This is the second segment of a ten part series about why you, and the netroots community as a whole, should be focused on the Eighth Congressional District of Pennsylvania. There has been a lot of discussion around the net about what makes a good “netroots” candidate – this is my case for Patrick Murphy in PA-08. If you haven’t already, please read the first installment of this series A Democratic District in Republican Hands.
Part 2: The Real, Right-Wing Mike Fitzpatrick
A little background on the district is in order: PA-08 is the former district of moderate Republican Jim Greenwood who suddenly resigned in 2004 to head up an industry lobbying group. Instead of choosing a more moderately inclined ideological successor, the county GOP boss chose the arch-conservative Michael Fitzpatrick. As a local political website noted: “Bucks County has entered the Republican mainstream by having a Congressman who walks in lock step with Rick Santorum and Melissa Hart.”
More on the flip…
The following are just a few of the many examples demonstrating how far outside the mainstream Fitzpatrick is – who in case you didn’t know was Santorum’s classmate in Law School:
Fitzpatrick voted for an immigration bill that would send priests and ministers performing aid work to jail. Fitzpatrick supported a bill that would make it a criminal offense for anyone to “direct or assist” an immigrant with the knowledge that the person crossed the U.S. border illegally. Financial penalties and jail time could follow, including up to five years in jail. Churches, social service agencies and immigration groups across the country are rallying against the provision because those who are most at risk to go to jail are priests, nurses, and social workers.
Fitzpatrick voted against funding embryonic stem cell research. Despite promising Rep. Greenwood that he would support federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, Fitzpatrick voted against this potentially life saving research. This is how a real pro-lifer, former Senator John Danforth, describes stem cell research: “My entire political career, I voted pro-life, and that is exactly why I favor the stem cell initiative . . . I believe in saving human life. I want cures to be found.” Greenwood even said after Fitzpatrick’s no vote: “I’m very disappointed that he would take this position” and later said, “that he would not have endorsed Fitzpatrick if the [Fitzpatrick] had not declared an open mind for embryonic stem cell research” during his 2004 congressional campaign.
Fitzpatrick voted to inject himself in the Schiavo Family Controversy. Enough said.
Fitzpatrick voted with Tom DeLay and the Republican Leadership 86% of the time. Fitzpatrick voted 671 times either “yeah” or “nay” in his first Congressional session. According to the Washington Post, Fitzpatrick voted against leadership ONLY 94 times. That means that Fitzpatrick voted with leadership 86% of the time. On the 25 closest roll call votes Fitzpatrick only bucked Republican leadership 8 times. Therefore when the going got really tough Tom DeLay could count on Fitzpatrick to be with him more than two-thirds of the time.
Fitzpatrick voted to strip away Separation of Powers and Checks and Balances. Mike Fitzpatrick’s voted to prohibit funds to a federal court in Indiana to execute a judgment because he didn’t like the decision the court had made. In other words, Fitzpatrick tried to, by legislative fiat, overturn a decision by the independent judiciary.
In a district that is over 60% pro-choice, Fitzpatrick isn’t just anti-choice – he is extreme:
Fitzpatrick voted to eliminate contraceptives from the list of prevention methods available under a new program to treat and prevent obstetric fistula–a debilitating injury with lifelong consequences for women. Simply, this vote jeopardizes the health and lives of women by limiting access to a full range of family planning options.
Fitzpatrick also voted to deny funding to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). UNFPA works in over 140 countries to ensure that women have access to voluntary family planning, economic opportunities, and education–all of which contribute to increased opportunities for women to choose the size and spacing of their families.
Not surprisingly, Fitzpatrick got a zero rating from NARAL.
Fitzpatrick voted for the Budget Bill that shreds our nation’s safety net. Fitzpatrick voted for the budget bill that hurts children, senior citizens, students, working families, and child-support collection efforts, all the while protecting special interests and doing nothing to cut the debt. See Roll Call #s 601, 670, and 4. The bill was so bad that the Catholic Bishops opposed it, because it “failed to `meet the needs of the most vulnerable among us;'” but Mike called it “reasonable.”
Once again, these are just a few of the many examples of Fitzpatrick’s right wing predilections–this list could go on and on.
As widely discussed, one of the main strengths of the netroots is the ability to call out BS–so with your help, Patrick Murphy will be able to get the press to ask the tough questions when Fitzpatrick tries to FRAUDULENTLY play the moderate card as he loves to do
So again, and in conclusion, Fitzpatrick – the freshman right wing ideologue – is holding onto one of the most Democratic districts in the country. And with YOUR help, we can help put Patrick Murphy over the top and get one step closer to taking our Government back from these frauds.
The next installment of this series will continue the introduction of Fitzpatrick–or should we say–Flip-Flopping Fitz.