The newly rebranded CommonWealth Beacon has put the concept of Massachusetts exceptionalism front and center lately with several thoughtful pieces about the quality of life in the Bay State based on the results of a brand new CWB/MassInc poll of Massachusetts residents. Michael Jonas’s Putting Massachusetts Exceptionalism to the Test asks whether Bay Staters can…
Category: National politics
The Objective Truth in 2022 American Politics is Easy for Experts to See. Sadly, It Remains Frighteningly Difficult for Too Many to Say.
“If University Students can be Loyal Republicans in 2022, then anybody can talk about anything” The quotation above is a reply I posted this morning to a tweet by the UMass Amherst College Republicans in which they were trolling PA US Senate candidate John Fetterman for talking about crime. The reality that my tweet is…
The Enviable Values of John Fetterman & Coach Corso
I watched about thirty minutes of Tuesday’s Pennsylvania Senate Debate. I’ve watched College GameDay most Saturday mornings since the 90s. Both Democratic candidate for Senate Joe Fetterman and Coach Lee Corso are modeling a better us. Admittedly, most political observers and sports fans do not consider links between Fetterman and Corso. Hear me out. Both…
“Democratic Debate Ducking” is the Wrong Frame in Media Coverage & Analysis of 2022 Elections in the Bay State
The Democratic nominees for constitutional office this year are apparently not keen on debating their MassGOP opponents. The political press appears unwilling to let them get away with this crime against democracy. I think somebody needs to seriously consider the possibility that running under the banner of a political party that has thoroughly abandoned essential…
The Utter Futility of the MassGOP: Not New, Just More Obnoxious Lately.
The ongoing conflict within the MassGOP between Trumpist wingnuts and politically rational conservatives is as crazy and counter-productive as virtually every political analyst has indicated. It is, indeed, absurd for state Republicans to oppose Charlie Baker’s brand of conservatism. What it is not, however, is surprising or unexplainable. The most interesting thing about anti-Baker wingnuttery…
Recall Elections and Asymmetric Polarization
The Globe’s resident rightwing columnist, Jeff Jacoby, has provided another example of a very tired genre of political commentary in his latest work. Seizing on the present effort to recall California’s Democratic governor, Jacoby is flogging liberals for equating this direct democracy gift of early 20th century progressives with an “attack on democracy.” As usual,…
Abuse of Power is Fueled by Abuse of Context
The difference between reasonable and unreasonable analysis or argument can very often be found in the treatment of context. The University of Iowa Law Professor who wrote the NYT op-ed published yesterday arguing that “Democrats have been shameless about your presidential vote too” clearly understood that he was playing fast and loose with context. He…
GOP Senate Candidate Misunderstands Mass Voters
Republican Massachusetts U.S. Senate candidate Kevin O’Connor criticized Senator Markey in a tweet for not opposing outright the idea of a Democratic senate packing the Supreme Court next year. Clearly, O’Conner thinks Bay State voters might be turned off by brazen partisanship enough to hold this against Markey. Though I haven’t seen polling data on…
“You ain’t black” should become 2020 speak for “you ain’t bright.”
The effort of those on the right (and the left) to make an issue of Joe Biden’s penchant for awkward comments is a product of political desperation, not discernment. He told a black radio talk show host who was giving him a hard time that if he was having trouble deciding between Trump and himself…
America the Spoiled
Spoiled children stink at birthday parties. Tantrums follow such egregious offenses as having to wait in line (as opposed to waiting one’s turn) or not getting the red popsicle (be happy you got one at all). Spoiled children cannot handle that the world does not bend to their desires. And while they are not the…