Rep. Dan Maffei (D-NY)
Recent election cycles have seen longtime members of Congress hit for having lost their contact with their home districts. And when someone has spent decades really living in Washington, DC, and doesn't even have a home in the place they represent, that can be powerful. But this is weak to the point of being completely asinine: Republican John Katko is attacking Rep. Dan Maffei because Maffei's daughter was born in Washington—where Maffei's wife works—rather than in his Syracuse, New York, district. Maffei has argued that his wife and daughter should be left out of the race, but additionally:
“Where my baby was born, she was born in Washington and that allowed me to make every single vote for this congressional district while I was being a good father,” Maffei responded. “Now she’s here [New York], of course.”
Katko's other big piece of evidence that Maffei has abandoned the district is that his Washington house is more expensive than his New York house. Gee, do you think that could have something to do with real estate prices being higher in Washington, DC, than in Syracuse? According to Trulia.com, in fact, the median sale price of a home in the District is more than four times that of the median in Syracuse. The man owns a home in his district—
it's not like all he has is a time-share on a La-Z-Boy.
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"Your baby was born in the wrong place." This is an honest-to-goodness political attack? Crazy.