The head of House Democrats’ reelection efforts on Sunday defended the party’s campaign tactics to boost pro-Trump primary candidates in an effort to give Democrats better chances in the general election.
Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, defended the practice against criticism from within the party.
“Absolutely [we did not] put party over country. The moral imperative right now is to keep the dangerous MAGA Republicans who voted to overturn our election out of power,” Mr. Maloney told NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “I understand that there are difficult moral questions, philosophical questions about tactics. That’s always true in politics. You better believe it. But here’s the deal. We are more likely to win that seat.”
Mr. Maloney was referring to Republican John Gibbs, who recently won his Michigan primary against incumbent Rep. Peter Meijer, who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump after the U.S. Capitol riot.
The DCCC dumped nearly $500,000 in ads promoting Mr. Gibbs this summer as part of a broader strategy to boost far-right candidates in the primaries in hopes that Democrats have a better chance of beating them in the general election.
Mr. Meijer and Democrats alike have expressed dismay at the ploy and accused the party of hypocrisy by running against “MAGA Republicans” while also spending millions of dollars to promote them.
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“We believe that by keeping those dangerous people out of power we address the larger moral imperative,” Mr. Maloney argued. “That’s our job.”
• Ramsey Touchberry can be reached at rtouchberry@washingtontimes.com.
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