Blue Dog Boyd getting a real primary challenge

[Lunar]

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/palmbeach/floridapolitics/entries/2009/02/05/lawson_to_challenge_boyd_for_c.html


State Senate Democratic Leader Al Lawson will challenge incumbent U.S. Rep. Allen Boyd in 2010, sources close to Lawson confirmed this morning.

Boyd, elected to Congress twelve years ago, is a leader of the “Blue Dog Coalition,” a group of conservative Democrats. The Panhandle farmer also served in the state House.

Lawson is a Tallahassee insurance agent who is approaching three decades as a state lawmaker. He was first elected to the Florida House in 1982. He will be term-limited out of office in 2010.


And as Politico articulates:

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[Lunar]

I don't think the Dems should support primarying Boyd, it's an R+2 district and a fierce primary will alienate the moderate Democrats in the district.

Also, Democrats have to avoid the trap of primarying moderates - it makes the national party look good if it practices an open tent policy with its politicians (unless they're an extreme mismatch like Lieberman became in Connecitcut).

[Lunar]

Boyd, today, switched his vote on the stimulus to Aye

Dave

Lawson isn't going after him on the stimulus issue but rather Boyd's vote for the financial bailout earlier

[Lunar]

Lieberman also had the backing of the national party in the primaries

I basically agree with you though.  Especially in an off-year primary.

Lawson just attempting one possible career path.  Boyd has already gotten the message and voted for the 2nd iteration of the stim package

[Lunar]

One thing that I've noticed is that I read up and found the DKos's main page entry on Lawson doing this and they reacted negatively to it.  Quite the contrast I'm sure if you were to compare that to the GOP netroots

[Lunar]

Zell Miller wasn't exactly getting primaried either back in the day eh?  It has to do with pragmatism.  The only person they want to punish is Cooper over in TN who railed against the president on the bill, acting all blue dog hardcore when his district is Democratic.  Cooper changed his vote the second time around, much like Boyd did.