Saturday, July 26, 2008

John Kerry Faces Uphill Battle for Senate Seat

WCVB Boston is reporting that Ed O’Reilly, (Firefighter, Lobsterman, Lawyer, and candidate for US Senate MA) is challenging incumbent John Kerry to a series of “town hall style” debates during the month of August. O’Reilly, who is seen as a long-shot in the primary, won over the required 15% of delegates necessary to place his name on the ballot this September. Those attending the Democrat Convention in MA, not unlike any other state and party convention, are primarily chosen from among the party personalities; (including elected officials) they are not your average party voter.

John Kerry, photo Wikepedia

When the Democrats go to the polls in September, it is then that the candidate will be chosen to run against the Republican candidate, Jeff Beatty. Although Kerry is always heavily favored to win, one has to take into account that the majority of the Democrats in the state voted for Hillary Clinton on Super Tuesday. Shortly thereafter, John Kerry came out and endorsed Obama, an endorsement that was covered by every Massachusetts press outlet available. The rank and file were not especially thrilled with this endorsement – the signal – Ed O’Reilly’s ability to get on the ballot – period. When the rank and file go to the polls in September, the outcome may, again, be somewhat different than predicted. Jeff Beatty may be facing Ed O’Reilly, not John Kerry in November.


Ed O’Reilly is the definitive Massachusetts Democrat: demanding immediate withdrawal from Iraq, promoting Universal Healthcare funded by the Federal Government, and, of course, “Marriage Equality” (same-sex). He has an interesting take on Renewable Energy; one that would please any environmentalist Read O’Reilly’s reasonable plan here.

Additionally, O’Reilly is getting enough press to “brand” him within the state, from national CNN interviews to articles in the Boston Globe and has a full slate of appearances around the state this month.

Finally, in an age where electronic media and communications has become critical, Ed O’Reilly has a sharp, easy to navigate and informative Website www.edoreilly.com . John Kerry’s site www.johnkerry.com is less informative, rehashing the "us vs. them" (RoadblockRepublican’s.com), difficult to read and navigate, and containing more information about national issues that may or may not have relevance for Massachusetts.

Why would any of the aforementioned matter in a state where John Kerry is expected to win the primary and go back to yet another term in the State Senate? The rank and file: a Suffolk University poll suggests that 51% of the state voters feel it is time to replace John Kerry – the poll did not specifically name an opposing challenger, indicating that even without branding, anyone on the ballot who is “Not-Kerry” stands a chance at becoming the junior U.S. Senator from Massachusetts. Most important, the primary is not “closed” to party members, independents are able to vote in Massachusetts primary’s (Massachusetts State Election Commission).



Regardless of the outcome of this primary, change in Massachusetts is imminent. Voters view Kerry unfavorably, and should Kerry not make it past the primary, how likely is the DNC to fully fund O’Reilly’s campaign? Meanwhile, Jeff Beatty has both a strong grassroots campaign as well as the backing of the Beltway Republicans; possibly the first time a Republican running in Massachusetts has received national support. How important is this particular seat? Right at the moment – Very because this is the seat that holds the narrow lead for the Democrats in the U.S. Senate.


That could, however, change next week. Should John McCain (who is statistically tied in all polls, despite the Obama 08 Tour), and the balance of the Republican congressional and senate Republican candidates (incumbent or otherwise), hammer home the off-shore oil drilling issue (approximately 75% of American’s surveyed believe drilling to be the answer to our energy concerns), the entire nation would be in play in a year that was supposed to be a walk in the park for the DNC. Why? The Democrat Leadership and candidates continue to bow to the environmental lobby (refusing to allow a vote on repealing the ban on drilling while they hold the majority!). Should the Republican’s begin to take advantage of this situation, it would force the DNC to defend and protect all races, including Massachusetts. Massachusetts will be the race to watch, from the Democrat primary in September to the General Election. Jeff Beatty will be the candidate to watch.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mass. would be foolish to even consider someone other than Senator Kerry is more qualified in this race to serve in the US Senator. And. frankly, I think Senator Kerry does a wonderful job for Mass.
A five minute conversation with O'Reily will tell you all you need to know about this challanger- he isn't qualified to be a US senator.

Tina Hemond said...

Hello Anonymous! - I ask: What makes John Kerry more qualified than either Ed O'Reilly and/or Jeff Beatty - other than the fact that he's held the job almost as long as Ted Kennedy (who actually does a good deal for his constituants.) The point is: 51% of respondents in the June Suffolk University Poll did not seem to care who was running against Kerry, they just felt he needed to be replaced. I have heard both the Democrat and Republican candidates speak (via interviews CNN, NECN, FOX), both are most articulate, well-educated, and - frankly, more....grassroots - than Kerry.

beachmom said...

I was looking for the part where you actually provided evidence for your headline "uphill battle" for Sen. Kerry, and see there is none.

Ed O'Reilly is not going to be U.S. Senator, nor is Beatty. Neither have a fighting chance. The entire race is only going to be about by what percentage Kerry wins both the primary and the G.E.

Still, a couple of debates will be fun to watch. You do recall Kerry can debate, don't you?

Tina Hemond said...

Welcome back BeachMom! Thought you might be on vacation –
First and foremost – This is commentary and opinion.
My opinion (Evidence) is based upon the following: Ed O’Reilly is getting a good deal of press, both in state and nationally, Suffolk poll showing 51% of respondents want to see a fresh face in the Senate, Grassroots organization (based upon comments found in MA forums and posts re: O’Reilly) and Web organization (based upon design) go to O’Reilly. I understand that you have Kerryvision.com (notice I added the link), but that is not John Kerry’s official campaign website. (Not that all the money in the world and a spiffy website make a difference in some campaigns (see Mitt Romney), that said, O’Reilly has the Polling and the Press in his favor (at the moment)
My question to you is what evidence do you have to support the fact that neither O’Reilly nor Beatty has a “fighting chance” to win this election? 1) Kerry has to get through the primary in September – Let’s agree to disagree until we see those results. 2) Once those results are in, then we can discuss the pros or cons regarding Beatty vs. O’Reilly or Kerry.
I certainly have watched Kerry debate – I recall the General Election four years ago quite well – I also recall the results.
What you might want to focus on are those Independent voters – they make up over 50% of the States Electorate – coincidentally the same percentage shown in the Suffolk Poll.


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