Michael Grimm, Moderate Republican. (?)

by: thebrooklynpolitics

Sat Mar 19, 2011 at 21:30:12 PM EDT

(Cross-posted on The Brooklyn Politics)

So I return again to freshman Republican Michael Grimm and the one competitive Congressional district in NYC, New York's blue-collar 13th District covering Staten Island and parts of South Brooklyn like Bay Ridge. 

Staten Island Republican politics is basically a crazy ward where disgraced Congressman Vito Fossella still wields an odd amount of influence, and Grimm's solid rise through it in order to win the 2010 GOP primary is impressive.  Although it's the most Republican district NYC, NY-13 is very much a swing district as it voted for both Al Gore and John McCain.

If Grimm has ambitions for being able to weather worse years for the Republican Party than 2010, or to be eventually mentioned as a potential statewide candidate as his fellow New York Republican Rep. Pete King consistently is, Grimm obviously cannot vote or behave the same as a rural Congressman from the South or whatevsky.

And he hasn't.  Check out these recent stories:

• Grimm chastises Tea Party as "Extreme Wing" of GOP
  
  
• Grimm disagrees with Pete King on Muslim radicalization hearings
  
  
• Grimm breaks with GOP House leadership on the budget
  
  
• Grimm wins praise from Schumer as a "commonsense conservative"
  
  
• Grimm hunts for consensus on Capitol Hill

Yet the issues that he's breaking with the GOP brand over are not the issues that self-proclaimed "moderate" GOP Congressmen stereotypically use, such as social issues, or at least issues indicative of an overall centrist ideology.  Perhaps this isn't that surprising, because I've never heard of Grimm describing himself as "moderate".

And we've seen his more conservative movements lately:

• Protesters: Grimm is ‘anti-woman’
  
  
• Grimm votes to defund Planned Parenthood
  
  
• Grimm calls to cut fed funding to National Public Radio

Or speaking to a more conservative audience on his own Facebook page:

Or this FOX segment, where I'll inconclusively leave you.