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Democrats Taking Sides in Mosque Debate

Democrats Taking Sides in Mosque Debate

By Sean Trende - August 19, 2010

Tuesday I surmised that Republicans would have a field day with President Obama's decision to wade into the Cordoba Initiative's plans to proceed with the Park51 mosque/community center project. The effect of it would be that every Democratic candidate would have to choose between seeming to side with the President and their district's liberal base, or siding with the likely majority of voters in their districts.

This is already starting to play out. Here's a partial list of legislators in remotely competitive districts that I've cobbled together, along with the Cook PVI for the jurisdiction in which they are running:

Pro-Park51:
Charlie Crist (EVEN)
Shelley Berkley (D+10)

Anti-Park51:
Mike McMahon (R+4)
Tim Bishop (EVEN)
Steve Israel (D+4)
Mike Arcuri (R+2)
Harry Reid (D+2)

If you know of any others, please e-mail strende@realclearpolitics.com, and I'll be happy to update the list!

UPDATE:  Looks like Senate Candidate Lee Fisher in Ohio has sided with the President, while Melancon is against it.

Sean Trende is Senior Elections Analyst for RealClearPolitics. He can be reached at strende@realclearpolitics.com.

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