A Wave of Primary Challenges Against Health Care Opponents?

[Ian David]

A Wave of Primary Challenges Against Health Care Opponents?
by cos
Digg this! Share this on Twitter - A Wave of Primary Challenges Against Health Care Opponents?Tweet this submit to reddit Share This
Sat Mar 20, 2010 at 09:00:02 PM PDT

In 1970, a group formed after the first Earth Day and, calling themselves Environmental Action, named a "Dirty Dozen" of 12 members of Congress who had the worst record on the environment. Of those 12 incumbents, 6 were defeated that year, and when they declared a new Dirty Dozen in 1972, 7 of them were defeated.

Perhaps not so coincidentally, Congress passed the Clean Air Act in 1970, the Clean Water Act in 1972, and the Endangered Species Act in 1973, and Republican Richard Nixon signed them all.

Few things in American politics exert as much pressure on legislation as a series of coordinated, serious challenges to incumbents - especially primary challenges. When legislators see a particular issue driving multiple races that put incumbents at risk, they change their behavior on that issue.

I saw this in action much more recently here in Massachusetts in the fight over whether to ban equal marriage. And now the same pattern is quickly emerging, with Harmony Wu's challenge to Stephen Lynch (MA-9) joining two other primary prominent challenges in recent weeks focused on health care.

More:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/3/21/002/00076

Hat-tip to: http://twitter.com/textcos/status/10826335119
Thanks to: http://journals.democraticunderground.com/janet118


See also:

US Rep. Lynch faces three challengers
http://journals.democraticunderground.com/Ian%20David/7276
(And Harmony Wu makes four!)

Rep. Stephen Lynch faces challenges in Primary and General Election
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=158&topic_id=15899&mesg_id=15899


# Draft Harmony Wu on Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=107165679301145
An ActBlue page is being set up... http://www.actblue.com/page/draftharmonywu
Harmony Wu's Webpage http://www.harmonywu.org/
Follow Harmony Wu on Twitter http://twitter.com/harmonywu




Hat-tip to: http://twitter.com/textcos/status/10826335119
Thanks to: http://journals.democraticunderground.com/janet118

Waiting on Phil Dunkelbarger to get his new webpage and Twitter page up and running so I can link to that as well.

[msongs]

1. lib/progressive candidates should primary all conservadems, starting at the top n going down nt

[unhappycamper]

2. I would love to see this war-mongering, MIC-loving POS defeated by Wu.

Now if we can only get Wu to vote against continuing the occupations and do something about that trillion dollar military budget.

[Ian David]

4. Harmony Wu or Phil Dunkelbarger. But Harmony is prettier and already has a webpage and stuff. n/t

[southernyankeebelle]

3. Young people MUST go vote or republicans will win and they promise to repeal. It is up to all

of us.