By Shane D’Aprile, The Hill
Republican John Dennis, who raised some $2.5 million in his 2010 challenge to then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), is launching a political action committee.
Despite coming up well short in his race against Pelosi, Dennis garnered national attention thanks to solid fundraising and catchy Web ads — one of which labeled Pelosi the “Wicked Witch of the West.”
The libertarian Republican has an ally in Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas), who endorsed his bid against Pelosi, and Dennis is promoting his new Freedom & Prosperity PAC at the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, this week.
Dennis said the PAC will support “liberty-oriented candidates,” and that he has another issue-oriented organization in the works — either a 501(c) or 527.
As far as winning his backing — it won’t be easy. Dennis slammed the new House Republican leadership for not displaying a real backbone on spending cuts, calling the $32 billion initially proposed by House leaders “nonsense.”
“So far, so bad,” Dennis said of the new majority’s start. “We elected a Tea Party Congress and they deliver $32 billion in cuts? It’s nonsense. $32 billion just isn’t gonna cut it.”
House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) made it clear Thursday that the GOP leadership has heard that complaint from activists and from within its own ranks loud and clear, pledging to cut “more than $100 billion” in a speech at CPAC.
Dennis also wants to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and said he doesn’t concede the notion that Congress has to eventually raise the debt ceiling, arguing that a government default “might not be the worst thing.”
To read more, visit: http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/fundraising/143457-former-pelosi-foe-launches-pac
