It’s the birther thing, to me — I am happy and thriled to have Donald Trump pushing into it, because I am very unsettled about obama in so many ways. At the same time, to have the governor take hold of it, front and center, and write it into law marginalizes her in some way.
It’s like fighting DC from the Secy of State’s office in AZ. It’s not the way it needs to be handled, and it puts her in this camp in a way that others will feel free to discount her. Her work and accomplishments have been much broader and more significant than the birther issue and I do not think she should join that subset.
Well, she's "taken ahold of it" by vetoing it. The function of the proposed law is to diversify or provide oversight to the entity that concludes "qualified." The law does that for every trial - the right of appeal. But in the case of ballot access for presidential candidates' names, AZ law give the SoS the unreviewable power to certify, "this person is qualified."
-- Her work and accomplishments have been much broader and more significant than the birther issue and I do not think she should join that subset. --
She can't avoid the argument by vetoing the bill, or by signing it. The question of how to determine and certify eligibility exists, as does the question of "what exactly constitutes 'natural born citizen'." Why would a reasonable person not want to clarify those questions and issues in the mind of the public?
Plus, I'm sure she can multitask, and I'm sure most of the public can handle candidates on the merits; as you noted, "on the merits" means you agree on some things, and disagree on others.