Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-Md.), one of the House’s predominant military-weapons experts, won the Republican primary bid for his seat last night but is facing a tough reelection battle this fall.
Bartlett, an 85-year-old 10-term congressman, has been fighting for his political future since Maryland’s redistricting process transformed his once-GOP-heavy constituency into one dominated by Democrats. Two influential polling organizations, The Cook Political Report and The Rothenberg Political Report, have dubbed the race for Maryland’s 6th congressional seat as “lean(ing) Democrat.”
Bartlett won the Republican primary in Maryland last night, according to the Associated Press. He is expected to face a tough primary election in November, when he will be challenged by Democratic businessman John Delaney.
The defense industry would miss Bartlett if he loses his seat in seven months, defense analyst Loren Thompson said.
Bartlett “not only has been a reliable supporter of defense but he’s a scientist,” said Thompson, chief operating officer at the Lexington Institute in Virginia. “Bartlett is one of only perhaps two dozen people in the lower chamber who really understand how weapons work, and that makes him a very valuable asset to the defense sector.”
Indeed, the defense industry has been Bartlett’s biggest contributor this election cycle, with firms categorized as defense aerospace, defense electronics, and miscellaneous defense giving him a combined $55,000, according to campaign-finance data parsed by the Center for Responsive Politics. Defense firm employees did not contribute significant amounts to any of the other candidate in the race, according to the center’s analysis of the candidates’ Federal Elections Commission filings.
Bartlett is the House Armed Services Committee’s (HASC) longest-serving Republican and its vice chairman. He chairs the HASC’s Tactical Air and Land Forces subcommittee, which has oversight of Army and Air Force acquisition programs, all Navy and Marine Corps aviation programs, ammunition programs, the National Guard, and Army and Air Force National Guard and Reserve.
Before Republicans took control of the House four years ago, Bartlett was the ranking member on the Seapower and Expeditionary Forces subcommittee, and enjoyed a close working relationship with its then-chairman, former Mississippi Democratic congressman Gene Taylor.
A physiologist who holds more than a dozen patents, Bartlett is known to ask long, analytical questions about both the science and logic underlying weapons programs. He has been outspoken on efforts including defense-energy security, the threat of an electromagnetic-pulse attack, Navy shipbuilding, and armoring vehicles.
“Bartlett by his nature is a conciliator,” Thompson said. “He’s a person who is more rational than he is emotional about politics.”
That characteristic may have impacted his bid to become HASC chairman in 2009. Though Bartlett was the most-senior HASC Republican, a House Republican steering committee gave the chairmanship to Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon (R-Calif.), who observers characterized as more polished than Bartlett (Defense Daily, June 10, 2009).
Bartlett faced off in yesterday’s Republican primary against multiple Republicans, all of whom he out-raised in campaign donations, according to their mid-March campaign-finance reports. Bartlett raised $413,000, followed by attorney Robin Ficker, who garnered $127,000 in donations. Other fundraising tallies for Republicans included: $121,000 for businessman Brandon Orman Rippeon, $49,000 for state Sen. David Beinkley, $38,000 for businessman Joseph Krysztoforski, and $20,000 for state Del. Kathy Afzali. Maryland press reports had portrayed the Republican primary as a challenging one for Bartlett, with Republican voters concerned about the aging congressman’s ability to fend off a strong Democratic challenger in seven months.
Bartlett undoubtedly will face a tough battle in November. Delaney’s biggest challenger was Robert Garagiola, Maryland’s Senate majority leader. In the high-profile Democratic race Delaney raised $2.1 million to Garagiola’s $578,000 as of mid-March. While Garagiola is seen as a party favorite, Delaney garnered former President Bill Clinton’s endorsement.
Bartlett also has received national support from the National Republican Congressional Committee’s Patriot Program, which helps GOP congressman facing tough reelections.