New Jersey Congressman Jeff Van Drew (Fake-D), is contemplating switching parties after meeting with Trump. Per WAPO, “Officials said Saturday that Rep. Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey, a vocally anti-impeachment Democrat, will join the Republican Party in the coming days — delivering a political jolt to Democrats ahead of next week’s expected vote to impeach the president. “
Five of his senior aides bailed on him Sunday, stating that “Van Drew’s decision to become a Republican ‘does not align with the values we brought to this job.'”
https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/15/jeff-van-drew-staff-exodus-085945
Don’t let the door hit you where the good lord split you.
NJ-2 is the district just south of mine. We were actually in NJ-2 until we moved to NJ-1, where we are represented by the pawn brother of the son of South Jersey Democratic politics. For almost 20 years, NJ-2 was reliably red under Frank LoBiondo. And while most of New Jersey is bluer than new jeans, most of NJ-2 skews right. Farms and rodeos country. If you hear a traditional Southern accent from a native New Jerseyan, you can bet Salem or Cumberland County and be right every time. People there take a perverse pleasure in noting that geographically, they are below the Mason-Dixon Line, Rebel battle flags and all. And this includes the parts of Cape May County that aren’t the wealthy resort towns on the barrier islands. This is less than shocking if you’re from here.
At least he helped flip his district, I guess?
But, realistically, one has to wonder if his motivation was simply to get elected as a Democrat only to screw, them over. What other reason could there possibly be?
He couldn’t win the Republican primary.
The really strange thing about this is he’s actually got a pretty good 538 Trump +/-. Basically the only things hes actually voted with Trump on are impeachment related.
So I wonder what dirty little secret he’s hiding.
.
I doubt this comment will post, but if it does…
Jeff Van Drew has always been a Republican at heart. A quick Wiki (quickie? quiki?):
Political positions
In his run for state senate in 2007, Van Drew remarked, “I’m proud to be a Democrat because to me it always represented working people, middle class people and issues of compassion.” Van Drew represented Republican-leaning Cape May County in the assembly, and accordingly took politically moderate positions.[29]
During his congressional primary campaign, Van Drew had a 100% rating from the National Rifle Association (NRA).[30] In 2007 and 2008, Van Drew received $2,700 from the National Shooting Sports Foundation Inc., and in 2008, Van Drew received $1,000 from the NRA.[31] In 2010, Van Drew sponsored legislation that would allow residents to carry a handgun after going through a background check, taking a firearms training course, passing a test, and paying a $500 fee.[32] In 2013, Van Drew voted as the only Democrat against a series of 10 gun control bills following the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.[33] Van Drew also voiced support for expanded background checks and the regulation for silencers. Despite his pro-gun stance, the gun-control group Moms Demand Action designated Van Drew a “Gun Sense Candidate”.[31]
In 2012 as state senator, Van Drew voted against a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in New Jersey, one of two Democrats in opposition.[34] In 2013 during his reelection campaign, the non-profit New Jersey Family First sent out flyers stating that Van Drew “supports traditional marriage and letting the people vote on the definition of marriage,” while his Republican opponent Susan Adelizzi Schmidt was in favor of same-sex marriage.[35]
Also in 2012, Van Drew voted against raising the state minimum wage above the federal minimum wage of $7.25, the lone Democrat to dissent.[36] On his campaign website, Van Drew highlighted his support for fully funding the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and protecting net neutrality.[37] Van Drew also supported a state constitutional amendment requiring parental approval for abortions, which he later withdrew. As state senator, he also withdrew sponsorship of a bill to reinstate the death penalty in the state, which he previously favored.[37][38]
One of the stupider things about this is that he is switching parties because he knows he’ll lose a primary from the left. Meaning, he knows his constituents want impeachment. Why that’s being branded as Democrats’ failure is beyond me.
But they don’t. Of all the South Jersey districts, NJ-2 leans most to the right. Between the Philadelphia suburbs and the wealthy resort towns, there is a lot of rural nothingness across a lot of South Jersey. There is a vocal minority of Dems there, but that district sent a Republican to Washington for a couple of decades. I consider myself a left-of-center moderate Democrat, and he was generally right of me. It was more surprising that this didn’t happen sooner.
Sorry, I should have been clearer – by “his constituents” I meant the people who voted for him, not everyone in his district. So like he could avoid the primary by not voting for impeachment. His voting record is not conservative so I don’t really understand why he thinks this shit will work on anyone. I assume the state or national Republican party has given him a promise they’ll help him out.