Tag: massachusetts

CoCo and the Online Campaign

~ Jim Eltringham ~ 1 Comment

New England hasn’t seen an upset like Scott Brown’s win since Superbowl 42 – and much of the credit deservedly goes to his campaign’s ability to harness support from Republicans across the country through online organizing and remote phone banks. Compare that to the other online campaign making news lately: the “I’m with CoCo” movement supporting deposed Tonight Show host Conan O’Brien.

While O’Brien cleverly positioned himself to the People of Earth, the online effort to build support has not been effective – even though it has translated to angry mobs descending on NBC affiliates calling on O’Brien to keep his current gig.  The shortcoming?  The online movement – which appears largely viewer-generated – isn’t focusing on activities which will affect NBC’s bottom line.

Scott Brown’s online efforts were all geared to mobilize voters and volunteers who could drive more voters to the polls.  Outside of fraud and cheating, winning more voters is the easiest way to win an election.

NBC counts votes in two ways: ratings and, more importantly, advertising dollars.  A more effective CoCo Movement might target Tonight Show advertisers, warning them of boycotts.  A well-publicized action against a current Jay Leno sponsor might be a good shot across the bow.

Johnny Carson’s old chair is not “The People’s Seat.”  Rallies and large Facebook groups may snag short-term media attention, but NBC feels like they can win more “votes” with Jay Leno behind the Tonight Show desk and until the CoCo movement translates into viewers and dollars, nothing will dissuade them.

https://jimeltringham.wordpress.com/2010/01/13/conan-the-communications-expert/

But they’re so progressive…

~ Jim Eltringham ~ Leave a comment

As Massachusetts becomes the hub of the American political universe, Politico notes that, win or lose, Martha Coakley’s struggles raise some questions:

Before the votes are even counted, her fellow Democrats have compiled a list of reasons why Martha Coakley has struggled: anemic retail politics, a blind-eye to shifting momentum and an inexplicable appearance on a sports talk radio show that led her to misidentify a Red Sox star.

There is truth to them all. But they also gloss over an obstacle that has received far less attention – a glass ceiling that remains almost impenetrable even in the Blue state of Massachusetts.

Sexism?  In that haven of progressive politics?  In the home of John F. Kennedy, and one of the homes of Robert F. Kennedy?  In a state with so many institutions of higher learning?

Massachusetts is my adopted home state, and I loved it for the six years I lived there.   Surely, these allegations are wholly inconsistent with a rich history of tolerance in the era of Democratic dominance in Massachusetts.

Why, just consider Boston’s reputation for appreciating its athletic representatives.

And now, the lovely Massachus-ettes!

~ Jim Eltringham ~ Leave a comment

From the cradle of the American Revolution comes the news that Scott Brown raised $1.3 million in the last 24 hours (in response to a money bomb request) while his Democratic opponent misspelled “Massachusetts” in her TV ads.

Giddy with the good news, Republicans may be setting themselves up for a big disappointment in next week’s special election to fill the late Ted Kennedy’s seat – and if expectations are not managed,that could affect the media chatter on cable news over the next several months.

Though the idea of a red flag rising up in a blue state is appealing, Republicans must remember that this is an “against-the-spread” race – so a margin of defeat within 5-7 percentage points is as good as a win.  And followers of national political trends shouldn’t assume a state’s voters will see things the same way.

After all – the Kennedys weren’t a legacy at Harvard because they could spell.

Mass hysteria

~ Jim Eltringham ~ 2 Comments

In an early surprise of 2010, Republican State Senator Scott Brown is picking up steam in the special election to fill the Massachusetts Senate seat left vacant by Ted Kennedy’s death last year.  Of course, he’d need a lot of steam, since even Rasmussen’s polls put him nine points behind Attorney General Martha Coakley – who still polls at 50%.  A deeper reading of the poll shows some reasons for even further optimism, though:of those who “definitely” plan to vote, Brown’s disadvantage sinks to 2%.  In a special election in January in New England, leading among independents and the most passionate voters is enough to be within striking distance.

Massachusetts Republican-leaning bloggers from conservative thinker Dan Flynn to scum-of-the-Earth, fake-bloody-sock-wearing Curt Schilling have expressed excitement about Brown’s run.  And given the political environment in Massachusetts, this is an against-the-spread race.  If Brown finishes within 5-10 points on election day, he’ll start the media narrative that, even in the bluest of blue states, support for the Obama agenda is wavering.  And it will help excite the Bay State Republican Activists who would be crucial for later contests – including a Governor’s race later this year.

Benchmarks for 2010

~ Jim Eltringham ~ Leave a comment

It isn’t the most refined ad in the world, but in a post at RedMassGroup Massachusetts Republican Congressional candidate Tom Wesley is holding incumbent Rep. Richard Neal’s vote in favor of the health care bill against him:

Neal is pretty entrenched in MA-02, having not even faced a Republican challenger since 1998.  No Republican has represented the district in Congress since 1949.  But with depressed, blue collar economic areas such as Springfield and Chicopee, there may be a chance for Wesley to at least make a representative effort if the Republicans can hang the health care bill (and it’s price tag) on Democrat incumbents.  While 45% of the vote in November 2010 wouldn’t put Wesley in office, it might be a sign that Congressman Neal would head back to Washington, D.C. in the minority party.

We have two more days before Ted rises, so…

~ Jim Eltringham ~ Leave a comment

When the news broke about Ted Kennedy’s death last week, two things became imminent: 1) A televised re-telling of the Kennedy legend, played out over several days; and 2) a well-crafted obituary that criticized Kennedy imagery, penned by Massachusetts’ own Dan Flynn.

My Mom will enjoy Flynn’s take on Kennedy’s dicey version of Catholicism (that allows de facto divorce), but Flynn also discusses the near-royal status the Kennedy family enjoyed and the changing  policy positions Ted Kennedy embraced throughout his career that signified a lack of substance beyond his last name.  While maintaining a respect for the deceased, Flynn pokes holes in the images that have been all over the TV over the past few days:

The caricature that Ann Richards and others painted of George H.W. Bush — “born on third base and thought that he hit a triple” — more resembled Ted Kennedy, a gregarious rogue enabled by wealth, power, and a famous last name. The privilege that shielded the playboy senator from the consequences of his actions acted as a double-edge sword by ensuring that he also never learned from the mistakes he didn’t suffer from.

“I know it’s the law, but I’m a Kennedy.”

~ Jim Eltringham ~ Leave a comment

Massachusetts state law isn’t handed down by decree from the Kennedy compound in Hyannis – yet.  So Ted Kennedy has had to politely ask the leaders of his state government to change the laws which govern the filling of a Senate vacancy to allow the governor to directly appoint the next junior Senator from the Bay State.  Kennedy, who has been absent from most of the current Senate term, claims to be worried about Massachusetts having “continuity of representation.”  It seems clear that his worry stems from the current health care debate.

Despite its reputation as a deep blue abyss, Massachusetts Republicans have done well in statewide elections for most of the last two decades.  Those victories came on the back of an electorate which is largely registered “independent.”  Consider also some other possibilities: a bruising Democratic primary, or the chance of an independent jumping into the race (like former Democrat Tim Cahill, who is running an independent campaign for Governor).

It adds up to a lot more than a special election for an iconic seat in the Senate: it adds up to a multi-faceted referendum on President Obama’s health care reform plans.  And since it’s Massachusetts, where a Kennedy clone is expected, there are actually many ways this election can be portrayed as a “loss” for the President – and, more significantly, to the type of health care Kennedy champions.

Kennedy could have avoided this by stepping down several months ago, when a favorable political environment and an excited Democratic base would have made the popular vote on his hand-picked successor a formality.  Kennedy lost that opportunity, which is why he is now asking the state to crown his heir by selection, rather than election.

The guys having the beer already agree

~ Jim Eltringham ~ Leave a comment

One week ago today, the Cambridge Police Department and Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates released a joint statement, with both sides admitting the professor’s arrest was a “regrettable” escalation, and that dropping the charges of disorderly conduct was a “just resolution” to all sides.  Both sides had kissed and made up when, hours later, the President accused one side of “acting stupidly” – a statement which, while apparently true, was just as apparently incomplete.

Now, someone has lost their job over it. Lee Landor, an aide to Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, criticized Obama’s criticism on Facebook, stating that arresting officer James Crowley was doing his job.  In another post, she called Sharptonian racial arsonists to task be questioning the idea that all white people in positions of power are evil racists.  According to Stringer’s flack, Landor’s comments “were totally inappropriate and in direct contradiction to the views of the borough president and his office.”  I’m not sure what parts of Cambridge, Mass. fall under the jurisdiction of the Manhattan Borough President, but apparently disagreement on this local issue and the national politics surrounding it constituted an irreconcilable difference.  Landor was forced to resign today (adding one more to the unemployment rolls).

The President will invite Gates and Crowley to the White House so they can make up “officially” and look like a peacemaker.  Crowley will, if he wants it, gain a degree of notoriety as the victim of a witch hunt at the hands of Sharpton and his ilk.  And for a professor who heads a department named after a Marxist who renounced his American citizenship, a racially-tinged flap with the police is a guaranteed moneymaker – Gates could make six figures talking at campuses in the next month and never leave Massachusetts.  Hopefully, Landor can find a way cash in on her involvement in this controversy as well.