Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Ted Kennedy's Legacy Down the Toilet?

Scott Brown has defeated Martha Coakley in the bid for Ted Kennedy's Senate seat.

Many people in Massachusetts are not going to be happy about this. My father is a member of the Mass. Moderator's Association (was the town moderator where we live for many years) and I can tell you he looks pissed. Brown will do everything he can to undo Kennedy's work and thwart President Obama's attempts to fix the problems in the health care system and the economy.

Many of the pro-Scott Brown ads in the local media were paid for by out-of-state lobbying groups. I really think that should be illegal. There should be no influence on state elections from outside lobbying groups. If Martha Coakley returns to her position as the Attorney General it would be something she could look into, although Brown's supporters would probably call her a sore loser for it.

On the news they're calling this a historic day for Massachusetts. I think it's a sad day. Martha Coakley would have been a great Senator that Ted Kennedy would have been proud to have as a successor; I think with Scott Brown in the post he's probably rolling over in his grave.

16 comments:

WillOaks Studio said...

And the really sad and scary thing is how this one "special election" from one smallish state can upset all the plans for progress that had been evolving in Congress for ALL of the U.S.A. I'm really not sure the Senate is good for American anymore and have read a lot of smart reasons it's outgrown it's usefulness as the country had grown so much larger. Isn't it so tragic to see healthcare reform derailed by Ted Kennedy's successor? I still cannot believe this is happening....

Tara Beaulieu said...

Here here, good post! I felt SO defeated last night when the results were announced. I am in RI and fear the trickle down effects of this.

janaes jewels said...

yes - I am sad as well as a MA resident and an American...
...and scared for what it will mean for the US down the road

CastoCreations said...

I think it's AWESOME! I'm wearing brown in honor of this wonderful victory of logic over emotion and "gimme"-ism. Coakley was a joke. I'm thrilled that the so called "reform" (which is really nothing of the sort - it's nothing more than collectivization of health services) has been stopped. Well, not stopped...they are still going to try to shove it down our throats...but at least slowed.

I realize I'm in a minority in the "artistic" world but I'm sick of government largess and handouts to special interests. Smaller government is what we really need - not MORE government.

So I'm celebrating!!!

janaes jewels said...

Casto - It's the US, so thankfully we are all entitled to our opinions. Martha Coakley was not my ideal candidate, but she doesn't deserve your slam. She's quite a "simple" woman in comparison to the machines that we see steamroll over the country from the right. She ran her campaign honestly and simply based on her beliefs with no regrets. I don't want to be argumentative, but there is a lot to Ruth's post about the political "machines" that paid the freight to incite the "emotions" of the scared people of MA (like me) that are already facing huge unemployment numbers and rising healthcare costs.
Scott Brown will hopefully be able to take his basic and good independent thinking to the Senate without "owing" too many of the special interest groups that helped to get him there.
janae

Ruth said...

Coakley was (and is) very serious about her commitment to serve the people of Massachusetts. At this point the joke is the idea of bipartisanship, the Republicans have made it quite clear that they're not interested. They'd rather point fingers and blame President Obama and the Democrats for the mess that they and GWB put us in. We had to put up with that idiot for eight years and the 'pubs expect Obama to fix his mess in less than a year? That's totally unrealistic. If I remember right when Obama took office there were economists and historians that were saying it would take DECADES for the mess GWB created to be put right. Even Obama said it wouldn't all be corrected during his presidency. I don't remember the exact numbers but GWB came into office with a multi-billion dollar surplus (thank you President Clinton) and left President Obama with a trillion-plus dollar deficit.

I like the way this guy puts it http://www.esoterically.net/weblog/2010/01/19/now-their-fault. The 'pubs have their filibuster now, let's see if they can put partisan politics aside and get something done to fix the problems facing this country, instead of the obstructionism they've shown they're capable of.

Oh, and health care reform? The bill that's coming up for a vote isn't perfect (what legislation is?), but it's a step in the right direction. We're closer to solving the system's problems now than we have ever been, why can't the Republicans be part of the solution instead of a barrier? It seems they've become the Party of No, anything the Democrats do is wrong but I haven't seen them suggest any alternatives.

"If you can't fly then run, if you can't run then walk, if you can't walk then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward." Martin Luther King, Jr.

Well put Janae. There were a couple of other candidates in the primary that I had felt might have done better than Coakley, but she had more name recognition across the state and won the primary. I actually hadn't heard of Scott Brown before it was announced on the news that he was running.

The two sides may never get on the same page, so to speak, but hopefully we can keep the fighting to a minimum and have productive discussion and debate. That's what the founding fathers meant our two-party system to be, I think, not the “I'll get my way no matter what and screw you” situation it's become.

janaes jewels said...

Yes, Ruth!!!

Very, very, very well put.

Unknown said...

I agree with you completely.

I was so happy that finally the connection with america got better and so many people had an opportunity for good healthcare.
I know many republicans object. But we had the same objections here and the system works rather well. And it isn't as extra expensive as people fear.

It's awful to see a group of people who only care for their wallet put a country down that way. Ugh!

I liked Ted Kennedy. We all could learn a lot from him.

To Castro.. I want to say that there's nothing wrong with collectivization, or as I want to call it, solidarity. My experience is that I paid a bit more when I was younger and now I'm getting older I can have what I need.
But when you want healthcare to be the domain of the upper elite, well, let's hope you stay in that layer of society. huh?

Dori said...

Great post Ruth!

storybeader said...

kinda feel sorry for MA voters, but they elected him... who knows why! I shouldn't talk - I'm upset every time I got to the polls in Oklahoma - what are these people thinking! Talk about whacky senators! Ugh!

Anonymous said...

ruth, i am janae's sister, and i want to be friends with you!!!
just joking a bit, but i am a crafter too...
thanks for your thoughts, i thought they were very appropriate and to the point.

Unknown said...

It is too bad :( I can't believe that one election can have such an effect on something we have been trying to enact for a year (and something Ted Kennedy wanted his entire life).

You were one of my top entrecard droppers this month. I will be posting a link back to you tomorrow, thanks!

OLLIE MCKAY'S ~ A Chic Boutique said...

From all the things I've read so far, Scott Brown sounds like a good decent guy who could make great strides forward ~ only time will tell, I guess!

my-kids-blog said...

Good posting Ruth. I like it

One Creative Queen said...

Hey sweetie - I just wanted to thank you for your kind comments on my son's bipolar/ADHD flip out. Ugh! I just hope he grows up to have one just like him! lol

I can understand the daily fighting...more than I ever want to admit! xx

OLLIE MCKAY'S ~ A Chic Boutique said...

Wow ~ Never has an election/upset caused such an uproar! Have several friends from MA and they all seem to have mixed feelings and emotions?? Good luck to the wonderful state on down the road!