Gabrielle Giffords

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If you're a Tucson Democrat, what's the surest way to get on the bad side of your party?

Aside from going to work for George W. Bush or Dick Cheney, try standing up for Wal-Mart — evil of all evils.

Turns out some are saying political consultant Pete Zimmerman, a big-time Democratic Tucson consultant and pollster, is in hot water for representing the left's bogeyman.

Zimmerman has been hired by Wal-Mart to run a petition drive that would repeal a key provision of Tucson's big-box ordinance, which restricts food and beverage sales to no more than 10 percent of total space in a store larger than 100,000 square feet.

Some Democratic true believers are so upset that Zimmerman is representing their arch enemy that they are suggesting candidates not hire him in this fall's upcoming campaign.

In fact, some at City Hall said the revelation that he was running the petition drive for Wal-Mart was worse than Democratic Mayor Tom Volgy's reversing his longstanding support for Tucson's public-access TV channels by working as a consultant for Cox Communications during its license renewal.

Zimmerman tells Notebook he's not concerned.

"We're good at what we do, and people will still seek us out," he said.

Zimmerman, who runs the business with his wife, Carol, says they operate a moderate, pro-business polling and consulting company. Wal-Mart has been a client since at least 1999.

"There are lots of Democrats who are supportive of what Wal-Mart wants to do," Zimmerman said. "The party is not a litmus test for issues. There is room for a lot of different opinions in our political structure."

As for the ire some Demo- crats have for the retailer, Zimmerman said: "I think it's based on money. It really boils down to a war that's being waged on Wal-Mart by several unions that would like to unionize the largest retailer in the world. They want the membership."

This isn't the first time support for Wal-Mart could hurt a Democrat. Potential mayoral candidate Brent Davis saw his candidacy go up in smoke last year after being supportive of the store in its efforts to put a big box on the South Side.

A recent profile in Congress Daily hints at a possible higher office for our own Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, a longtime friend of Bill and Hillary Clinton, chimes in on Giffords, saying: "I wouldn't be surprised if she's the first or second female president of the United States. She's of that caliber."

Fine. But first on Giffords' list has got to be winning re-election next year — a topic that is increasingly generating dialogue locally and nationally.

All fingers point to state Senate President Tim Bee. And while he's still necessarily coy about his intentions, other potential GOP candidates are planning to stay out if he takes the challenge.

But some Republicans hint they are uncertain whether the praises Bee is winning from Democrats like Paula Aboud and Phil Lopes for his nonpartisan approach to this year's budget negotiations would be a plus or a minus for him in a congressional race. The move could either win over moderates — or isolate conservatives.

Gabrielle Giffords has two celebrations coming this week. Monday marks six months in office for the congresswoman. And if recent attacks from the GOP mean anything, the honeymoon is over (at least until Giffords weds astronaut Mark Kelly in the fall).

But more important, Friday is Giffords' birthday. She'll be 37 — so, yes, she's old enough to run for president.

Nonstop politics

This week the Star introduced a new blog — Under the Copper Dome.

I'll be "blogging" as much as possible from my office in the press room of the state Capitol, and providing readers with the inside scoop on legislative news and political happenings.

You can access the blog at: http://go.azstarnet.com/ copperdome.