Richmond Times-Dispatch previews the 2nd and 5th Congressional races
By JR Hoeft | Monday, September 6th, 2010 | Catch-AllThe Richmond Times-Dispatch previewed both the 2nd and 5th Congressional races recently saying the 2nd has much to do with military voting and the closure of Joint Forced Command (JFCOM) and the 5th is about “voter anxiety”.
In the 2nd, RTD points to military voting as part of the problem for Nye, but likely hits at his biggest issue later in the article — not being in a voting cycle with an Obama or Warner at the top of the ticket and alienating his base with his votes on key bills:
Quentin Kidd, a political scientist at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, said Nye was in political trouble before the Joint Forces Command uproar because of the bad economy and because he has voted against the Obama administration so many times that he has alienated the Democratic base.
Nye voted for the stimulus package and for financial regulatory reform. But he voted against Obama in opposing the health-care bill and cap-and-trade legislation meant to curb greenhouse gas emissions.
“I think the people appreciate an independent-minded representative who doesn’t vote along party lines,” says Nye, a member of the Blue Dog coalition of conservative Democrats in Congress.
Nye may be correct in that assumption, but he may have not been in office long enough to behave that way. In the still conservative 2nd, in a mid-term year, Nye needs as much enthusiasm from his base as he can get to overcome an energized GOP – but that base has yet to materialize.
Of the 5th, RTD notes that economic conditions, particularly in the distressed areas of Martinsville and Danville, will play a role in this race. They also point out that there may be a “lesser of two evils” feeling amongst the electorate. However, in a nutshell, the article says of the campaign that:
“Perriello hopes to at least hold his 727-vote margin. In a limping economy. With pervasive voter anxiety.
“Perriello’s Republican opponent, state Sen. Robert Hurt of Pittsylvania County, is seizing upon that dynamic, painting Perriello as a lock-step party loyalist to the Obama administration who is out of touch with the district.”
The bottom-line: it’s still the economy and jobs driving the electorate; an economy that has only gotten worse under the leadership of Nancy Pelosi and Congressional Democrats.
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Conservative to the core; liberal with his opinion! J.R. has been involved in politics for over a decade and has worked on several campaigns in Hampton Roads. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Republican Party of Chesapeake and the Central Committee of the Republican Party of Virginia. He is also the director of “Blogs United” in Virginia. E-mail J.R.. Follow J.R. on Twitter.
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5 Responses to "Richmond Times-Dispatch previews the 2nd and 5th Congressional races"
in the 5thCD there is also this dynamic: Perriello (to his credit) had the most townhalls last summer. Many people turned out to personally beg this Congressman not vote for Obamacare. These townhalls & the attendees’ mood was widely reported. Yet he voted for Obamacare anyway.
What is impt here is not that he betrayed his constituents because many Congressman do that almost daily. Perriello betrayed constituents who are political neophytes; they are new to the horrors of politics. While in past election cycles these independent voters could have been swayed by platitudes, now they want real accountability. These constituents have had enough of someone who doesn’t listen.
The feeling in the 5th is that Perriello shafted his constituents. He put Pelosi & Obama first.
That’s a great point, kelley. Thanks for bringing it up.
Glenn Nye votes with Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats in Congress 85% of the time. Is that what he calls “not voting along party lines”??? That is hilarious! I guess maybe he’s 15% independent?
Nye seems like a decent guy, but he just isn’t cut out for this. I can’t help picturing him as a cardboard cutout just standing in place for a real Congressman to take over. It’s time to elect Scott Rigell.
True that all politics are local; VA-5 is a VERY different district than VA-2. However, it seems that the poor economy (and the recent jobs #s don’t seem to show any improvement) are doing something the RNC could never do on its own; nationalizing the election.
It’s clear that the economy is the #1 issue; its why a businessman like Scott Rigell is emphasizing it so much everywhere it goes.
The Republican serving in the House least likely to vote along party lines is Ron Paul and his son Rand is running for the Senate in Kentucky. I’m not sure Republicans want to point towards these mavericks, those most likely to run counter to the Republican Party as being commendable.
Any more the Republican mavericks are the extremists, the ones who want to do things like legalize recreational drug use and destroy Social Security. Some coalition you Republicans have.
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