On the campaign trail and during his first press conference reporters have tried to get some insight into what kind of Republican Senator-Elect Scott Brown really is- Liberal? Moderate? Conservative? When questioned he responds:

“I’m a Scott Brown Republican.”

What does that mean?

At a glance, Scott Brown appears to be a political contradiction. He voted for universal healthcare in Massachusetts but pledges to be the 41st vote against the health care reform legislation on Capitol Hill. Coming from a state that has already managed to insure 98% of its residents, Brown believes the best solutions can be found at the state level, not with a “one-size-fits-all” national plan.

On election night Brown thanked the independent majority, saying he’s beholden to no one, and promised to reach across the political aisle in Washington the way he did on Beacon Hill where Democrats outnumber Republicans thirty-five to five.

“I think Scott is someone who puts party aside, who looks at the issue. It’s not a Republican issue, a Democratic issue – if it’s right for the Commonwealth, if it’s right for the country, I think Scott will support it,” says Massachusetts State Senator Steven Baddour, a Democrat who heads the Joint Committee on Transportation.

Baddour says he’s worked with Brown on many issues from tax policy to welfare reform. “The one thing that Scott understands is the business of politics is about relationships. It’s about people trusting in what you’re going to say, it’s about working with not only your party, but the other party, to move an agenda forward.”

Brown is a Lieutenant Colonel in the National Guard. He believes waterboarding is a legitimate enhanced interrogation technique, not a form of torture, and is vehemently opposed to trying ‘enemy combatants’ in civilian courts.

On fiscal matters, Brown is conservative, criticizing the stimulus and opposing the President’s proposed fee on banks, calling it a tax that will trickle down to the people, making it tougher to get loans and pushing banks to raise checking and ATM fees.

He says Roe v. Wade is settled law, but supports strong parental notification measures and a partial birth abortion ban.

On defense, he backs the President’s plan to send additional troops to Afghanistan.

The challenge Brown faces is maintaining the independence he promised voters, while Republicans try to use him as the symbol of the GOP’s future.

GOP consultant Charlie Manning says Brown won’t bend to party pressure.

“If the Republican senators in Washington think Scott Brown is going to be a- ‘Yes, boss. Whatever you say. I’ll vote the way you tell me to’- they’ve got another thing coming to them. Scott Brown has always been independent, that’s one of the secrets of his success,” Manning said.

In the months to come Scott Brown’s votes will be followed closely. Adding to the pressure, he’s also up for reelection in 2 years, this time as the incumbent. Then Bay State voters will decide if he has fulfilled his promises or become the “lockstep” Republican his opponents claimed he would be.