Mitt Romney takes a hard line against congressional earmarks, but the GOP presidential front-runner had a more favorable view of federal pork-barrel spending when he was governor of Massachusetts.WASHINGTON – Tom Hayhurst, a former Democratic Fort Wayne city councilman, will run for Congress next year, setting up a rematch with Rep. Mark Souder, R-3rd.
Hayhurst, a physician, told the Federal Election Commission he will launch a campaign to unseat Souder. Hayhurst challenged Souder in 2006 in a campaign that Souder has said was his toughest re-election. Souder won with 54 percent of the vote, considered shaky for an incumbent and his weakest showing in seven re-election campaigns.
Hayhurst has been advocating for overhauling the health insurance system. Souder, who has scheduled a town hall meeting Aug. 28 to answer questions about the legislation, has said he does not support many of the components of the bills under discussion in Congress.
“There are a lot of things going on that are very worrisome,” Hayhurst said Saturday. “I don’t see much headway being made with regard to tackling some of these major problems.” He listed the economy, health care and energy as those major problems.
“Jobs and the economy are probably the biggest (concerns) for me,” he said, pointing to the high unemployment rate in northeast Indiana. “Even if things get quite a bit better in a year, there’s still a long way to go.”
Hayhurst said there is more than one area in which he thinks Souder has fallen short.
“What bothers me the most is what’s happened in the last 15 years,” he said. “I know he’s just one voice, but he’s been part of government” since 1995.
Souder, an eight-term incumbent, has drawn two primary opponents for the 2010 race. No other Democrats have announced their candidacy.
Hayhurst gave his 2006 campaign $200,000, but he got little support from the national Democratic Party. By contrast, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spent nearly $300,000 trying to help Souder’s 2008 opponent, Michael Montagano.
Hayhurst was non-committal about whether he plans to put as much money into the 2010 campaign. But he said he plans to spend more time raising money than he did in 2006.
Since retiring from his medical practice in 2005, Hayhurst has worked part time for the Fort Wayne-Allen County Health Department’s tuberculosis program and for three free health clinics in the area, including one in Wolf Lake that he co-founded.
