PPP’s final poll has Coakley down by 5; another poll down by 9.6%.
Many people ignored the warnings of NY-23, scoffing at the outcome, not sensing the foreshadowing. I was not one of them. We are now seeing the further manifestation of what didn’t quite happen then amass now. This time in a much more cataclysmic way and in a race that Republicans know means something very important to Democrats.
Yet something was missing from Pres. Obama’s performance in Boston yesterday. Even when he said “fired up,” he just didn’t have the fire. Watching the video again I was struck by Obama’s zigzagging from Coakley to the economy then back again. When it came to Scott Brown, Obama oddly went on a personal segue, softening the hard hitting partisan rhetoric needed to hit an opponent you have to take out in an election you’re losing.
From PPP:
Scott Brown leads Martha Coakley 51-46 in our final Massachusetts Senate poll, an advantage that is within the margin of error for the poll.
Over the last week Brown has continued his dominance with independents and increased his ability to win over Obama voters as Coakley’s favorability numbers have declined into negative territory. At the same time Democratic leaning voters have started to take more interest in the election, a trend that if it continues in the final 36 hours of the campaign could put her over the finish line.
I just wish Democrats and progressives would quit making light of what we’re facing, including those wacky Tea Partiers, as the attack lines go on the left, though Charlie Crist isn’t laughing anymore than Martha Coakley at this point; because Tea Partiers just so happen to be driven by nothing but emotion, which is the most potent weapon in politics.
It’s now up to Democrats to turn out big on Tuesday.
But will they match what’s driving the right? The prospect of taking back Teddy’s seat and beating Barack Obama on health care; with independents just seeing a way to send a message about the economic tail spin they’re blaming on Democrats, with health care part of it.
Indeed it is now up to the Dems. If they are willing to sit home and allow Brown, one scummy wingnut if ever there was one, the people of Mass. will deserve what they get.
Dems need to get fired up and fight. If they don’t, they will play right into the hands of the other side. This is no time for bipartisanship, IMO. And Taylor, you’re right about NY23.
What’s the worst thing that can happen if Brown wins? Anyway if Coakley loses it’ll all be the fault of the Hillary supporters in Massachusetts who didn’t get the vote out. Peace
Tweety was on MJ and he said he had been talking to some pollsters and Brown is up 10 in all the bellweather areas of MA.
There is snow coming and since many voters in this type of election are older maybe that will help some. Someone else said all the yard signs are for Brown,none for Coakley,bad sign.
Imhotep…we make no progress on climate change for one,immigration for another. Economically probably not much difference. We will have one more religious zealot in the Senate,always bad.
Coakley’s internals show her up 2. Lots of nasty sexism making it’s way around the web energizing women-Nora O’Donnel,MSNBC.
Obama wasn’t fired up? He wasn’t able to chronicle all the changes he’s made from the Bush legacy? Oh dear. Perhaps he forgot to do that, or more likely there haven’t been any changes, unless you like mo’ war, mo’ unemployment and mo’ foreclosures.
Obama: “[Coakley's] opponent’s got Wall Street’s back. Bankers don’t need another vote in the United States Senate. They’ve got plenty.” Cheez, he shouldn’t have brought that up.
Don’t make light of what we’re facing? For those of us that believe that the Dem leadership needs a stiff shot to the jaw as a wake-up call then a weak-candidate Coakley loss could be just what the doctor ordered, a wake-up call that the business-as-usual — make that BUSINESS as usual — attitude that corporations rule and the voters can be taken for granted is not working. Call it: Change You Can Believe In.
Meanwhile, I just gotta keep this Curt Schilling thing alive. His blog response:
“I’ve been called a LOT of things…But never, and I mean never, could anyone ever make the mistake of calling me a Yankee fan. Well, check that, if you didn’t know what the hell is going on in your own state maybe you could….”
and some of the lighter comments:
*Susan says: Absolutely clueless. She’ll never know what hit her. (hint – it will be the door, on her way out.)
*AOS s’moron Says: Oh, come on Curt. You can stop living the lie now. If Martha says you’re a Yankees fan, damnit, you’re a Yankees fan. She’s been across the whole state, don’t you know. God help us all if they get enough dead people to vote for this bint.
*Kenny says: from a Yankee fan in awe of you, don’t take that !!!! She will soon be Martha Ghostly!
http://tinyurl.com/yel4gwu
Imhotep says:
18 January 2010 at 10:35 am
Oh. Good. Grief.
secularhumanizinevoluter says:
18 January 2010 at 9:29 am
In a nutshell.
Again, thank you Taylor.
Lake Lady
Do you have any links for the Norah bit – I googled and couldn’t find anything.
President Obama: “Bankers don’t need another vote in the United States Senate. They’ve got plenty.”
Senator Durbin, D-IL, 29 Apr 09: “And the banks — hard to believe in a time when we’re facing a banking crisis that many of the banks created — are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill. And they frankly own the place.”
“The place” being the Dem-controlled Senate, where bankers have plenty of votes so they don’t need any more. Therefore, a wake-up call is needed.
But will they cheat for Coakley? Ed Shultz advocates it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OB3j9fpTKkk&feature=player_embedded
no links djjl…heard it on MSNBC. Just heard it again.
Don Bacon…I understand that being a fan of the local teams is part of the job description for politicians and that Shilling was a local hero therefore Coakley must be clueless. But here’s a newsflash,there are women out there who are just as clueless about sports and don’t spend a minute thinking about them.If any group saves her butt it will be women so it’s not really the big deal it is being made to be by her opponents. IMHO
I agree that Obama should not have brought up the Republicans have the banker’s back meme. O’Donnel said that the Dems are planning on using that against the Repubs. Ha! Ha! they must really think we are rubes out here!
Thanks LL
It is utter nonsense to be making a deal of the Schilling gaffe. It was clearly an off handed silly comeback.
But here’s a newsflash,there are women out there who are just as clueless about sports and don’t spend a minute thinking about them.
I’m with DB.
There are quite a few who do pay attention, LL. This was felony stupid and anything but silly. It also happens to be retail politics 101 and evidence of how bad a campaigner she has been.
Unless you are a Red Sox fan you probably, through no fault of your own, understand the gravity of this gaffe
Who is Curt Schilling? Not that I csre.
Now, seriously (but I really don’t know), this is a great big I told you so for many of us. Damn, I wish it weren’t so–the party desperately needs to get beyond denial. I have almost come to the conclusion that Obama is unable to change. Ironic.
Don’t know what happened to my comment, but it should read, would not understand
“So it’s not surprising then that they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.”
Nahhh, They get bitter about multi-million dollar bonuses to the Banking industry and Wall Street crowd that just wrecked the economy and got bailed out on their backs. They are pissed that they can’t afford health care as it is – and Obama just railroaded through an insurance industry gift – again on their backs. They’re angry that they are losing their homes – thanks to a fat cat intransicient Wall Street/Banking industry. All the while, fearing they’ll lose their job and/or fail to find a job before everything they’ve ever worked for is gone.
It is indeed a sorry state of affairs that whether or not any candidate knows some entertainer/ball player. Maybe that’s the power the country’s minority gender can wield.
Where Coakley should should be criticized is for not knowing who the hell Schilling is because he is a right winger who had been considered a possible candidate for this special election Senate seat she is working hard to lose.