When it comes to Blue Dog Democratic Congressmen in red districts distancing themselves from President Obama, it doesn’t get any better than this: Rep. Gene Taylor (D-MS) says he voted for John McCain in 2008, the Biloxi Sun Herald reports:
Taylor said he voted for Republican John McCain for president and is annoyed a Palazzo ad blasts the Mississippi congressman for voting with Pelosi 82 percent of the time. He likes to emphasize the times he’s broken with the leadership on major votes, such as health care and cap-and-trade. Taylor is often viewed as a potential party-switcher; asked about switching to the GOP, he said, “Both parties are screwed up. They’re screwed up in different ways.”
Taylor’s district voted 67%-32% for John McCain in 2008, and previously it was 68%-31% for George W. Bush in 2004. A recent internal poll released by Republican candidate Steven Palazzo gave the challenger a lead of 43%-41%.
Taylor has also not committed to voting for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker — indeed, he previously cast protest votes in 2003 and 2005 for Rep. Jack Murtha (D-PA), when Democrats were in the minority, but ultimately voted for Pelosi in 2007 and 2009, when Democrats had won the majority.
(Via The Hill)
Eric Kleefeld
Eric Kleefeld joined TPM as an intern for the final months of the 2006 midterm elections, and then kept showing up for work. His other interests include guitars, old comic books and the politics of various English-speaking countries.
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