Having served in elected office for almost 20 years I can tell you from experience that public service can be rewarding, but it also has a brutal side. Sometimes friends come out of nowhere to support you, volunteer, and/or contribute to your campaigns. At other times enemies might decide they really hate you and everything you stand for. You might get unsolicited endorsements from people you admire OR an opponent might seek to depict you as some malevolent force, or the demonic spawn of Satan.
Any good legislator will seek to promote good public policy and have the skill to get it passed. He will also serve his constituents by helping them in times when they may need to interface with the bureaucracy of state government. Of all the things I enjoyed in my time as a legislator, helping constituents solve problems and working with great legislators made the biggest impressions on me.
When we look back on our lives, we often like to think the past was somehow better than the present. While not always the case, I do think the politics of public service had a more collegial feel back in the day. As a Republican state senator and committee chairman, I worked with colleagues like Sen. Guz Arzberger (D-Willcox) and Sen. Bill Hardt from (D-Globe). While we might not agree on everything, these senators were statesmen I could work with to get things done.
In my old District 5 delegation, I also had the honor to work with Democrat Reps. Bob McLendon and Herb Guenther. I remember working with Rep. McClendon, a former high school history teacher, basketball coach, and ardent supporter of public education, on what was then a radically new relationship between community colleges and four-year universities. I also worked with Rep. Guenther during his time as a legislator and as a top irrigation district employee.
The recent passing of Herb Guenther reminds me of a time when legislators could put aside their differences to get things done on which they could agree. Herb once said, “I never knew whether I was a Democrat or a Republican or other and I still don’t and I don’t care. What I do care about is solving problems.” Former Yuma lawmaker Guenther dies | Arizona Capitol Times (azcapitoltimes.com)
In 2007 Arizona Capitol Times reporter asked him what distinguishes a good legislator from a failed one. “. . . working to find compromise on issues without caring who gets the credit,” he answered. (ibid)
While he did not blow his own horn, he had a career full of getting things done. Through legislative efforts, he worked to block inter-state water transfers and restrict intra-state water transfers with certain exceptions.
Herb, who liked to say he lived in Tacna-by-the Sea, was a down-to-earth man who had a quirky sense of humor. He gave his time and advice freely. He suffered an injury during a flood emergency in 1993. This injury caused nerve damage which eventually required surgery and a fairly long recovery.
In 1999 he returned to the legislature and in 2003 Gov. Janet Napolitano appointed him to serve as the director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources. As the director, he worked on the seven-state 2007 Colorado River Operational Guidelines Agreement which among other things provided a road map for how the seven western states that depend on the Colorado River would share in any future shortages.
I came to the legislature with the intent of working with people to get things done. When I left, I felt we had accomplished some important things, but I also walked away with some great memories of some great people like Herb Guenther.
I owe a special thanks to former legislator Bob McLendon for helping me with some of Herb's background information.