Debicella Wins Congressional Nomination Handily
Likely Staves off Republican Primary, Sets Sites on Jim Himes
Dan Debicella of Shelton is now the Republican nominee for the U.S. House of Representatives in Connecticut’s Fourth Congressional District, which is currently represented by Democratic Congressman Jim Himes. Debicella won the Republican convention, which took place Friday, May 21st, with 77% percent of the vote, far surpassing all others seeking the nomination. No other candidate qualified for a primary.
In accepting the nomination, Debicella said, “Now is the time to chart a new course for America. It is time for a better way. We will restore fiscal responsibility to Washington. We will strengthen homeland security. We will get out of the way of entrepreneurs and small business owners and restore the principles of small government, free enterprise, and individual liberty that have made our country great. We will get the job done so that our children are afforded the same opportunity to live the American dream that we all enjoy.”
Debicella was nominated by John McKinney, Repubican leader of the State Senate (R-Fairfield), whose late father, Stewart McKinney represented the 4th District in Congress from 1971 until his death in 1987. Senator McKinney said, “Dan is unquestionably the right person to represent the 4th District in Congress during these challenging times. What I admire most about Dan is his willingness to stand on principle and philosophy and fight for what he believes in. Dan is the kind of principled, independent leader the 4th District has become accustomed to, and is in desperate need of once again.”
Debicella, a second-term Republican State Senator representing the eastern part of Fairfield County, including Shelton, Stratford, Monroe, and Seymour, also outlined his reasons for opposing Himes. “Jim Himes is a rubber-stamp for Nancy Pelosi’s agenda and Fairfield County families have suffered because of it. He has voted lock-step with her over 95% of the time. Despite his desperate claims to the contrary, Jim Himes is no moderate. He is not independent. Whether voting for the $1.4 trillion dollar deficit, the originally proposed government-takeover of healthcare, or over $5 billion in new taxes on Fairfield County residents, Jim Himes has consistently voted with his party’s leadership and against middle class Fairfield County families.”
He grew up in Bridgeport where his father was a police officer and his mother was a secretary. He was the first in his family to go to college full time, attending the Wharton School and receiving his MBA from Harvard Business School. He has spent most of his career in business, having worked for management consulting firm McKinsey in Stamford, as Director of Strategy at PepsiCo in Purchase, NY, and currently as Assistant Vice President of Marketing at The Hartford Financial Services.
In the State Senate, Debicella has served as the lead Republican on the budget-writing Appropriations Committee. He recently co-authored a budget proposal that cut the size of Connecticut government by 5% through combining or eliminating agencies, privatizing social services, and resetting program spending to 2007 levels. Debicella also led the fight against the budget that ultimately passed, which raised taxes by $1 billion and borrowed $1 billion to balance the budget.
“Dan’s record in Hartford shows the type of Congressman he will be in Washington—one who brings real solutions to shrink the size of government and help small businesses create jobs,” said Senator McKinney.
Debicella’s economic proposals have included replacing the unspent stimulus money in favor of a temporary cut in the payroll tax that small businesses and middle class families pay, and creating a federal spending cap to rein in the nation’s $1.4 trillion deficit. “We need to stop growing government, and start helping the small businesses that will lead us out of this recession,” said Debicella. Debicella added that most families have not received anything directly from the federal stimulus package, while his tax cut would give $1,500 directly to middle class families and reduce the deficit. He has also proposed a federal spending cap, to eliminate the deficit by forcing politicians to lower spending and prioritize programs.
The Fourth Congressional District comprises most of Fairfield County, including seventeen towns from Greenwich in the west, to Shelton in the east, and Ridgefield in the north. The seat was held by Congressman Christopher Shays from 1987-2009.
