The Democrat Who Won Back George Santos' Seat Has Advice for His Party

[brooklynite]

Politico

When Tom Suozzi was in the middle of his political comeback, some strategists in his party encouraged him to stop the constant talk about immigration. He was a Democrat running in a swing district — why was he choosing to play on Republican turf?

To Suozzi, this made no sense. And he proved it by getting reelected to the Long Island seat he had once held, before it was briefly loaned out to George Santos.

...snip...

Suozzi not only won the race, but his campaign seemed to show Democrats a roadmap for taking back purple suburbs where immigration dominates as the issue and Joe Biden is an anchor.

Suozzi was given a hero’s welcome on the floor of the House from Democrats this week — and he even managed to attract some Republican applause with his speech celebrating compromise and warning both parties about the perils of being a slave to the base.

[Autumn]

1. a slave to the base?

[brooklynite]

3. From his House speech:

"Wake up. The people are sick and tired of the finger-pointing and the petty partisan bickering. They want us to work together."

"I know there are so many good people in this chamber, on both sides of the aisle. But people are worried about the cost of living. They're worried about the chaos at the border. They're worries about Israel, Gaza and Ukraine. They look to Congress and what do they see. The extremists get all the attention. We're letting ourselves be bullied by our base".

Video of speech (start at 06:30)

[Autumn]

4. We've seen how well working with republicans gets us.

"so many good people in this chamber, on both sides of the aisle." Has he met any of the house republicans? Which one does he think is a good people on the republican side of the aisle. ? The one he replaced? Who is this "our base" that is bullying "ourselves" or whoever? Who is this terrible bullying base?

Oh well it doesn't matter to me I'm not in his district .

[brooklynite]

7. To win back the House, we have to win Republican-held suburban districts...

...not safe Blue seats. Those districts have moderate Republicans (yes they still exist) and Independents. Will they be swayed by "I'm going to be tough on the Republicans" or "I'm going to reach across the aisle and work with Republicans to get things done for you"?

[Autumn]

10. He was talking about the republicans in the house.

"Wake up. The people are sick and tired of the finger-pointing and the petty partisan bickering. They want us to work together."

Who does he think is doing the bickering? Dems always reach across the aisle to work with republicans. He's an example that even surprised you

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100218733493#post6

The tax cuts passed the House of Representatives at the end of January as part of an agreement that pairs handouts for businesses with a moderate expansion of the child tax credit. The Senate could vote on the bill over the coming weeks, and the White House has indicated that Joe Biden would sign it into law.
.

The deal, led by Democratic senator Ron Wyden and Republican congressman Jason Smith – the chairs of Congress’s tax-writing committees – would roll back a series of tax measures that were designed to partially offset the cost of the 2017 Trump tax cuts.

Last year the American Investment Council (AIC), private equity’s main trade group, spent more than $3m lobbying the federal government, according to OpenSecrets – more than any single year since 2009. Including their subsidiaries, five of the country’s largest private equity funds – Blackstone Group, KKR & Company, Carlyle Group, Cerberus Capital Management and Apollo Global Management – together spent an additional $21m lobbying over the same period.

“Increasing the interest deductions, which private equity firms have been the worst abusers of, is just another example of how the Wyden-Smith tax deal hands out billions in tax credits to the biggest corporations while giving pennies to middle-class children and families,” the Democratic congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, one of two dozen House Democrats who voted against the bill, told the Guardian.


The tax cuts passed the House of Representatives at the end of January as part of an agreement that pairs handouts for businesses with a moderate expansion of the child tax credit. The Senate could vote on the bill over the coming weeks, and the White House has indicated that Joe Biden would sign it into law.
.

The deal, led by Democratic senator Ron Wyden and Republican congressman Jason Smith – the chairs of Congress’s tax-writing committees – would roll back a series of tax measures that were designed to partially offset the cost of the 2017 Trump tax cuts.

Last year the American Investment Council (AIC), private equity’s main trade group, spent more than $3m lobbying the federal government, according to OpenSecrets – more than any single year since 2009. Including their subsidiaries, five of the country’s largest private equity funds – Blackstone Group, KKR & Company, Carlyle Group, Cerberus Capital Management and Apollo Global Management – together spent an additional $21m lobbying over the same period.

“Increasing the interest deductions, which private equity firms have been the worst abusers of, is just another example of how the Wyden-Smith tax deal hands out billions in tax credits to the biggest corporations while giving pennies to middle-class children and families,” the Democratic congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, one of two dozen House Democrats who voted against the bill, told the Guardian.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/mar/01/corporate-tax-breaks-private-equity

[brooklynite]

16. Not exclusively...

I met with him a week before the election. I know what his point of view is.

[Autumn]

18. What you yourself quoted was him talking about the House.

[brooklynite]

19. ...which consists of both Democrats and Republicans.

[Sky Jewels]

20. If you think Republicans are interested in

working with Democrats, I have some gold sneakers to sell you.

[Autumn]

21. Republicans are more than happy to work with Democrats. As long

as republicans get everything they want and Dems give up most what they want.

[brooklynite]

23. Perhaps take it up with Congressman Suozzi...

I'm reporting what he said.

[Dorian Gray]

17. This is true and it's the practical course forward

what we're witnessing is the extreme polarization of politics by insisting on purity of discourse.

Ultimately, immigration reform is a real issue that we need to focus on.

[Autumn]

22. Ask yourself who is causing the extreme polarization of politics. Republicans get what they want whenever they have

the majority and republicans get most of what they want when they don't have the majority.

Where's the purity of discourse?

[Demsrule86]

24. Hey, he has a D next to his name...that was a tough seat and he is way better than any

Republican ever could be...first of all, it helps with the majority. And I expect him to vote with the majority. There may be votes where his vote doesn't matter and to keep the seat, he should be allowed to vote no...you can't do anything without a majority. And the ability to turn a negative into a positive is needed because we must increase and protect a majority.

[Autumn]

25. Manchin had that D. He helped give us Brett so basically he wasn't a slave to the base. nt

[Demsrule86]

26. You talking about Kavanaugh? We couldn't stop him. The GOP had the majority.

So Manchin and Sinema voted to shore up their seats. I think Sinema was always going to be a problem. She is not from WVA and could vote with us way more. She got primaried for this. I don't consider Manchin a problem. He supported us...not 100%. Consider we would have lost the ACA without his vote. But we are going to get a Republican in WVA for a long long time.

Have you looked at the map yet? The Senate will be a big problem. If we keep everyone but Manchin...we are 50-50. But Sinema could wreck Arizona. Where will our Senators come from...In 2008 we had a shortlived real Senate majority. We had conservadems...all sorts of Dems. And we could get stuff done...not everything but quite a bit.

The ACA is here because of that majority. It was voted on without a single GOP vote before we lost the majority. Kennedy got sick and we lost Massachusetts. We have to compete in other states or we are screwed. If someone who votes with us most of the time is elected, I can live with that. Of course, I hope new younger voters will pull the country left. But we have to survive until then. Our Republic has to survive. I think we live in dangerous times...like during the 30s when a coup was attempted against Roosevelt and of course during the Civil War.

Autumn, I hope you are well. I am doing better. Also, I am really hopeful about the election. I think Biden will beat Trump and we will gain seats. Roe Roe your vote!

[Autumn]

27. Manchin voted for him and as of today Manchin sure isn't a fan of any Democrats. EOM

[Demsrule86]

29. I like Manchin better than Dean Phillips ad Robert Kennedy Jr. Both who are attempting

to harm Biden. Kennedy hangs out with Bannon and takes money from the GOP. Manchin was asked to run No-Labels and refused. He hasn't endorsed Trump either. Manchin is not running because he can't win his state anymore...and I am damned unhappy about that in terms of having a Senate majority without which nothing gets done. And we get no judges. Kavanaugh has not been as universally bad as I expected...he isn't good either. But it is immaterial because we couldn't stop him. I am shocked that Manchin won as long as he did. It is all about the numbers now. I expect an all-out war/another attempted coup from Trump and the GOP when Trump loses. God help us. We need all the warm bodies we can get.

[brooklynite]

30. Voted for Schumer as Majority Leader

Voted to convict Trump For Jan 6 Impeachment.

Voted for Biden's Judicial nominations.

Voted for the Inflation Reduction Act.

Voted for the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

Shall I continue?

[Autumn]

32. Manchin voted to take away a woman right to abortion. Continue all you want. As a woman I do

not fucking forget what he did. Nor do I forgive. Manchin has declined to endorse President Biden and offers praise to Nikki Haley. YMOVFM.

[brooklynite]

35. I'm sure whomever replaces him will be much more representative of the WV voters.......

[Demsrule86]

37. I think saying nice things about Haley hurts Trump...Look Manchin isn't perfect and the

abortion vote was infuriating. However, I would still choose him over the GOP any day. He does vote with us fairly regularly as Brooklynite's post showed and he helps us keep a majority. I am very concerned about the Senate.

[Demsrule86]

36. We agree!

I think that is exactly right...also without Manchin, we would not have healthcare. Republicans planned to kill it. Thanks for the post. REC

[msongs]

2. it helps if you are a previous rep from your district who is a well known person nt

[Cha]

9. What are you saying? That Biden's & the Senate Bill

that Rep Suozzi talked about Didn't help?

[msongs]

14. Im saying he used to be congressperson from that district so he is well known which

helped him get elected (again)....compared to if the candidate was some unknown

[Cha]

15. I think All of it Helped. Of course Suozzi

Was a former congressman but that’s no guarantee.

[Demsrule86]

31. That was some years ago. The district took a hard right. In fact,

I would call it a GOP Machine. My brother lives there. It is sort of a miracle that we whupped their asses in the special...and no doubt the border and abortion helped Suozza. He coopted the border issue. This helps all candidates going forward including President Biden. Don't rain on the paradeDemocratic victories must always be celebrated...it was hard fought. Souzza ran a very intelligent campaign.

[The Grand Illuminist]

5. He is what you call....

A blue dog??? Am I right?

[Demsrule86]

39. I would remind all that the last time we won a supermajority it included blue-dogs in O8.

[JI7]

6. Who told him not to talk about immigration ?

and why ?

[Demsrule86]

33. From what I heard from my brother his advisors didn't want him to use the border.

Some who donated felt the same. But Souzza felt it was his only path to victory...and he won. We are going to need to run blue dogs in red/purple states until our young voters tilt the country left. I think it will happen. But we got to survive until then.

[All Mixed Up]

8. The problem is that suburban New York isn't the same as, say, suburban Phoenix or Atlanta or Philly.

He represents a district that is 70% white and has a disproportionately large Asian population (15%).

There's a reason Biden did so well in this district in 2020 (even when you adjust for its new boundaries).

But look at Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district, which is largely suburban Philadelphia.

It's 75% white. The second largest non-white demographic is Hispanics at 6%.

And on the flip side, suburban Atlanta have districts that are majority minority and have completely different blueprints to victory than what he saw.

With that said, I agree that Democrats need to go on the offensive with immigration. And I suspect they will (and have).

[Autumn]

11. Yeah, just like Virginia is Manchin and Sinema is Arizona.

[All Mixed Up]

13. Well West Virginia. Virginia is Mark Warner and Tim Kaine.

[Demsrule86]

34. Excuse me? This is a Republican district and akin to winning in the Phoenix and/ or Atlanta suburbs for us.

[All Mixed Up]

41. Excuse you what?

It's a Republican District based on what? Just because the last rep was a Republican? Okay. By that logic, it's a Democratic district now.

It's not a Republican district. It's a swing district. Cook puts it at D+2. In the past ten years, Democrats have held this seat for all of two years (Santos, and even that wasn’t a full two years lol).

Biden won this district by ten points.

The last Republican to win at the presidential level was Bush in 2004.

Definitely not a Republican district. It's the definition of a swing.

[Emile]

12. Good luck getting Republicans to work across the aisle, 😂.

[SarahD]

28. Bill Clinton. How quickly we forget.

President Clinton had great success stealing Republican issues and inserting Democratic values to make them acceptable.

[comradebillyboy]

40. Bill Clinton was a great president and a masterful politician.

He regularly bent Newt Gingrich to his will.

[angrychair]

38. Unequivocal "HELL NO"

There are no "good" Republicans anymore.
This is known as "freshman optimism" it will wear off once reality sinks in. No one is really listening to a green representative that has spent exactly one day in the House and likely doesn't even know where the bathroom is so how does he know if there are "good Republicans" in the House?
All you need to do is look at all the unanimous Republican votes on some of the most heinous legislation to ever pass through the House.