strategy / στρατηγική
THE 113TH CONGRESS

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The results of the 2012 election resulted in several developments that should be of particular concern to the Greek-American community. For example, we are reasonably certain that we are going to have a new Secretary of State. Depending on who gets the nod for this position, it may result in Senator Robert Menendez (who was easily reelected) become chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. On the House side, the community has had the good fortune of having the top Republican (Ileana Ros-Lehtinen) and top Democrat (Howard Berman) on the Foreign Affairs Committee emerge as strong philhellenes. Congressman Berman lost his bid for reelection, and because of House rules, Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen will no longer serve as chair for this key committee.

A notable loss for the community was on the Senate side of the Capitol. For over three decades, there has been a Hellene in the United States Senate. In 2010, the U.S. Senate came close to featuring 3 U.S. Senators (with Alexi Giannoulias and Charlie Christ coming up short in bids to join Olympia Snowe). With Senator Snowe’s retirement, and Shelly Berkley’s narrow loss in the Nevada Senate race, there is no longer a single Hellene in the U.S. Senate.
This makes the results of the 2012 elections in the U.S. House of Representatives even more important. In 2006, Senator Paul Sarbanes and Congressman Michael Bilirakis both retired. In 2010, two Greek-American Representatives (Zach Space and Dina Titus) lost their reelection bids. This year, Dina Titus ran in a redrawn district and was easily elected (for the second time) to Congress. Congressmen Gus Bilirakis, John Sarbanes, Niki Tsongas all sailed to reelection.

Due to the landslide in the 2010 election, retirements, and the results of the 2012 election, over 170 members of the House of Representatives will be freshmen and sophomores. As it stands right now, three Greek-Americans will be among the most senior 230 Representatives. This brings them closer to key Committee assignments. For example, given Republican retirements on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Gus Bilirakis has a chance to be elevated to the chairmanship to the European Subcommittee. There is also speculation that Congresswoman Dina Titus will be given greater seniority than other freshman because of her status as former Member of Congress.

To have four relatively recently elected Representatives climb up so quickly in terms of seniority is notable. If one closely examines the list of members of the House, accounts for the ages of some, the contested nature of the districts that some represent, assumes that some House members will seek higher office (as they have in the past), and for historic turnover in the House, there is a reasonable chance that Bilirakis, Sarbanes and Tsongas could be in the top 100 members of the House after the 2016 Presidential election.

Sometimes, the community has not stepped up for our Greek-American members of Congress because we consider them to hold “safe” seats, or think that they “don’t have a race” in a particular year. This is an assumption that we should never make, given the history of the loss of John Brademas when he was in line to be Speaker of the House. Retaining these members, and ensuring that they become more senior and more influential is of paramount importance.
As discussed above, seniority can bring committee chairmanships. What is equally important is political strength. Consider the example of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Elected to Congress in 2002, he rose to the position of the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and proved to be one of the country’s great fundraisers. Two years later, he was tapped to be President Obama’s first chief of staff. Three years after that, he was easily elected Mayor of Chicago.

The reality of the importance of money in politics cannot be overstated. The strong reputations that Bilirakis, Sarbanes, Tsongas and Titus have established will not be enough for them to get to the top of their party structures. How they help their party will be given as much – if not greater – weight than any of their legislative achievements. They are all in a “Race to the Top” with other House members, and their ability to show a strong base will determine how fast they get there.

Get to know each of these members of Congress. They are all proud of their ties to the community, and have all been particularly active not only on the issues, but in support of many community initiatives and groups. These are not individuals that remembered they were Greek when they declared their candidacies. And they also do not pander to the community. They fully understand how American interests are served by standing by Greece and Cyprus, and how American values are honored by protecting the rule of law and religious freedom abroad. Let’s get them to the top.

Endy Zemenides is the Executive Director of the Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC), a national advocacy organization for the Greek American community. To learn more about HALC, visit www.hellenicleaders.com
©2012 NEOCORP MEDIA





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