Toomey dismisses moderation meme; Dems scoff

It’s become conventional wisdom that Republican Senate candidate Pat Toomey has been tacking toward the center ever since it became clear that he’ll probably win the party’s nomination hands-down.

But Toomey, who has in recent months adopted notably gentle political language if not actually different policies, says that conventional wisdom is wrong.

In an interview this week with The Daily Local in Chester County, Toomey called himself a “mainstream” and “center-right” Republican, and said he hasn’t changed his colors at all.

“There’s no change in the brand,” Toomey said. “It’s the same brand.”

Those comments drew derision from Democrats at the state and national levels. The Democratic National Committee called “Toomey’s moderate makeover” the “worst rebranding since New Coke.” And the state Democratic Party was quick to remind that Republicans had previously looked for an alternative candidate.

“After scurrying all over the state of Pennsylvania for a centrist alternative, Pennsylvania Republicans seem to be stuck with Pat Toomey and his extreme-right voting record,” state party spokesman and political director Abe Amorós said Tuesday. “Despite any recent campaign rhetoric, Toomey is far outside the Pennsylvania mainstream and is in no way a ‘centrist.’ Pennsylvanians overwhelmingly rejected Rick Santorum in 2006, and with Toomey running to the right of even Santorum, he’s headed to the same defeat next year.”