By Adam Pagnucco.
In November 2021, national Republicans were convinced that they were going to ride a huge red tsunami to take over Congress. They were so convinced that they expanded their U.S. House target list from 57 Democratic districts to 70, including Maryland’s 6th district. National Republican Campaign Committee Chairman Tom Emmer said, “In a cycle like this, no Democrat is safe… Voters are rejecting Democrat policies that have caused massive price increases, opened our borders, and spurred a nationwide crime wave.”
Emmer apparently knew nothing of Maryland’s fighting congressman, the indomitable David Trone.
Congressional District 6 is supposed to be a purple district, with parts of blue Montgomery and purple Frederick along with all of dark red Allegany, Garrett and Washington. But you would not know that judging by Trone’s general election wins of 21 points in 2018 and 20 points in 2020. This year, in the wake of redistricting and Republican advantages on crime and inflation, Trone’s margin was 9.6 points. As former Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis used to say, “Just win, baby.”
Trone is an aggressive self-funder. Under normal circumstances, some Democrats might have an issue with that. But if self-funding is necessary to keep rabid Tea Party/Trumpie right-wingers like Neil Parrott out of Congress, that’s a different story. Consider this – while Trone has spent millions to get himself elected, GOP candidates and allied outside groups have spent $4 million against him over the last three cycles according to Opensecrets.org. Given that spending, another Democrat might have gone down, especially this year. Here’s a thought: David Trone will never go down easily.
Trone is a fighter. I have interviewed him twice. Since I’m too stupid to be afraid of him, I asked him some tough questions. He answered them alright, and he once leaned forward to put his finger six inches from my face to do so. As a New Yorker, I got a kick out of that, but I get that is not the reaction of everyone who encounters such behavior. I will say this – if I could use one word to describe Trone, it would be “emphatic.”
Where does he get it from? To understand Trone, you have to look at his childhood and business career. Trone’s father struggled to take care of his family so young David had to step up. He started by selling eggs on rural Pennsylvania roadsides. Later, when he was building what became Total Wine, competitors in every area he entered did everything possible to keep him out. Trone broke the rules of the cartel-dominated alcohol industry by offering consumers great prices, great selection and great service to accumulate market share. His outraged competitors went after him and even got him arrested on bogus charges which were later dropped. Without his mentality of fighting – and winning – Trone would have little of what he has now. There would actually be no David Trone as we know him.
Trone is regarded as a centrist congressman. But look at him more closely and you will see that his big issue is dealing with America’s opioid crisis, which claimed his nephew. This is a problem that knows no party and no ideology. And since it affects red areas as well as blue areas, Trone’s ability to work across the aisle means that he can potentially be effective in making progress on his core issue regardless of who controls Congress. How many members of Congress deserve such a statement? It’s a short list.
I’m a big fan of Congressman Jamie Raskin. I once called him MoCo’s hero for his heroic performance in impeaching President Donald Trump shortly after the passing of his beloved son. Raskin deserves that title. But if you also want to appreciate a Democrat who battles Republicans on their home turf every election cycle – and beats them – you have to respect the fighting congressman, David Trone.