“Born and bred in Bucks County, Scott Wallace embodies the values of this community and has the skills and experience to get things done. As an advocate for veterans and as president of a global charity, Scott has spent his life making a difference in peoples’ lives. These results add to Scott’s impressive momentum and put him in strong position to win in November.” –DCCC Chairman Ben Ray Luján
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To: Interested Parties
From: Evan Lukaske, DCCC regional press secretary
Date: May 15, 2018
Re: The Case Against Brian Fitzpatrick
Tonight’s primary results in Pennsylvania’s 1st Congressional District put Democrats in an excellent position to flip this Philadelphia-area seat. The general election pits Bucks County native and charitable foundation President Scott Wallace against freshman Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick. Wallace has a strong record of service, promoting economic development, and fighting for veterans, and Fitzpatrick has spent his brief time in Congress representing his big donors and special interests, while leaving his constituents by the wayside. Conversely, Scott Wallace has refused to take any money from Corporate PAC’s or lobbyists.
Fitzpatrick must also run in the new, fairer district, redrawn under court order because of an unconstitutional gerrymander. In the old district, President Trump and Secretary Clinton fought to a virtual tie, but under the new map, Clinton would have carried the district by two points. With grassroots energy, unprecedented Democratic strength in Bucks County, and a stark contrast between Wallace and Fitzpatrick, Democrats are well positioned to win this seat this November.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
HEADLINE: “Democrats look to oust Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick in blue wave” [Bucks County Courier Times, 4/14/18]
“In Bucks County [Democrats] captured four of five row offices, winning those positions for the first time in decades. Democrats now hope to translate that momentum into congressional races.” [Philadelphia Inquirer, 11/9/17]
“This suburban Philadelphia district was a takeover target under the old map and got a little better for Democrats under the new lines, shifting from a narrow Trump district to a narrow Clinton district.” [Roll Call, 2/21/18]
“The Fitzpatricks represent the tired, aging wing of the party, that’s lost three row offices in the last election, and could lose the Harrisburg delegation to Dems.” [Bucks Intelligencer, Mullane column, 5/3/18]
HEADLINE: “Protesters chastise Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick’s vote for GOP tax bill” [Bucks Intelligencer, 11/27/17]
BRIAN FITZPATRICK: SPECIAL INTEREST ERRAND BOY
Tax Scammer
Fitzpatrick’s vote for the GOP Tax Scam, a massive giveaway to big corporations and the rich, will be an anchor on his candidacy. Since the Tax Scam’s debut and subsequent passage, it remains a deeply unpopular piece of legislation. Last month, a WSJ/NBC News poll found the tax plan underwater—ominously, just more than half of Republicans thought the plan was a good idea.
On the trail, Fitzpatrick will have to explain to voters why 83% of the tax cuts go to the wealthiest one percent, why big corporations deserve larger tax cuts than middle-class families, why companies that have announced nearly $400 billion in stock buybacks are simultaneously laying off workers, and why he voted to blow a $1.9 trillion hole in the deficit. Speaker Ryan may be retiring, but not before making a clear, problematic declaration that Republicans like Fitzpatrick will have to address: the Republican scheme to use the deficit hole to slash Medicare and Social Security.
Significantly, the vote destroys Fitzpatrick’s record on health care. The bill gutted the Affordable Care Act and the nonpartisan CBO found that it will increase health care premiums in a state that just experienced a 30% spike last year.
Gutted Privacy Protections
The Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal has shone a bright light on privacy issues and Congress’ role in protecting private data. Unsurprisingly, Fitzpatrick would rather leave his record in the dark. Fitzpatrick, who has taken thousands of dollars from the telecommunications industry, voted last year to roll back critical privacy protections and to allow Internet Service Providers to sell their constituents’ browsing data without their consent. Fitzpatrick has taken $32,600 from telecom companies, so at least his constituents know the price at which he’ll sell them out.
Anti-Women’s Health Care
In his short time in Congress, Fitzpatrick has managed to cobble together a shockingly anti-women record. Just months into the job, Fitzpatrick voted to repeal a federal regulation that banned discrimination against family planning providers, opening the door to allowing individual states to deny funding for Planned Parenthood and similar operators that provide health care and family planning services to women. Next, Fitzpatrick voted for a 20-week abortion ban, unconstitutional legislation opposed by health care advocates. Notably, Fitzpatrick’s neighboring Republican colleague, moderate Congressman Charlie Dent, voted against the right-wing legislation.
THE PATH TO VICTORY
Pennsylvania’s 1st Congressional District is a highly educated, suburban district, one of only twenty-five districts that voted for Secretary Clinton and a Republican member of Congress. The 63% suburban district is 38% more affluent than the state average and the number of constituents with college degrees is 33% higher than the state average.
The district underwent a slight shift under the new fairer congressional map. The new district substitutes a swath of Republican leaning northern Montgomery County for a more Democratic leaning piece of central Montgomery. As a result, while President Trump and Secretary Clinton essentially tied under the old map, under the new map, Clinton won the district by 2 points. Barack Obama carried the district in both 2012 and 2008, and Senator Bob Casey, who heads the 2018 ticket, carried the district six year ago.
Buck County native and charitable fund President Scott Wallace puts Democrats in an excellent position to flip this seat. With his background fighting for veterans and his work at the Wallace Global Fund promoting economic development, Wallace has a profile that can cut across party lines. With significant personal assets, Wallace has pledged not to accept any PAC money, an excellent contrast with the special interest-backed Fitzpatrick.
The unprecedented Democratic energy has already made its mark on Bucks County. In the 2017 county elections, Democrats won four out of the five countywide offices, making it “the first time in more than 30 years that a Democrat held a single county office other than county commissioner, let alone four.” Further revealing the harsh environment for Republicans in this district, three Republicans state representatives and two Republican state senators—all of whom held seats that overlapped with PA-01—have chosen to retire rather than seek reelection.
Fitzpatrick has fared poorly in public polling. A December 2017 poll from Public Policy Polling found Fitzpatrick trailing a generic Democrat 41% to 47% and support for the Republican Tax Scam underwater at 31% support compared to 56% oppose. Given that the poll used the old, more Republican district, under the current map these numbers would likely be even worse for Fitzpatrick.