CBC, DCCC mend fences to Indiana Rep. Carson’s benefit

Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) leaders say that the support of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) for Rep. Andre Carson (D-Ind.) signals a better relationship between the two organizations.

The DCCC put more than $250,000 worth of independent expenditures into Carson’s March 11 special election against Republican state Rep. Jon Elrod. Carson won the Democratic-leaning seat that had been held by his late grandmother, Rep. Julia Carson (D-Ind.).

{mosads}After he won, the DCCC added Carson, who is black, to its “Frontline” program, which directs campaign cash to vulnerable incumbents, even though seven Democrats, including two state legislators who vied for the special-election nomination, will challenge him in a May 6 primary.

“The DCCC did a wonderful job,” said CBC Executive Director Joe Leonard. “Any relationship has stressful moments. The members of the CBC are looking forward to the DCCC working as effectively as it did in Rep. Carson’s race in future races.”

DCCC Chairman Chris Van Hollen (Md.) said it is standard in close districts to support incumbent members, even when they face a primary.

“We’ve treated him like any other Frontline member,” Van Hollen said. “This district is not a slam dunk.”

He noted that the DCCC spent significantly in previous elections to protect the seat. However, Frontline support in other cases is going to candidates who could face tough opposition in a general election, not a primary.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.), who is also a DCCC vice chairman and former chairman of the CBC, said it is crucial for the DCCC to support CBC members in primaries.

“Chris Van Hollen has stepped up and recognized what CBC members have been saying for a long time, that if you have a policy of not getting involved in primaries it can be alienating to CBC members, because most of our races are primaries,” Clyburn said. “These primaries sometimes come from Republican-backed African-American candidates.”

Tensions between the CBC and DCCC rose to the surface during the tenure of Van Hollen’s predecessor as DCCC chairman, Rep. Rahm Emanuel (Ill.). Leading up to the 2006 elections, in which Democrats claimed the majority, Emanuel’s aggressive style chafed many CBC members.

Members registered complaints about his constant drumbeat on paying dues to the DCCC and his threats to withhold DCCC services from members in arrears. They also complained that he did not engage them on electoral strategy and didn’t hire as many African-American staffers as they wanted.

Others, including lawmakers in both the CBC and DCCC, said Emanuel’s hard-charging style was needed to win elections.

In response to the conflict, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) created an ad hoc group of lawmakers to investigate concerns with the DCCC’s management.

Concerns persisted into February of this year, when, during a two-hour private meeting on a range of topics, CBC members told Van Hollen his efforts to include African-Americans were not good enough and must be improved.

Committee officials countered that they have put African-Americans in senior positions and have involved black lawmakers in political operations.

Clyburn, who was interviewed by phone last week from Chicago, where he was traveling with Emanuel in support of Democratic candidates in Illinois, suggested the CBC and DCCC have mended fences.

“I think the fact that, for the first time outside of Washington, Rahm Emanuel and I have done a candidate program together, that signals something,” Clyburn said.

Clyburn said Van Hollen and Emanuel, who is now chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, asked him to provide staff help to Carson. Clyburn dispatched his policy director, A.J. Jones, to head up Carson’s office temporarily. Clyburn Chief of Staff Yelberton Watkins and another staffer named Tony Harrison also are helping out.

In Louisiana, Van Hollen worked to stay in CBC’s good graces by staying out of a primary.

Van Hollen announced in March that the DCCC would stay neutral in the primary runoff for the seat being vacated by Rep. Richard Baker (R-La.) between state Rep. Don Cazayoux, who is white, and state Rep. Michael Jackson, who is black. Cazayoux had been recruited to run against Baker before he announced he was leaving.

Cazayoux won the primary Saturday and will face former Senate candidate Woody Jenkins in November.