Chris Pinto: Moderate MA Democrats Being Left Out in Cold

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Chris Pinto, Guest MINDSETTER

With about two months to go before Massachusetts Democrats convene in Worcester for their convention, moderate Democrats and independent voters alike should feel left out in the cold by this year’s crop of democratic gubernatorial candidates. It may be spring, but that hasn’t thawed the desires of Martha Coakley and Steve Grossman to stake out ultra-liberal positions on everything from single-payer health care to a carbon tax and higher taxes for workers.

All of this is being done as the state's coffers swell with $500 million in additional tax revenue above what was projected in the budget. As they placate the ultra liberal kingmakers in Cambridge, the conservative Democrats and fiercely independent voters that dominate Central MA are left in the dust and that creates a golden opportunity for the GOP.

With every attack traded between Steve Grossman and Martha Coakley, the GOP’s chances to retake the corner office look better and better. As the Democrat frontrunners engage in what The Boston Globe called an "unabashed race" for their party's most extreme left wing, Central MA voters of all stripes will see little to cheer about in this nasty primary. Grossman’s seemingly endless umbrage pours out week after week, reminding us that Coakley flip-flopped and now supports drivers’ licenses and in-state college tuition for illegal immigrants. Mr. Grossman took aim at her in the name of “criminal justice” and right on cue Coakley walked away from a moderate position on the three strikes law to woo party extremists. From an Attorney General who famously declared, “technically, it’s not illegal to be illegal in Massachusetts” these lurches to the left will only further damage her standing among moderate voters here that expect the state’s top cop to enforce the laws.

Currying favor among the Party’s elite has a price. Coakley’s vague education platitude or, ‘plan’ will cost at least $1.5 billion according to a new report on universal pre-K. Meanwhile, Grossman who called Deval Patrick’s $1.9 billion tax plan “aspriational” has, promised to spend “billions and billions” in taxpayer dollars at a recent college Democrat event. Sounds a lot like a return to “taxachusetts” - the same out of control spending that compelled voters to send Republicans to the corner office to clean up the Democrats’ mess.

The only thing better for the GOP’s chances than Coakley’s and Grossman’s rush to suck-up to the liberal elites of Cambridge and Amherst is Governor Patrick and how he has made incompetence a cornerstone of his administration. One scandal after another has enveloped the administration of a man who is inexplicably flirting with national ambitions. He has blown hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to take Massachusetts from first to worst in providing healthcare, and our state’s Health Connector website may not be functioning until this fall. If Grossman and Coakley were serious about addressing the concerns of voters in Central Massachusetts they would speak out about the $400 million in annual EBT fraud, and take a real stand on the human tragedies occurring within the Department of Children and Families. But to do so would mean opposing their leader – a hero among the diehards liberals who will decide their fate at the DCU center soon.

Chris Pinto is with the Worcester Republican City Committee

Related Slideshow: MA’s Biggest Political Comebacks in History

Prev Next

Congressman Jim McGovern

Lost first congressional run in 1994

McGovern first ran for Congress in 1994, but lost in the Democratic primary to Massachusetts State Representative Kevin O’Sullivan. McGovern ran again two years later and defeated Republican incumbent Peter Blute.

He would go on to be re-elected seven times to Massachusetts’ 3rd congressional district. Now in his ninth term, McGovern currently represents Massachusetts’ 2nd congressional district. He serves as the second ranking Democrat on the Rules Committee, and as a member of the House Agriculture Committee.

Prev Next

Former Gov. Michael Dukakis

Lost 1978 Democratic gubernatorial primary

After serving one term as Governor of Massachusetts, Dukakis was defeated by Edward King in the 1978 Democratic primary. Despite the major defeat, Dukakis was able to beat King four years later in the Democratic primary and would go on to win the general election against Republican opponent John Winthrop Sears. Dukakis also won re-election in 1986.

In addition to serving three terms as Governor, Dukakis also served four terms in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and was the Democratic Presidential nominee in 1988. Dukakis went on to serve for over a decade as a visiting professor at Northeastern University and as a lecturer in public management at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government.

Prev Next

Former Gov. Mitt Romney

Lost 1994 US Senate Race

After losing the 1994 U.S. Senate race to incumbent Ted Kennedy, Romney staged a huge political comeback in 2002 when he was elected Governor of Massachusetts. During his tenure, Romney signed Massachusetts’ health reform law, also known as “Romneycare” into law. In 2008, Romney ran an unsuccessful bid to secure his party’s Presidential nomination, but would go on to be the Republican Presidential nominee in 2012.

Romney has kept a low profile since losing to President Obama, but did join the board of Marriott International for a third stint as a director in December 2012. Outside of politics, Romney's positions have included being CEO of Bain Capital and president and CEO of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the 2012 Winter Olympic Games.

Prev Next

Former House Speaker Tip O’Neill

Lost first ever electoral bid

Although he is known as the second longest-serving House Speaker in US history, O’Neill’s political career actually began with defeat. In fact, O’Neill lost his first-ever electoral bid in 1932 when he ran for a seat on the Cambridge City Council. The defeat would prove to be an anomaly for O’Neill who would go on to be elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1936 and later, the US House of Representatives in 1953. During his 34-year tenure in the US House, O’Neill served as Speaker from 1977 until his retirement in 1987.

After his retirement, O’Neill published an autobiography in 1987 and was presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1991. He died in 1994 as the result of heart attack.

Prev Next

35th President John F. Kennedy

Lost vice presidential bid in 1956

Despite an unblemished electoral record that included being elected to the US House of Representatives in 1946 and the US Senate in 1952, Kennedy suffered an embarrassing loss in 1956 when he was the vice presidential candidate for Adlai Stevenson. One of the most lopsided elections in presidential history, incumbent President Dwight D. Eisenhower won 457 electoral vote compared to just 73 for Stevenson.

Kennedy would go on to win the presidency four years later by defeating then-Vice President Richard Nixon. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963 and is remembered as one of the most influential presidents in US history.

Prev Next

Former Senator Ted Kennedy

Lost 1980 Democratic presidential primary

After serving 18 years in the US Senate, Kennedy made his one and only bid for the presidency in 1980 and was defeated in the Democratic primary by incumbent President Jimmy Carter. Despite the tough loss, Kennedy would go on to serve in the US Senate until 2009, making him the fourth longest-serving senator in US history.

During his 47-year tenure, Kennedy played a major role in passing many laws that addressed health insurance, immigration, civil rights, education, and mental health benefits. He died of brain cancer in 2009.