Harry Mitchell in the middle
March 7th, 2008, 2:48 pm · Post a Comment · posted by Paul Giblin
Harry Mitchell (front row, third from left) and Gabrielle Giffords (front row, fourth from left)
Democrat U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell said he’s comfortable with being labeled by National Journal magazine as one of the key players in the “The New Center” movement within the U.S. House.
The March 8 edition of the magazine bases the observation on its latest annual analysis of congressional votes. National Journal slotted Mitchell 13 spots left of center among 429 members of the House. The magazine didn’t rank the remaining members of the House because of missed votes.
Based on 100-point scale that measures the political ideological spectrum, Mitchell is 39 points more liberal than his predecessor, ousted Republican J.D. Hayworth, who received a 85 percent conservative rating the previous year, according to the magazine.
Similarly, fellow freshman Arizona Democrat Gabrielle Giffords came in 22.5 points more liberal than her predecessor, retired Republican Jim Kolbe, who garnered a 65.7 percent conservative rating.
In fact, the House’s center is filled disproportionately with freshmen Democrats, according to the magazine.
The rankings seem accurate, Mitchell said. “It shows that – and I really believe this, too – the Democrat first-termers really are the middle of the road, the center. And most of them came from Republican districts, like myself,” he said.
Mitchell never exactly sought out the political center; it just worked out that way, he said. “I thought I represented my district. I voted with my district and that’s where it put me,” he said.
For example, Mitchell was one of six freshman Democrats to break with party leadership to oppose the Democratic budget resolution. Mitchell couldn’t support it because, in part, it failed to address an increase in government spending. He also co-sponsored a bill with Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., to extend President Bush’s cuts on capital gains taxes and estate taxes.
While the magazine suggests the “majority makers” have a fair amount of clout within the House in general and the Democratic Party in particular, it doesn’t always feel that way, Mitchell said. He’s familiar with the so-called majority makers, but they certainly don’t act as a coalition by planning strategy together or deliberately voting together.
“A lot of these people, I do talk to on the floor, just casually most of them,” he said. “I probably talk more to Gabby, because I served in the (Arizona) Senate with her.”
Also, there’s inherent political risk associated with centralist politics, he said. “You get hit from people coming from the right and the left if you’re middle of the road. It’s like walking the double-yellow line, isn’t it?”
