They must have thought Joe Hoffell’s win in PA-13 was a fluke they’d soon reverse with the right candidate, as it used to be a strongly Republican district. They almost ousted him in 2002 with Melissa Brown, but that race came on board rather late in the game. If she won, she might have been able to hold on in 2004, but even if she did, she’d have been blown out in 2006 with the toxic environment for the GOP in the Philly burbs. They ought to have conceded that these suburbs were slipping out of their hands, and used PA-13 to stuff in Lower Bucks and parts of Delaware County to keep PA-7 and PA-8 more GOP.
Even if they thought that Hoeffel’s win in the PA-13 was a fluke, making the district more Democrat surely wouldn’t help us win it from him. The GOP’s strategy was to draw a district that gave a Philly Democrat (such as incumbent Robert Borski) the advantage in the Dem primary and a Montco Republican the advantage in the general. (In truth, a Montco Republican would not have the advantage in the general, since the district only gave President Bush 42% in 2000, but, as I’ve said before, PA Republicans let their greed cloud their judgment.) What actually occurred was that Borski retired instead of facing Hoeffel in a divisive primary, and while RINO Melissa Brown almost pulled off the upset against Hoeffel (she lost 52%-48% IIRC), the only reason why it was that close was that Hoeffel ran poorly in Philadelphia due to his inexperience with urban issues and controversy regarding Section 8 housing (Hoeffel got 52% in both Montco and Philly despite the Philly portion of the CD being far more heavily Democrat). Melissa Brown got sdpanked by Hoeffel in presidential-election-year 2004 (losing especially big in Philly), and I don’t think she could have held the seat in 2004 had she pulled off the upset in 2002.
Thanks to GOP redistricting that tried to draw a “winnable” PA-13, we lost the PA-07 and PA-08 and have barely won the PA-06 the past three elections. I hope that we can control redistricting again in 2011 and that this time the PA GOP doesn’t get as greedy when drawing the lines.