtyScottsdale.com under the pseudonym “Brock Landers,” the name of a character in a pornographic film within the move “Boogie Nights.” The site’s founder said Quayle was documenting his quest to find “the hottest chick in Scottsdale.”
10. In his first campaign ad, Quayle made a big claim. “Barack Obama is the worst president in history,” Quayle said while looking directly into the camera at the beginning of the spot.