CQ Weekly‘s Shawn Zeller has the interesting story.
By tradition, elder statesmen are decorous showpieces, trotted out for reunions or legislative anniversaries. But 76-year-old Pete McCloskey, a liberal Republican House member from California from 1967 through 1982, and Lewis H. Butler an assistant secretary of Health, Education and Welfare in the Nixon administration, have little patience for tradition. They are the front men for Revolt of the Elders, which last month announced the creation of a “527� political group to target House GOP incumbents close to Majority Leader Tom DeLay .
Two other Republicans who left the House in the early 1980s, James Johnson of Colorado and Paul Findley of Illinois, also are lending their names to the effort.
The group had a moment in the spotlight in April, when it came out against House ethics rules changes — abandoned soon thereafter — that likely would have deflected close scrutiny of DeLay’s lobbying and fundraising ties.
But they aren’t about to stop there. “We are in a contest for the soul of the Republican Party,� says McCloskey. Hence the new electoral strategy, which seeks to help GOP candidates who support causes such as environmental protection, stem cell research and abortion rights. So far, their efforts have focused on finding people in four California districts: primary opponents for Richard W. Pombo and John T. Doolittle and candidates to succeed Randy “Duke� Cunningham , who’s retiring amid a series of ethical troubles, and Christopher Cox , who resigned last week to run the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Is this a man-bites-dog story or a dog-bites-man story? Is it meaningful for moderate and liberal Republicans to speak out against the conservative party leader? Some might say no. However, these former Republican Congressmen still have sway in their communities, and in close districts across the country, the opposition of these luminaries could effect just enough voters to make a real difference in 2006.
originally posted on my blog, Basie.org
PAST CONTRIBUTOR.