Chris Shays says GOP Needs to Get More Inclusive



Rep. Chris Shays said he'd like to be involved in helping rebuild the Republican Party after its disasterous election -- which included his loss to Congressman-elect Jim Himes -- though Shays isn't sure how he'd go about it. First, he believes the party "needs to allow members the right to represent their districts." If, as in his 4th District, many of the constituents have a more liberal social view, the representative should be permitted to reflect it, rather than be held to the tight constraints of the party platform. Congressman Chris Shays of Connecticut served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Fiji in the 1960's.

Chris Shays says GOP Needs to Get More Inclusive

Shays: GOP Needs to Get More Inclusive

ByJesse A. Hamilton

on December 12, 2008 5:07 PM |

Rep. Chris Shays said he'd like to be involved in helping rebuild the Republican Party after its disasterous election -- which included his loss to Congressman-elect Jim Himes -- though Shays isn't sure how he'd go about it.

First, he believes the party "needs to allow members the right to represent their districts." If, as in his 4th District, many of the constituents have a more liberal social view, the representative should be permitted to reflect it, rather than be held to the tight constraints of the party platform.

He thinks single subsets of the party, such as the Christian conservatives, shouldn't carry so much authority. "No one group should dictate policy."

Shays is concerned that the successful Contract With America of the 1994 Republican push has been forgotten. He also thinks the campaigns themselves can be run positively, rather than resorting to negative atacks.

But Shays in now finishing his 21-year stint in Congress, so he's unsure what voice he will have in the future. "I just have to get used to the fact that I will be speaking as a former member, not as a member."

Links to Related Topics (Tags):

Headlines: December, 2008; RPCV Chris Shays (Fiji); Figures; Peace Corps Fiji; Directory of Fiji RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Fiji RPCVs; Politics; Congress; Connecticut

When this story was posted in January 2009, this was on the front page of PCOL:




Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers

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