PPP gives Fast Eddie Markey a 4 point lead over Gabriel Gomez. Emerson gives Markey a 6 point lead. WBUR gives Markey a 6 point lead too, 8 points if you count leaners. Suffolk gives Markey a whopping 17 point lead (outlier much?).
Of course anything can happen in the next two months and its anybody's ballgame. And Gomez ain't helping his case with news coming out about his 280,000 dollar tax "scam" today. (I didn't listen to Howie Carr's show today, but you know if it was a Democrat taking that tax money, Howie's whole show would have been about that.) The bottom line is that Markey can win. If Markey does win, his House seat opens up for a special election. The Democrat candidates are already raising tons of dough
State Senator Katherine Clark of Melrose narrowly led the way with $262,000, and had $257,000 in cash in the bank at the end of March. State Senator Will Brownsberger of Belmont raised $257,000, and had $247,000 in cash the bank at the end of last month. And State Representative Carl Sciortino of Medford raised $152,000, and had $139,000 in cash in the bank at the end of the quarter.
You can bet that right this second all of them are yanking cash out of Democrat wallets. So even if your working for that Democrat-lite Gabriel Gomez, its stupid to not be prepared. I remember this from a few months ago
Former Ashland Selectman Jon Fetherston Thursday pulled nomination papers for the U.S. Senate special election and said he will spend the next three weeks collecting the necessary 10,000 signatures to get his name on the ballot.
Fetherston, a true conservative and a team player, backed out of the Senate race and endorsed Michael Sullivan when Sullivan got in. But Fetherston was ready to move forward with a Senate run. He lives in Ashland, right in Eddie Markey's House district. If Markey wins the Senate seat, we need a House candidate. How about Jon Fetherston? Anybody know if he'll run? Draft effort?
The NRSC released a statement after the Washington Post mischaracterized Gomez as opposing abortion:
UPDATE: The NRSC responds with a statement: "The current Democratic Playbook doesn't seem to have a section on how to cover new Republicans like Gabriel Gomez. Gomez is a young, Hispanic, problem solving former Navy SEAL. National Tea Party groups say he is too centrist and Bay State women know he has the same position on life as John Kerry and Ted Kennedy. The cookie cutter attacks continue, but no one is buying them."
Thank you NRSC for clearing up any confusion prolifers may have had.
(It is important to defeat Markey. - promoted by Rob "EaBo Clipper" Eno)
It's been more than 24 hours since the polls closed and Gabriel Gomez was declared the winner, by a comfortable margin, of the Republican primary. Since then we have witnessed much teeth gnashing about how Gomez is not conservative enough, about how he doesn't deserve our support, about how it's time to take our ball and go home and sit out the general election.
To this line of thought I say simply, shut up, stop whining and think about what's at stake. Do you really want to be responsible for Ed Markey being elected as the next U.S. Senator from Massachusetts?
Yes, if you stay home and don't vote for Gomez you have contributed to the election of Ed Markey.
Yes, if you continue the ongoing attacks against Gomez you have contributed to the election of Ed Markey. The primary is over, the candidate we supported may have won or lost (mine lost) but rest assured, Gomez will face enough attacks from here on forward from the Democrats and their friends in the media that we do not need to help them in their cause.
On the Republican side:
One candidate sent me a robocall that glitched and repeated 5 1/2 times until my answering machine hung up.
I haven't heard from one candidate, but someone I respect on FB talks positive about him a lot.
The third candidate went to an event I went to, shook my hand, and asked for my vote.
All three went to an event in Orange near me.
On the Democrat side:
One candidate used Newtown in a campaign ad as a political ploy. He also called Orange one day for a conference call after attending a fundraiser in California.
The other ran an ad with a really good life story, but I haven't heard anything else.
Still officially undecided, but I'm pretty much sold on the only person who actually asked for my vote.
(Check the comments more GOPers have been added. - promoted by Rob "EaBo Clipper" Eno)
Due to the Senate Primary, many municipal governments have aligned their local elections on the same day as the US Senate Primary. Many of these towns even require you to come back to pick up a separate and different ballot.
To be clear, you may need to vote, return, get another ballot, and vote again. It is a separate election that by coincidence happens to occur at the same location on the same day. This is done as an attempt for our city and towns to save taxpayer money.
Please use this thread to post on behalf of local Republicans and Conservatives that deserve recognition. While we are voting in the Senate Primary, there are other candidates in other elections that need our help!
Former U.S. Attorney and GOP Senate hopeful Michael Sullivan's campaign announced Wednesday that a three Bay State sheriffs and two members of the conservative Massachusetts Republican Assembly have endorsed his candidacy.
On the law enforcement side, Plymouth County Sheriff Joe McDonald, Essex County Sheriff Frank Cousins and Bristol County Sheriff Tom Hodgson all threw their support behind Sullivan, a former district attorney.
"We need to send people to Washington who have experience in many different areas. Mike has been successful in the private sector, where he worked his way up in the Gillette Company, as well as in the public sector as a district attorney and a U.S. Attorney," Cousins said in a statement. "Mike understands both how the laws work and the impact that they have. We need more people like Mike in Washington."
Sullivan is considered the most conservative candidate compared to GOP Senate hopefuls Gabriel Gomez and state Rep. Daniel Winslow. He is a pro-life Republican who opposes gay marriage and those stances may have helped land him support from traditionally conservative Republicans in Massachusetts.
"We're proud to endorse Mike Sullivan for the U.S. Senate," said East Longmeadow resident Ron Gaudreau in a statement. Gaudreau, the president of the Massachusetts Republican Assembly's 1st Congressional District chapter, cited Sullivan's work as a prosecutor as well as his position as interim ATF director from 2006-09 as reasons for the support.
"Sullivan maintained an uncompromising adherence to the rule of law," Gaudreau said. "Our members believe that Mike will stand by his convictions on the right to life of the unborn, and he will help us preserve the institution of marriage." <...>
West Springfield resident and state committeeman Mark Bergeron also endorsed Sullivan, citing his personal friendship with the candidate.
"Mike has a proven track record of hard work and accomplishment in both the public and private sectors," Bergeron said. "He has compassion and an unconditional love for this State and its citizens. Michael Sullivan is a man of honesty, integrity and courage to help lead us through these perilous times."
Michael Sullivan equals conservative values, public safety cred, and real grassroots support.
Having worked on dozens of political campaigns as a volunteer, staffer or consultant and I understand that passions can run high. That being said as a Massachusetts Republican I have to ask that if we are going to participate in a circular firing squad that we point our guns outward. we are outnumbered as it is.
As a supporter of Dan Winslow in the Republican primary election for U.S. Senate I have posted countless, notes, Facebook updates, tweets etc. in support of his campaign. I have posted a total of one item that was negative towards another candidate which I quickly deleted and later publicly apologized for.
That is why I am so distressed by an endless litany of lies aimed at Winslow by a supporter of another candidate. Here is a partial list.
He said pro-life candidates deserve to lose.
He is radically pro-abortion and has been endorsed by Planned Parenthood.
He voted for the "Bathroom Bill."
His tax plan is to the left of Elizabeth Warren.
He's really a Democrat because he votes with Massachusetts House Speaker 55% of the time.
Let me take these one-by-one.
1) Dan never said pro-life candidates deserve to lose. He was asked a question about the viability of a Republican candidate as the party is associated with candidates such as Todd Akins and Richard Murddock and their statements about abortion and legitimate rape.Â
His response:
"If we continue to send basically gifts to the democrats in the form of culture wars, for general elections, then the democrats will continue to beat us and we'll deserve to lose," said Winslow in an interview with WCVB TV. "In Massachusetts, a social conservative can not win in June. People can make a point in a primary, but they can't win in June."
You can watch the WCVB-TV report HEREÂ if you want to hear for yourself.
2) Dan is pro-choice although he supports Parental Notification and opposes late-term abortion. This is hardly a "radically pro-abortion" position. In fact it is a position supported by a majority of Massachusetts voters. He has also never been endorsed by Planned Parenthood. Here is their list of endorsed candidates for the 2012 elections. PPA has endorsed Ed Markey in this race.
3) Dan voted for the Transgendered Rights Bill which granted equal rights to transgendered people just as the rights of women, people of color, gays, lesbians and others are protected. Any and all language regarding access to bathrooms or other facilities was removed from the bill Dan voted for.
4) Dan has offered a Tax Plan that simplifies the Tax Code and would lower the corporate rate from 35% to 26%. hardly to the left of Senator Warren. He has also been endorsed by the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance and Barbara Anderson, founder of Citizen's for Limited Taxation.
5) Dan votes with Democratic Leadership 55%Â of the time. While that is technically true it is still a lie by statistics. You see Republican representatives vote with Democrats between 52% and 67.9%. So at 55% Dan is at the low end of the range. The same link also shows that Dan votes with Republican Leadership 98.3% of the time.Â
As Dan says "Let's focus on the 80% or 90% that we do agree on." Let's remember that any of our three candidates are better than either of the Democrat's two candidates. Support your candidate and stop lying about the others.
OK, I've kept my mouth shut for long enough. Gomez is toast with his letter to Deval and the backing of Obama supporter "Pink" Floyd Weld R-NY, he is such a liberal Republican he should just become a Democrat.
Winslow has given tons of money to far left Democratic candidates like Sonia Chang-Diaz, Travaglini and others. It's right there in the Massachusetts OCPF website. go here: http://ocpf.cloudapp.net/Repor... and type in Winslow and Norfolk for the town, then look at 12.12.2008 and see Martha Coakley's name. Look at 2.23.2008 and see Sonia Chang-Diaz, find 5.20.2005 and see Robert Travaglini. Sure he gave to Republicans as well but to Liberal Dems - Shame on him. Not a real Republican at all.
The ultra-left Boston Globe endorsed him, The leftist Lowell sun who endorsed Niki Tsongas over her Republican challenger (Golnik?) supported him and why the Herald supported him is beyond me.
Mike Sullivan is the only true Republican running and I for one am sick and tired of compromising my principles and voting for the lesser of two evils. I Like Mike!
Dan Winslow has gone up with a website at gomezletterDOTcom to give attention to Gabriel Gomez's letter to Governor Cadillac Deval Patrick begging for the Senate appointment after John Kerry resigned. As we all know, Gabriel Gomez said that he "supported President Obama" and that he "supports the positions of President Obama." Is that what we're working for?
Likely Republican Primary Voters Gabriel Gomez- 33 percent
Michael Sullivan - 27 percent
Dan Winslow- 9 percent
Undecided - 30 percent
What do we see? "Tested & Trusted" conservative Michael Sullivan and self-proclaimed "Obama supporter" Gabriel Gomez are both at about 30 percent, while Dan Winslow is way way back in single digits. The bottom line is that this primary is between Sullivan and Gomez. Sorry, Winslow, this just ain't your race.
So if Dan Winslow really thinks that Gabriel Gomez's letter declaring his support for Barrack Obama should truly disqualify Gomez, the best thing Dan Winslow can do in this final week before Tuesday's primary is to withdraw from the race and endorse Michael Sullivan.
Since the race is between Sullivan and Gomez, Winslow can't win. But he can put real conservative Mike Sullivan over the top and keep Obama-supporter-Gomez out of the nomination.
If your reading this, Mr. Winslow, please give it some thought. You can make a real difference!
(Nice opportunity to see the candidates in a more relaxed setting. - promoted by Paul R. Ferro)
The election is just around the corner and if you are one of the few that has not made up your mind yet (are there many of you out there?) this post is for you. We had all three candidates on our TV show, Activate Worcester, and allowed them to talk about what issues are important to them.
The show format is not an interview or a debate. The format lets the guest talk about what they want to talk about. This was a great opportunity for the candidates to reach out to the voters so that you could really get to know them.
Enjoy,
The Guys from Activate Worcester
Chris Pinto
Ron Motta
Sandy Williamson
Videos are after the jump and in the order of their appearance on the show.
OK, I've kept my mouth shut for long enough. Gomez is toast with his letter to Deval and the backing of Obama supporter "Pink" Floyd Weld R-NY, he is such a liberal Republican he should just become a Democrat.
Winslow has given tons of money to far left Democratic candidates like Sonia Chang-Diaz, Travaglini and others. It's right there in the Massachusetts OCPF website. go here: http://ocpf.cloudapp.net/Repor... and type in Winslow and Norfolk for the town, then look at 12.12.2008 and see Martha Coakley's name. Look at 2.23.2008 and see Sonia Chang-Diaz, find 5.20.2005 and see Robert Travaglini. Sure he gave to Republicans as well but to Liberal Dems - Shame on him. Not a real Republican at all.
The ultra-left Boston Globe endorsed him, The leftist Lowell sun who endorsed Niki Tsongas over her Republican challenger (Golnik?) supported him and why the Herald supported him is beyond me.
Mike Sullivan is the only true Republican running and I for one am sick and tired of compromising my principles and voting for the lesser of two evils. I Like Mike!
I know most of you don't like or trust Scott Lehigh, but he went one on one with Michael about a study on guns while he was head of the ATF. Maybe he never read it? Surely he would not disassemble to a respected Globe columnist who does his homework? find the whole column here and the conclusion bleow
I was struck by two things. First, the fact that Sullivan hadn’t been familiar with the ATF’s research and second, his willingness to disregard it. For his part, Sullivan accused me of not liking him and of not giving him credit for the work he had done to get those adjudicated mentally ill into the background-check system.
Beyond finding him only lightly informed, I don’t have any real personal opinion of Sullivan. But I am interested in his political and policy decisions. As an attorney in private practice, he and his firm have had at least two major gun-industry clients, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (an industry trade association) and Smith & Wesson.
And for all his claims to be a fact-based decision-maker, when it comes to guns, it’s fair to conclude that he’s taken an ideological rather than an empirical position — one that’s led him to dismiss the important findings of the very agency he once ran.
Howard Phillips founded the Conservative Caucus in the the 70s. Before that he grew up in Brighton Mass, was Student Council President at Harvard and was the youngest chairman of the Boston Republican City Committee.
He was also my uncle.
And I have to say that he was a sort of intellectual mentor because into my house as a teenager flowed a stream of gift subscriptions to Commentary, Conservative Digest, Human Events, the National Review, the American Spectator, etc.
Howard Phillips ran for U.S. Senator and also U.S. Congress in Massachusetts. He was the most politically conservative son of Massachusetts of recent times.
The amendments coming out of the Republican Leadership office are mighty wordy. We were only able to put 4.5 amendments in the last post before reaching the character limit in our software. So here's another section of GOP Leadership Office Amendments.
Part 2 of the series on Budget Amendments will look at Republican reform amdendments, most of which were filed by Marc Lombardo (R-Billerica), Shaunna O'Connell (R- Taunton), Geoff Diehl (R-Whitman), Kevin Kuros (R-Uxbridge), and Jim Lyons (R-Andover).
The House budget for Fiscal year 2014 is out, and can be read at this link. In addition, amendments to the budget were due yesterday at 5:00 PM. Here at Red Mass Group, over the weekend, we will list all Republican Amendments. They will be listed in amendment number order.
You can see the first set of amendments after the jump.
The note below is adapted from a Letter to the Editor I wrote to my local newspaper. I am a volunteer for the Winslow campaign.
I am writing to urge all Republicans and Undeclared voters to support Dan Winslow in the primary for U.S. Senate on Tuesday April 30th.
Winslow's message is all about freedom and opportunity and that includes protecting a woman's reproductive freedom and the freedom that comes with marriage equality and legal protection of the rights of members of the LGTB community.
Dan also understands that we have to get our economy growing and our federal debt and deficits shrinking. He recently released a statement on his proposed tax policy - a comprehensive reform package that works to eliminate special deductions and antiquated loopholes that have continuously put the interests of DC politicians and corporations before the interests of the hard working American people. The best way to get the money out of politics is to get the politics out of our tax code.
I agree with Dan that the free market is the answer to our problems with jobs and the economy.
America is home to the highest skilled workforce in the world, but we need to empower them by eliminating over regulation. Government needs to get out of the way and let small businesses thrive. Every year billions of dollars are spent in order to comply with outdated and unnecessary regulations, rather than put towards hiring more workers. We need to encourage investment in education and new technology.
For years I have been hearing people ask "Where are the fiscally conservative, socially moderate Republicans we used to have in Massachusetts?" Well meet Dan Winslow. According to the Boston Globe, Representative Dan Winslow is "a creative, energetic...ideas merchant" and "a breath of fresh air."
I believe Dan Winslow is the best choice to represent the majority of people in Massachusetts as our next Senator. For that to happen we need to turn out on Primary Day, Tuesday April 30. I urge you to do so.
(Mr. Fowler links not once, but TWICE to this humble blog in his call for supporting Sullivan. Your posts garner national attention. - promoted by Paul R. Ferro)
I agree with Mr. Fowler and, using the Buckley maxim mentioned below, that is why I chose to support Michael Sullivan over the other gentlemen during this primary.
It's a little clearer on the GOP side, where there are three candidates: Gabriel Gomez, Dan Winslow, and Michael Sullivan. The last of those has a wide lead in the WBUR survey, gathering 28 percent of the vote (Winslow and Gomez, neck-and-neck for last place, trail by a lot, at 10 and 8 percent respectively). Working backward: Gomez is a Naval Academy grad (a former SEAL, now an investor) who earlier this year pleaded with Governor Deval Patrick to appoint him to replace Kerry, earning him a not-too-swell reputation (Michael Graham cites Gomez's support for Obama in 2008 and describes him as a "pro-Obama, pro-amnesty, pro-gun-control liberal," while Boston Herald columnist Howie Carr calls Gomez "the Eddie Haskell of the Mass. Republican Party."). Gomez didn't vote in the 2008 or 2012 GOP presidential primaries (an interesting position for a guy asking Republicans to vote in a . . . Republican primary). And finally, what opponent wouldn't cherish this headline: "Massachusetts GOP Senate candidate Gabriel Gomez says he 'fully supported' John McCain, after telling Gov. Patrick he supported Barack Obama."
Winslow is a trial lawyer and a liberal state rep who's got a thing about giving money to liberal Democrats. And he's also got a thing about social conservatives. Not a good one: When the Massachusetts Citizens for Life PAC endorsed Sullivan earlier this month, Winslow blurted out that the GOP "deserved to lose" if a social conservative won the primary. So much for the Big Tent.
Sullivan is the clear conservative. He is a former state representative whose impressive pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps bio includes stints as district attorney for Plymouth County, U.S. attorney for Massachusetts (Sullivan's the guy who put terrorist shoe-bomber Richard Reid away), and acting director for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. As mentioned, he won the pro-life endorsement. And he is putting together a classy campaign.
Sullivan looks like he has the mojo to prevail over Gomez and Winslow, so conservatives should be thinking about his endgame chances. He certainly satisfies the Buckley Rule by being the "rightwardmost viable candidate," and folks should take solace from these facts: He has a well-vetted career, is likable, has broad appeal, and has a black belt on law-and-order and safety (he also has a crack campaign team). Sullivan doesn't have my vote, because I don't live in Massachusetts, but if I did, I would be spending my every available hour trying to help him. For now, my money will have to do, and it has. I humbly suggest to conservatives: Yours should too.
