WASHINGTON -- Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland will lead the national push by House Democrats to preserve their new majority in 2008, incoming Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced yesterday.
Pelosi has chosen the Montgomery County Democrat to succeed Rep. Rahm Emanuel of Illinois, the hard-charging strategist who led House Democrats back to the majority last month for the first time in 12 years, as chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. The move puts Van Hollen in charge of the party's recruiting and fundraising efforts during the 2007-2008 election cycle.
Van Hollen's "depth of legislative experience and political savvy will make him an exceptional DCCC Chairman," Pelosi said in a statement. "I am confident he will build upon the success of our outstanding Chairman Rahm Emanuel and lead our efforts to strengthen our Democratic majority in the House and enable us to continue to address the priorities of all Americans."
Van Hollen, who coasted last month to a third term while serving as a top deputy to Emanuel on the DCCC, said that House Democrats looking to build on momentum from the elections should focus now on fulfilling their campaign promises.
"People will say, `Yes, they're following through on the commitments they made, we see a real change in Washington, we want to support that effort,' " he said. "That will help us attract candidates, and it will help us get the resources that they need."
The nomination comes a week after Van Hollen landed a seat on the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, whose members have access to some of the nation's most lucrative sources of campaign cash.
"There simply is no question that Chris is a rising star in the Democratic Party," Rep. Steny H. Hoyer of Southern Maryland, the incoming House majority leader, said in a statement.
Van Hollen deflected questions about his ascent.
"I'm grateful to Speaker-elect Pelosi for giving a lot of the newer members an opportunity to really fully participate," he said. "There's that old adage that sometimes new members are there to be seen and not heard. I'm pleased she's adopted a different approach."
A spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee questioned Van Hollen's prepartion for the job. "He's clearly got big shoes to fill," spokesman Carl Forti said. "Rahm Emmanuel cut a wide path, and I think it will be difficult for Van Hollen to keep up with what Emanuel did from fundraising to candidate recruitment."
