PA GOP: NY Times Reports on Anger Facing Murphy From Democrat Constituents
Reporter Travels with Rep. Murphy and Notes Anger, Disillusionment, and Resentment of Policies from the Demographic He Needs the MostHARRISBURG – Republican Party of Pennsylvania Chairman Rob Gleason released the following statement regarding last weekend’s New York Times report on voter dissatisfaction with Congressman Patrick Murphy’s record in Washington:
“Perhaps the most shocking element of this story is how disconnected Murphy and other Democrats around the country have become with their own constituents,” Gleason said. “In Washington, D.C., Patrick Murphy is a rubberstamp for Nancy Pelosi’s liberal agenda, while at home he tries to affix a ‘blue dog’ label to his campaign that just won’t stick. For Murphy, it’s now time to pay the piper… and as the latest polls show, he’s getting what he deserves.”
The New York Times devoted a full section of its newspaper on Saturday to a day-in-the-life expose on Congressman Patrick Murphy’s desperate attempt to reconnect with the voters that put him in office in 2006. The article – complete with slide-show photos, county statistics, and quotes from dozens of constituents – paints a somber picture of a district where hope is lost and jobs are gone. Michael Sokolove, the reporter following Murphy from each slammed door to the next, is a native of Levittown and noted the growing disconnect between the Congressman and his constituents, even in the Democrat-heavy corridors:
The reception he got was eye-opening. The people Mr. Murphy encountered were angry, and none of them, as far as I could tell, were associated with the Tea Party movement. The very first voter he talked to that evening was a man in his mid-70s who said he had paid more than he expected for a recent hospital stay because of the health insurance reforms passed by Congress. Mr. Murphy told him he did not think that could possibly be the case and urged him to visit his district office so his staff could review the medical bills.
“Sir, I’m doing my best. I really want to help you,” he said. It got him nowhere. “I think you’re all a bunch of sewer rats in Washington,” the man told him.