Scott Brown
True confession: I grew up in your basic liberal New York Democratic household (I can hear you going: Noooo!). So when I went down to New York for a funeral a couple weeks back, family members kept asking me, basically, what the hell happened in Massachusetts (well, to be clear, not at the funeral).
Now local Republicans are getting a taste of that: Garrett Quinn rounds up local Republican reaction to the outrage from true believers westa Wuhstuh:
... Throughout his Obama-esque campaign Brown didn't project himself as anything other than "a man of the people" and instead created a screen for people to project on. He became this blank canvas for Massachusetts voters where they could paint their frustrations with Washington and Beacon Hill. The general consensus among local GOP activists I talked with during the campaign was that if he ran as a strong conservative he would not have won. One local blogger had harsh words for those who did not understand this fact of Massachusetts politics. ...
Conor Yunits provides a taste of what some non-Mass. Republicans are saying about Brown today.
Rightwingers try to console themselves that Brown actually voted with Democrats on something.
Closer to home, Marjorie Aron-Barrons give Brown an attaboy for exercising some independent thought.
I didn't vote for Brown, doubt I will in two years, but in this video, is he really attempting to legitimize a suicidal murderer or is he just being incredibly clumsy in a live interview? I think he's trying to deflect Faux's attempt to make the loser a martyr, because he says he hopes the guy isn't connected to the sort of real anger he claims got him elected, but that he just completely mangled the thought. But maybe I'm missing something (if so, fire away):
Garth and Wayne move over. Party on Jonas and Swartz!
The halcyon days of Massachusetts' elected representatives driving the federal government's agenda is back according to Gretchen Carlson, a graduate of Stanford University and hostess of Fox News' Fox and Friends: Read more
Via the Herald, which I think yesterday had a front-page story subtitled "Scott Brown's shadow to blot out sun," comes the drop-everything news that Barack Obama, Scott Brown related.
The Outraged Liberal notes a Washington Bureau preview of Obama's state-of-the-union address buys into the national-press mantra that the recent Senate election was all about health care when the Globe's homies in Boston are busy writing there were other issues involved:
... Maybe they should get out of Washington and come home a little more often. Or at least read their own paper. ...
But maybe that's still better than the Herald's obsession with Brown's treasure trail.
Yes, of course, somebody has put up a Web site to demand Brown produce a copy of his birth certificate. Specifically, Paul Day of Watertown.
Jay Fitzgerald cautions the Senator Elect against the tidelet of enthusiasm for him as a national candidate:
Is Brown the next Duke, Tsongas, Kerry and Romney? ... [T]hey're handy local reminders why Brown shouldn’t go down the constant-campaign road: Duke, '88; Tsongas, '92; Kerry, '04 and Romney, '08. One might as well add Weld and Cellucci to the list, if you’re counting all the annoying Massachusetts pols who mentally checked out early on us. ...
William Hudak, who tweeted and ran online ads promoting an endorsement from Scott Brown, posted a retraction today:
Bill Hudak, Republican Candidate for Congress, extends his formal apology to U.S. Senator-elect Scott Brown and for endorsement quotes contained in a campaign press release which were attributed to, but not made by, the newly elected Senator, and retracts the statements.
"Scott and I had several conversations where he pledged to provide support for me after the election. However, as a person new to politics, I took those conversations as permission to move and jumped the gun in the heat of the moment," Hudak said.
Via Dan Kennedy, who broke the initial story.
Bob LeLievre breaks down Coakley's large win in Boston by neighborhood, along with comparisons to 2006 numbers for Deval Patrick. Some interesting numbers: She lost South Boston, barely took West Roxbury, Charlestown and Tom Menino's redoubt of Readville, but got 96% of the vote in Mattapan and 92% in Roxbury.
Rob Sama pulls together the numbers, shows why even Barney Frank might have reason for concern.
Hudak and BrownUPDATE: The Brown campaign says it had nothing to do with an endorsement posted on Hudak's site. Dan Kennedy has the latest.
Our Senator-elect yesterday endorsed William Hudak of Boxford in his race against US Rep. John Tierney.
As Dan Kennedy reports, Hudak put up large signs in front of his house in 2008 showing Obama as Osama and believes Obama was born in Kenya. Kennedy says it's possible Brown didn't know Hudak thinks the president is illegally in office:
The question now is whether Brown has the guts and integrity to admit he made a mistake and withdraw his endorsement of Hudak.
Richard Howe posts some interesting Lowell numbers: Brown got only a few more votes yesterday than McCain did in 2008. But Coakley got fewer than half the votes Obama did:
... The Obama vote stayed home, and did not have to transfer to Brown for him to carry Lowell. ...
Tom Flanagan tweets maps showing towns north of Boston that voted heavily for Brown also have "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" high on their Netflix queues.
Via Aaron Cohen.
Also, Hitler reacts badly to the news of Coakley's defeat.
Look at the town-by-town results on boston.com and the results are pretty dramatic: Coakley basically won inside 128, the Rte. 2 corridor, the Berkshires western end of the state, Springfield and Worcester. Brown won pretty much everything else (but Flutie failed to carry Natick for Brown, so there is that). Suburbs basically beat the cities (except Lowell, which Brown took).
Republican bloggers are, obviously, more in the mood to party than analyze tonight (in fact, Red Mass. Group is liveblogging from the Brown victory party), while Democratically inclined bloggers are more inclined to analyze how the bluest state in the nation just sent a conservative Republican to Washington:
Boston Maggie: How does it feel? It feels good.
Jay Fitzgerald, who predicted a Coakley win this morning, reports he is pleased to be wrong:
... The most stunning political state upset in my lifetime. ...
Mark Sullivan: We just cracked open the champagne. Read more
Dave Beard at boston.com tweets at 9:15 that Coakley has called Brown to concede.
Channel 5: 52-47 Brown with 92% of precincts reporting, 9:46 p.m.
Boston results - Coakley, 69-30 at 9:40.
What are you seeing out there?
As Johnk notes, yesterday Scott Brown denounced a rumored pro-Coakley visit by Obama, saying "they're bringing in outsiders and we don't need them."
This morning, Brown was in the North End, campaigning with Giuliani.
50-46, the Herald reports.
If Scott Brown manages to pull off a stunning upset on Tuesday, what will be the ramifications?
1. Galvanize the GOP Nationally -- A Brown win would galvanize the GOP nationally. The symbolic value of a conservative Republican taking the seat held for decades by arch enemy Ted Kennedy in a historically Democratic state would be earth shattering. It would open the conservative fundraising spigots and pump steroids into the GOP base less than two years after it was on the ropes in the wake of the 2008 election. Read more
Compare Brown's kitchen with Flaherty's: Read more
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