Isle of Palms Winter-Spring 2018-19

14 www.IsleOfPalmsMagazine.com | www.ILoveIOP.com | www.IOPmag.com has been gerrymandered to all but assure that it will belong to the Republicans. “We had a strong, clear message, and we didn’t allow Washington to create our narrative,” he said. He added that he will honor his early campaign pledge not to vote for Californian Nancy Pelosi for Speaker of the House, pointing out that both sides, Democrats and Republicans, need new leadership in Washington if Congress and the president are to deal with the issues that plague the Lowcountry and the nation, including infrastructure and health care. “I’ve sent a message that I’m willing to stand up to the leaders of both parties in order to stand up for the people of the Lowcountry,” he said. “We ran our campaign on individual donors, without any PAC money, so I’m only accountable to the people of the 1st Congressional District. I’m not bought and paid for.” Cunningham, who considers himself to be a moderate Democrat, said the media gives lots of play to the extreme right Republicans and extreme left Democrats, even though “most of us in this district and in this country are somewhere in the middle.” “A lot of us just want pragmatic solutions. For instance, the Affordable Care Act wasn’t perfect, but I think we should craft a bill with bipartisan support,” he remarked. Cunningham said one problem in Washington might be that too many people have served in Congress for too long. He promised that if the people of the 1st District elect him twice more, he’ll retire from the House after three terms. “I have a 9-month-old son. It’s not my intention to live in Washington while he grows up,” Cunningham said. both for Democrats and Republicans in the past, referred to Cunningham as “a breath of fresh air.” He said he thought Arrington’s position was that her job was to support President Trump. “Joe seemed to understand that his job is to represent the people of this district in Washington. He understands that he needs to be our lobbyist in Washington,” said the Sullivan’s Island mayor, citing issues that need attention in the Lowcountry, among them flooding, changing weather patterns, highways, bridges and mass transit. “He was far and away the best choice,” O’Neil added. According to Cunningham, the road to victory was not an easy one, especially in view of the fact that the district [ Feature ] Photo courtesy of the Joe Cunningham campaign. Photo courtesy of the Joe Cunningham campaign. Cunningham and supporters, left to right: Rita Langley, Jim Owens, G.M. Whitley, Jimmy Carroll and Susan Hill Smith. The Cunninghams: Teddy, Amanda, Joe and Boone.