Irony In The Corner Office

Yesterday's Boston Globe Magazine featured an article by freelance writer Tom Keane who wrote about the failures of the Patrick administration. At the top of p.6 is a picture of Governor Patrick standing in front of a podium with the words "Together We Can" printed in white over a blue background. That campaign sign is roughly torn in two unequal parts. In the run-up to the election, Mr. Patrick suggested that a Democrat could work better and accomplish more with the Democratic majority than could a Republican. In the rest of the world, that idea certainly fits with common sense, but looking at it through the lens of the State House, the opposite is true. Mr. Keane attributes gubernatorial missteps and miscalculations as contributing reasons for the lack of accomplishment, but in addition to that states that Massachusetts needs a Republican governor to keep the Dems in check. "An insider to the party cannot simultaneously be an outsider. The pressure for jobs, political rewards, and horse-trading are too powerful." He goes on to say the GOP must have a viable candidate and names three. The first is Charlie Baker, CEO of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. As an aside, Mr. Baker recently visited the Wachusett Community at a turn-out fundraiser in Holden for State Representative Lew Evangelidis. Second is Christy Mihos, then Scott Brown, State Senator from Wrentham.

At the close of the article, the author throws out the underwhelming figure of 11.6% of Massachusetts voters being registered Republicans. So how does he think the GOP is apt to get their candidate elected? Highlighted and bolded on p.6, "The key to GOP success in 2010 is independence, not ideology." Focus on fiscal conservativism as opposed to the far right social ideology being presented by some national figures. Mr. Keane states that the three aforementioned potential and current candidates do exactly that.

The subtitle sums up the gist of this article. "Is a GOP governor needed to balance the Democratic Legislature? One Democrat keeps bolstering the case."


Boston Globe Magazine, June 21, 2009, "Together No More" by Tom Keane, p.6
http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/articles/2009/06/21/is_a_gop_governor_needed_to_balance_the_democratic_legislature/