Snark-Infested Waters by Mike Bailey

Snark-Infested Waters by Mike Bailey

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Posts Tagged ‘Senate President Therese Murray’


The week in politics

Friday, July 16th, 2010

Governor Deval L. Patrick is going to make a campaign stop on the Cape next month.

The governor will be at the “Hyannis Communities Connecting for Deval” event at the Zion Union Heritage Museum in Hyannis on Thursday, August 5. That event begins at 7:30 PM. For more information, shoot an e-mail to info@devalpatrick.com.

***

Hey, kids! Guess what time it is!

That’s right: it’s time to see how few people will run for the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates!

Nomination papers are available for the county’s most low-profile and, historically speaking, least active race; very rarely does any candidate have an opponent, and there have been a few years when no one returned papers at all and the seat wound up filled by a write-in candidate.

Papers are available at town clerk’s offices now and must be returned by the end of the business day Tuesday, July 20 with at least 20 certifiable voter signatures. Those signatures must be from registered voters in the candidate’s home town (that is to say, someone running for the Falmouth delegate’s seat must collect signatures from Falmouth voters).

***

Daniel A. Wolf, Democratic candidate for State Senator of the Cape and Islands District, is using his candidacy to help draw attention to his participation in the Pan Mass Challenge. Mr. Wolf will be riding from Provincetown to Boston (hopefully not in this killer heat) to raise money for cancer research and treatment. Go to his campaign website at www.danwolfforsenate.com to learn more.

In other Wolfish news, the candidate will be holding a meet-and-greet at Starfish Restaurant in Mashpee Commons on Sunday from 4 to 6 PM. Stop by and say hi.

Also, Mr. Wolf has received a big endorsement from the Massachusetts Teachers Association. MTA President Anne Wass said Mr. Wolf “understands the importance of public education and will fight for our schools and our higher education system.”

This endorsement comes as Mr. Wolf and Democratic rival Sheila R. Lyons have begun a war of words in the media, over a challenge from Ms. Lyons to limit their primary campaign spending to $100,000. Mr. Wolf has rejected this challenge, stating that he doesn’t want to limit himself unnecessarily.

Wolf campaign officials have called this challenge a campaign stunt – which it is, one of the many such tactics politicians employ (along with my favorites, the “I won’t accept special interest donations” and “I won’t raise taxes” pledges). More often than not these challenges are “gotcha” bait; by rejecting self-imposed campaign spending limits, Ms. Lyons could try to portray Mr. Wolf as a high roller who’s out to spend his way to victory while touting her own sense of fiscal responsibility.

I will add that Stefanie Coxe, Mr. Wolf’s campaign head, might be going overboard by calling it an “orchestrated attack” (as she did in a recent letter to the Cape Cod Times). No, it’s just politics as usual…let’s not hyperbolize the matter. Be cool now.

***

Former Republican state reps Shirley Gomes and Thomas George, who together covered the Mid- and Lower Cape, have officially thrown their support behind State Representative Jeffrey D. Perry (R – Sandwich) in his bid for Congress.

Rep. Perry will hold a campaign reception next month, August 3, at the Flying Bridge in Falmouth. Jennifer Bruce hosts the event, which will feature remarks by Michael D. O’Keefe, the Cape and Islands’ district attorney. Go to www.jeffperryforcongress.com for more details.

***

James Sheets, unenrolled candidate for Congress, has launched his official website at www.votejimsheets.com, and for a Johnny-come-lately to the race (and a third-party entry at that) he has a pretty decent site.

Whether Mr. Sheets will actually be on the ballot is still in question; as a non-party candidate he has until August to turn in his nomination papers.

***

James H. Crocker Jr.’s official campaign website is also up and running. Learn more about the Republican candidate for State Senator of the Cape and Islands District at http://crockerforsenate.com.

***

A reminder (and more details) about an event for Mr. Crocker’s opponent in the primaries, Eric R. Steinhilber: Mr. Steinhilber is holding a fundraiser on Thursday at the Nauticus Marina in Osterville, which will run from 5 to 7 PM.

DA O’Keefe is hosting that event, which will feature special guests Charles D. Baker Jr., Republican candidate for governor, and the aforementioned Ms. Gomes and Mr. George, who recently endorsed Mr. Steinhilber’s candidacy.

E-mail events@electeric2010.com or call 508-957-2676 to RSVP.

***

F. Randal Hunt, Republican candidate for State Representative of the Fifth Barnstable District, is holding a barbecue fundraiser at the end of the month – Saturday, July 31, to be precise, at the West Barnstable Deer Club from 3 to 7 PM. Go to www.electrandyhunt.com for further details.

While you’re there you can also participate in his online survey to let him know your thoughts on what the most pressing issues of the day are.

Here are a few other campaign events to mark on your calendar: Tuesday, August 17, 5 PM: a meet-and-greet at Lakewood Hills; Sunday, October 3, 8:20 AM: golf tournament fundraiser at Holly Ridge (registration required); Monday, October 11 (time TBA): “Pizza & Politics with Pizzazz” at Two Brothers Pizza in Sandwich.

***

I’ve been remiss in listing this for some time now: Senate President Therese M. Murray’s (D – Plymouth) official campaign website: www.electterrymurray.com.

This site is not to be confused with her official legislative website, which is there to promote and discuss things directly pertaining to her job; Sen. Murray the Senate President is a different entity than Therese Murray, candidate for State Senate.

***

Sen. Murray’s opponent, Republican Thomas F. Keyes, will be making a couple of appearances in Falmouth. He’ll be at the Falmouth Republican Town Committee meeting at the Gus Canty Community Center on Tuesday (7:30 PM start time), and will be holding a meet-and-greet in front of Shaw’s Market in Falmouth next Friday stating at 9:30 AM.

To show what a bipartisan kinda guy he is, he’ll be doing a second supermarket meet-and-greet that same day, starting at noon, at the Falmouth Super Stop & Shop.

***

Mary Z. Connaughton, Republican candidate for state auditor, will be in Centerville next week for a reception at the home of Jennifer and John Williams. That’s scheduled for 7 to 8:30 PM on Friday, July 23. Contact Mary Sharkey at 781-492-1728 or marys@maryforauditor.com if you’d like to attend.

***

Finally, a respectful “rest in peace” to John Henning, WBZ’s veteran political reporter, who died last week at the age of 73. He’d been covering state elections literally since before I was born, and you don’t often see that kind of die-hard dedication in any field, much less such a headache-inducing one as politics.

Political news and announcements may be sent to Michael Bailey, Region editor and senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net

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The week in politics

Friday, May 14th, 2010

Welcome to a very special — by which I mean I expect to see a lot angry of e-mails come Monday – edition of the column.

Over the past few weeks a person writing under the pseudonym “Mercy Otis” for CapeCodToday.com has posted several challenges to State Representative Jeffrey D. Perry (R – Sandwich) to “come clean” about an incident from his past – specifically from his time as a Wareham police officer.

These challenges have come with only vague allusions to the incident in question and, it seems, the writer wants Rep. Perry to fill in all the details himself. He has thus far declined.

Well, here’s the story, as (I say immodestly) I first reported on it in 2002, back when Rep. Perry was first running for the Legislature. The information is taken from extensive court documents provided to me in October 2002 by – guess what? – an anonymous source and enhanced by Rep. Perry’s own recollections as told to me in an in-person interview.

(This is the super-condensed version, so if you want to check out the original full story, go show your library some love and check out the October 22, 2002 issue of the Sandwich Enterprise on microfilm. And no, I won’t send you a copy.)

On New Year’s Eve 2002, a Wareham PD patrolman named Scott Flanagan approached then 16-year-old Heather Adams as she was preparing to light a joint in front of a Wareham convenience store. He took her behind the store and ordered her to drop her pants and lift up her shirt. A neighbor interrupted this, and Flanagan made a veiled threat against Adams to keep her quiet.

Flanagan called then-Sergeant Perry, the shift supervisor on duty, to the scene and gave him a different account of what happened.

Flanagan was fired following a rapid internal investigation. Criminal charges were later filed, and in November 1993 he was convicted on multiple offenses (including indecent assault and battery on a child over 14) and went to jail for four years. The family won a subsequent civil suit against the town.

Then-Sgt. Perry was not, according to court documents, present during the incident, he was never charged with any crime himself, nor was he ever disciplined for anything. He was originally named in the civil suit, but later dropped from it. He left the department in July 1993 in good standing and opened a convenience store.

How and why is this relevant now? Is it relevant? Some would say yes, it’s absolutely relevant; Rep. Perry is running for Congress now and should be held to very high standards of character and conduct. If he has done anything wrong in the past, it should be brought to light.

Others would say no, that the past is in the past, and to now dredge up a closed chapter in his life, which ended with no clearly damning proof of complicity, is nothing more than cheap mudslinging by those who don’t want to see a Republican — or at the very least, Rep. Perry specifically – claim the seat currently held by the retiring William D. Delahunt (D).

Neither “Mercy Otis” nor Rep. Perry are entirely in the right here. “Mercy” should have laid out specific accusations rather than engaging in rumor and innuendo, which makes his/her motivations feel shady, even cowardly; and instead of being evasive, Rep. Perry should have presented this info himself and cut the rumor mill off at the knees, lest he give people a reason to think he is hiding something.

As for the question of relevancy? Well, that’s why I present this information here now: to let the voters decide if it’s relevant – just as this paper did in 2002, when the voters considered the facts and made up their own minds.

Need I point out that with all this in mind, voters chose to support Rep. Perry’s candidacy and voted him into office, and over a three-term incumbent?

We now return to your regularly scheduled parade of dumb jokes and obscure pop-culture references.

***

Two key deadlines have passed for candidates: April 27 for candidates for district and county-level offices to submit their completed nomination papers, May 4 for federal and statewide offices.

This means we can officially declare that five people of note are running unopposed in 2010, barring a last-minute write-in candidacy: James M. Cummings, Barnstable County sheriff; Michael D. O’Keefe, Cape and Islands district attorney; William Doherty, Barnstable County commissioner; State Representative Timothy R. Madden (D – Nantucket), and – and this is the stunner – Martha Coakley, Massachusetts’ attorney general.

Over the next two weeks, as registrars of voters certify signatures, we’ll know if anyone else gets a free pass due to their opponent failing to collect enough valid signatures. The person most likely to go bye-bye: Grace C. Ross, Democratic candidate for governor.

Ms. Ross, who jumped ship from the Green-Rainbow Party to challenge Deval L. Patrick for the Democratic nomination, was uncertain whether she’d collected enough signatures to make it onto the primary ballot. Don’t be surprise if she falls short and drops out of the running.

***

Speaking of Mr. O’Keefe, he is holding in Falmouth on Monday a spring reception as part of his re-election campaign. That’ll be at the Nobska House from 5:30 to 7:30 PM, and campaign donations will be accepted.

***

Senate President Therese M. Murray (D – Plymouth), who stopped by the Enterprise this week to chat with the editorial board, will officially launch her re-election campaign next Thursday, May 20 with two events. The local kick-off event will be held at The Brookside Club in Bourne from 7 to 9 PM, and it’s open to the public.

***

State Representative Demetrius J. Atsalis (D – Barnstable) launches his re-election campaign next week – Monday, to be precise – at Tommy Doyle’s Irish Pub. That event runs from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. For more information call 508-771-5422.

Also, Rep. Atsalis’s new website is now up and running at www.electatsalis.org. It’s kind of “meh” at present but I’m told by Rep. Atsalis more content will be coming soon.

***

This is an interesting fundraiser: State Representative Susan D. William Gifford (R – Wareham) is combining her 10th wedding anniversary with her re-election campaign at an event at the Bay Pointe Country Club in Onset.

Anyway, the event is Wednesday, May 26 from 6 to 8:30 PM, and you can attend for a suggested donation of $25. RSVP by next Friday by calling 508-295-5999.

***

Back to the Congressional race for a minute. Joseph D. Malone continues to add to his really unimpressive list of endorsements with the announcement that Robert Kraus, a Kingston state rep. between 1989 and 1996, is supporting his campaign.

Joe. Baby. How about getting a nod from someone who hasn’t been out of politics as long as you’ve been?

Ah, but credit where it’s due: Mr. Malone chose Falmouth to launch his “Joe’s on the Job Tour” of locally owned businesses across the state. He hit Fucillo Ready Mix and The Clam Man to make his first stops, which marks the first time he’s visited the region since starting up his campaign. It’ll be interesting to see how he tries to counter Rep. Perry’s hometown advantage.

***

James Henderson, unenrolled candidate for Secretary of the Commonwealth, has launched his official campaign website at www.jimforsoc.com. It’s a starter site so there’s not much on it, but it’s there.

***

And Finally, Charles D. Baker Jr., Republican candidate for governor, was down on the Cape last week, marking his – and this is a rough guess – 99th visit to the region since January. One more and he earns a free pizza from Paul’s and a “Cape Cod Canal Tunnel Permit” bumper sticker.

I mention this because, so far, Mr. Baker is the only gubernatorial candidate to make any appreciable effort to get down here and do some serious campaigning. Gov. Patrick has popped up once or twice for official purposes, Green-Rainbow candidate Jill E. Stein has visited once, and Timothy P. Cahill has been a total no-show.

Granted, these other three folks have jobs while Baker’s only job right now appears to be campaigning full-time, but Cape Cod often gets overlooked by candidates in statewide races, so it’s nice that someone is putting in some face time.

Political news and announcements may be sent to Michael Bailey, Region editor and senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net

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The week in politics

Friday, April 16th, 2010

Hey, candidates! A friendly reminder that the deadline for turning in your completed nomination papers for any district or county seat is coming up! Party and non-party candidates have until Tuesday, April 27 to get their paper in.

Party candidates for statewide and federal offices have until May 4, and non-party candidates have until August 3.

As of this week, there are still a few local races with no stated formal challengers to the incumbents: William Doherty, Barnstable County Commissioner; James M. Cummings, Barnstable County sheriff; Michael D. O’Keefe, Cape and Islands DA; and State Representative Timothy R. Madden (D – Nantucket).

Even more curious is how no one from the GOP has emerged to take down Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley. No one. The closest we’ve come? There was a rumor that Peter Flaherty, former aide to Governor W. Mitt Romney and former Suffolk County assistant DA, was considering a run, but nothing’s materialized.

***

The Sandwich Democratic Town Committee opened up on Sunday their shiny new headquarters for the 2010 election season, and the ribbon cutting attracted no less than Governor Deval L. Patrick.

You may be asking yourself what the big deal is. The big deal is that Gov. Patrick’s presence sends the message that the Democrats are going to be focusing on Sandwich this year. The town’s been firmly in the GOP camp since State Representative Jeffrey D. Perry (R – Sandwich) was first elected to the seat in 2002, and now that he’s moving on to focus on his Congressional run, the seat is vulnerable to a Democratic takeover.

The two gents lined up to duke it out for state rep of the fifth Barnstable district – which includes all of Sandwich – are Democrat Lance W. Lambros and Republican F. Randal Hunt. That’s going to be one of the stronger local contests and could be a very close race.

***

Daniel A. Wolf, Democratic candidate for state senator of the Cape and Islands district, has announced his campaign kick-off event for Saturday, April 24. That will be held at The Paddock in Hyannis and run from 4 PM to 6 PM.

This is actually the third, final, and closest stop on a three-town tour that day which begins in Provincetown and stops in Orleans before ending in Hyannis. To RSVP for the Hyannis event call Stefanie Coxe at 508-360-9074 or kickoff@danwolfforsenate.com.

Mr. Wolf is getting ready to launch his campaign website. The URL is www.danwolfforsenate.com.

***

Another Republican is eyeballing State Representative Demetrius J. Atsalis’s (D – Barnstable) seat. Charles C. Case Jr. of Centerville, an attorney, filed his paperwork with the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance last week.

This sets us up for a primary race as James F. Munafo Jr., a Barnstable town councilor, is also running as a Republican.

***

Senate President Therese M. Murray (D – Plymouth) has given her official website a facelift. It boasts better aesthetics, more features (including more multimedia content), and more active updating. Go to www.theresemurray.com and poke around.

Sen. Murray is running for re-election this year to her ninth term.

***

What the –?! Another candidate for governor’s councilor of the first district?

Yep, and her name is Patricia L. Mosca, and she hails from Bourne. She’s a retired probation officer with the Plymouth District Court and a former social worker supervisor with the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance.

She officially launches her campaign on Saturday, May 8 with a reception at the Hemisphere Restaurant in Sandwich. That starts at 6 PM.

Ms. Mosca is one of four people – all Democrats – running for the seat currently held by Carole A. Fiola, who is not running for re-election.

***

Poll time!

The latest Rasmussen Reports poll of 500 likely voters revealed that Gov. Patrick might be reclaiming a little of his mojo. In a theoretical race between Gov. Patrick, Republican Charles D. Baker Jr., and unenrolled candidate Timothy P. Cahill, the incumbent comes out on top, edging out Baker by an eight percent margin.

This is a better lead than Gov. Patrick had only a month earlier, when he came out winning the same three-way contest by only a three percent margin.

In a scenario in which Christy P. Mihos is the Republican pick, Mr. Mihos replaces Mr. Cahill in the third-placer; Gov. Patrick wins this theoretical election over Mr. Cahill by a five percent margin, and Mr. Cahill beats Mr. Mihos by an 18 percent margin.

(There was absolutely no mention of Green-Rainbow Party candidate Dr. Jill E. Stein, nor of Grace Ross, a former Green-Rainbow Party member who jumped to the Democratic Party to challenge Gov. Patrick in the primary – in theory, at least, because she’s been pretty quiet since she entered the race.)

The poll suggested that Mr. Mihos’s standing is slipping, while Gov. Patrick may no longer be the sitting duck he was a few months ago. The Boston Globe reported last week that the governor has over the past few months displayed a renewed energy and hit hard on some key issues.

No, readers, it’s not at all cynical to think that Gov. Patrick is cranking the volume up to 11 because it’s an election year and his job’s at stake.

***

Mr. Cahill, by the way, is claiming that he is the first candidate to reach the 10,000 signature mark, meaning (assuming all the signatures are certified) he has secured his spot on the November ballot.

“People are sick of the petty bickering between the two major parties, where one party says ‘no’ to an idea simply because the other party came up with it,” campaign mouthpiece Adam Meldrum said in a press release. “This year, the people of Massachusetts are not going to be saddled with the same old partisan choices they’re always been presented with. This year, voters will have a viable third alternative to the Democrats and Republicans who have created the mess this state is in.”

***

Back to the polling thing. While poking around online I found on MassBeacon.com an informal poll to see who the favorites are in the race for US Representative of the 10th Congressional District. The poll – completely unscientific, by their own admission – had our two local boys in the lead: Rep. Perry came out on top on the Republican side, besting Joseph D. Malone by a crushing 54-point margin; and State Senator Robert A. O’Leary (D – Barnstable) beat William Keating by a smaller but still decisive 18-point margin.

Perhaps tellingly, “other” was the third most common choice above other confirmed and rumored candidates in both races. Alas, the site did not hold a theoretical race between the two party candidates and unenrolled candidate Peter A. White.

The odds of an all-Cape slate candidates are not guaranteed, of course, but it would definitely be cool.

***

On a Joe Malone-related side note, Mr. Malone has added Ted Langill to his campaign staff as his political director. Mr. Langill previously worked as a legislative aide to State Senator Robert L. Hedlund (R – Weymouth). Point of interest: Sen. Hedlund himself was for a time a rumored candidate for the 10th district race.

***

Finally, Suzanne Bump, Democratic candidate for state auditor, has launched her campaign website. That’s up at http://suzannebump.com.

The auditor race is unusually active this year – six candidates! – but then again, long-time auditor A. Joseph DeNucci is stepping down, and open seats tend to attract more interest than those with incumbents.

Special online bonus time!

I came across this campaign ad, which is NOT for J.D. Hayworth, the guy trying to oust US Senator John McCain (R – Arizona) in the primary race, but for McCain himself. It’s remarkably whimsical for a campaign ad so I thought I’d share the cheap yuks with y’all.

Political news and announcements may be sent to Michael Bailey, Region editor and senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net.

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The week in politics

Friday, March 12th, 2010

As you’ve no doubt heard by now, Congressman William D. Delahunt (D) is not running for re-election this year.

This means the race is officially a free-for-all and it’s anyone’s game. Rep. Delahunt, had he run, would have had the incumbent’s advantage — a combination of money, familiarity, influence in government, and a track record even his critics would agree was generally positive (I won’t say perfect, because perfection doesn’t exist in life, much less in politics).

(more…)

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The week in politics

Friday, March 5th, 2010

Man, have things gotten wacky over the past couple of weeks.

The man at the center of this big ball of crazy is Congressman William D. Delahunt (D), who is expected to announce this month whether he will run for re-election. There’s been a lot of idle speculation that an eighth term isn’t in the cards, and that speculation intensified last week in light of several news stories detailing $560,000 in campaign spending in 2009, a lot of it on things only somewhat related to actual campaigning (like expensive meals and fees to relatives in his employ).

(more…)

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The week in politics

Friday, February 19th, 2010

I hardly know where to begin this week!

Well, a coin toss decided I should start with the news that Republican Thomas F. Keyes of Sandwich has taken what I’d consider a very bold move and announced he plans to run for State Senator of the Plymouth and Barnstable district – which could put him on the ballot against Senate President Therese M. Murray (D – Plymouth).

Why is this a bold move? Consider, first of all, that Sen. Murray is one of the three top dogs in state government, and while I hate to invoke the whole “clout” issue, let’s be realistic: it would be bad for the Cape to lose that kind of leverage in the Senate.

Sen. Murray has also personally spearheaded two major government reform initiatives over the past four years, one aimed at health care and the other, launched last week, at economic development. To really put that one in perspective: Sen. Murray’s “Sunshine Act” legislation seeks to, in one fell swoop, reduce wasteful government practices and improve economic development efforts, two of this year’s hot talking points.

Then there’s the money. Sen. Murray ended 2009 with more than $140,000 sitting in the war chest, and she knows how to generate campaign funding. Gripe as you will about money in politics, it’s a harsh reality Mr. Keyes would have to face should he join Sen. Murray on the ballot in November.

What does Mr. Keyes bring to the table? He is a former two-term Sandwich selectman, a former member of the Sandwich Economic Development Council, and is in the middle of his first elected term on the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates (he is currently the deputy speaker).

That’s a thin résumé to put up next to Sen. Murray’s curriculum vitae, and I don’t care what the mood of the electorate is, you can only play the “government outsider” card to limited effect against such a strong incumbent candidate.

Is this an insurmountable challenge? No. Is it an uphill battle? Oh, yeah…call it a direct assault on the sheer vertical face of Mount Murray.

Ah, but there is one thing that could yet radically chance the complexion of this brewing race, which leads me to the next big news…

***

…which is the growing speculation that Congressman William D. Delahunt (D) is not going to run for re-election this year. The Boston Globe reported last week that Rep. Delahunt is considering retiring from life as an elected official, but the congressman said this was all part of his biennial deliberations over whether to run again.

“Every election cycle, I take my time, I think it through, and I think, not about whether I can win or lose, but: ‘Am I in a position to make a difference?’ ”Rep. Delahunt told the Globe. “Can I achieve what I want to achieve outside of public life?” He insisted that his decision would not be influenced one way or the other by US Senator Scott P. Brown’s victory last month, which continues to reverberate throughout the Massachusetts political scene.

A formal announcement is coming next month, and two big names have already emerged as possible torchbearers for the Democratic Party should Rep. Delahunt bow out: Conan O’Brien look-alike Joseph P. Kennedy III…

I think it's a damn shame they're giving your show back to Leno...

I think it's a damn shame they're giving your show back to Leno...

…and — wait for it — Sen. Murray.

Sen. Murray told the Globe she thought Rep. Delahunt would come back to run again (and win again, she predicted), but if he doesn’t run? Her tune could change very quickly.

More on this situation as it develops, but one word of warning: anyone who thinks that sticking a Kennedy in this race would produce a sure-fire win for the Democrats is fooling themselves.

***

One last random note on the brewing 10th Congressional district situation: there’s been some talk that Doug Meehan, who grew up on the Cape and was recently let go from his gig as WFXT/Fox 25’s helicopter reporter, would throw his hat into the increasingly crowded ring as a Republican.

A Republican working for Fox News? I’ve never heard of such a thing!

There are already three confirmed GOP candidates: State Representative Jeffrey D. Perry (R – Sandwich), Ray Kasperowicz of Cohasset, and Donald A. Hussey of Hingham. Joseph D. Malone of Scituate, a former two-term Massachusetts state treasurer and candidate in the 1998 gubernatorial race, and State Senator Robert L. Hedlund (R – Weymouth) have expressed an interest in running but have not yet made formal commitments.

Peter A. White of Mashpee is also in the race as an unenrolled candidate.

***

A couple reminders for upcoming campaign events: Rep. Perry officially launches his congressional campaign on Friday, March 5 at the Cape Codder Resort in Hyannis starting at 7 PM.

Republican Randy Hunt of Sandwich, who is hoping to succeed Rep. Perry in the Legislature, has his campaign kickoff event on Tuesday, March 9 at the Sandwich Hollows Golf Course from 5 PM to 7 PM. Rep. Perry will be the evening’s guest speaker.

***

Rep. Perry, by the way, will be opening his Cape-area campaign office tomorrow at 10 AM. It’s located at Heritage Plaza (337 Cotuit Road, Building B) in Sandwich, so swing by for the 10:30 AM ribbon-cutting to meet the candidate and pick up your signs, bumper stickers, and other Perry-phernalia.

(Rep. Perry, you’ll owe me a quarter every time you use that one.)

Political news and announcements may be sent to Michael Bailey, Region editor and senior political reporter, at bailey@capenews.net

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Check me out, being all involved and junk…

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009

Below is the full text of a letter I e-mailed this morning to my legislative officials, State Rep. James Fagan and Senator Marc Pacheco. I doubt they’ll respond and even more doubtful they’ll act as I hope, but hey, it made me feel better to vent. I recommend it.

Gentlemen,

I am writing, simply, to request that you both reject the proposal heading to the State House floor to amend the state’s US Senate succession law.

Senator Kennedy himself once said to Congress that you do not change the rules in the middle of the game, and ironically, that is precisely what the late senator in his July letter asked Governor Patrick, House Speaker DeLeo, and Senate President Murray to do: change the rules mid-game — this after, in 2004, Mr. Kennedy himself advocated for the law as it currently stands.

While I understand Senator Kennedy wanted to ensure the state’s full representation in the event a health care reform bill came up for a vote — a proposal I generally support, I add — I do not believe that the Legislature should change the law, essentially, to support a single initiative.

Nor do I believe it should support a change that seems to me to be as much about maintaining a Democratic super-majority as serving the public. I always believed the true motivation behind the 2004 changes was to keep Governor Romney — who I did not and still do not care for, to put it mildly — from naming a Republican successor in the event Senator Kerry won the Presidential election. That the Democrats are now embracing a concept the Republicans (unsuccessfully) pitched as an amendment to the 2004 law — giving the governor the authority to appoint an interim Senator — only reinforces this opinion in my mind. As does the latest news I’ve read: that the proposal you may be voting on as early as tomorrow would mandate that any appointees would be of the same party as his or her predecessor.

This is standard in other states, I realize, and is meant to de-politicize such appointments, but in this instance I believe it very much politicizes the process. Mr. Kennedy requested that any appointee offer a personal guarantee that he or she would not run in the special election, specifically to avoid giving that individual an edge in the election. I understand the Legislature does not plan to formally support that request (a good thing as it is, by my understanding, unconstitutional anyway). I wish I could say I could not imagine Governor Patrick appointing, for example, Martha Coakley, as the interim Senator and would instead choose someone with no interest in running for the post, but frankly, my faith in my elected officials’ capacity to conduct business in an above-board manner has been greatly diminished over the past few years.

The argument I’ve heard from proposal supporters is that Massachusetts needs continuous representation in Congress. I cannot support that theory in light of the numerous votes Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Kerry missed because of, respectively, their health issues and Presidential campaign. According to data posted on Govtrack.us, Mr. Kennedy made only nine out of the 270 votes held in 2009 up until his passing. Mr. Kerry missed all but 40 out of 285 votes taken in the 12 months before the election, and missed all 42 votes in the three months immediately preceding the election.

To summarize, I do not believe there is a crucial need to fill Mr. Kennedy’s seat by gubernatorial appointment, nor do I believe that the current effort is geared toward serving the voters. Rather, I see it as making, for the second time in five years, amendments to a law based on current circumstances and a desire to maintain single-party rule. I urge you to fight to keep the law as it is and perhaps revisit the issue when there are no extenuating circumstances that, in perception or in reality, contaminate the noble intentions so many are trying to claim apply to the situation at hand.

Sincerely,

Michael Bailey – unenrolled

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Posted in Local issues, Politics | 1 Comment »

Thizbin: still makes more sense than politics

Saturday, August 22nd, 2009

Next week I’ll be giving our local legislators a call to get their thoughts on US Senator Ted Kennedy’s request to the Legislature regarding the possible need to fill his seat should, God forbid, it become vacant due to his ongoing health problems.

In July he sent a letter to Governor Deval Patrick, Senate President Therese Murray, and House Speaker Robert DeLeo asking them to amend state law to allow Patrick to appoint an “interim senator” until a special election could be held to fill the seat semi-permanently (until the next time Kennedy’s seat was up for grabs, which is 2012). Kennedy noted that there is a lot happening in Congress right now — most notably work on health care reform, a topic near and dear to the Senator for many reasons — and Massachusetts needed to maintain a continuity of representation.

Seems reasonable enough, but when you consider that the law was already changed once in the recent past, for reasons one could argue were transparently political, it takes on a whiff of B.S.

In 2004, when US Senator John Kerry was running for President, the Democrat-dominated Legislature pushed through a change to state law that stripped the governor (Mitt Romney at the time) of the authority to appoint a full replacement. They feared that, should Kerry leave the Senate, Romney would appoint a Republican successor. He certainly would have, so the Legislature blocked Romney’s ability to indulge party loyalty by amending the law. They avoided, at least on the surface, the perception that they were also playing at party politics by calling for special elections. That put the choice in the voters’ hands.

Now, Kennedy wants to partially reinstate the governor’s former authority over the matter, and again, the pitch is made in such a way as to present the illusion that it’s all in the name of fairness. By giving the (not so coincidentally Democratic) governor the power to appoint a temporary successor, that leaves the core of the law intact; voters still get to choose who would take over for Kennedy, but in the interim have full representation in Congress. Win-win, yes?

Except that whoever is appointed to that vacancy would ostensibly be someone who wants to hold the seat permanently, and in grabbing the post on an interim basis, that person gains an instant boost to their special election campaign — especially if they are lucky enough to participate in a crucial vote that reaps major benefits for Massachusetts voters.

(EDIT: This is, of course assuming that the governor honors Kennedy’s request to get from the appointee a commitment not to run as a candidate in the special election — a request that is Constitutionally dicey, I must add.)

If the Legislature adopts Kennedy’s requested change, it would be the second time in five years state lawmakers subtly stacked the deck in favor of maintaining a Democratic monopoly in our Congressional delegation.

Enough, people. You gave voters total control over who represents us at the federal level, so leave it there.

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Posted in National issues, Politics | 3 Comments »


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