2016 Postmortem

babylonsister

(171,066 posts) Wed May 30, 2012, 07:49 AM May 2012

Artur Davis switches from Democratic to Republican party

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/post/artur-davis-switches-from-democratic-to-republican-party/2012/05/29/gJQAbB25zU_blog.html

Artur Davis switches from Democratic to Republican party
Posted by Rachel Weiner at 08:36 PM ET, 05/29/2012

It’s official: Former Democratic Alabama House member and gubernatorial candidate Artur Davis is becoming a Republican and laying the groundwork for a potential political future in Virginia.

“If I were to run, it would be as a Republican,” he wrote on his Web site. “And I am in the process of changing my voter registration from Alabama to Virginia, a development which likely does represent a closing of one chapter and perhaps the opening of another.”

Davis added that he has been approached about running for a House seat in Northern Virginia in 2014 or 2016 or the Virginia state legislature in 2015. As The Fix reported earlier this month, he could run against Rep. Gerry Connolly (D).

“I welcome this development,” Connolly said of the possibility on MSNBC last Friday. “The fact that they feel they need to recruit a former Democrat from Alabama who does not yet live in our district is a very welcome development, and I look forward to debating him.”

Since losing the 2010 gubernatorial primary in Alabama by a wide margin, the moderate Davis has become a critic of his own party and broken with Democrats on a number of high-profile issues, including voter ID laws.

The Republican Party, Davis said in his statement, “is fighting the drift in this country in a way that comes closest to my way of thinking: wearing a Democratic label no longer matches what I know about my country and its possibilities.” The Alabama Democratic Party in particular, he says, “has weakened and lost faith with more and more Alabamians every year.”

15 replies

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Highlight:

Artur Davis switches from Democratic to Republican party (Original Post) babylonsister May 2012 OP

Good riddance. shcrane71 May 2012 #1

WTF indeed Inuca May 2012 #2

I thought so too.. butterfly77 May 2012 #14

"Former Democratic Alabama House member" ... zbdent May 2012 #3

You don't know what you are talking about. former9thward May 2012 #11

Apparentlly, what he knows about his country and its Fawke Em May 2012 #4

Who? WI_DEM May 2012 #5

It's not a winnable district for the GOP. Chan790 May 2012 #6

Post removed Post removed May 2012 #7

Uh-huh!!! Liberal_Stalwart71 May 2012 #9

Obama diid not think so. former9thward May 2012 #12

He just spit on a lot of people who supported him Stuckinthebush May 2012 #8

Who didn't see that coming? GoCubsGo May 2012 #10

Post removed Post removed May 2012 #13

From wiki LiberalFighter May 2012 #15

shcrane71

(1,721 posts)

1. Good riddance.

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Wed May 30, 2012, 07:54 AM

May 2012

Inuca

(8,945 posts)

2. WTF indeed

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Wed May 30, 2012, 08:17 AM

May 2012

I remember him from some hearings some years back, he seemed really smart and I liked him.

butterfly77

(17,609 posts)

14. I thought so too..

Reply to Inuca (Reply #2)

Wed May 30, 2012, 09:14 PM

May 2012

a few years ago and their are many more fake Dems just like him in the party blocking everything the President has tried to do,,

zbdent

(35,392 posts)

3. "Former Democratic Alabama House member" ...

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Wed May 30, 2012, 08:28 AM

May 2012

well, how big D "Democratic" can you be in Alabama to win a seat in the Alabama House???????

Probably no great loss to the Democratic party.

former9thward

(32,009 posts)

11. You don't know what you are talking about.

Reply to zbdent (Reply #3)

Wed May 30, 2012, 03:45 PM

May 2012

He was my Congressman when I lived in Birmingham and the District has a plus 18 Democratic registration. In 2007 he was the first congressman outside of Illinois to endorse Obama for president. He gave a seconding speech for Obama at the convention in 2008. In the 2008 election the district gave Obama 73% of the vote.

Fawke Em

(11,366 posts)

4. Apparentlly, what he knows about his country and its

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Wed May 30, 2012, 08:53 AM

May 2012

possibilities is that it is now favoring the current move toward fascism, which Republicans favor.

It certainly no longer mirrors true "small d" democracy that most true Democrats favor.

In other words, he wants to use his name to cash in.

WI_DEM

(33,497 posts)

5. Who?

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Wed May 30, 2012, 09:08 AM

May 2012

Oh well, good riddence.

Chan790

(20,176 posts)

6. It's not a winnable district for the GOP.

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Wed May 30, 2012, 09:13 AM

May 2012

They need a sucker to run, they found a sucker to run. It's like kismet or something.

Response to babylonsister (Original post)

Post removed

Liberal_Stalwart71

(20,450 posts)

9. Uh-huh!!!

Reply to Post removed (Reply #7)

Wed May 30, 2012, 03:18 PM

May 2012

former9thward

(32,009 posts)

12. Obama diid not think so.

Reply to Post removed (Reply #7)

Wed May 30, 2012, 03:47 PM

May 2012

Davis was the first congressman outside of Illinois to endorse Obama for president in 2007. He gave the seconding speech for Obama at the 2008 convention. He was my congressman when I lived in Birmingham and you have no idea what you are talking about.

Stuckinthebush

(10,845 posts)

8. He just spit on a lot of people who supported him

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Wed May 30, 2012, 09:46 AM

May 2012

He is nothing more than a self absorbed politician.

GoCubsGo

(32,084 posts)

10. Who didn't see that coming?

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Wed May 30, 2012, 03:37 PM

May 2012

Good bye and good riddance.

Response to babylonsister (Original post)

Post removed

LiberalFighter

(50,929 posts)

15. From wiki

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Wed May 30, 2012, 09:21 PM

May 2012

Davis was the first member of the Congressional Black Caucus to demand that former House Ways and Means chair Charlie Rangel surrender his gavel in the wake of ongoing ethics issues.

Davis twice voted against Democratic-supported health care reform legislation, first in November 2009, and again in March 2010 when the legislation passed and was signed into law by President Obama. He was the only member of the Congressional Black Caucus to vote against the legislation in March 2010; he was also the member from the most-heavily Democratically-leaning district to vote against the legislation.

Despite his early endorsement of Obama it doesn't look like he was ever a believer in Democratic beliefs.

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