Charlie Baker’s decision not to make an unprecedented run for a third consecutive four-year term in the Corner Office was a wise one for many reasons, most of which have been well and thoroughly discussed by thoughtful observers. The complications of his party having been thoroughly trumpified and the various land mines Democrats could detonate…
Author: Jerold Duquette
Professor of Political Science
Director, Public Policy and Management Program
Central Connecticut State University
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…
Baker’s Re-election Depends on Pols, not Polls.
Charlie Baker’s decision about whether to seek an unprecedented third consecutive four-year term in the Corner Office is a lot more interesting and consequential than most people realize. If you really want to know whether Baker will run and whether he would win if he does run, pay attention to the words and deeds of…
Could “New England’s Civic Mythology” Become Reality in Post-COVID MA?
Today’s Boston Globe editorial was about how the use of creative ways to hold public meetings during the pandemic expanded opportunities for the public to participate in local governance in the Bay State. The Globe editors, who want these methods to become permanent, write: “In New England’s civic mythology, public meetings are allegedly the building…
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,…
Is the Guv in Trouble?
Seems like dissatisfaction with Governor Baker is getting a lot of media attention lately. Of course, my view might be off since my Boston Globe subscription lapsed and I’m resisting renewal because their education rate sucks. Thank God for Commonwealth Magazine. Pardon the digression. Anyway, the vaccine roll out in Massachusetts has had some hiccups…
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…
DeLeo’s Tenure Reflects the Bay State’s Political Exceptionalism
The contrast between American national government and politics and Massachusetts government and politics has long been dramatic. Washington has become a hotbed of partisan, ideological, and institutional warfare while political and policy negotiations between the Bay State’s “Big Three” at the Massachusetts State House almost always suffice. Presently, the issues of police reform and abortion…
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…
2020 Democratic Primaries Reveal Limits of Progressive Reform Politics in Massachusetts
Two 2020 Democratic primaries illustrate a central paradox of Massachusetts politics, which is that politics in cradle of American democracy, the place where America began as an act of rebellion, is among the most establishment friendly in the nation. Bright blue Massachusetts is liberal in principle but conservative in practice. The recent primary victories of…