There are certain demographics Democrats are extremely secure in– so secure, they often feel that they hardly have to fight for the seat. As you may be aware, San Francisco’s 8th District is a great example, with Pelosi’s confidence ample and evident (recent interview, previous post). November of this year will reveal how much weight this historical precedence actually holds.
In interest of future speculation– however– the special election results in Massachusetts offered promising hope. Many expected a sure win for the Democratic Party, yet Republican Scott Brown walked away Senator in the end. The victory may have been unexpected by established sources, yet it was anxiously anticipated by citizen’s nationwide.
USA Today: Two weeks ago, Massachusetts Democrat Martha Coakley enjoyed a double-digit lead in polls, was raising an average of $24,000 a day in political contributions and had yet to put up a single campaign television ad.
In a matter of days, her front-runner status had collapsed. Suddenly, a little-known Republican state lawmaker, Scott Brown, had turned the contest for the Bay State’s Senate seat — a seat that had been held by Edward Kennedy for 47 years — into a real race.
Massachusetts voters responded Tuesday by turning out to the polls in droves as snow fell across portions of the state, delivering an upset victory for Brown despite a 3-to-1 Democratic advantage in voter registration. The Associated Press called the race less than an hour and a half after polls closed.
This is upsetting to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi not only because it shows how potentially misleading “voter registration” advantages can be, but also the very real delay this will put on her much criticized health-care reform bill.
The fallout: Democrats rethinking health care bill
“People do not want the trillion dollar health care plan that is being forced on the American people, and this bill is not being debated openly and fairly. It will raise taxes, it will hurt Medicare, it will destroy jobs and run our nation deeper in to debt,” Brown said in his acceptance speech.
[...]
House Republican Leader John Boehner fired back at Pelosi’s “right on course” comment, with spokesman Michael Steel saying, “Regardless of what happens in Massachusetts, it’s clear that jamming this government takeover of health care through Congress will set off a political firestorm. The American people are screaming, ‘stop’ at the top of their lungs, and out-of-touch Democratic leaders ignore them at their peril.” Politico
The Associated Press reported that some were concerned that they would “block Brown long enough to complete congressional passage of the health care plan he has promised to oppose.” Harry Reid comments:
“The people of Massachusetts have spoken. We welcome Scott Brown to the Senate and will move to seat him as soon as the proper paperwork has been received,” said Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. Massachusetts Secretary of State William Galvin said he would notify the Senate on Wednesday that Brown had been elected.
The loss by the once-favored Democrat Martha Coakley in the Democratic stronghold was a stunning embarrassment for the White House after Obama rushed to Boston on Sunday to try to save the foundering candidate. Her defeat on Tuesday signaled big political problems for the president’s party this fall when House, Senate and gubernatorial candidates are on the ballot nationwide. Associated Press (Yahoo News)
Needless to say, the Speaker of the House is in store for some “big political problems” of her own. Contribute your support to the John Dennis Campaign today, and help insure she gets her full share.
Brown is a free-market advocate who believes that the “federal stimulus bill made government bigger instead of creating jobs.” Nancy Pelosi is overwhelmingly responsible for such growth (previous post). Congratulations on your win, Senator Scott Brown.
