CIVPAC endorses Chris Shea in the August 11 Republican primary for Connecticut’s 5th Congressional District.
This endorsement applies only to the Republican primary. It does not constitute an endorsement of Shea in the general election. Democratic Representative Jahana Hayes, who is seeking reelection, remains under review for a possible CIVPAC endorsement in November.
This is not an endorsement without reservations. Shea is a conservative Republican who supports President Trump’s general policy direction, employs some of the culture-war language that has become commonplace in the Republican Party and has not yet developed the detailed policy agenda we would expect of a candidate for Congress.
It is nevertheless an endorsement we can make because Republican primary voters face a consequential and unusually clear choice.
Shea served for more than three decades in the United States Navy, beginning as a hospital corpsman and later serving as a Navy SEAL and special-forces medic. His assignments included deployments to Bosnia and Afghanistan, work with Mexican special-operations forces and service at the Pentagon helping determine the equipment and funding needs of naval special operations. After retiring from the Navy, he returned to his work as a firefighter and paramedic. He also founded Hero to Hero, a nonprofit that helps veterans move into careers as first responders.
That record does not automatically qualify someone for Congress. It does, however, demonstrate sustained service, responsibility under difficult circumstances and experience with national security and large public institutions. It gives Shea a seriousness of background that his campaign rhetoric does not always fully reflect.
Shea’s platform emphasizes affordability, reduced regulation, border enforcement, law enforcement, military readiness, support for Israel and better services for veterans. Those are legitimate concerns. We particularly welcome his emphasis on strengthening the military and preserving deterrence in a dangerous international environment.
But Shea’s platform is also frustratingly incomplete. A candidate with his military experience should tell voters far more about Ukraine, NATO, China and the appropriate limits on presidential war-making. His promises to cut waste and lower taxes are not accompanied by an explanation of how he would address deficits, Social Security, Medicare or the difficult tradeoffs involved in federal spending. His campaign says little about health-care costs, trade or abortion. References to “radical woke ideologies” substitute partisan signaling for the more careful discussion these questions deserve.
Shea also identifies himself with President Trump and says he is running to defend most of Trump’s current policies. That is a significant reservation for CIVPAC. We do not know how willing Shea would be to oppose Trump when constitutional limits, the interests of American allies or the independence of Congress require it. Republican members of Congress must understand that loyalty to the Constitution and to their constituents takes precedence over loyalty to any president.
The alternative, however, is substantially worse.
Jonathan De Barros presents his candidacy as a story of redemption. His original murder conviction was overturned, a second trial ended with a hung jury, and he subsequently entered a plea to manslaughter. After serving his sentence, he received an absolute pardon. CIVPAC does not believe that a person who has completed a sentence and received a pardon should automatically be excluded from public life. Nor do we believe candidates should be casually described by a conviction that was later overturned.
Our objection is instead to De Barros’s conduct and judgment during the present campaign. His public attacks on Republican officials included menacing language sufficiently inflammatory to attract review by the Capitol Police, although the police concluded that it did not constitute a criminal threat. His policy platform declares that governors and other elected officials who obstruct federal immigration enforcement should be removed and arrested for treason. He has also sought a gag order in a defamation lawsuit against political critics. These are not the instincts of a candidate who understands political restraint, free expression or the constitutional meaning of treason.
Redemption should be possible. It does not require voters to disregard current behavior.
Connecticut’s 5th District is the state’s most politically competitive congressional district. Republicans therefore have an obligation to nominate someone capable of appealing beyond the most aggrieved portion of their base. Shea has built a serious campaign, won the party convention endorsement and demonstrated that he can attract the resources necessary to compete. De Barros has not shown comparable political discipline or capacity.
CIVPAC does not endorse Chris Shea because he is a centrist. He is not. We endorse him because he has a distinguished record of service, is clearly better qualified for Congress and offers Republican voters a responsible alternative to a candidate whose rhetoric and judgment should be disqualifying.
We hope that, if nominated, Shea will broaden his platform, abandon reflexive culture-war language and demonstrate the independence from President Trump that responsible congressional service may require.
CIVPAC endorses Chris Shea in the Republican primary for Connecticut’s 5th Congressional District. We will evaluate the general-election contest separately, with Representative Jahana Hayes currently listed as under review.