Resurgent Republicans in the Northeast

Over the last several years, the common mantra among the left (as well as some on the right), has been that New England and the Northeast are doomsday regions for Republicans. There are no Republican Representatives in New England, for example, and only three Republican Senators in the entire NorthEast.

Unfortunately for liberals, this mantra has been proven premature. While the Republican resurgence- begun by Senator Brown (R-MA) and New Jersey governor Chris Christie- isn’t necessarily conservative (Christie is a moderate on social issues, and Brown recently voiced support for the financial regulation bill working its way through Congress), it certainly is Republican. One allegedly blue state in particular, New Hampshire- which has kicked out two Republican Representatives; a Republican Senator; and a Republican governor in the last six years- has now competitive races in its four Senate, Representative, and gubernatorial races this year. Another “blue” state, Connecticut, may elect a Republican to replace the corrupt Democratic Senator Chris Dodd.

As a conservative, I find this pretty optimistic. While few of the candidates are as conservative as I would like, they are at least less liberal than those Democrats currently holding offices or running for open seats, and in some cases they are very conservative. Admittedly, this is happening in a strong anti-Democratic year, but it’s still happening, and that’s the important thing.

One race in particular that I think is being overlooked in the national scheme of political races is the 4th District race in Connecticut. Held by Republicans for decades, it was the last Republican Representative seat in New England until 2008- and Chris Shays only lost by slightly over 2,000 votes that year. The current Representative, Jim Himes, has voted with the Democratic Party line on the big votes- including, but not limited to, cap-and-trade, health care and financial regulations- and is being opposed by several Republicans.

One of the Republicans, Rob Merkle, is a very conservative candidate who has term limits; limited government; tax reform; effective job growth; and pro-life platforms. He opposes the stimulus and TARP, and wants Too Big To Fail to end through the free market- the best anti-TBTF policy in existence. Best of all, though, unlike his major primary opponent, Dan Debicella, Merkle has never run for political office before. He is a businessman who actually knows what works, unlike both Debicella (who, for example, wants a cap on increases in federal spending, instead of reversing the deficits, which is what Merkle wants) and Himes (who worked for crony capitalist Goldman Sachs for years).

Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I work for Rob Merkle as the campaign blogger and online media specialist. (Check out the blog here.) I was brought onto the campaign a) on the recommendation of a mutual acquaintance whose conservative credentials are unchallengeable, and b) after a lot of talking with Merkle about his view of government; its limits; and how best to apply changes to bring the government within those limits. According to Merkle, the biggest issue facing America is the national debt, and he wants to lead the charge against the unwillingness of Members of Congress to risk re-election in order to implement appropriate changes.

All in all, the Northeast is not yet strong Democratic territory. It may not be conservative central, but given the gifts of bad bills; arrogance; and the inability to create jobs the Obama administration and the Democratic Congress have given the Republican Party, perhaps conservatives like Rob Merkle can bring a strong Republican resurgence to the Northeast.