Eight added to House GOP protection list

The House GOP’s campaign arm on Friday added eight lawmakers to its program to protect vulnerable incumbents.

This second round of additions to the National Republican Congressional Committee program features a handful of freshman lawmakers in blue or purple states that swept into office in the 2014 GOP wave election, including Reps. Barbara Comstock (Va.), Ryan Costello (Pa.), and Elise Stefanik (N.Y.).

Other lawmakers adopted into the program cruised to reelection in 2014 but have faced tough battles in more competitive years. These lawmakers include Reps. Dan Benishek (Mich.), Rodney Davis (Ill.), and Jeff Denham (Calif.).

{mosads}Rounding out the list are Reps. Steve Knight (Calif.) and Tim Walberg (Mich.).

The additions bring the total number of Republican lawmakers in the program to 20. Earlier this year, the NRCC named 12 lawmakers — 11 of them freshman — in the first round of selections.

The Patriot Program provides members with financial and campaign support, and looks to give them early momentum to defend their seats in competitive districts.

Rep. Rod Blum (R-Iowa) is surprisingly absent from the program.

The freshman lawmaker got a lot of help from House Republican leadership in 2014 in his surprise victory in a Democratic-leaning district.

Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) stumped for Blum in the closing days of the campaign, and the American Action Network, a major center-right outside group with ties to leadership, spent heavily on him to win.



But in Blum’s first vote in Congress, he bucked Boehner and party leadership by voting for Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.) for Speaker. Blum now appears to be on his own as he seeks reelection in what will likely be a more Democratic electorate in 2016.

“Our new Patriots have diligently shown they have what it takes to work hard and run aggressive and successful campaigns,” NRCC Chairman Greg Walden (Ore.) said in a statement. “They are determined to work for a better economy, a strong national defense, and to continue fighting for hard-working families in their districts. I am honored to work beside them in the House and I am excited to help ensure their re-election well beyond 2016.”

Meredith Kelly, a spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said it looked like Republicans are hitting the “panic button.”

“That didn’t take long,” Kelly said in a statement to The Hill. “After only 100 days of the disastrous Republican-led Congress, the NRCC was forced to hit the panic button and nearly double the size of their most vulnerable list.”

In 2014, Republicans picked up 13 seats in the House and gained a 247-188 advantage over Democrats. It’s their largest majority in the House since World War II.


Many of those Republicans won competitive districts and will be on defense in 2016, a presidential year when Democrats believe they’ll have better turnout.

The first round of Patriot Program lawmakers included Reps. Martha McSally (Ariz.), Will Hurd (Texas), Bob Dold (Ill.), David Young (Iowa), Carlos Curbelo (Fla.), Mike Bost (Ill.), Bruce Poliquin (Maine), John Katko (N.Y.), Frank Guinta (N.H.), Lee Zeldin (N.Y.), Cresent Hardy (Nev.), and David Valadao (Calif.).

This post was updated at 3:46 pm.