Cornelius Shea is quick to acknowledge that his campaign to unseat incumbent U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern this Nov. 5 would be considered a long shot.

Shea, a 20-year Marine Corps veteran, is running as an independent, though he assisted his father on a number of Democratic campaigns until the late 1980s.

“I would be considered a ‘John F. Kennedy’ type of Democrat,” Shea said, “and, of course, John F. Kennedy had some very conservative views. You know, he did a major tax cut and he also said people should ask their country what you can do for it, whereas Mr. McGovern is one of those types of progressives that asks, ‘What can the government do for you — from cradle to grave.’”

Shea, 66, said he entered the race in large part because of McGovern’s opposition to a trio of bills that came before the House this year.

Two of the bills called for any undocumented immigrant who assaulted a woman or police to be automatically deported, Shea said.

“And the third one was the SAVE (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility) Act, which requires everyone who registers to vote to show proof that they are an American citizen. He’s a globalist — he’s an open-border progressive, and we’re kind of being overrun right now,” he said. 

Shea said he was disturbed to see undocumented immigrants being put up in hotels at the government’s expense at the same time levels of homelessness in the U.S. are growing. According to the U.S. census, the level of homelessness rose 12% from 2022 to 2023.

“My mother always taught us that charity began at home. We’re doing this at a time we’re broke. Maura Healey, when she took office, she had a billion-dollar surplus,” he said. “Now we’re a billion dollars in the hole. We’re not going to be bailed out by the federal government because they’re broke. It’s just crazy what’s going on. It’s dangerous and it’s not sustainable.”

Shea said the U.S. should emphasize finding shelter for America’s homeless, especially veterans.

“One thing I could not live with,” Shea said, “is Mr. McGovern — or any congressman — running unopposed. He just happens to represent my district.”

She stressed that America is a “nation of immigrants,” noting that some 800,000 immigrants “do it the right way” every year. In fiscal year 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services welcomed 878,500 new citizens during naturalization ceremonies held across the United States and around the world, according to the agency’s website.

“They pass a citizenship test. They’re sponsored. They get vetted. We know who they are and what they’re here for,” he said. “Right now, we don’t know who’s here and we really don’t know what their intentions are.”

As a result, he said, illegal immigration is putting a major logistical and financial strain on schools, hospitals and communities.

An issue that has come to the fore in the North Quabbin area in recent years is housing. Shea blamed the tight market and high prices, in part, on inflation and energy prices.

“It’s all connected,” he said. “What I would do, the first thing I would do, is make sure we tapped into our major energy source, which happens to be oil. Instead of buying oil from our enemies and depleting our oil reserves, which drives prices down artificially — if we used our God-given resources and used that money to pay down our debt, we could put a dent in a lot of our problems.”

Shea says today’s Democratic Party has been taken over by progressives, adding that people like JFK would not be welcome in the party of 2024.

“In my opinion, they’re destroying this country. I can’t watch it,” he said. “I have to do something about or I won’t be able to look at myself in the mirror and say, ‘You could have done something about this but you didn’t have the courage to do it.’ I’m doing this because of my kids and grandkids.”

Shea, who is retired, is a 1971 graduate of St. John’s High School in Shrewsbury. He lives in Shrewsbury with his wife, Deidre. The couple have three grown children and one grandchild. He served in the Marines for 20 years, mustering out with the rank of major. He also earned a master’s degree in urban education from Clark University in Worcester and taught in Worcester Public Schools, where he spent time as an assistant football coach at North High and a boys outdoor track coach at Doherty High.

Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.