Timothy McNulty | March 4, 2009
Jason Altmire confirmed to Politico last night that he is joining the conservative Democrat Blue Dog Coalition.
Who are they again?
The fiscally conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition was formed in
1995 with the goal of representing the center of the House of
Representatives and appealing to the mainstream values of the American
public. The Blue Dogs are dedicated to a core set of beliefs that
transcend partisan politics, including a deep commitment to the
financial stability and national security of the United
States. Currently there are 49 members of the Blue Dog Coalition.
Altmire's move shouldn't be all that surprising -- as usual, this is a bit of Western Pa being the exception to the rule.
We write a lot about how Democratic Pennsylvania is becoming, especially in the context of statewide elections like the one Arlen Specter faces next year. The Dems have a 1.2 million registration edge statewide and gave Obama the state's biggest presidential edge in decades.
But Western Pa is going against that grain -- Republican votes in counties here increased over 2004, as the map below shows, and Altmire knows this. He's one of the Dems who voted against the $700 billion stimulus package in October.
Posted
Mar 04 2009, 10:55 AM
by
Timothy McNulty