U.S. Rep. Richard Neal will take questions from the MassLive.com readers on Wednesday, Aug. 1 at 2 p.m.
SPRINGFIELD - Remembering and Renewing: a ceremony to mark the one year anniversary of the tornado that hit Western Massachusetts, held at the Old First Church in Court Square. Here, Congressman Richard E. Neal speaks during the service. (Republican staff photo by Don Treeger)As Democratic U.S. Rep. Richard Neal aims to defeat two in-party challengers in the race to represent the newly drawn 1st Congressional District in Massachusetts, he will take to the Internet on Wednesday to engage the voters in a live chat on MassLive.com.
Neal, who has been under attack by challengers Andrea Nuciforo Jr. and Bill Shein, will answer reader-submitted questions from his Washington office for about an hour starting at 2 p.m.
A Massachusetts native, Neal became the congressman of the present 2nd Congressional District following a series of other positions in the political world. In the 1970s early in his political career, Neal served as co-chair of Democrat George McGovern's presidential bid and later became an assistant to Springfield Mayor William Sullivan, before going on to become mayor himself in 1983.
After several successful re-election campaigns, he went on to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Edward Boland in representing the district in Washington.
Fast forward to 2012, on the heels of redistricting which carved up the voting bloc Neal has represented for years, he and his opponents are busy on the campaign trail making appeals as each Democrat hopes to emerge from the Sept. 6 primary as the winner and presumptive congressman of the new district.
There are no Republican challengers in the contest.
Nuciforo, like Shein, is hoping to capitalize on the anti-Washington insider sentiment lingering in the country right now while Neal has drawn upon his experience and fundraising prowess to push forward.
Neal has raised a total of $1.16 million in the current election cycle while Nuciforo and Shein have take in about $208,000 and $18,000 respectively, although the latter candidates boast that their donations have come from individuals, while much of Neal's war chest has come from political action committees and businesses.
Recently on the campaign trail, Neal has pushed his Build America Bonds program which allows state and local governments borrow money at a lower cost than in the typical bond market.
"The surest way to jumpstart our economy is through investment in our infrastructure. While putting Americans back to work immediately will alleviate much of the economic downturn, we have an opportunity to make long term investments in our future by updating our schools, roads, bridges, and hospitals," Neal said in a statement. "Western Massachusetts is prime real estate for expansion and I will keep advocating for our region."
Readers are encouraged to submit questions ahead of time either by commenting on this post or sending an email to rrizzuto@repub.com with the subject line "LiveChat Question" followed by the appropriate candidate's name.