Russo to enter the race for congressional seat

Former Republican state Sen. Rob Russo of Bridgeport is running for the GOP nomination to challenge freshman Democratic Congressman Jim Himes.

“These are serious times, and what I see in Washington is, frankly, the equivalent of a stickup,” said Mr. Russo, referring to increased spending at the federal level that the Democrats have supported as a way to boost the struggling economy.

Mr. Russo said the $787 billion stimulus bill passed by the Democratic Congress was “really just pork,” with the economic downturn being used as an excuse to increase the federal budget.

He called Mr. Himes “basically a rubber stamp for [House Speaker] Nancy Pelosi,” and said the Fourth Congressional District “doesn’t want someone who’s a party ideologue.”

Rather, he said, district residents expect to be represented by independent-minded congressmen like former represenatives, Christopher Shays and Stewart B. McKinney. Both Mr. Shays and Mr. McKinney were known as Republican moderates, party leaders say.

Mr. Himes beat Mr. Shays to win the seat in 2008. Mr. Shays had held the seat since 1987, when Mr. McKinney died in office after 17 years in Congress.

Mr. Russo, 34, served 10 months in the state legislature in 2008 after winning a special election to fill the seat vacated by Bill Finch after he became mayor of Bridgeport. Mr. Russo lost the seat in last November’s election, when Democrats did particularly well in Bridgeport because of President Barack Obama’s strength at the top of the ticket.

Mr. Russo previously was director of the governor’s Southwestern Connecticut office in Bridgeport under Gov. M. Jodi Rell, and deputy chief of staff to Mr. Shays. He is an attorney with an office in Fairfield.

Mr. Russo said he knows the district well from his previous government positions.

“Other than the Shays family, you’d be hard pressed to find someone who knows these towns and players as well as I do,” he said. “I understand what makes Fairfield County work and what’s important to them.”

Last week, Mr. Russo informed the Bridgeport Republican Town Committee that he was stepping down as a candidate for the city Board of Education this fall to focus on the congressional race.

Mr. Russo said he expects to formally announce his candidacy for Congress next month, establishing a committee to begin raising money. He said the campaign would cost at least $2.5 million, noting Himes already has raised $1 million for his re-election effort.

He promised to bring his “energetic attitude” and “110% of my effort” to the race.

The Fourth District includes 17 towns and cities in Southwestern Connecticut, from Greenwich to Bridgeport and north to Ridgefield and Oxford.

Mr. Russo is the third Republican candidate in the race. The others are state Sen. Dan Debicella of Shelton and political newcomer Will Gregory of New Canaan. Mr. Russo said he expects other candidates may run as well. He said he has “a lot of respect” for Mr. Debicella, having served with him in the legislature.

Mr. Russo opposes the current Democratic approach to healthcare reform.

“Now they’re getting ready to dismantle the American healthcare system but aren’t taking on the biggest problem, which are the costs,” said Mr. Russo, adding surveys have found that 80% of Connecticut residents are satisfied with their health insurance coverage. To lower those costs, he wants “to get rid of the middlemen” such as lawyers and “bloated HMOs.”

He said the top issues in the campaign will be the economy, transportation and education.

Mr. Russo said federal stimulus action and tax policies should be geared toward helping small businesses grow. “They are the backbone of the economy — hiring people and creating jobs,” he said.

On transportation, he wants to encourage the use of mass transit by creating shuttle services to train stations to encourage railroad ridership. He said creative ideas are needed to reduce highway congestion, such as closing some exit and entrance ramps.

The education system must be modernized, especially in the cities. “The public school system that exists today doesn’t look much different than the one my parents went to in the 1950s and ‘60s,” he said.

Mr. Russo, who got married earlier this year, also has been Bridgeport Republican Town Committee chairman and was co-chairman — with Mr. Debicella — of the Fourth District Republicans organization.

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