Chris Shays: Difference between revisions
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Shays has also been very vocal in attacks against the right-wing elements in his own party. In the debate surrounding the controversial [[Terri Schiavo]] case he said, "The Republican party of Lincoln has become the party of [[theocracy]]." [http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/23/politics/23repubs.html?] He argued that the GOP claimed to be in favor of states' rights "unless they don't like what states are doing". |
Shays has also been very vocal in attacks against the right-wing elements in his own party. In the debate surrounding the controversial [[Terri Schiavo]] case he said, "The Republican party of Lincoln has become the party of [[theocracy]]." [http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/23/politics/23repubs.html?] He argued that the GOP claimed to be in favor of states' rights "unless they don't like what states are doing". |
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Shays voted to override [[President Bush]]'s veto of a [[stem cell]] funding research bill in July 2006. Nonetheless, a group favoring Democrats ran a robocall phone campaign in the 4th District charging Shays supported the veto, which a leading local newspaper called "despicable". http://www.connpost.com/editorials/ci_4106583 |
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The Congressman has long been for environmental regulations, and was endorsed in the past election by the [[League of Conservation Voters]]. |
The Congressman has long been for environmental regulations, and was endorsed in the past election by the [[League of Conservation Voters]]. |
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Revision as of 21:51, 28 July 2006
Christopher H. Shays (born October 18 1945), American politician, has been a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives since 1987, representing the 4th District of Connecticut (map), which includes 17 towns in Southwest Connecticut [1]
Born in Stamford, Connecticut, Shays grew up in Darien, attended Principia College and received an MBA and MPA from New York University. He and his wife Betsi -- his high school sweetheart -- served in the Peace Corps in Fiji. Shays' home in the district is in the Black Rock section of Bridgeport. He was a seven-term member of the Connecticut House of Representatives before entering the U.S. House of Representatives. Now in his tenth term, he was first elected to the Congress in 1987 in a special election held to fill the vacant seat of the late Stewart McKinney.
In the 109th Congress, Shays serves as Vice-Chairman of the House Committee on Government Reform. He Chairs the Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats and International Relations. Shays is also a member of the Financial Services and Homeland Security Committees.
In 2006, Shays faces "the fight of his political life,"[2] facing a strong challenge for reelection from Westport selectwoman Diane Farrell, in one of the most closely watched election races of the year. "With money pouring in from the district and from national groups (Farrell expects to raise close to $3 million, Shays a bit less) and unregulated political interest groups targeting Shays with automated calls and negative telemarketing designed as polls, this one already has the odor of ugly."[3]
Prior to the Iraq war Shays was regarded as holding a safe seat. As a strong supporter of the war in Iraq. Shays has faced a political challenge in a district with many voters opposed to the current U.S. policy there. Shays told the Hartford Courant on June 11, 2006 that his position was a matter of principle and "he was not going to stop talking about it" [4]
Political views
Shays is known by his supporters and the press as a "maverick" and "independent thinker", while conservative opponents regard him as a RINO ("Republican in name only"). Liberal opponents regard him as a false moderate who effects centrism through catch and release techniques.[citation needed]
He has formed coalitions with liberals and moderates from both parties. Along with Representative Marty Meehan, a Massachusetts Democrat, he co-sponsored the Shays-Meehan bill, which was eventually signed into law as the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002. The American Civil Liberties Union "believes that key elements of Shays-Meehan violate the First Amendment right to free speech because the legislation contains provisions that would violate the constitutionally protected right of the people to express their opinions about issues through broadcast advertising if they mention the name of a candidate and restrict soft money contributions and uses of soft money for no constitutionally justifiable reason." However the Supreme Court has upheld the controversial new law (McConnell v. Federal Elections Commission).
In 2004, Shays defeated Democratic challenger Diane Farrell, a Westport Selectwoman, by a surpisingly narrow margin of less than 4 percentage points to win reelection[5]. In that race, Shays eschewed the use of negative television ads, despite pleas from some Republicans to do so. [6] In 2006, Farrell is again challenging Shays for the seat. As of June, 2006, the race was listed by various independent observers as among the most competitive in the nation.[7][8]
Shays has also been very vocal in attacks against the right-wing elements in his own party. In the debate surrounding the controversial Terri Schiavo case he said, "The Republican party of Lincoln has become the party of theocracy." [9] He argued that the GOP claimed to be in favor of states' rights "unless they don't like what states are doing".
Shays voted to override President Bush's veto of a stem cell funding research bill in July 2006. Nonetheless, a group favoring Democrats ran a robocall phone campaign in the 4th District charging Shays supported the veto, which a leading local newspaper called "despicable". http://www.connpost.com/editorials/ci_4106583
The Congressman has long been for environmental regulations, and was endorsed in the past election by the League of Conservation Voters.
Shays is pro-choice on abortion and has voted against most restrictions on the procedure and also against Laci and Conner's Law. He voted against the ban on intact dilation and extraction numerous times, before finally voting in favor of the version passed in 2003 and signed into law by President Bush. He voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment and has co-sponsored a bill to overturn the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. Shays was endorsed by the Brady Campaign for his support for gun control and was one of only a small handful of Republicans to vote against the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act. He is also among the minority of Republicans to oppose the Flag Desecration Amendment.
While Shays has a liberal voting record in comparison to other House Republicans, his votes against the party leadership usually occur when his vote has no chance of changing the overall outcome. As an example, Shays has voted against the leadership on the subject of opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge when the vote outcome was never in doubt; he voted with the leadership for a provision in the same energy bill to exempt the makers of MTBE from lawsuits when the vote was going to be extremely close.
While a social liberal, Shays is a fiscal conservative. He has supported most tort reform and free trade measures and has advocated renewing the tax cuts passed since President Bush took office. He has spoken out against fiscal deficits and wasteful government spending and has been a leader in the House on issues of national defense. He was the first U.S. Congressman to visit Iraq after the outbreak of war in 2003 and has visited the country a total of 12 times, more than any other member of Congress. As of June 2006 he was planning a 13th visit the following August.[10]
In 2006 Shays broke with the Bush adminstration on another major issue, telling the Washington Post he did not support more lenient immigration laws favored by both Bush and Senate Democrats.
Shays's moderate Republican politics are quite similar to that of his predecessor, the late Stewart McKinney, based on such measures as party unity scores. While the 4th District has tended to support Democratic presidential candidates in recent elections, Representative Shays's views are not inconsistent with mainstream local opinion. Prior to the Iraq dominated 2004 election, Shays had won re-election by margins between 34,000 and 53,000 votes.[11] The 4th District has the highest number of registered Republicans of Connecticut's five districts and has not elected a Democrat to Congress since the 1966 election. Republicans have also traditionally done well electing legislators and local government officials in this district.
View on Tom DeLay
In April of 2005, he broke with most of his party over House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's alleged ethics violations. This made Shays one of the first Republicans to criticize DeLay publicly. Shays stated that he should resign, saying, "Tom's conduct is hurting the Republican Party, is hurting this Republican majority and it is hurting any Republican who is up for re-election."
While Shays has criticized DeLay for hurting the Republican party's electoral chances, he is very close to Speaker Dennis Hastert. In June of 2005 Dennis Hastert helped Shays raise $70,000 at a country club event.
Shays is a member of various Liberal/Moderate Republican groups, such as The Republican Main Street Partnership, Republicans for Choice, The Republican Majority For Choice, Republicans For Environmental Protection and Its My Party Too.