CQ TODAY ONLINE NEWS
– POLITICS
July 29, 2009 – 6:26 p.m.
House Republicans to Target 80 Seats
By Emily Cadei, CQ Staff
The National Republican Congressional Committee is targeting 80 Democratic-held House districts in 2010, according to Texas Rep. Pete Sessions , chairman of that GOP campaign unit.
Sessions, who discussed his party’s plans for the midterm elections with reporters Wednesday, said the figure includes 54 traditionally Republican seats that his party will try to wrest away from current Democratic occupants.
The core strategy, Sessions said, will be to paint the Democratic moderates who represent many of those districts as enablers of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi , a California Democrat who Republicans define as staunchly liberal.
“We’re going to work that angle that it is ... Democratic members that support Nancy Pelosi and empower her to do business the way she is,” Sessions said. “These members have a chance on the floor on a regular basis to say, ‘No, slow it down, let’s look at the process.’ And they have refused to do that.”
Republicans would regain the House majority if they were to make a net gain of 40 seats. “To get to 40, we’re going to have to field at least 80 good candidates,” Sessions said.
Sessions did not go so far as to predict, though, that his party would recapture control of the House in the 2010 election.
The NRCC used the occasion to unveil a list of the first 13 candidates for possible inclusion in its “Young Guns” program for targeted House races.
• Martha Roby, challenging Rep. Bobby Bright in Alabama’s 2nd District
• Van Tran, challenging Rep. Loretta Sanchez in California’s 47th
• Cory Gardner, challenging Rep. Betsy Markey in Colorado’s 4th
• Charles Djou, seeking a Democratic open seat in Hawaii’s 1st
• Vaughn Ward, challenging Rep. Walt Minnick in Idaho’s 1st
• Adam Kinzinger, challenging Rep. Debbie Halvorson in Illinois’ 11th
• Andy Harris, challenging Rep. Frank Kratovil Jr. in Maryland’s 1st
• Jon Barela, challenging Rep. Martin Heinrich in New Mexico’s 1st
• Ex-Rep. Steve Pearce, challenging Rep. Harry Teague in New Mexico’s 2nd
• Frank Guinta, challenging Rep. Carol Shea-Porter in New Hampshire’s 1st
• Ex-Rep. Steve Chabot, challenging Rep. Steve Driehaus in Ohio’s 1st
• Steve Stivers, challenging Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy in Ohio’s 15th
• Dennis Ross, the only candidate on the list running for a seat currently held by a Republican; he is running in Florida’s 12th District to succeed GOP Rep. Adam H. Putnam , who is running for state agriculture commissioner.
Harris, Chabot and Stivers are seeking rematches of races they lost to the current Democratic incumbents in 2008.
All of these candidates are expected to meet certain outreach and fundraising benchmarks before they can move up to the top-tier level of the program and earn the label “Young Gun.”
“If a campaign is far enough to reach ‘Young Gun,’ they will probably win a primary,” Sessions said. He added, though, “That is not an indication that I will endorse them or that their delegation will endorse them.”
The NRCC has thus far officially endorsed just two challengers: Ross in Florida and Kinzinger in Illinois.
The other side of the coin in planning for the next election cycle is defending seats the party already has.
Vulnerable incumbents — “the under 55 percent crowd,” as Sessions characterized them — are helped along through what the NRCC calls its “Patriot” program.
Last week, the NRCC added 15 members to that list, for a total of 25.
After taking pastings in the 2006 and 2008 elections, the House wing of the Republican Party is re-energized, Sessions said.
“There was a sense all across this country with Republicans that we were doomed for 40 years to wander in the woods, that we would be in the desert and we couldn’t find our way back. I dismiss this theory,” said Sessions.
Comments
Harris, Chabot and Stivers are seeking rematches of races they lost to the current Democratic incumbents in 2008. Hard to see how re-treads looking for a re-match can be termed "young guns," but that sort of thing is what has brought the GOP to grief. Sessions remains comitted to repeating the mistakes of the past.
Chapman, young guns is just a name for challengers, not a description of the candidates. The Dems call their challengers "Red to Blue". As far as re-treads go, you should ask Reps. Kissel, Shea-Porter, B. Hill, Maffei, Donnelly, etc. about that.
The level of insight of cool aid Dems seems to be deteriorating to about a six grade level. The rich urban gentry, their children who don't work, and those on government assistance make up 74% of the Party in power. The other 26% are at their therapists at least twice a week. Make no mistake here comes the Jimmy Carter decline again. History is predictable and repeatable even if CQ touts a bias
We are hoping that Congressman Dennis Moore (D) Kansas is defeated...we need help in making sure this happens. Send help our way please!
The 19th district in NY has a young gun in Greg Ball. He is a current assemblyman in Albany and is going to challenge pelosi-minnion john hall. The NRCC definitely needs to support Mr. Ball as this district is ripe for the picking.
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