Tim Mahoney on Principles & Values Democrat

Elected as ‘scandal baby’ in 2006, lost GOP district in 2008

But can they stay there? This year Republicans have pegged as top targets two “scandal babies” who defeated the most prominently shamed Republicans of 2006. Tim Mahoney, Representative from Florida’s 16th Congressional District, holds the seat once occupied by Mark Foley, who resigned after revelations about his sexually explicit e-mails to House pages became public. Nick Lampson of Texas’ 22nd District succeeded Tom DeLay, the Republican majority leader brought low by his connections to shady lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Mahoney and Lampson “have been labeled kind of a pair of accidental Congressmen,” says one analyst.

Member of the "Blue Dog" Coalition of conservative Democrats.

The 32 conservative and moderate Democrats in the Blue Dog Coalition hail from every region of the country, although the group acknowledges some southern ancestry which accounts for the group’s nickname. Taken from the South’s longtime description of a party loyalist as one who would vote for a yellow dog if it were on the ballot as a Democrat, the “Blue Dog” moniker was taken by members of The Coalition because their moderate-to-conservative-views had been “choked blue” by their party in the years leading up to the 1994 election.

The Coalition was formed in the 104th Congress as a common sense, bridge-building voice. Since then, the Blue Dogs have successfully injected a moderate viewpoint into the Democratic Caucus. The continuing political success of “Blue Pups” in the 1998 and 2000 elections points to the public’s approval of the centrist, fiscally responsible message represented by The Coalition.

The Coalition has been particularly active on fiscal issues, relentlessly pursuing a balanced budget and then protecting that achievement from politically popular “raids” on the budget.

The Coalition’s proposals on welfare reforms served as middle-ground markers which laid the foundation for the bipartisanship necessary to bring about fundamental reforms, and helped set into law policies reflecting the “common sense, conservative compassion” so often attached to the group’s efforts.

In the 107th Congress, the Coalition intends to continue to make a difference in Congress by forging middle-ground, bipartisan answers to the current challenges facing the Country. A top priority will be to finish the job of truly balancing the budget without counting the Social Security trust funds. Other early efforts will include campaign finance reform, strengthening Social Security, and health care reform. The group also expects to be involved in education, regulatory reform, taxes, defense and veterans affairs.