Kelli Ward said Tuesday that U.S. Sens. John McCain and Jeff 
Flake's lack of "leadership" and "courage" was partly to blame 
for the death of an Iowa girl whom authorities say was killed by 
an undocumented immigrant.
At the same time, the Republican U.S. Senate candidate hit her 
front-running Republican primary opponent, U.S. Rep. Martha 
McSally, calling her an "amnesty advocate."
On Twitter, Ward, a former state senator from Lake Havasu City, 
linked to a Fox News story about Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts, 
who disappeared on July 18 while jogging. Cristhian Bahena 
Rivera, an undocumented immigrant and Mexican national who lived 
in Iowa told police he killed her in a panic after she tried to 
call for help, court records say.
MORE: Undocumented immigrant charged with murder in killing of 
Iowa student
Ward tweeted: "The lack of leadership & courage by open border 
senators like (Arizona Republicans Flake and McCain) amnesty 
advocate Martha McSally contribute to these senseless deaths. We 
need true leadership in the Senate to #BuildTheWall & secure our 
borders!"
She encouraged followers to vote for her in the Aug. 28 primary.
Dr. Kelli Ward
?
@kelliwardaz
 The lack of leadership & courage by open border senators like 
@JeffFlake, @SenJohnMcCain, & #amnesty advocate Martha McSally 
contribute to these senseless deaths. We need true leadership in 
the Senate to #BuildTheWall & secure our borders! #VoteWard 
#AZSEN 
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/08/21/mollie-tibbetts-
murder-suspect-idd-as-cristhian-rivera-24-living-in-us-
illegally.html …
4:03 PM - Aug 21, 2018
A spokeswoman for McSally's campaign said she would not 
"dignify" Ward's comment with a response.
The Republican Senate candidates are in a three-way primary race 
that also includes former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, 
another border hard-liner. The primary election is Aug. 28.
Like President Donald Trump did as a candidate in 2016, Ward has 
largely campaigned on her views of stringent, enforcement-
focused proposals to crack down illegal immigration in her bid 
for the Republican nomination. She routinely lashes out against 
McCain — who handily defeated her in his 2016 primary — and 
Flake, the retiring Republican incumbent.
For years, the senators have advocated for comprehensive 
immigration reform and in 2013 collaborated with Democrats as 
part of the Gang of Eight. The group's legislation sought to 
balance a pathway to citizenship for millions of people without 
legal status who had settled in the United States with an 
unprecedented investment in border security and a modernized 
visa system. The bipartisan bill cleared the Senate, but the 
House didn't act on it.
On border security and illegal immigration, Ward's ideas echo 
the proposals that propelled Trump to the White House in 2016 
with the help of Arizona. Yet polling suggests she is lagging 
behind McSally in the Senate race.
The winner of Tuesday's Republican primary election will face 
the Democratic nominee. U.S. Rep. Kyrsten Sinema is the front-
runner against activist and attorney Deedra Abboud.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2018/08/2
1/mollie-tibbetts-kelli-ward-says-john-mccain-jeff-flake-
contributed-iowa-girls-death/1059023002/
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