Brian Bilbray is a Tea Party- conservative Republican and member of Congress from San Diego. Anybody who is familiar with Brian Bilbray and his politics knows he can be counted on to side with the most extreme elements of the House Republican caucus and generally votes in lock-step with Speaker Boehner and the Republican leaders.
But that was before Bilbray’s once conservative district gained thousands of new Democratic and independent voters. Say what you will about Bilbray, he knows how to read the tea leaves and he’s embarked on a dramatic summer makeover
Starting now.
No doubt we’re moments away from the requisite photo of Bilbray in surf garb as he looks to clean up his environmental credentials.
That old “fiscal hawk” costume is probably on the way to the attic as well. Gone is the slash and burn ideologue who joined the Tea Party call to arms in 2010.
Or is he?
Bilbray is a master chameleon who sheds associations when he finds it beneficial. But beneath it all rests a career politician who has been described as a “reliably conservative soldier” committed to right-wing causes.
No matter what his latest incarnation, one thing is certain: Brian Bilbray’s costume change has begun and he’s in a race against time to run from his hard-right record and Tea Party associations. His re-election depends on it.
We will be sure to keep track of Bilbray’s metamorphosis so that voters in the 52nd Congressional district know the truth behind the latest façade.