Steve Bacher.
Progressive activist Steve Bacher will kick off his campaign to unseat Brian Fitzpatrick on Saturday at 10 a.m. at The Temperance House in Newtown, organizers announced Friday. He will face Rachel Reddick and a rumored third candidate in the Democratic Primary Election being held May 15.
Pennsylvania’s 8th congressional district includes Bucks County and part of Montgomery County, and Republican Brian Fitzpatrick has represented the district since 2017.
Bacher, 55, is former vice chair of the Newtown Democratic Club, and served on the Newtown Township Environmental Advisory Council, and co-founded Bucks Environmental Action, a county-wide coalition of environmental and social justice groups. A longtime Newtown resident, Bacher, his wife, and two children currently reside in Lower Makefield.
We caught up with the candidate on Friday, and asked why he’s about to enter the race for Congress.
“It’s a combination of the daily outrages from President Trump and the daily silence from Brian Fitzpatrick and the Republican Congress,” Bacher explained.
The candidate says he was alarmed by local reports of hate speech following Trump’s election.
“I went to Fitzpatrick’s website to see what he was saying about hate speech, and there was nothing regarding racist incidents in our district,” recalled Bacher. “He seems to avoid serious issues, and remain silent, and we need to speak out.”
Bacher’s extensive background in environmental issues is readily evident, and priorities if elected would include addressing climate change.
“There are some bipartisan proposals, like ways to put a price on carbon,” Bacher said. “Citizens’ Climate Lobby is a nonprofit that’s advocating for collecting money based on tons of carbon put into the air, with the money given back to each American as a dividend. This would be a way to smoothly accelerate the transition needed to renewable energy to stop climate change before it reaches the point of no return.”
Bacher has a 30-year career of public service in the higher education, nonprofit and government sectors. He served for seven years as the first director of digital marketing for Bucks County Community College, five years as first executive director of Cape May’s Center for Community Arts, and four years as managing director of Vortex Repertory Company in Austin, Texas, which he co-founded. He also served as an Intergovernmental Relations Officer at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in Washington, D.C., during the Clinton-Gore Administration, and as a grant writer for the City of Jersey City.
Bacher is a member of Newtown Friends Meeting (Quakers), and serves on its Children’s Religious Education and Peace and Service Committees.
Rich: So look how much Trump’s private sector experience has helped him? He’s the worst president in US history, has been a serial criminal his entire career, threatens our democracy, has alienated our allies, is clueless, stupid (according to his cabinet members), is a pathological liar and an ignorant narcissist.
He sounds like a good candidate,but need to hear him speak at a debate.
I’m thrilled to learn there is a solid progressive candidate stepping up to run against Fitzpatrick, who has been completely ineffective and has failed to represent the interests and needs of the people living in PA 8th CD. Good to know we have someone who has a strong commitment to protecting our environment and ultimately the health welfare and safety of us all. Strong experience and passion for higher education and the arts are a plus! Not another demagogue. Good luck, Steve. I’ll be honored to help with your campaign in any way I can.
Another clueless progressive liberal with no real life private sector practical experience. Seems like Bacher spent most of his life sponging off taxpayers in one government position after another. No military experience. Do we need another clueless weak pacifist? Sounds like a replay of wretched candidate Steve Cickay. We all know how that turned out.