When Whittaker Chambers broke with the Communist Party, he declared that he knew he was “leaving the winning side for the losing side.” Compared with today’s Massachusetts GOP, Chambers was a cockeyed optimist.
Last week’s election was a misery for Bay State Republicans. US Senator Scott Brown lost his “people’s seat” to Elizabeth Warren. Scandal-tainted incumbent John Tierney survived Richard Tisei’s challenge in the 6th Congressional District. And the tiny Republican band on Beacon Hill grew tinier: Three GOP state representatives were ousted, giving Democrats a 130-30 advantage in the House and 36 of the Senate’s 40 seats.
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..."that empowers its citizens with autonomy and initiative." Isn't that just another mendacious, Republican way of saying: "your on your own." Until the Right understands that the people of Massachusetts actually like government as our partner but dislike government dictating invasive social policy the Republican party will continue to lose and descend into further "flacidness" if not total irrelevance. Here's a better piece of advice for the GOP: "If you can't beat 'em join 'em."
"flaccidity" , better than "flacidness".
Jeff, perhaps the modern republican party (as opposed to the pre-Reagan republican party that wasn't collared up by the religious right) might take a field trip over to the offices of the Boston Herald and tell the paper to tone the anti-mainstream venom down a notch or twelve.
Massachusetts is one of the most educated states in the country, has a lower unemployment rate than the country (although the recent upward tick is disturbing) and is miles ahead of the rest of the country on most social issues. Despite the introduction of gay marriage, the sun did indeed still rise this morning as it has every time. This state has the highest percentage of residents with health insurance and making me proud of this does not, as most denizens of the Herald like to claim, make me a socialist. I type this on a Sunday morning prior to 7 am, and before the day is over I will have put in at least 6-7 hours of work into my career on a day when many rest.
Perhaps the Mass GOP needs to be honest with itself and ask if the hypocritical likes of Howie Carr and Jeff Jacoby are the best the party can offer up as the flag-bearers of public opinion in media & print. Perhaps it should ask itself if political consultant and Herald columnist Holly Robichaud should be allowed to accept money from Republican candidates and villify their opposition in print under the illusion of legitimate commentary.
As Bill Parcells correctly noted once, you are what you record says you are. Perhaps the Massachusetts GOP party and it's water carriers need to stop blaming the electorate and look in the mirror. A little more intellectual honesty and less intentional deception and diversion when cornered wouldn't hurt you either, Jeff.
Our state is in trouble - I now say you can elect a ham sandwich if they have a D after their name.
The past three speakers of the house are convicted felons - a congressman with severe ethically problems was re-elected - the state government won't investigate democratic politicians - the Federal government has to step in.
I would say the Democratic Party has a problem not the Republican party.
tsynchronous embodies a significant problem within the GOP faithful: They declare that Massachusetts is in "trouble".
The significant problem is false fear mongering. It is rampant on the national stage with the republican party and is religiously repeated over and over in the republican media (Fox News).
Republicans make all these fantastical fear mongering claims instead of living in reality, and expect results from this form of cohersion. This was plainly evident on Fox News throughout this long, long campaign and its failure was evident on election night when Karl Rove was beside himself when the American populace rejected his strategy and voted their conscience.
You folks can only cry wolf so many times before people ignore you. And that is starting to happen for the betterment of this nation.
Jeff Jacoby continues to cherry pick his sources. Sutton, a central Massachusetts town, is deeply Republican and its tiny band express a rabid overzealous individualism that is exclusionary. Not everyone mind you, but Scott Brown 67.1% of the vote went to Scott Brown. That means Sen Brown had about 3800 votes. Now Mr. Jacoby wants to extrapolate from there to conjure up a Republican political strategy for the rest of the state. Sutton is a cloistered non diverse ultra-conservative community. It is not an example for lessons learned by this election. The problem with the present Republicans are their values not a losing game plan. "Limited government, liberty, and low taxes" reflect certain after effects of values but they are not values. It leaves any potential voter with no idea what kind of societal security or choices are being selected for governmental action or non action by Republicans. However once Republicans made clear that mores, lifestyles, education, foreign relations, and economic opportunity had a narrow focus and only benefits a decided minority their grassroots push will fall apart. Anything designated as "grassroots" by the GOP had its origins with usual suspects, the Koch Brothers, the Heritage Foundation, the Cato Institute, etc. The unyielding entitlement of such groups will just not sell to the overwhelming majority of people of Massachusetts. The zero sum game played by such reactionary Republicans, namely I win you lose, was clearly a loser in this state. Of course nothing will stop this tiny club from using their money to make you think otherwise.
Instead looking at a Red state-Blue state map, look at a breakdown by counties. You find a concentration of blue around urban centers- those areas which feature higher education, medical institutions, high tech and the fine arts. There are still plenty of red areas which have fewer of these amenities. In a purple state, Democrats seem to have the upper hand, but not at the exclusion of all others.
Jeff, before the party focuses on "grass roots" it needs a serious dose of honesty and integrity and pretty much a new message. Because their social assault, protectionism for the wealthy, and their villanization of the poor, just isn't going to work.
No matter how hard Fox News tries to lie. It just isn't going to work.
Jeff jacoby is a clown.
His voter suppression column two weeks ago should have ended his Globe career.
No, Jeff. The GOP needs to analyze what it is in their bahavior and party platform that is repugnant to most americans. Take a stab at it. I'm pretty sure a schoolchild could tell you what is wrong.
Oh Jeff, I case you haven't noticed, this is a great place to live. Education, health, the arts, recreation far surpass most of the red states you adore. The Mass GOP will never be anymore here until it convinces us that, unlike its national cousins, it will stay out of the bedroom and get into working to make life better for our citizens who are the only special interest group that counts. The real enemies of the GOP are the Herald, the Roves, Fox News and the radical crazies who have become the Republican Party in all of our minds. As a good Democrat, I say, "Keep it up!"
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Scott,
It wasn't the lack of "grassroots". It was the completely idiotic message that doomed the GOP this time.
I never thought I would say this, but Michael Steele seems like the most reasonable adult in the Reublican room.
Democracy is so inconvenient, isn't it, Mr Jacoby? Massachusetts voters are remarkably consistent in their rejection of Republican ideas and methods, and it's all their fault. The problem is not with us, it's with the GOP. I don't hear conservatives bewailing Republican domination in the former Confederacy. I'm proud to be from Massachusetts. Clearly you're not.
Mean Willie, more and more people are proud of being FROM Massachusetts.
Poor Jeffy. He can’t figure out why nobody likes him, or his fellow conservatives. He can’t quite grasp that he has brought this upon himself. Time after time, he writes these Op-ed columns which are nothing more than the extremely negative talking points of Fox News and hate-talk radio. He’s trying to catch his fair share of flies with vinegar rather than honey. Does he really think that this constant flow of evil, wicked, mean and nasty extremist ideology is going to win friends? How about this: instead of tearing down the opposition by attacking them, how about touting the virtues of conservatism in positive language? It would be a real challenge to for him to put a sugar-coating on the inherent flaws of radical right-wing philosophy- the idiocracy of misogyny, racism, class warfare on the poor, support for the 1%, the preference for myth over science, the bullying of Grover Norquist ,and the plutocracy of the super-rich. Can he give up his barrage of pro-corporate propaganda and try to appeal to the closet Republicans and moderates here in the mostly blue state of Massachusetts? Good luck.
In my opinion, Scott Brown lost in part because of the "R" by his name and in part because of his important votes with the party of no. (Sorry, the party of "No, we're not the party of no, no we're not!"). No compromise. No taxes, no letting go of the Norquist pledge. Until they drop the Norquist pledge (an unelected wealthy man should not control the entire party's fiscal policy). No on government interference in personal lives (except in cases of gay marriage or abortion, of course). Romney held virtually every position on every issue. Brown lied in his ads, both about Elizabeth Warren's record and, more importantly his own record. I expect him to distort Warren's record, but the lies about the STOCK Act and his moderation, coupled with vast overstatements of his accomplishments, especially his claim that he served in Afghanistan, when he was there for 2 weeks or less were something I couldn't get past. Brown claimed on some votes that he liked the idea but not the bill. I'd believe that, it does happen, but I don't trust him to betray his masters (McConnell and Norquist) and vote for a different bill which addresses his alleged concerns. Sorry, Jeff, but unless the MA GOP secedes from the national GOP, they may well be, if not dead, then critical. At least until or unless the national GOP gets a clue. I am not holding my breath
I've got to agree with you. In this moderate to liberal state being a Democrat helps, although there are areas of Mass where there are a significant number of Republicans, and most voters are unenrolled.
Contrary to what some Republicans say, though, it's still possible for them to win elections. Scott Brown won and has his chance, but he left too many cards on the table. Everybody liked him, but his performance wasn't satisfactory.
Most Republicans have a loser mentality and blame their loses on ignorant voters, when the real fault is with the party and the candidates. Mr. Romney was governor before Deval Patrick, but he didn't perform very well. There were 3 Republican governors before Romney, who served with varying degrees of success. Only Bill Weld stood out. They were all moderates who were socially liberal. That is the key, I think.
I seems more like Massachusetts and New England are ripe environments for the establishment of a party dedicated to fiscal responsibility and moderation on social issues (you know, the philosophy the current GOP/Tea Party rejects as RINO values). Since the two dominant parties have been taken over by extremists, it is time to jettison them, along with their mouthpieces such as Jacoby, Graham, Savage, Sevrin(o), and Limbaugh.
I disagree that "the two dominant parties have been taken over by extremists", though I do believe the GOP has been over-run by extremist rhetoric, and is in the bag for the 1%. The GOP once stood for social liberalism and true fiscal conservatism,and desperately needs to find their way back to those principles to have any hope of relevancy in the 21st century, rather than continue down the path of Ailes and Rove to oblivion. The apologists and hate mongers you list (Jacoby, Graham, Savage, Sevrin, Limbaugh) are but the symptoms, not the disease.
I try to be neutral on matters such as this. I try to adhere to principles of moderation, so the things that count for me are those concerned with our nation being strong (strong healthcare, strong education, strong economy, and yes, strong military). We'll have to agree to disagree on a few points, such as whether the Democrats are suffering a similar problem. I will freely acknowledge that 'Blue Dogs' and 'New Democrats' are a welcome element. I think the GOP has been irreversibly, and hostilely taken over by the extremists you mention, the mouthpieces I mentioned, and throw in some 1%-er financiers as well. Some things aren't worth 'taking back' and are better jettisoned to history.
Nice puff piece, but I suggest you keep searching. Fattman is 28 years old with no experience outside of politics since his 2007 graduation from Suffolk, and no legislative record of any consequence since his 2010 election. According to Votesmart.org, "Ryan Fattman refused to tell citizens where he stands on any of the issues addressed in the 2012 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart, national media, and prominent political leaders." This is the best you've got??? Bill Weld had a career, a reocord, positions, brains, and purpose. That how he won in an overwhelming D state. Fattman ain't no Weld. As Romney found out, only zealots and fools buy a candidate's policies sight unseen, or should expect the voters will.
Don't kid yourself. Bill Weld got elected because a lot of us on the left and in the middle voted against John Silber, the only time we voted for a Republican.
No disagreement, Weld was far and away the better candidate, regardless of the D or R, but that's my point.
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No, Jeff, it was all clearly explained this morning by the Democratic State Party chairman John Walsh when he was asked by Jon Keller on WBZ what the Republicans have to do here, and he said "Sooner of later they have to have candidates that don't think rape is a good thing".
It's more that the GOP needs to stop thinking there's anything natural about rape. The GOP lost 2 Senate seats because their candidates put their idea that they have a right to make reproductive decisions for women out there.
I wonder how many on the right have similar views but also have enough sense to hold their tongues for political expediency. I suspect there were at least several more such candidates and a whole slew of the rank and file.
Correction of typo -- because this has to be exactly right. John Walsh, Democrat chairman, when asked by Jon Keller what Republicans have to do here to win, said "Sooner or later they have to have candidates that don't think rape is a good thing".
Perhaps your comment is too nuanced, but I sense that you are scornful of Mr Walsh's reply. Although the Republicans that you know and no doubt love here in Mass probably do not agree in any way, shape, or manner with the unfortunate sentiments regarding rape that have been uttered elsewhere, nevertheless we live in a polarized time. The GOP is notorious for being able to enforce party discipline and anything that makes the GOP stronger overall is frightening to those of us that don't rely on junk science and divine guidance for determining national policy. If only our local Republicans were indicative of how the national party might behave, the GOP would fare better here and elsewhere.
"meanwillie" As a fierce opponent of the religious right and the social conservatives, let me say, Amen.
As a fiscal conservative I wish the party would get over it.
jeff: It's because no one is buying that "liberty, limited government, and low taxes .. that empowers its citizens with autonomy and initiative” malarky. People here look around and see a rapacious wealthy elite and corporations running roughshod over us, their hopes of middleclass lifestyles disappearing, and they want a government that is going to try and do something about it, not suck up to the very powers that are threatening us. Fortunately, in Mass. it's only a minority of average people who buy into the Repug attempt to divide average people with their "takers" and "givers" and "47% losers." Though one wouldn't always know that reading the small minority of wingnuts who gather at boston.com every day to spread their venom.
read any random half dozen of Jacoby's columns and you understand why Mass Republicans are repudiated by voters.
my only question is why the Globe keeps this hack. perhaps the same reason why Dick Morris and Karl Rove will always have employment.
The Massachusetts electorate is smarter by far than the red state national electoral composition. The Republican extremist brand has been tainted by its national reality and its identity of cruel, hardened, often nativistically racist and belligerent, extremist religious ideologues. It is the party of the loathsome idiotic social issues which if one is a Republican and especially if one seeks national office they have to face and worse of which they must be a part it taints state Republican would be office holders as well. The Republican economic philosophy if one can manage to see it through all the rest of the noise, is palatable and understandable. Even I a staunch Democrat can see that certain spending must be curtailed. The question becomes WHICH spending but that is another issue. As I see it the albatross around Republican necks everywhere is a Republican national minority with its backward stances in science and human rights has lassoed, hog tied and imprisoned the rest of Republican Party that is somewhat saner making it irrelevant to sustain a nation or even to save human existence. Yes, the acknowledging of climate change, man's contribution to global warming and science in general CANNOT be denied if one wants a nation let alone a world to survive. In a modern culture one cannot be anti choice, anti birth control, anti stem cell research, anti evolution and anti all the things progressives have won for human rights whether it's for women, for African Americans, for the disabled, for those who need health care and think that they are the party of the future. They are NOT. They are the party of regression and IF given majorities will inflict primarily one thing -- death. Death of who have fallen victim to economic forces of which they had no control. Thankfully, it seems at least for now nationally many people have seen the light. One cannot go backwards rendering the American people to a dumbed down laughing stock nation threatening survival. It is now an existential choice. The Republican Party makes no room for diversity of the human condition. Jeff, you and your academically challenged party LOST and I am supremely happy about that!
Those who put an R after their names indicated that they were wit the Republican Party whose Platform was very clear this year.
LIBERTY from regulation for corporations. No LIBERTY when it comes to gay marriage.
LIMITED GOVERNMENT when it comes to regulations and the social safety net. No LIMIT when it comes to defense spending.
LOWER TAXES on the wealthy and on corporations. REGRESSIVE TAXES and FEES for everyone else.
Many who "signed the pledge" found out that Americans think that a no tax pledge is irresponsible, epecially when signed by the party that put TWO WARS ON A CREDIT CARD.
Jeff, it is not that we don't understand the Republican Platform. It really is that we disagree with it. That when push comes to shove we would rather live in a nation in which homelessness, and poor educational outcomes, and access to high quality affordable health care, and a welcome home for every veteran are everyone's problem and everyone shares in the solution.
Yes, you could have those things in your back pocket and still be rejected as long as Michael Graham et al supported it.
Congratulations Jeff! For speaking your mind in an open manner, you get villified by the very people whose minds are closed, yet who call themselves liberal. They have no difficulty in letting an obviously inane comment about rape drive them into a frenzy of voting D, but who forget or give a free pass to Biden's idiocy--and he's a heartbeat away from the presidency... Why do they forget obama's broken promises, including deficit AND unemployment reduction, his administration-led payoffs of the "banksters", imperial rule by flouting our Constitution, etc.? Perhaps it's because they don't hear about it because they LITERALLY don't hear about it. It's buried by the media. While insisting on a second opinion on medical issues, they wouldn't be caught dead actually checking out FOX News for themselves. They won't even ask themselves WHY FOX's viewership keeps growing while its competitors wither.
Based on this analysis, Brow, up from local to state to national government, should have won. 'Nuff said.
Um, Brown....