Himes Has Come Today
Fairfield County Weekly, Tuesday, May 13, 2008
There were no surprises during the Fourth Congressional District Democratic Nomination Convention on Monday, as political bigwigs gave the nom to Jim Himes, with the fervent hopes that he'll finally be the guy to knock out the last standing congressional Republican in New England.
The overriding message during the convention was hope. The hope that Himes has in his district; the hope that his district has in him; and, what appeared to be most important, the hope that he will boot Chris Shays out of office.
The first person to speak was Diane Farrell, who ran failed campaigns against Shays in the 2004 and 2006 congressional elections. She lost those battles, Farrell told the crowd at Bridgeport's Cesar Batella School, but they're still worth fighting. "I'm convinced this is going to be the year," she said."
Himes spoke for about 15 minutes while addressing his supporters and took a bunch of shots at Shays: "My opponent complains that our nation and our great party have become partisan. But he represents a party that has lost its way, abandoned the values of Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt, and sought advantage by turning American against American."
Himes says for the past 21 years (since Shays has been in office) the district has gotten worse. "We're stuck in traffic more and more each day. We continue to lose thousands of good middle-class jobs. And our urban schools are struggling with more mandates and less money." Himes also cited how Shays has "followed" George Bush's leadership by getting us into "a disastrous war" and by opposing a timeline in Iraq.
"This district deserves a leader who will represent our values," Himes argued, and one who will "reflect our needs and deliver results. So now, it's our turn to ask Chris Shays to follow George Bush one more time-into retirement."
Does he have the chops to do what Farrell and so many before her couldn't? According to Maura Keaney, Himes' campaign manager, he does. "His background is really different," Keaney says, citing his work "as a businessman on Wall Street to the last six years, where he has been working in non-profit, setting up affordable housing."
Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch said of Himes, "we both feel passionately that our citizens deserve quality affordable homes...we both share the same interest in urban revitalization." Himes, Finch said, understands that the district's problems are intertwined and that every municipality is struggling to deal with education issues, affordable housing, the unfunded mandate known as No Child Left Behind and rising health-care costs. "Jim will bring fresh and new ideas to the district," Finch said.
Max Medina, president of Bridgeport's Board of Education, supports Himes because he will focus more on the needs of the district rather than what is happening overseas. "We need a congressman that cares more about what is happening here in Bridgeport than in Baghdad."
Medina said the U.S. spends about $14 million per hour on the war in the Middle East. "Imagine if that money was spent at home," he said, it would "wipe out" the budget gap in Bridgeport. "This is a special year, a year for change, and Jim understands that," Medina said.
