In the swing state of Pennsylvania, many Republican representatives are doing exactly what the median voter theorem would predict - they are moving to the middle. According to this Huffington Post story, these Republicans now support a short-term extension of government spending without any policy requirements added on. While Republicans benefit, especially during their primary elections, by showing how different they are from the Democrats, Pennsylvania Republicans are showing how the desire to pick-up votes pushes them towards the middle voter, who seems to prefer compromise and working government to principled, partisan stances.
Rep. Pat Meehan, Rep. Charlie Dent, and Rep. Jim Gerlach, among others, all expressed support for a “clean” government funding bill. Other Republicans, led by Sen. Ted Cruz, want to see the President’s healthcare law - Obamacare - defunded before the government is opened back up for business. But, despite calling Obamacare “glitch-filled” and “job-crushing,” Gerlach noted that “It is time for Congress to vote on a budget bill that gets the government back to work providing all of the services already paid for by the hard-working taxpayers in my District and across the country.” In other words, Gerlach understands that the median voter in his Pennsylvania district wants the government open for business.
No comments:
Post a Comment