Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler of Waynesville gets the attention of the New York Times today. From the story:
Since surviving that election, Mr. Shuler has emerged as one of most prominent voices in the debate about the Democratic Party’s immediate future. He was among the first to call for Ms. Pelosi to step down from her leadership role in the new Congress and said he would run for minority leader himself if no alternative emerged (though he admitted that he would be an underdog).
The Democrats’ achievements in the last Congress, Mr. Shuler said, are unpopular with the public because the party’s leadership has been too reflexively partisan. He says a more moderate approach is needed.
“It’s my guys that worked probably harder than any group in Washington, did all the right things, voted the right way and still got beat for the simple fact that you’ve got the far edges running the Congress,” Mr. Shuler said.
His guys are the members of the Blue Dog coalition, a group of conservative Democrats who came together after the Republican sweep of 1994, and, boy, did they ever have a bad Election Day this year. Twenty-four of the bloc’s 58 members were defeated, including two of its four leaders (Mr. Shuler is the coalition’s whip). Four other Blue Dogs are retiring this year.
Click over to read the full spread, which talks in detail about how Election Day 2010 played out in Western North Carolina and North Carolina in general.
Shuler does the full media blitz this weekend. Today it was the New York Times. Sunday, it will be CNN’s State of the Union. Monday, it’s MSNBC’s Morning Joe.
