Rosa Returns To A
House Transformed

As New Haven U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro coasted to an 11th term, she expressed cautious optimism about working in a House of Representatives newly taken over by Republicans — if GOP leaders are willing to compromise.

She made those comments shortly after her victory speech on Tuesday night delivered to a packed house of supporters at the Sargent Peppers Nightclub on Sargent Drive.

DeLauro (pictured), a Democrat, handily defeated Republican challenger Jerry Labriola, Jr. to win another term representing Connecticut’s 3rd Congressional District. According to The New York Times, with 74 percent of precincts reporting, DeLauro had 102,711 votes, or 61.8 percent. Labriola had 61,377 votes, or 36.9 percent.

DeLauro will return to a House of Representatives transformed by a wave of Republican victories nationwide. Those victories will hand leadership to the GOP, which means Republicans will lead House committees and set the legislative agenda.

DeLauro, who is close to now lame-duck House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, has been able to push causes like food safety as chairwoman of the Appropriations Agriculture Subcommittee.

While noting that some Republican leaders have expressed an unwillingness to work with Democrats, DeLauro noted that she has found bipartisan support for some bills. She said she hopes ​“cooler heads will prevail” so that the two parties can work together.

DeLauro supporters began gathering at the new club at around 8 p.m. on Tuesday night. They noshed on crudite and Gelatto Giuliana as they waited for election numbers to come in.

Just before 10 p.m., the club’s sound system started blaring ​“Still The One” and DeLauro made her appearance. After a joyful round of hugging, including an embrace with her 96-year-old mother Luisa (seated at right in photo), DeLauro delivered her victory speech. She thanked supporters and staff and announced that the most important job ahead is fixing the economy.

“We confront an unacceptable level of unemployment in Connecticut and around the country,” she said. ​“That is our first and number one priority: To get the economy right and to get people back to work again.”

“We have to get rid of the tax subsidies that encourage companies to take their jobs overseas,” DeLauro continued. The Bush tax cuts should be made permanent for people earning less than $250,000, she said.

Moments later, after another round of hugs, DeLauro elaborated on those sentiments — and spoke about how her job will change now that Republicans will be in control.

“When you’re in the minority it’s much more difficult to get legislation to the floor,” she said. ​“My hope is that the cool heads and the moderates will prevail to talk about how we work together. There are some who have said that they don’t want to work with the Democrats or compromise with Democrats. I don’t think that that’s what the nation is looking for right now.”

The Republican leadership has to show a willingness to work together with Democrats, which it has not done, DeLauro said. She mentioned Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Pence’s recent statement that Republicans should not compromise and work with Democrats. She also mentioned Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s remark that Republicans must ensure that President Obama serve only one term.

“Now that’s not working in a bipartisan way,” DeLauro said.

But there are ​“rank and file” Republican members of the House who do work together with Democrats, DeLauro said. She said she is working on an infrastructure bill that has bipartisan support. ​“But you’ve got to have the leadership that is willing to work with Democrats.”

Having won, Republicans face a new challenge, DeLauro said. ​“They have to show the voters that they can govern. It’s one thing to win, it’s another thing to govern. And more importantly is how we address the real serious problems and challenges that people have in this country. This is very real. People have lost jobs. They have lower wages. They have no health care. Their house may have been foreclosed on and they can’t get their kids to school. Those are very real issues.”

The government needs to ​“get the economy right and create jobs,” DeLauro reiterated. The country should invest in ​“infrastructure as a growth policy for the future.” The deficit can be reduced by ending the tax cuts on the top two percent and using that ​“several hundred billion dollars to pay down the debt.”

“I have legislation that I worked on with the New Haven manufacturers that allows businesses to deduct $250,000 a year for five years put it into an account like an IRA, put it into a community bank and then be able to invest that money in their own business,” Delauro said. ​“It’s a bipartisan piece of legislation.”

Labriola Concedes

In an email sent out at 10:17 p.m., Republican Labriola said he had conceded to DeLauro. He expressed hope that Republicans will someday take Connecticut’s 3rd Congressional District.

“I am very proud of the campaign we have run, we worked hard, met the voters, and delivered a message of freedom and liberty,” he wrote. ​“That message was well received, and while the composition of the 3rd district indeed had a hand in shaping the results in favor of the incumbent, we have come a long way from the last election. Indeed, in a district that hasn’t elected a Republican in over 30 years, the result tonight shows that conservatives CAN and will win the 3rd district in the near future.”