Is Kennedy Running on Republican Themes?(posted December 1, 2001)
When you think of a Kennedy, you imagine issues such as health care, poverty, and education, and appeals to liberal political values. However, a new direct mail piece sent out by Congressman Patrick Kennedy entitled "America's Response To Terrorism" presents tantalizing hints about a bold strategy on the part of the representative. Rather than emphasizing traditional Kennedy liberalism, the four-page, color brochure shows pictures of Kennedy with Republicans Rudolph Giuliani, the mayor of New York City, and George Pataki, the governor of New York, and approvingly cites President Bush's admonition about the need to rebuild our country's infrastructure and morale.
Beyond its favorable citing of three prominent Republicans, the flyer emphasizes several issues commonly associated with tough-minded conservatives, such as homeland defense and the war on terrorism abroad. Kennedy notes that he has "supported our armed services by ... voting for the resolution authorizing the President to use force to respond to the September 11 attacks." He praises the bipartisanship of the contemporary Congress, noting that "We are working in Congress, in a bipartisan fashion, with the President to ensure swift action in response to the country's immediate needs."
The brochure also highlights Kennedy's success at delivering $90 million to Rhode Island due to the congressman's service on the House Appropriations Committee. Among the funding touted are $27 million for Raytheon, $15.29 million for an officers school instruction building at Newport Naval Base, $4.235 million for Cumberland, Warren, and Narragansett Bay Commission water and sewer upgrades, $4.5 million to RIPTA, $4 million to Brown University for a life sciences building, $3.3 million for the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor and Bikeway, and $3 million for Rhode Island Hospital.
