Arizona Republican Blake Masters Endorsed by Oil & Gas Workers, Small Business Advocacy Group

The Oil & Gas Workers Association (OGWA) and the National Federation of Independent Busine
Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images / Inset: Blake Masters/Twitter
Nick Gilbertson

The Oil & Gas Workers Association (OGWA) and the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) endorsed Arizona Republican Blake Masters in his bid for U.S. Senate.

In a Thursday press release, Masters’ campaign announced it received an endorsement from OGWA, a nonprofit trade association operated by workers in the gas and oil sector:

“Because every vote in the Senate is crucial to protecting our U.S. oil and gas jobs and America’s energy independence, Oil & Gas Workers Association proudly endorses Blake Masters for Senate and encourages all Arizonans to support his campaign with their vote,” OGWA President Matt Coday said.

As National Republican Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel detailed in an op-ed published by the Hill this month, Masters’ opponent, Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), has repeatedly voted against pro-oil and gas industry legislation:

Voters are getting sticker shock at the gas pump too, thanks to Kelly rubber-stamping Biden’s war on American energy production. Kelly voted to shut down the Keystone XL pipeline four times. He supported a ban on fracking three times. He blocked new energy production on federal lands. And he opposed an effort to stop Biden’s irresponsible scheme to ship oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to foreign countries, including China. As a result, gas prices in Arizona are roughly $4.00 per gallon. Basic tasks like driving to work now cost a small fortune.

In his response to the association’s endorsement, Masters pledged to be a staunch advocate for the gas and oil industry.

“Unlike my Democrat opponent, who puts America last in every respect, I will restore American energy independence, never sell out to the Chinese communist regime, and strengthen our oil and gas industry here in Arizona and across the country,” he said.

In a separate release on Thursday, the Republican’s campaign announced that the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), a group that serves as an advocate for small businesses, endorsed him as well:

“Blake Masters has experience working in the business community and will be a strong supporter of Arizona’s small businesses in the U.S. Senate,” NFIB Arizona state director Chad Heinrich said, adding:

His top priority in Congress will be to get the economy back on track, and to create a pro-small business environment. He has also expressed an interest in improving workforce training, which will help small businesses immensely as they continue to manage a worker shortage. We are proud to endorse Blake Master today and look forward to working with him.

Sharon Sussin, a senior national political director with NFIB, said the organization “know[s] Masters will be a dependable small business advocate in the U.S. Senate”:

“He understands the issues small businesses are facing and will be a pro-small business member of Congress,” she continued.

Masters pledged, “Arizona’s small business community will have a friend in me.”

“Our economy is strongest when we create a tax and regulatory environment that allows small businesses to thrive. One of the mantras I will live by in the Senate is ‘pro-business, pro-freedom, pro-America’ – I will never vote for a federal mandate that shuts down your business,” he vowed.

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