Interview with Grady Gammage - Central Arizona Project

enough to it to hear about things. But I think there’s a real undercurrent on the
Board right now of politics that is both partisan and anti-professional and that
concerns me. The CAP I think is one of Arizona’s political institutions that have
worked really well. It’s an obscure election. People don’t know what they do.
People don’t know who they are. People don’t know why they are running for it
but it’s been a terrific example of non-partisan, non-political decisionmaking by a
bunch of people who care about the future the state; and who have hired and
maintained an extraordinary, competent professional staff. It doesn’t mean
they’re always right and I think it’s important that decisions like that ultimately be
made by the Board. You can make a case that the Board might be just as good
or better if it was appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate or
appointed by the Board of Supervisors of the three counties rather than directly
elected. But the direct election process worked for a very long time. I am
troubled. I’m a little worried about the current political climate that seems to be
different than when I was on the Board.
Q. I’ve been asking that question for several years since I’ve been doing these
interviews, but it’s a different question since November than it was a year ago.
That Board always seemed like sort of a retired governors, people with some
name recognition.
A. I got on there because I have the same name as the big pink building. I mean
literally. I did no campaigning. I didn’t spend a dime. I did nothing but people
Interview with Grady Gammage
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