Elections have consequences, but what will those consequences be when the Democrats lost the White House and the Senate?
Can we expect sweeping reforms or anticipate gridlock?
The Congressional delegation here in Connecticut remained intact.
Congressman Joe Courtney was reelected for a 10th term. He spoke with NBC Connecticut's Mike Hydeck about why Republicans had such success across the country, and his concerns moving forward.
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Mike Hydeck: So you were a big supporter of the Harris-Walz ticket. You know Governor Walz specifically. What's your impression of the election? And have you talked to Governor Walz since?
Joe Courtney: I have not had a chance to talk to Tim. And, you know, very disappointed for him. And honestly, I think he would have been just an outstanding person to have for military families, for agricultural interests. He had a really strong background and record of bipartisanship when he was in the House. So I think he really would have been a great asset. Look, the platforms of the two sides were very different. That came through loud and clear during the debates. And everyone's still trying to sort of figure out what the final shape of a House is going to look like, and how that will affect, you know, checks and balances and the process that I do think is going to be pretty contested in lots of areas.
Mike Hydeck: And that leads me to the next point. So Republicans have the White House, they have the Senate, possibly the House. As we speak, we're interviewing on Friday, do you have any relationships across the aisle where you and the Connecticut delegation can still get something done?
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Joe Courtney: So there's definitely, on the House Armed Services Committee, a very healthy bipartisan process that's there, and you know, because of that, it does allow you to develop relationships with people that can maybe even be more widespread in different areas. Rosa DeLauro on the Appropriations Committee also is somebody who has very strong beliefs and principles, but she also understands you have to negotiate. It's not a debate club. You have to get a results in terms of appropriations and spending bills. And really all of the delegation by and large, you know, have similar work that they can point to. You know, whether it's Jim Himes on the Financial Services Committee, Jahana on the Education Committee, where she's gotten close to a dozen bills passed, and John Larson on Ways and Means.
Mike Hydeck: So, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders said, and I'm paraphrasing, it shouldn't be a surprise after the Democrats abandoned the working class that they would then again abandon them in the election. Is there any truth to that? There's a lot of people trying to be introspective here on why the losses the way they were.
Joe Courtney: Well, obviously, I think it's important for people to focus on what happened in an election as consequential as this one. I have to say, I think Senator Sanders really overlooks the fact that, you know, if you look at the last four years in terms of rescuing the pension system for multi-employer plans, which directly helped millions of retirees, union retirees. The new rule making that came out from OSHA and the NLRB was, I think, really also very much aimed at trying to protect workers in the workplace and also to create more fairness in terms of collective bargaining. The unionization rate under the past administration was the highest in years.
Mike Hydeck: Maybe is it messaging then? I mean, it sounds as if, you know, you're laying out all the things that went well, but it seems as if it didn't set with the voters.
Joe Courtney: No, you're right. And I think, you know, there was definitely some huge problems that were out there that, you know, particularly the price of everyday products and goods that people sometimes had to use credit cards to go shopping with. I mean, that's a serious problem that's out there. I do think that in terms of trying to help people in those situations, that our platform was much more aimed in terms of direct assistance. You know, whether it's things like affordable daycare, housing, affordable prescription drugs, but clearly it did not break through. And you know, President Trump is somebody who's, he's really a master of messaging in terms of just trying to connect with people and obviously, in places like Pennsylvania, the blue wall states that clearly prevailed.
Mike Hydeck: Got a little less than a minute. Last question - Republicans on the Senate side, Mitch McConnell specifically, signaling he really wants to pour money into defense over the next two years. Are you hearing something from your colleagues in the House in the same vein and that would be good for Connecticut, no?
Joe Courtney: So look at the programs that are important in Connecticut already have tremendous momentum. I mean, whether it's the 53k helicopter program down at Sikorsky, subs, where we have a huge backlog of work, as well as jet engines up. So I think we are in a moment where we we need to strengthen our defense industrial base. And we've got challenges, external challenges. Really, the question is, though, where is the U.S. going to stand with our allies, whether it's in NATO Aukus? You know, that's really the question of the day that's really buzzing out there. And I'm, as you know, pretty close to to the Aukus program. And Donald Trump has never said the word Aukus once, so people are not sure, given his history.
