By Tom Waring
Wire Staff Writer
The National Republican Congressional Committee is gloating at last week’s analysis by Roll Call of the state of the race in the 8th Congressional District.
Nathan L. Gonzales, in an online blog, wrote that, “GOP Rep. Michael G. Fitzpatrick is running strong in Pennsylvania’s 8th District, and his race with Democrat Kevin Strouse should barely be considered competitive at this point.”
The Cook Political Report and Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball both recently moved their outlook on the race to “Likely Republican.”
Ian Prior, an NRCC spokesman, suggested that Democrat Kevin Strouse is struggling because of fundraising or his narrow primary victory over Shaughnessy Naughton.
“Strouse’s support for taxpayer-funded sex-change operations for children and taxpayer-funded political campaigns make him far too liberal for Bucks County, and it looks more and more like Strouse is headed for an embarrassing defeat this November,” Prior said.
Prior is referring to a March questionnaire that Strouse filled out for the Liberty City Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Democratic Club. In response to a question, Strouse indicated support for funding so-called “sex reassignment surgery” under the state Children’s Health Insurance Program.
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Meanwhile, the Strouse campaigned unveiled a new website, www.fitzsfibs.com
On the website, Strouse tries to contrast himself with Fitzpatrick by saying he’ll fight to rebuild the middle class while the incumbent will support subsidies for the oil industry, accept their campaign donations and not call for a state extraction tax on drilling companies that do work in Pennsylvania.
The site references comments Fitzpatrick made in a 2012 debate and votes he took in 2011, ’12 and ’13. It portrays Fitzpatrick as an entrenched Washington politician who says one thing in the district and does the opposite in D.C.
“I think that we should end these subsidies so that we can put middle-class families first by investing in education, providing tax cuts for small businesses and balancing the budget in a responsible way,” Strouse said.
Strouse is a former Army Ranger, CIA counterterrorism analyst and veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He lives in Middletown with his wife and two young children. He is program director of Teach2Serve, a nonprofit that teaches social entrepreneurship to local high school students.
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Fitzpatrick last week spoke about better jobs and more opportunity for Bucks and Montgomery county families while addressing the Upper Perkiomen Valley Chamber of Commerce.
The congressman was the lead speaker at the chamber’s Legislative Affairs Council breakfast held at the Globe Inn in East Greenville.
In his remarks, Fitzpatrick highlighted his support for the new Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act that reforms federal job training programs as well as advances American-made standards for manufacturers and consumers.
“By incentivizing manufacturers to meet certain ‘Made in America’ benchmarks for domestic production and providing consumers with reliable and easy-to-understand information, the Made in America Act can meet two valuable goals: reshoring American businesses and jobs by promoting American-made goods,” he said. “Ideas like these embody the ‘radical middle’ that I represent as your voice in Washington — a space where plans to support and advance the American economy and American families can thrive.”
State Sen. Bob Mensch and state Rep. Justin Simmons also addressed the audience.
Fitzpatrick is serving his third term in the House of Representatives. The 8th Congressional District includes all of Bucks County and a portion of Montgomery County.
