What up, Parker Griffith?

By Michael J.W. Stickings

So Parker Griffith, an Alabama Democrat in the House of Representatives, switches to the Republican Party and pretty much right away loses both his consulting team and his entire staff. As his now-former chief of staff put it:

I appreciate Congressman Griffith's being a very dedicated congressman. But we believe he made a mistake -- a well-intentioned but misguided mistake that is not in the interest of the great people of North Alabama who elected him a year ago as a Democrat. As his staff, we wish him only the best, and we all remain committed to the citizens of the Tennessee Valley. But we cannot, in good conscience, continue working for him.

That's probably putting it nicely. As a conservative Democrat, Griffith likely thought that a switch made sense, not least given the possibility of losing his seat to a Republican in the next election. But now he seems to be all on his own. Steve Benen:

It hasn't quite been two weeks since Griffith joined the GOP, but by any reasonable measure, the transition hasn't exactly been a smooth one. He's lost his staff, his campaign team, several campaign contributions from those who feel betrayed by his switch, and his ability to influence legislation in advance of the election. On the other side of the aisle, Griffith still has a phalanx of right-wing primary challengers; he hasn't received an official endorsement from the NRCC; and far-right activists in his district are just as anxious to defeat him now as they were when he was a Democrat.

I suspect Griffith expected this to be easier.

Yes, probably so. But for a guy who (as Steve notes, referencing Ed Kilgore) ran "in 2008 to join Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi in D.C." and who turned on his party and supporters, including his own staff, after just a year in office, he's just reaping what he has sown.