Tag Archives: Ed Markey

Massachusetts Mélange of Money

I thought I’d do a quick post tying together small unrelated lowlights of local politics and then I realized they are related. So herewith a Massachusetts Mélange of Money, featuring Ed Markey and Gabriel Gomez, with a cameo from Senator Mo Cowan as the man on the white horse.

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Gomez and the Unknown-Unknowns

A while back I wrote of the US Senate special election that the known-knowns favor the Democrat. That was written before the primaries that gave us nominees Ed Markey and Gabriel Gomez and holds true today. But what about the unknown-unknowns?

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Cooter is not pleased with his old pal “Eddie”

The other day, I expressed my concerns about Ed Markey’s decision to “disinvite” former Geogia Democratic congressman Ben Jones from a fund raiser at which Jones’ band was scheduled to be the entertainment. Well, it looks like Cooter thought even less of the Markey campaign’s attempt to avoid bringing the Confederate flag into our little senate race. Jones’ Boston Globe op-ed expresses some of the same concerns as I did, though in much more colorful and evocative prose.

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Ed and Cooter: Just a couple of “Good Ole Boys.”

When your opponent’s only hope involves distracting voters from real issues, it’s best not to give him ammunition. That’s what has led Ed Markey to “disinvite” his old friend and House colleague, Ben Jones, from a fundraiser where Jones was the scheduled entertainer.

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How will Obama’s “scandals” impact the MA Senate race?

While others speculate about the impact of the recent spate of “scandals” bedeviling the Obama Administration on the 2014 midterm elections, we get to talk about some much more immediate potential electoral fallout. With a Special US Senate race just 43 days away in Massachusetts, how will these “scandals” impact the Markey-Gomez race? The imminence of Election Day in the Bay State also insulates us (a bit) from the righteous indignation of those who see political speculation as particularly offensive at this time when we should be focused on “substantive” issues of governance.

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What to make of the Lynch/Gomez Voter?

The logic of voting “the person, not the party” in federal elections has never been very strong, but in our present highly polarized national politics it is down right stupid. Paul Krugman’s recent praise of the South Carolina voters who just elected Mark Sanford to Congress makes this point quite concisely.

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“Coattails” Confusion in The Markey-Gomez Race

The latest poll in the Markey-Gomez US Senate race has surely dampened some the enthusiasm of Massachusetts Republicans, but one comment by the pollster, David Paleologos of Suffolk University, may have created some unnecessary confusion. He was quoted in the Boston Globe story about the poll as saying, “[t]he coattail effect will be beneficial to Markey, and that’s a problem for Gomez,”

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People’s Pledge: Does It Matter That We Know the Donors?

I listened with interest to Professor Ubertaccio’s remarks on the Clash Over the People’s Pledge kerfuffle between Ed Markey and Gabriel Gomez. Markey is calling for Gomez to sign the pledge to limit outside spending in the race, Gomez refuses. Tim Buckley, spokesman for the Massachusetts Republican Party, calls Markey a hypocrite for taking money from industries he oversees, Markey replies that every dime he has raised has been publicly disclosed.

Does disclosure matter?

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Clash over the People’s Pledge

Professor U comments on the clash over the People’s Pledge in the Massachusetts Senate race.

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Predicting the Markey-Gomez Outcome

Media stories on the US Senate race between Democratic Congressman Ed Markey and Republican Gabriel Gomez are breathlessly describing Gomez as a 2013 version of 2010 Scott Brown: independent, moderate, handsome, wears a cool jacket, and a grave danger to the Democrats (which also describes 2012 Scott Brown). Why, Public Policy Polling shows Markey with only a four point lead! Danger for the Democrats?

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