With all the action in the gubernatorial race this week, we’ve decided that our show about Storrow Drive and the Esplanade is going to have to wait until next Friday.
If you don’t know already, Charlie Baker entering the race on Wednesday was a big deal. Despite his formidable resume, the Republican insurance exec is virtually unknown outside of political circles. Nonetheless, he pulled 36% against Patrick’s 41% in a hypothetical Rasmussen head-to-head a couple weeks ago.
Of course, right now it’s not looking like a head-to-head in 2010. State Treasurer Tim Cahill dropped out of the Democratic Party earlier in the week, in what is universally perceived as the prelude to an independent run for the commonwealth’s top job.
The question of the hour seems to be: would Cahill split the anti-Patrick vote and thus ensure Patrick’s reelection, or would he split the Democratic vote thus opening the door for a Republican?
We’ll explore that question this Friday. Listeners, here is what we want to hear from you: what is the source and scope of Patrick’s vulnerability? The Governor came into office with tremendous excitement and support; how far have things fallen?
In this age of Obama, an age of incredible Democratic dominance nationwide, do you think it’s possible for this bluest of blue states to elect another GOP governor?
This will time around will be interesting for Deval, since this time he will have to defend his first term. In the 2006 election he received very little pressure from the media however, in 2010 I believe the media will not be so kind and the voters of MA will see a very different side of Deval.
Is it true that the stimulus money Massachusetts has received for education has been earmarked for special education? If this is true, this may be the governor’s greatest debacle.
Time for a new tack, Gov. Patrick has not shown that he has the competence to run the state, he is a perfect example of why the state should have left the governors term at two years.
I think that Governor Patrick has begun to attempt some real improvements for the state. He has shown some real leadership in attempting to increase the gas tax and pushing the ethics legislation.
However, I see the legislature as the source of most of the problem for the state. If you see Mr. Patrick from their perspective, of course he seems like a disruption. I see this attitude of theirs a symptom of their self interest, corruption and desire to win re-election.
I do not want him to work with them, what I want is for them to vote in legislation that helps the state and not themselves.
This show loses its credibility with the choice of guests. Holly Robichaud is obviously a strong Baker partisan, while Joan Venocchi is a journalist who, while expressing some opinions, retains a considerable degree of objectivity. Furthermore, the first 2 callers are a Republican from Baker’s hometown and a man who knows Baker and thinks he’s a great guy. A lot more balance would help listeners to take the show more seriously!
Gov. Patrick’s administration has been a huge disappointment. I had such high hopes of for him and the change he would bring to Massachusetts government. His only realy economic idea has been casinos and what appears to be his lack of real engagemnet with the job has disillusioned me.
@Mary: Holly Robichaud was definitely a different kind of booking for us, and one over which we had some internal debate before and after the show. In contrast to Venocchi, Robichaud approached the topic from more of a standpoint of advocacy than analysis. But I think her belief in–and excitement for–Charlie Baker’s viability as a candidate is sincere, and it was articulately presented. She’s a sharp talker, and we appreciated her coming on the show.
Frankly, there’s a segment of local conservative thought that doesn’t tend to get a lot of play on WBUR, and our goal is to reflect Boston in its entirety. Perhaps our mistake lay in pairing Robichaud with Venocchi, rather than more of a straight-ahead Democratic advocacy journalist. I’d appreciate reading your thoughts on this.
Regarding the first two callers…All I can say is if you don’t like what you hear on the phones, call in! We screen our calls for relevancy and clarity. Our ability to present diverse points of view through callers is obviously limited by whomever decides to pick up the phone.
Does anyone remember Grace Ross?
I know everyone seems to be in a hype over the abrupt candidacy announcements of Charlie Baker, Tim Cahill and Christy Mihos- two of whom are republicans. Perhaps some more diversity in political parties would make things a little more interesting. Grace Ross, for those of you who don’t recall was the Green -Rainbow Party Candidate in the 2006 gubernatorial election. Though her appearance may have not come off particularly strong, she certainly had some good ideas on small business and the environment. Some ideas that are pertinent to helping solve the state’s current troubles with debt and job creation. Personally, I think that we the Commonwealth (and certainly as a nation) often overlook third party candidates, despite how progressive we may pride ourselves to be. Granted, they don’t always have as many resources or power as other candidates, but it would be nice to see someone step up as a decent alternative to run of the mill democrats and republicans, and even independents to some degree. Though she only received less than 2% of the vote, she is definitely worth looking into as an alternative candidate. I am unaware that she has announced anything about a 2010 run, but I hope she will make an effort in the near future. If anyone’s interested, here’s the Boston Globe’s candidate page on her from 2006: http://www.boston.com/news/local/politics/candidates/governor/ross/