In a recent Chicago Sun-times column by Mark Brown "Gutierrez likely to change mind about Congress" the columnist speculates as to whether Rep Luis Gutierrez (IL-04) would get back into the race.
What angers me about this entire episode is Gutierrez. I have been opposed to his representing me and my district since it became apparent to me that he is a one issue candidate; immigration.
Disclaimer: I am a supporter of Manny Flores (Alderman 1st Ward Chicago) an announced candidate for the seat that Gutierrez has previously stated he will retire from, and in the past have worked for or supported others that have run against Rep. Gutierrez.
I will grant that he has voted for or against bills in a manner consistent with my beliefs so this isn’t about his positions or even a record of "forgetting’ to pay real estate taxes or his super sweet deals from developers on his homes. I oppose him for the simple reason he is not a fighter. In the last 6 years, during the fiasco known as the Bush administration he has not, to my knowledge, taken up a strong and vocal opposition to what the Bush Administration has been doing.
Think about this for a minute. Here is a representative in a totally safe seat, in a totally safe state, that didn’t speak out against unwarranted surveillance of American citizens, a seemingly illegal war, or the aftermath of Katrina. As ranking member of the Health Subcommittee of the House of Representatives Committee on Veterans Affairs why wasn’t he one of the individuals in the lead when the disgrace of what was happening to returning soldiers came to light? Others took up the fight, not only in my state (Durbin, Emanuel, Schakowsky) but in others as well (Feingold, Leahy, Conyers). But not my representative. Not Luis Gutierrez.
Look, I realize he’s a Democrat, but I believe that progressives should look to make improvements where we can. Maybe we can’t change a red state Democrat because he or she is as progressive as we can get, but to have an ineffectual representative in a state that is as blue as Illinois seems a bit of a waste.
Luis Gutierrez’s legacy as the first Hispanic representative from Illinois is still intact, but his continued laziness as a legislator will only tarnish that legacy.