Style over substance? It seems to me that Joan defines "substance" as fealty to hard left policies, and style as adherence to more manistream American values. Yes, it is a burden to be a know-it-all woman, who is as likable as many men's first ex wife. But that is not why she will lose. She will lose because people in Massachusetts are NOT all left wing yahoos, they are mainstream people who share Scott's values and views.

Thank you, Joan, for outlining all the reasons why I and millions of other voters will be sending Scott Brown back to Washington! Obamacare, the Dream Act, repealing the Bush tax cuts...they are all issues on which you and Elizabeth Warren are hopelessly out of touch with the people of Massachusetts. (Those of us, that is, who are neither firmly ensconced on a public payroll or milking the system for public assistance.) I can't wait to read your column on November 7, when you update Pauline Kael's famous remark, changing it to "I can't believe Scott Brown won. I don't know anyone in Cambridge, Brookline or here at the Globe who voted for him!"

The fact she exploited the affirmative action sytem to get herself to the top of her profession is enough to lose my vote. If she's a proud Native-American, why did she stop mentioniong it once she secured tenure at Harvard?

Massachusetts voters DO care about the issues and that's why Scott Brown will trounce Elizabeth Warren in the election. Most voters aren't single issue voters but rather will conduct their due dilligence on all of the positions of each candidate. "If Brown beats Warren, it will be another triumph of style over substance and fuzziness over clarity" is far from the reasons while she will get "hammered" on November 6th. Warren is a liar, a phoney and the most unappealing candidate ever to run as a Dermocrat in a state-wide election in Massachusetts. Changing her jacket won't matter one bit, she's is woeful. Joan's 'you go girlfriend' column won't sway a single vote.

Professor Warrei is a first class FRAUD. She is an insult to normal Democrats. She makes Martha Coakley look warm and fuzzy ! Scott Brown will trounce her in November.

Sadly for the choice given the Massachusetts voters, Warren is a weak candidate. But Brown carries the albatross of Republican distortion, myopia, and poor judgment. Is there a place to vote for None of the Above on the ballot?

How embarrasing for women that Elizabeth Warren can't speak for herself. She stands begind Deval Patrick who answers the tough questions for her. Her latest ads have other people speaking for her because people jsut don't trust her. Not exactly qualifications to represent us in the Senate.

Hmm. I'm sure I read this same column at Blue Mass Group or was it the Warren for Senate campaign site?  Obviously, Joan's two week enforced vacation taught her little. 

Your analysis is what every Warren supporter knew months ago.  Time to get rid of the old publicists.  They have the light of Elizabeth Warren under a basket.  Your column lists the many differences between Warren and Brown.  I'm sure, for brevity's sake, you left out many unilateral Brownies.  The latest, of course, is that he conceived and sponsored the Insider Trading Bill.  False.  Goes way back to Baird and Slaughter, around 2006.  What Brown did was lift language from Kristin Gillibrand D-NY.  He did it so hastily to be "first" that his own party junked it.  Awful.  I also especially like Brown's influence-peddling.  Why don't we hear more of this issue?  I think lobbying the Senate President and the Governor for a slots license is certainly important in these "casino times."  How about his votes previous to this?  There is the Shameful Trio:  votes against supplemental budgets for the disabled and disadvantages, against school meals for city kids and...against the blind!  And some misguided folks want to sent him back as a senator from Massachusetts?  Really contraindicated!

Hope the campaign sees this: As a strong support of Elizabeth Warren, how come I don't know off the top of my head the "BIGGEST, BADDEST FIVE VOTES" that Brown has taken? Why was it left for this columnist to have to dig them up? Everyone in Massachusetts should know them by heart. The "Biggest & Baddest"...Warren campaign, please wake up and get the word out about the phony "bi-partisanship" of the incumbent, Barn coat Brown. It seems obvious you need to do that. PS: How about Elizabeth stepping out of a truck in a barn coat. I see some possibilities of parody here. She can give us not only the barn coat but a little more. That would't be very hard.

Warren is so wrong for Massachusetts for sooooooo many reasons. Your article smacks of nothing more than a whinefest amid growing concern that Warren may not win!!!!! I'm surprised you didn't mention Fox News........aren't they somehow to blame for her current status in the polls? If she can't manage her campaign.....how is she going to function as our Senator?

In the substance department, or lack thereof, within days of the killing, Sen. Brown claimed he had been briefed on the killing of Osama Bin Laden and he also stated unequivocally that he had seen pictures of the dead man. Neither statement was true. Sen. Brown also stated that he engaged in conversations with kings, queens and prime ministers on a regular basis as a part of his job as senator. Why are these fabrications not mentioned? The basic virtue of untruth-telling (P.C. language) is sorely lacking in Sen. Brown. How can we believe anything he says?

Joan Vennochi ought to go for a color test if she Senator Brown's barn jacket and Elizabeth Warren's red jacket are  similar.

Personal characteristics or distinguishing features are used to identify character and to date Elizabeth Warren's integrity and abilities have imploded before our eyes. She readily stepped back when asked questions about her falsified native Indian background and more or less hid behind  Gov. Deval Patrick. She is all bluster and blather, which is a turn off in negotiation and unfit to perform as a successful team player. She doesn't have the characteristics to be successful in Washington: although her handlers claim they can press her into a mold in time to fool the voters.

However, Senator Brown has been devoted to his constituents. He has worked hard in Washington and we have observed his personal characteristics which demonstrate his integrity and personality. Sen. Brown collaborates with his political collegaues and his demeanor speaks more highly of him than that reflected by Professor Warren.

I've been waiting for months to hear Elizabeth Warren state what she is for and how her positions will help us (as opposed to general statements like "the system is rigged"). She needs an ad where she clearly states her positions and how she differs from Scott Brown. Lets hope she reads Joan Vennocci's essay and applies it to her campaign.

The state doesn't need two no-show senators.  This is why Sen. Brown will win handily in November.  

Joan - Style and substance do not have to be mutually exclusive. You may not agree with all of Senator Brown's positions, but that does not mean he lacks substance. I believe that Senator Brown will represent the people more effectively than Professor Warren. Your column suggests that a vast majority of Massachusetts voters agree with your positions. If Professor Warren gets elected, how effective will she be as she tries to navigate the political landscape of Capital Hill with her my way or the highway tone? Senator Brown can accomplish more by working with his Senate colleagues to find common ground and identify true solutions. It is easy to look at certain votes and make general assumptions on his true positions. He votes against certain bills because they did not properly solve the problems not because he was totally against it.

This is not a good day for Romney or Brown. Romney has been thoroughly discredited vis a vis his actions and thoughts on foreign policy in almost every news item around the world: http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/13/opinion/avlon-romney-libya-attack/index.html How about unintended consequences? Well, it's keeping Scott Brown's latest venture into the world of fantasy off the front page. Forget the Kings & Queens or his questionable military record; this is plagiarism. This is grandstanding at its worst. The Insider Trading Bill had language lifted 'in toto' from Kristin Gillibrand's D- NY bill. Brownie's bill was just put together so hastily to get the "me first" award that the GOP leadership scuttled his version of the bill! Another instance of Brown projecting himself into situations that he could never accomplish on his own, like a Medal of Honor, or Character or even something thoughtful! Yep, Brown is the big winner today. Guy leads a charmed life...covered in Teflon. It seems the electorate would rather play Cowboys and Indians. Sad.

Does Warren have to pay for this ad in the editorial pages or do Vennochi and the Globe do it for free?  Ask around.  NOBODY wants a senator from Oklahoma, picked by a Chicago politician, at the expense of Democrats who are from this state exiting the race, as their senator from Massachusetts!  Liz Warren makes Martha Coakley look good!  Shame on you Joan.

If we found out this month that Scott Brown had been checking off the "African-American" box on job applications during a 10 year span at some point during his career, without providing any evidence other than family lore, Joan Venocchi would demand he resign his Senate seat immediately, no questions asked. 

Talk about style over substance, Joan. 

Nice to see Joan back after her two week gardening leave.  Hey Joan, who plagiarizes from Todd bleepin' Domke?  Slightly disingenuous to say that Brown "supports the current withdrawal plan" rather than Brown "supports President Obama's withdrawal plan".

JV: You nailed the description of Warren: "too shrill, too stiff, too rich, or simply too uppity" ...thanks so much!, like I couldn't tell.

Help me get this straight Joanie. You propose the sheep...er, voters, of Massachusetts elect a carpet bagging liar who supports a "pull-the-lever" left wing agenda over a moderate Massachusetts native who has demonstrated a willingness to listen to both sides before he casts his vote? How much did Lizzie the Liar tuck into your envelope to write this rubbish Joanie?

http://howiecarr.us/2012/08/30/another-globe-columnist-suspended/

All I can say is with the image I have of Mz Warren...I can't see her going toe to toe over issues with the likes of Harry Reid or Chuck Schumer.  She will simply be someone's puppet.

I really believe the middle class voters in this state, like someone said - those NOT on public payroll or government entitlements, are tired of being yelled at by people like Ms. Warren.

We do what we're supposed to; work every day to support ourselves and our families, pay our taxes on time, do volunteer work, raise our children to be a plus to society - and here comes the likes of Warren pointing her finger at us telling us we didn't do it on our own.  Talk about a slap on the face.  And to boot, if you disagree with things like abortion, gay marriage, etc... you're a hater.

Either way we cannot win.  At least Brown isn't yelling at me everytime I see him on tv.  And, I do believe he has his constituents welfare first and foremost, more than I can say for Warren who'd vote party line every time.

The voters of MA must be awfully dumb, that's all I can say. We're too dumb to see how great Warren is, despite the image she has created for herself. "What you see is what you get" ads, according to Vennochi, have been a waste of millions of dollars because ... we, the voters, are supposed to see beyond what she projects in the ads; how can we do that if we're so superficial that Brown's "style over substance" is winning us over? If we're being "bamboozled", maybe Warren needs to dumb herself down to appeal to us, you know?

Spot-on, Joan. Elizabeth, run with this advice and run on your merits, which are numerous and impressive.
Quit hiding your light under a bushel. We need you, and we need you to show what you're made of. Now.

The lady's got chops, class and brains. Ck out what's there to be seen:
http://www.democracynow.org/2011/7/19/ralph_nader_obama_is_a_political

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-09-13/scott-brown-wall-streets-hope-to-stop-elizabeth-warren

Just so no one ever accuses me of being one of "the sisters". Mostly, considering the political gender gap, I'm embarrassed for women.

I was enjoying Scott Brown's homesy-folksy barncoat "postcards from Massachusetts" ads, especially the attractive Gloucester seascape, until someone pointed out that his intention to remove the regulations and benefit the fishing fleet would help to wipe out the fishing stock. No limits, no fish. Hmmmm. A review of Scott Brown's campaign contributions opens the door to an actual scene of a different kind....vats of lobbying groups with the financials, banking and other, chief among them. As one of the squeezed and hammered middle class, I'm attaching my wagon to Elizabeth Warren's star. Her action to set up the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was the single most important step to liberate the ordinary person from confiscatory financial practices in the US. She is a necessary person, and I hope Massachusetts voters come to realize how important she is to the future of this country.

Sadly, this editorial is I am afraid correct.  It should NOT be but it is.  Such is the reality of things political.  I remember when I was a freshman at BU in the late 60's Senator Teddy Kennedy was the speaker and he dared tell us that the boys if they want political input and to be taken seriously must cut their hair.  We all booed but decades later when I thought of that episode I knew he was exactly correct.  Yes, we all should have the right to be ourselves but when we want things political, things that require the elecotrate to vote for us we MUST conform to its appearace mandate and conform to it  or risk losing that which only political power can gain.

Let me go on record by saying I LOVE Elizabeth Warren and would do a cartwheel if it could get her elected.  I would do anything because she is THAT GOOD and INFINITELY more knowledgeable and smarter by yards than Scott with a truck Brown could ever think of being. Moreover, she is a progressive to her core and so am I.  I WANT her to win which is why I say Ms. Venocchi is right and it is sad to me that her campaign did not see that.  I love her hair, her wirerims, and every other thing about her that makes her look academic.  But how many think as I do?  It is a SAD SAD commentary about the Masaschusetts electorate that they would let something SO stupid as a guy having a truck or looking so good with family in tow to persuade them to vote for Brown.  Clearly Warren is the BEST choice and a price above rubies. I hope, however, Elizabeth reads Ms. Venocchi's article because there is sill time to change the image.  Sadly, our culture dictates that she should.

If Warren loses this it wont be because voters didn't bother to look for the real Liz Warren it will because they did.

It is really funny that Joan is calling Scott "flash" - really? The Globe had an article stating he was the second most bi-partisan Senator in Congress, but yet, he is this "awful" Republican - so was the globe article a lie? He hasn't broken lines with his party to vote on what is right? I can tell you I believe we will get more balanced, bipartisan representation from Brown versus Warren.

 He has stated, and his website states, he is pro-choice. He did vote AGAINST extending the tax cuts for everyone.

What is missing from this article is Warren's MILLIONS of dollars in various investments - yet, she is just a "regular" person. I have no problem with her success - what I do have a problem with is her lying and her statements that she is a regular person. Regular people do not have 7 - 8 figures in investments. She also refused to meet with the American Indian delegates of the Democratic Party - they are members of her own party, yet she doesn't want to meet with them. I find that interesting to say the least.

This article is important for two reasons. First, it succinctly points out the real choices we have on election day. Second— and more sadly— it shines a light on the dismal treatment of women candidates in the Bay State. Part of the problem lies with the local media, who never fail to trump up issues of "likeability"— a debate that is as unwinnable as it is irrelevant. But at the end of the day, the heart of this very deep and very real dysfunction lies with the voters— and this includes a surprising number of women— who can't accept strong female leaders. Why is this? Why is it easier for a woman to get elected to state-wide office in Texas then here in Massachusetts? If a candidate as capable, articulate, polished and, yes, tough as Elizabeth Warren can't get elected in this state, then the entire electorate needs a giant group therapy session.