House Dems roll out new security-focused message

By Heather Caygle

July 14, 2016

House Democrats are rolling out a new agenda ahead of the election, promising to make Americans feel safer in exchange for votes in November.

The multi-pronged plan comes after a wave of gun violence in recent months and aims to sharpen the contrast between Democrats and Republicans, whose efforts to bring a gun control bill to the floor have stalled.

“The dominant theme in this environment is security,” Rep. Steve Israel (N.Y.), chairman of the House Democrats’ policy arm, told POLITICO.

“Military security, first and foremost, but also people are concerned about the security of their jobs, paychecks and security of their own voice in this democracy," Israel added. "We’re tying those three things together in one disciplined message.”

The platform focuses on security in several areas, including highlighting Democrats’ response to recent gun violence, like pushing for votes on bills to expand background checks and bar people on the "No Fly" List from buying firearms.

Democrats also call for beefing up passenger screening and security around airport perimeters and boosting funding for the FBI’s counter-terrorism program to ward off any potential attacks from ISIS sympathizers.

Israel said the caucus has gotten away from streamlined talking points in recent years and is hoping to bring back some of the magic of 2006, when he says a focused message helped contribute to a Democratic wave that flipped control of the chamber.

“That’s what we’re trying to replicate,” Israel said. “We’ve got to learn to be more disciplined. This gives members a framework that they can use.”

Democrats taking control of the House in November is highly unlikely — a fact most lawmakers will acknowledge privately if not publicly — but caucus leaders think a steady security drumbeat will help them pick up several seats, especially with Donald Trump at the top of the Republican ticket.

House Republicans, led by Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), have been touting their own multi-part policy agenda in recent weeks, pushing a message of conservatism and economic opportunity, sometimes in direct contrast with Trump’s comments on the campaign trail.

“Paul Ryan and the Republicans have spent the past several weeks talking about their message and what they would do if they were in charge. Well, they are in charge,” Israel said.

More than a year and a half of research, 30 meetings with pollsters, pundits and focus groups and outreach to all the groups in the Democratic caucus helped refine the security idea, said Rep. Dan Kildee (D-Mich.).

And with Congress headed into a seven-week recess, likely without action on gun control, Zika funding and a host of other issues, Kildee said Democrats’ plan will especially hit home with voters.

“One of the reasons I think people are insecure is they don’t feel like Congress is capable or willing of acting to deal with a threat that makes them feel less secure, whether it’s a national security threat or a public health threat or even a threat to our Democracy,” he told POLITICO.

House Democrats will officially roll out the messaging agenda at a Thursday afternoon press conference but lawmakers have spent the last several days hammering the GOP for failing to bring any kind of gun control plan up for a vote.

“They couldn’t even bring a bill [up] that the NRA wrote...that’s how out of touch the Republican Congress is with the American people today,” Rep. Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.), vice chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, said Wednesday.

The Democrats’ plan comes after months of headline-grabbing tragedies in the U.S. and overseas, including terrorist attacks in Brussels and Istanbul, the Orlando nightclub shooting last month and the killing of five Dallas police offices last week.

As part of the security agenda, Democrats are also pushing a wish list of liberal proposals they think will connect with voters, including equal pay for men and women, comprehensive immigration reform and restoring voting protections for minorities, according to the document.

“The challenge to us, of course, is being able to frame a consistent message knowing that each member has their own priorities,” Kildee said. “But I think this is a very clear and strong articulation about what we are about and what our values are.”