Ope, Sorry: Midwestern House Dems Push for Leaders between the Coasts

December 08, 2022

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by Sarah Ferris (Politico) Michigan Rep. Debbie Dingell and her allies are done being polite about Democrats' lack of leadership in the Heartland. -- A vocal group of Midwestern Democrats is telling it straight: Their party has a flyover country problem. And Democrats are going to have to do a lot more than move up Michigan in their presidential primary calendar to solve it.

Rep. Debbie Dingell summed up the warning while recently pitching herself for a caucus leadership position. The Michigander presented fellow House Democrats with a map showing the home states of their top leaders — a constellation of dots up and down the nation’s two coasts, with virtually nothing in between.

The Ohio Democrat (Rep. Marcy Kaptur) cited a recent tiff she had with fellow Democrats on the caucus’ special committee on economic fairness. Kaptur said she had to “fight and fight and fight” to get her region’s economic plight represented in the group’s final report this week. But in the panel’s 30-minute documentary, she said she couldn’t get the Midwest mentioned at all.

“I’m angry about that. Ask Jim Himes, the chairman of the committee from Greenwich, Connecticut,” Kaptur said. She said when she described the struggles of working class people in Lorain, Ohio, or Flint, Michigan, or Kenosha, Wis., “The attitude of some on the committee was, ‘Oh well, let them move.’”

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“We end up with policy decisions that don’t reflect the Midwest. And so we end up losing elections very badly in the Midwest,” Rep. Bill Foster (D-Ill.) said ....

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“Having a seat at the leadership table really, really matters,” Bustos (Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.)) said. “I think it’s harmful overall to Congress and to our nation if we don’t have a loud enough voice representing rural America and the Midwest.” READ MORE