Republican gives ‘clinic’ on political posturing while defending controversial Arizona audit: report

On Monday, Arizona Attorney General and Republican Senate candidate Mark Brnovich fired off an angry letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland for his criticism of the Arizona election "audit," calling the DOJ's position against the effort "hysterical," and saying he is "not amused by DOJ posturing."

The letter invited immediate scorn from local Arizona reporter Brahm Resnik, who noted that ironically, the entire letter "gives a posturing clinic."

Brnovich, who hopes to challenge Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) in 2022, has tried to walk a difficult line in handling the election issue, as he has also invited attacks from former President Donald Trump for not sufficiently defending the GOP's conspiracy theories in Arizona. Trump has claimed "lackluster" Brnovich hasn't mentioned the "Rigged and Stolen" election and is "always on television promoting himself."

The Arizona audit, conducted by a pro-Trump cybersecurity firm from Florida, has triggered widespread mockery and criticism for pursuing a number of crackpot ideas, including hunting for bamboo fibers in ballots to prove they were faked in Asia. Even some longtime supporters of Trump have blasted the audit as a "clown show."