Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos
Massachusetts Governor-elect Deval Patrick crushed former Lt Governor Kerry Healey by at least a 2-1 margin statewide. Patrick is the first non-white to hold the post; Healey would've been the first woman. You'd a thunk that in absurdly PC Massachusetts, such a decision would've been tough to make, with voters just spinning in circles trying to decide which candidate was mroe deserving. But no- even the towns Healey ended up taking were closely contested. Not surprisingly Democratic candidates across the Commonwealth dominated their rivals, when in fact there were rivals- several races were unopposed.
The Boston Globe has a spiffy breakout of who did what where here.
Somehow, Deval's message of hope, reconciliation, rainbows and puppies resonated with a large majority of voters, voters who seem to think that paying higher taxes for the same services is a big step forward. His economic plan of taking more money away from people who produce through taxation in order to attract(!) business to the state frankly baffles me, but I'm sure an economist could explain to me.
Actually, better yet, I'd rather a business owner explain it to me.
But you know, I'm really not bitter about it- it's not like my guy lost. Mitt Romney washed his hands of the place awhile ago to pursue national attention, and he's been something of a ghost in Healey's campaign- lots of sightings or suggestive distant noises, but little conclusive evidence of his existence. Besides, I think everyone- yes, everyone, at that level of politics is a snake, so there's that.
What I am is surprised that so many people ate Deval up, especially from among such cynical people as Yankees tend to be. Well, now with a Dem governor, Dem legislature, and ridiculous judiciary, the Commonwealth may well finally be the utopian society that everyone's longed for for so long.
The thousands who fled the state over the last couple years were probably just mean-spirited hatemongers.
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You didn't vote for Zod??? I
You didn't vote for Zod??? I'm telllllinnnng....
What about Swift ? who was
What about Swift ? who was she ?
JR,
JR,
Jane Swift was Gov Paul Cellucci's Lt Governor. When he was tapped to be ambassador to Canada, Swift served as acting governor for, I dunno, 18 months or so, long enough for a broad sector of the electorate to grow to detest her. She was crushed in the Rep primaries in 02 when Mitt came in and she pretty much went away.
I mean, if you read her CV or asked her in the street, you'd see she's a fellow at this dinstinguished school or a lecturer at another, which looks very nice but we all sort of understand that she's really doing nothing.
Back to the good old days of
Back to the good old days of the Duke and Billy Bulger. Looks like Mass wants to re-claim the tax crown from NY and NJ.
Seeing this, and seeing NDR's
Seeing this, and seeing NDR's first comment above, I'm reminded that my favorite thing about this election season is that it's over.
I can't recall any meaningful nationwide contest that didn't have some form of fuckwittery at the heart of its communications strategy.
Casey in PA was just invisible, which was gutless. Allen in VA, via exceptionally weak, then exceptionally venal, gutless, and faux-Machiavellian words and deeds made himself into a joke punchline. (I haven't heard the actual joke yet, and if I don't soon, I'll be forced to make one up). Tennessee devolved into chickenshit salad. Cardin in MD beat a far better man by race-baiting. &c.
At least Kinky (damned near 13% of the vote! w00t!) ran a clean campaign.
The western 2/3 of the state?
The western 2/3 of the state? you mean the part between Watertown and Natick?
I dunno... I liked Christy
I dunno... I liked Christy Mihos' brand of crazy. Just the kind of comic relief I need.
And for what it's worth, I thought Grace Ross (the Green/Rainbow candidate for gov here in the Bay State, for the benefit of all the rest of you) was awesome. A frumpy lesbian leftist whose big campaign promise was More Windmills And Solar Panels (and who, by the way, has her head in the right place as regards the future of power generation), whose one concession to telegenics during the debates was to put on a clean cardigan... priceless!!!
Excellent point: you'd think,
Excellent point: you'd think, from the advertising and the campaign stops, that the Valley was in Massachusetts!
Hey, I was into Christy Mihos
Hey, I was into Christy Mihos. Anyone who said he would idle 8,000 state workers (who, by definition, must already be idle) is OK in my book.
NDR, oh, don't worry. As of the declaration of victory, the western 2/3 of the state will be forgotten. Shit, even on his best day Kennedy would need a map to name any of the towns between Springfield and New York. And he's been a Senator for, what, 87 years?
NDR- you know what, I am in
NDR- you know what, I am in total agreement. Even now I'm not sure what Healey's sort of point was, other than being the not-Deval person.
And man we got plenty of advertising out here, didn't we? Come to think of it, that's another reason I'm glad it's over- the relentless onslaught of silly ads can stop.
They really cut into my relentless silly TV time.
I think you need to put more
I think you need to put more blame on Healey for her own defeat. Her commercials were an angry mash of personal attacks and misinformation, and it make Patrick's fluffy message more palatable.