Rep. John Larson today vaulted into the House leadership, winning the number four spot in the House Democratic caucus over two challengers.
Larson, 57, who represents the Hartford area, won on the second ballot after two hours of secret deliberations.
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Larson is now behind only House Minority Leader Nancy D. Pelosi, D-Calif., Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer, D-md., and Caucus Chairman James Clyburn, D-S.C., in the Democratic hierarchy.
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He joked about his strategy--"I wrapped up the state of Connecticut," he said, which consists of himself and Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-3rd District, and then put together a coalition of liberals, conservatives and moderates. Rep. John P. Murtha, D-Pa., one of the House's leading voices on defense issues, as well as DeLauro were among his chief backers. (Lightman)
Larson has arguably been the least visible of the members of our congressional delegation, partly because he doesn't really need to come back to Connecticut to campaign. His district is solidly Democratic.
Larson's victory was something of a surprise: Rep. Joseph Crowley had been far ahead in supporters, and actually won the first round of balloting.
Well... good for him, I suppose. It's still hard to get excited about Larson.
Source
Lightman, David. "Larson Moves Up In Caucus Leadership." Hartford Courant 1 February, 2006.
9 comments:
Who is John Larson?
He will be Speaker someday.
(But nobody can help Murphy get past second place in 06.)
Hey anon,
Give me 10 to 1 and I'll take Murphy right now.By Sept he'll be Even money.
Even money? Johnson has millions on hand (yes, millions as in more than 2 million), she is not going to lose to Murphy, Vance, Curry or any challenger this time.
CtKeith, you also think Lieberman will lose as well right?
Larson is low key, and I've been lukewarm on him, but he tends to vote the right way and his early opposition to the Iraq war deserves respect.
Good for Larson but file this under the catagory of...Who cares?
5th District Dem,
The budget bill is a nominee for most censored story. Both Johnson and Shays voted for the bill (and Simmons probably only voted against it after getting permission from leadership - in fact he voted for the bill a few weeks ago). And the bill means higher education costs (reduced student loans), more uninsured kids and families (Medicaid cuts and increased premiums and copays for families), more deadbeat dads and abusive parents victimizing kids (cuts to child support enforcement and foster care), more unfunded mandates on states, and more suffering for poor people (cuts to cash assistance).
The House bill was particularly mean-spirited, as cuts were aimed almost entirely at low-income people, unlike the Senate spending bill. And the cuts will not reduce the deficit by a penny. They will be used to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy. More on the budget bill here and here.
Farrell, Murphy, and Courtney should hang the Republicans on their votes, and I encourage everyone to make a contribution to their campaigns tonight.
The position of Democratic Caucus Vice Chairman is largely ceremonial, unless the person in it wants more power or influence.
You guys can forget about Larson spending any considerable time in Connecticut campaigning during this cycle.
He will be too busy going to other Congressional Districts around the country to campaign in targeted races.
If he does not pay significant attention to his race in the 1st this year, he could be in for a surprise.
The GOP needs to dump Scott MacLean, the "purple" candidate.
Larson has a dangerously low amount of cash on hand ($180,000), and, will run a predictable low-key campaign.
He could get bit in the behind.
Larson is my rep as well and I have been very satified with him representing me.
Like nedweenie, I always get a prompt reply with bonus reading material.
Larson "gets" it.
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