Skelton Votes One Way, Talks Another

Ike Skelton's vote for cap and tax is undoubtedly going to dog his campaign in his upcoming re-election effort. In the current Congress he has voted with Nancy Pelosi 95% of the time, well above the average Democrat, placing him solidly in Pelosi's camp. So much for Ike Skelton the moderate. 

As Skelton tries to navigate finding a way to get re-elected, he has resorted to adopting a Liberal identity crisis: voting like a die-hard Liberal, and talking like a moderate. We don't think his district will fall for it.

The most recent contradiction comes from his recent letter to the EPA, criticizing it for perceiving a 'Congressional intent' to regulate greenhouse gases Skelton argues that it is impossible for the EPA to read Congress' intent, except that it is: Ike Skelton voted for cap and tax.

If a Congressman's votes don't demonstrate his intent, what does?

Democratic consultant Peter Fenn said that Ike Skelton "is looking over his shoulder," which is perhaps a euphemism for Jonathon Prouty's evaluation, that Skelton faces "a growing realization that [he] is way too liberal for the district."

It doesn't matter how many angry letters you write. If you vote the wrong way, you're still the wrong representative for you district.

Comments

[The Independent Rage]

As I discussed on my blog today, there really is no such thing as a truly "moderate" dem or repub, since the extremes that control the two parties will always exert intense pressure to otherwise "moderate" politicians to move towards the far right and far left on many issues. Skelton's no different. Regardless, he's a career political fatcat who ought to be kicked to the curb in November on that basis alone. (I'm a term limits guy, in case you couldn't tell. ;)