The heart of the Republican party
It never ceases to amaze me that a political party can be so successful based purely on their ideology of fear and prejudice. Of course there are similar parties in other countries (Le Pen's Front National in France is a great example) but they don't have the mainstream popularity Republicans find in this country.
In Massachusetts there is an interesting governors race between a black man (Deval Patrick, Democrat) and a white woman (Kerry Healey, Republican). The Democrats have refused to run negative ads, in contrast the Republicans have being trying to paint Patrick as a soft on crime, cop-killer protector who is related to a convicted rapist. If there is anything small-minded people are fearful of it's a black man freeing all "the brothers" in a position of power. Apparently the campaign is working even though Patrick hasn't done anything any defense attorney wouldn't. The rapist he is related to is his brother-in-law who his sister pressed charges against 13 years ago, they have since reconciled.
It would be refreshing to see Republicans start debating the issues. They may never win another election...
In Massachusetts there is an interesting governors race between a black man (Deval Patrick, Democrat) and a white woman (Kerry Healey, Republican). The Democrats have refused to run negative ads, in contrast the Republicans have being trying to paint Patrick as a soft on crime, cop-killer protector who is related to a convicted rapist. If there is anything small-minded people are fearful of it's a black man freeing all "the brothers" in a position of power. Apparently the campaign is working even though Patrick hasn't done anything any defense attorney wouldn't. The rapist he is related to is his brother-in-law who his sister pressed charges against 13 years ago, they have since reconciled.
It would be refreshing to see Republicans start debating the issues. They may never win another election...
posted by mochi at 3:57 PM
5 Comments:
Kerry Healey is seriously just such a hack. She has never done anything ever. She has failed in her previous bids to get into the State House, the only reason she is Lt Governor- and an absolute atrocity of one at that- is because of Mitt Romney.
She runs on her husbands fortune, money she never earned for herself, and pays for all these ads that just attack Patrick- who made mistakes, yes, but please Muffy, tell us something YOU have actually DONE during your time as lieutenant governor, tell us what YOU would DO as governor- your platform is so vague. "Vote for me because Massachusetts has too many Democrats" is not a platform. It is absolutely true, but that doesnt make you fit for governor. Now, I understand that all of the people running are good people. I mean, I know a lot of good people, doesnt mean they could be governor.
Please stop taking credit for things that Mitt Romney was able to do as governor. Please stop referring to yourself as a Criminologist. You taught A (one, 1)semester at UMass-Lowell. That does not make you a criminologist.
William Weld, Paul Cellucci and Mitt Romney (who has since turned out to be a fraud-he'll get whats coming for him) were able to win elections for governor because they knew what they were dealing with, they knew that, ideologically, they differed from the legislature, but there is this thing called compromise and negotiating. All Muffy has done, and Romney since, is taken shots at the Massachusetts legislature- pony boy Romney bc he is trying to run for president which will be a funny joke and now Healey too. So, you insult the people who run this state's govt- and they do a bad job- but you have the nerve to tell the people to vote for you so there can be some checks and balances. Good luck with that. And why hasnt Mitt Romney come out and openly endorsed Kerry Healey for governor? Seriously he hasn't. I know he has ambitions, but that doesnt prevent one from leaning into a mic and saying vote for Kerry Healey. Makes you wonder.
I dont approve of Deval Patrick really, but I highly disapprove of Kerry Healey. She will not win anyway- I dont think Deval is a very good candidate but there is no excuse for Kerry Healey's ad campaign- all it proves is that she has absolutely nothing to offer. I am not voting for either of them but if you put a gun to my head and made me choose between the two, I wouldnt vote for Healey.
And funny enough, Deval Patrick actually provides the best crime fighting plan out of anyone who has been in this race. Kerry Healey's plan is to put low level sex offenders pictures on the internet. She hasnt said one thing about the Cape Verdean gang warfare that takes place about a mile down the street from where I live though. Big surprise for some sheltered rich white girl.
Hi CH and Mochi,
I am not following Mass's race that closely, so I don't have my finger on the pulse of its issues. I'll have to take both of your word's for it...
But, all I can say is BRAVO, CH! When Americans begin to stand on principle rather than convenience we may see change. We will never see the rise of an alternative to our two party stranglehold until people come to the decision that you have.
America needs a "few good MEN" like yourself.
-Jack
I guess people have such short attention spans that negative ads work. It's much easier to say "that guy cheats on his wife", than it is to understand the nuances of a candidate's social security policy.
I like Deval Patrick quite a bit. I'm always cautious during campaign season when candidates without comprehensive records are running - neither candidate has much history to go on as far as influencing policy - so I try to use other metrics. The biggest one for me is how the candidate runs his or her campaign. Healy is condescending and is resorting to the same old Republican scare tactics that got Bush re-elected. She is basically using the same proven failure of a strategy Kerry used - vote for me 'cause I'm not him.
All that said, however, I think Patrick is a good candidate regardless of who he's up against and his political affiliation. I like Mihos (the independent in the race) well enough but I honestly haven't been able to glean many specific ideas from him. I also think he's a crappy public speaker, and that honestly means something to me. When I support a political candidate, I am supporting who I suppose will be the best leader. There are many measurable and intangible things that make up a leader. We can see by contrast, for example, that George Bush has none of these. By virtually any real metric, our country is worse off now than it was when he took office. Also, his "intangibles" deal mostly with war mongering and fear. He is a disappointment on every level.
We can't know what sort of a job Deval Patrick will do in office until he gets there, obviously. But his campaign has been upbeat and hopeful, and he has outlined many specific plans that I tend to agree with. I've also had the opportunity to meet him a few times and he was humble and sincere. In my opinion, he has just as much, if not more, of the measurable ideas than any other candidate, and infinitely more to offer along the lines of intangibles.
There's my stump speech for Deval.
Oh no doubt, Christy Mihos cannot speak to save his life. He has a horrible Boston accent that makes Tom Menino look eloquent.
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