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Title: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Username MechaRFK on November 12, 2011, 12:05:14 AM Where Massachusetts is one of the top 5 most liberal states in the country I also found it to be that lot of reactionary are thrown by Reagan Democrats who think Puerto Ricans are the scum of the Earth. My family is like this when I chat politics with them when I come down for a vist compare to my Vermont cousins who are very liberal. Basically the Scott Brown voters who think we should never question the scum-bag cops and that we should protect god in public events.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Snowstalker Mk. II on November 12, 2011, 12:31:29 AM Every state has extremes on both sides. For instance, my insane fundamentalist aunt lives in...Essex County, New Jersey.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: memphis on November 12, 2011, 10:43:25 AM No state has a clear liberal majority. The perception of MA as some liberal graduate school utopia is a deliberate misconstruction by the right as part of their efforts to demonize certain parts of the country and tell working class white that they don't "belong" with the Dems. Metro Boston has a large, heavily-accented working class white, port city, old fashioned Dem base. Maybe not quite as important as 50 years ago, but still a major constituency for the Democrats. These folks are usually loyal Dems voters can cross over if the stars align for folks like Reagan or Scott Brown. This is true of New York, Philly, and Baltimore as well.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: FEMA Camp Administrator on November 12, 2011, 10:49:10 AM Religion is Evil!
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Free Palestine on November 12, 2011, 11:29:14 AM Massachusetts seems more like a center-left or latte liberal state. They're still pretty culturally conservative.
The Pacific states -- California, Oregon, Washington -- are home to a lot of really hard-left progressives, socialists, and their ilk. I don't know too much about MA, though. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Username MechaRFK on November 12, 2011, 11:48:22 AM Massachusetts seems more like a center-left or latte liberal state. They're still pretty culturally conservative. The Pacific states -- California, Oregon, Washington -- are home to a lot of really hard-left progressives, socialists, and their ilk. I don't know too much about MA, though. California, Oregon, and Washington is also home to spots where they oppose the socialists/leftists ( Eastern Oregon, rural/Orange County California). Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: CatoMinor on November 12, 2011, 12:02:04 PM even though Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Sbane on November 12, 2011, 12:08:50 PM Of course Massachusetts isn't that liberal. People didn't know this already?
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Username MechaRFK on November 12, 2011, 12:10:16 PM Of course Massachusetts isn't that liberal. People didn't know this already? Right wing pundits obvious don't. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Sbane on November 12, 2011, 12:11:14 PM Facts don't matter to propagandists.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Torie on November 12, 2011, 12:34:47 PM If you look at just the Anglo population, after Vermont (and DC but I'm not counting that), would not Massachusetts be in the hunt for the number two slot as to its liberalness/progressiveness? Sure a few other states would be competitors (Hawaii and WA come to mind), but MA might have an edge.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Sbane on November 12, 2011, 12:39:38 PM If you look at just the Anglo population, after Vermont (and DC but I'm not counting that), would not Massachusetts be in the hunt for the number two slot as to its liberalness/progressiveness? Sure a few other states would be competitors (Hawaii and WA come to mind), but MA might have an edge. Forgetting about the white working class, and just focusing on your class, eh? :P I think the west coast is more liberal than MA, but I'm talking about social liberalism. Socal is about the same though. The bay area, Portland, Seattle and a bunch of areas of the coastal west are more liberal. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Torie on November 12, 2011, 12:45:39 PM If you look at just the Anglo population, after Vermont (and DC but I'm not counting that), would not Massachusetts be in the hunt for the number two slot as to its liberalness/progressiveness? Sure a few other states would be competitors (Hawaii and WA come to mind), but MA might have an edge. Forgetting about the white working class, and just focusing on your class, eh? :P I think the west coast is more liberal than MA, but I'm talking about social liberalism. Socal is about the same though. The bay area, Portland, Seattle and a bunch of areas of the coastal west are more liberal. I guess I was focusing more on voting patterns. And sure some portions of some states are more liberal among Anglos obviously. But statewide overall? Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Sbane on November 12, 2011, 01:04:17 PM If you look at just the Anglo population, after Vermont (and DC but I'm not counting that), would not Massachusetts be in the hunt for the number two slot as to its liberalness/progressiveness? Sure a few other states would be competitors (Hawaii and WA come to mind), but MA might have an edge. Forgetting about the white working class, and just focusing on your class, eh? :P I think the west coast is more liberal than MA, but I'm talking about social liberalism. Socal is about the same though. The bay area, Portland, Seattle and a bunch of areas of the coastal west are more liberal. I guess I was focusing more on voting patterns. And sure some portions of some states are more liberal among Anglos obviously. But statewide overall? Washington, Oregon and Hawaii (if we aren't counting DC) would be more socially liberal. Socal and the central valley screws it all up for California, but it would still be nearly even with MA. Overall voting pattern, MA and WA would be about the same. Could probably throw in MN into that mix as well. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: All Along The Watchtower on November 12, 2011, 01:27:55 PM Well, the Boston-area universities and small college towns (Amherst comes to mind) are really liberal/left-wing, and the WASPy towns in MA tend to be really socially liberal (more so than in the past, when they were bastions of Rockefeller Republicanism. :P ) The working-class Catholics throughout the state are loyal Democrats, except when someone like Reagan or Scott Brown is the candidate. Soi you have many aspects to the Democratic electorate in MA, some more liberal than others-there's a definite class difference in degrees of liberalism.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: RI on November 12, 2011, 03:15:17 PM Massachusetts is really Democratic, but not necessarily really socially liberal. The only areas that really are are the college areas, some of the (mostly) Middlesex County Boston-suburbs, the high income islands, and the gay-friendly areas on the cape and Northampton. The rest tends to be more working class (Berkshires, Worcester, south Boston suburbs) and thereby less socially liberal. At least that's what I've found.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Link on November 12, 2011, 03:31:22 PM Where Massachusetts is one of the top 5 most liberal states in the country I also found it to be that lot of reactionary are thrown by Reagan Democrats who think Puerto Ricans are the scum of the Earth. My family is like this when I chat politics with them when I come down for a vist compare to my Vermont cousins who are very liberal. Basically the Scott Brown voters who think we should never question the scum-bag cops and that we should protect god in public events. The current two term mayor of the largest city in Texas is an open lesbian. As far as I can tell Houston is the largest city in the world with a lesbian mayor. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: memphis on November 12, 2011, 04:47:00 PM Where Massachusetts is one of the top 5 most liberal states in the country I also found it to be that lot of reactionary are thrown by Reagan Democrats who think Puerto Ricans are the scum of the Earth. My family is like this when I chat politics with them when I come down for a vist compare to my Vermont cousins who are very liberal. Basically the Scott Brown voters who think we should never question the scum-bag cops and that we should protect god in public events. The current two term mayor of the largest city in Texas is an open lesbian. As far as I can tell Houston is the largest city in the world with a lesbian mayor. Municipalities are such a different ball of wax because people can really, really self-select. It happens with states to a much lesser degree, but if your job is in Atlanta, you're gonna be a resident of the State of Georgia. But you can pick from an endless number of towns. Given who routinely chooses to live in big cities all over America, there are few anchor cities in America where being a lesbian candidate for mayor would be that much of a hurdle. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: greenforest32 on November 12, 2011, 07:19:13 PM Massachusetts is a pretty liberal state on the social issues:
1. They have the highest support for gay marriage right now: 60% in PPP's latest MA poll 2. Voters decriminalized marijuana with 65% of the vote in 2008: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts_Sensible_Marijuana_Policy_Initiative#Results 3. They'll probably legalize physician-assisted suicide in 2012 if it makes the ballot: http://www.dignity2012.org/ I'll be interested to see the margin of victory/defeat for that last one. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: All Along The Watchtower on November 12, 2011, 07:28:09 PM Massachusetts is a pretty liberal state on the social issues: 1. They have the highest support for gay marriage right now: 60% in PPP's latest MA poll 2. Voters decriminalized marijuana with 65% of the vote in 2008: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts_Sensible_Marijuana_Policy_Initiative#Results 3. They'll probably legalize physician-assisted suicide in 2012 if it makes the ballot: http://www.dignity2012.org/ I'll be interested to see the margin of victory/defeat for that last one. B-b-but teh Catholics! Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Queen Mum Inks.LWC on November 12, 2011, 07:36:51 PM It's a liberal-leaning state. But it's not like it's a bunch of communists. It's liberal for America as a whole.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: greenforest32 on November 12, 2011, 07:46:53 PM Massachusetts is a pretty liberal state on the social issues: 1. They have the highest support for gay marriage right now: 60% in PPP's latest MA poll 2. Voters decriminalized marijuana with 65% of the vote in 2008: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massachusetts_Sensible_Marijuana_Policy_Initiative#Results 3. They'll probably legalize physician-assisted suicide in 2012 if it makes the ballot: http://www.dignity2012.org/ I'll be interested to see the margin of victory/defeat for that last one. B-b-but teh Catholics! There are many "Cultural Christians" in the US and religion is dying in New England: http://articles.latimes.com/2009/mar/16/local/me-beliefs16 Quote New England surpasses West Coast as least religious region in America, study finds March 16, 2009|Joanna Lin New England, where the Puritans and others sought religious freedom, has surpassed the West Coast as the least religious region in America, according to a new major national survey. The study, released last week, showed that since 1990, the percentage of Americans claiming no religion has nearly doubled, growing to 15% last year. That was the overall conclusion. But tucked inside the report are figures offering portraits of various regions. Nonbelievers, skeptics and the unaffiliated are clustered in New England and along the Pacific, even as all 48 states surveyed have become less religious, the American Religious Identification Survey found. On the West Coast, 20% of residents identified with no religion last year, compared with 22% of New Englanders. Whereas Pacific states have long been called the "unchurched belt," the irreligious population over the last two decades grew more in New England -- where it nearly tripled -- than in any other region. To account for the rise of "Nones" in the six-state region, researchers with the survey point to the area's shrinking Catholic population: New England is now 36% Catholic, down from 50% in 1990. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Link on November 12, 2011, 08:57:35 PM Where Massachusetts is one of the top 5 most liberal states in the country I also found it to be that lot of reactionary are thrown by Reagan Democrats who think Puerto Ricans are the scum of the Earth. My family is like this when I chat politics with them when I come down for a vist compare to my Vermont cousins who are very liberal. Basically the Scott Brown voters who think we should never question the scum-bag cops and that we should protect god in public events. The current two term mayor of the largest city in Texas is an open lesbian. As far as I can tell Houston is the largest city in the world with a lesbian mayor. Municipalities are such a different ball of wax because people can really, really self-select. It happens with states to a much lesser degree, but if your job is in Atlanta, you're gonna be a resident of the State of Georgia. But you can pick from an endless number of towns. Given who routinely chooses to live in big cities all over America, there are few anchor cities in America where being a lesbian candidate for mayor would be that much of a hurdle. That's my point. You can find any kind of person in any state. You just have to know where to look. Plus I think the media, politicians, and others like to over simplify things for various reasons. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Hash on November 13, 2011, 09:28:50 AM It's a liberal-leaning state. But it's not like it's a bunch of communists. It's liberal for America as a whole. Since when does communism have anything to do with social liberalism? People should really learn the definitions correctly for once. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Username MechaRFK on November 13, 2011, 07:17:51 PM Question for those living in Mass: Could Romney win Reagan/Scott Brown Democrats or will his wile image hurt him among this group of voters?
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Simfan34 on November 13, 2011, 07:34:52 PM Where Massachusetts is one of the top 5 most liberal states in the country I also found it to be that lot of reactionary are thrown by Reagan Democrats who think Puerto Ricans are the scum of the Earth. My family is like this when I chat politics with them when I come down for a vist compare to my Vermont cousins who are very liberal. Basically the Scott Brown voters who think we should never question the scum-bag cops and that we should protect god in public events. The current two term mayor of the largest city in Texas is an open lesbian. As far as I can tell Houston is the largest city in the world with a lesbian mayor. I think the honour goes to Paris. But Washington isn't hopelessly Democratic, it could be won by a Romney 2002/Huntsman type. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian. on November 13, 2011, 08:19:29 PM Massachusetts is to a large extent progressive, and religion isn't 'dying' any more than it's notably 'dying' elsewhere. It's not as progressive as commonly supposed, certainly not as progressive as Vermont is in the senses that we're talking about, but that's because no state is entirely full of stereotypical political bogeymen. Western Massachusetts actually has the odd strain of left-communitarian tendencies.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: phk on November 13, 2011, 08:23:15 PM So some White D's don't like Puerto Ricans and suddenly it's not liberal?
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Filuwaúrdjan on November 13, 2011, 08:45:02 PM I think the honour goes to Paris. Perhaps surprisingly, 'Bertrand' is actually man's name in France. And, just in case there is any further confusion, 'Klaus' is a man's name in Germany. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: TheDeadFlagBlues on November 14, 2011, 12:53:05 AM Where Massachusetts is one of the top 5 most liberal states in the country I also found it to be that lot of reactionary are thrown by Reagan Democrats who think Puerto Ricans are the scum of the Earth. My family is like this when I chat politics with them when I come down for a vist compare to my Vermont cousins who are very liberal. Basically the Scott Brown voters who think we should never question the scum-bag cops and that we should protect god in public events. The current two term mayor of the largest city in Texas is an open lesbian. As far as I can tell Houston is the largest city in the world with a lesbian mayor. I think the honour goes to Paris. But Washington isn't hopelessly Democratic, it could be won by a Romney 2002/Huntsman type. When very popular AG McKenna is not doing very hot in polls against the Congressman with no real name recognition, this hypothesis looks weak. Washington looks deceptively winnable for Republicans but getting above that 50% + 1 vote threshold is very difficult when the Democratic base is rock solid and when "swing voters" over the last ten years always break towards Democrats in contested/high-profile races. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Torie on November 14, 2011, 12:05:24 PM The thing is, is that the mainline Christian religions (and I consider Catholics mainline for this purpose), are losing adherents in droves. That is why the Catholic percentage in the US is gradually drifting down despite the huge influx of Hispanics, and even though the Catholic figure is inflated somewhat because I suspect there is a particular high percentage of CINO's (Catholics in name only). So the mainline belts in the US have a particularly rapidly growing percentage of the "unchurched."
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: memphis on November 14, 2011, 12:56:40 PM The thing is, is that the mainline Christian religions (and I consider Catholics mainline for this purpose), are losing adherents in droves. That is why the Catholic percentage in the US is gradually drifting down despite the huge influx of Hispanics, and even though the Catholic figure is inflated somewhat because I suspect there is a particular high percentage of CINO's (Catholics in name only). So the mainline belts in the US have a particularly rapidly growing percentage of the "unchurched." Excellent point. I don't have data, but even here in the Bible Belt, lots of non-Baptists are increasingly unchurched. For whatever reason, Baptists are supremely effective in getting their folks to remain strong believers, through and through, even if they don't ever go to church as adults. Catholics seem to have the opposite situation where a lot of folks go to church and then return home with more willingness to think critically. Probably because Catholics stress reasoning in their dogma ( even if I don't buy a lot of it), whereas fundies are all about faith. Perhaps this should be the Baptist anthem :P http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lu3VTngm1F0&ob=av2e Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Username MechaRFK on November 15, 2011, 03:11:23 PM So some White D's don't like Puerto Ricans and suddenly it's not liberal? More like some white R' s in Mass don't like Puerto Ricans. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: freepcrusher on November 15, 2011, 03:58:44 PM The thing is, is that the mainline Christian religions (and I consider Catholics mainline for this purpose), are losing adherents in droves. That is why the Catholic percentage in the US is gradually drifting down despite the huge influx of Hispanics, and even though the Catholic figure is inflated somewhat because I suspect there is a particular high percentage of CINO's (Catholics in name only). So the mainline belts in the US have a particularly rapidly growing percentage of the "unchurched." Excellent point. I don't have data, but even here in the Bible Belt, lots of non-Baptists are increasingly unchurched. For whatever reason, Baptists are supremely effective in getting their folks to remain strong believers, through and through, even if they don't ever go to church as adults. Catholics seem to have the opposite situation where a lot of folks go to church and then return home with more willingness to think critically. Probably because Catholics stress reasoning in their dogma ( even if I don't buy a lot of it), whereas fundies are all about faith. Perhaps this should be the Baptist anthem :P http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lu3VTngm1F0&ob=av2e true enough I was raised catholic and went to catholic schools as a kid but I'm now an agnostic. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: greenforest32 on March 29, 2012, 01:13:08 PM 3. They'll probably legalize physician-assisted suicide in 2012 if it makes the ballot: http://www.dignity2012.org/ I'll be interested to see the margin of victory/defeat for that last one. Would you support or oppose a proposal to legalize assisted suicide in Massachusetts? Support........................................................... 43% Oppose........................................................... 37% Not sure ......................................................... 20% http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/pdf/2011/PPP_Release_MA_322121.pdf Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Small Business Owner of Any Repute on March 29, 2012, 03:31:46 PM I guess I'm just chiming in with the chorus, but indeed, Massachusetts is not as liberal as it's generally made out to be. It's still much more liberal than average, and heavily Democratic.
Thing is, though, a lot of folks who vote Democrat really aren't Democrats. Republicans won back a large number of these voters in 2010 when they doubled their presence in the state's lower house. Time will only tell if they can hold on to them. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: freepcrusher on March 29, 2012, 10:14:48 PM i wouldn't say it is liberal but I would say its probably the least conservative state in the country. The reason why people think its so liberal is because the parts of the state that most people visit are very liberal (the Berkshires and the Suffolk County/South Middlesex area).
It does seem that they have a far left delegation though. In a state with only ten districts they have guys like Markey McGovern Frank Olver and Capuano who are all very far to the left. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: nclib on March 31, 2012, 01:11:13 PM Mass. may not be nearly as liberal as it is said to be, and there are some culturally conservative Dems, but it is still quite liberal by American standards. Even the most conservative counties in Mass. are still less culturally conservative than most of America. For example, the current MA-3 is relatively culturally conservative and still elects liberal Jim McGovern. Perhaps northern white working-class Catholics prioritize other things above social conservativism.
BTW, has anyone seen polls/results by county for gay marriage/marijuana in Mass.? Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: morgieb on March 31, 2012, 08:27:20 PM While it's still pretty liberal by American standards, there are certain bits of the Democratic base there that are kinda culturally conservative and are willing to support a Republican who has blue-collar appeal. This is perhaps why Warren's struggling a bit against Brown.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Free Palestine on April 02, 2012, 04:44:29 PM Mass. may not be nearly as liberal as it is said to be, and there are some culturally conservative Dems, but it is still quite liberal by American standards. Even the most conservative counties in Mass. are still less culturally conservative than most of America. For example, the current MA-3 is relatively culturally conservative and still elects liberal Jim McGovern. Perhaps northern white working-class Catholics prioritize other things above social conservativism. BTW, has anyone seen polls/results by county for gay marriage/marijuana in Mass.? I get the impression of Mass. being pretty culturally conservative, still. It seems like despite their support for 'liberal' policies, they're still very "cut your hair, hippie." Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Vermin Supreme on April 02, 2012, 05:07:14 PM Mass. may not be nearly as liberal as it is said to be, and there are some culturally conservative Dems, but it is still quite liberal by American standards. Even the most conservative counties in Mass. are still less culturally conservative than most of America. For example, the current MA-3 is relatively culturally conservative and still elects liberal Jim McGovern. Perhaps northern white working-class Catholics prioritize other things above social conservativism. BTW, has anyone seen polls/results by county for gay marriage/marijuana in Mass.? I get the impression of Mass. being pretty culturally conservative, still. It seems like despite their support for 'liberal' policies, they're still very "cut your hair, hippie." These so called "liberals" are the same ones that wouldn't want to talk with BRTD if they were sharing a room in an apartment? Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: RogueBeaver on April 02, 2012, 05:16:37 PM It has a lot of culturally conservative Democrats who can be swung by an astute Republican- the GOP gubernatorial dynasty and now Scott Brown. Overall, more Democratic than liberal.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Vermin Supreme on April 16, 2012, 03:51:29 PM It has a lot of culturally conservative Democrats who can be swung by an astute Republican- the GOP gubernatorial dynasty and now Scott Brown. Overall, more Democratic than liberal. The GOP governors seem to have more of a white collar base rather then the Scott Brown base. Seems similar to New York senator Al D'amato base back in the 1980's-1990's. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: hopper on April 16, 2012, 04:10:53 PM Where Massachusetts is one of the top 5 most liberal states in the country I also found it to be that lot of reactionary are thrown by Reagan Democrats who think Puerto Ricans are the scum of the Earth. My family is like this when I chat politics with them when I come down for a vist compare to my Vermont cousins who are very liberal. Basically the Scott Brown voters who think we should never question the scum-bag cops and that we should protect god in public events. The current two term mayor of the largest city in Texas is an open lesbian. As far as I can tell Houston is the largest city in the world with a lesbian mayor. I think the honour goes to Paris. But Washington isn't hopelessly Democratic, it could be won by a Romney 2002/Huntsman type. When very popular AG McKenna is not doing very hot in polls against the Congressman with no real name recognition, this hypothesis looks weak. Washington looks deceptively winnable for Republicans but getting above that 50% + 1 vote threshold is very difficult when the Democratic base is rock solid and when "swing voters" over the last ten years always break towards Democrats in contested/high-profile races. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: hopper on April 16, 2012, 04:19:51 PM On Massachusetts yeah the West Side of the state of the state is liberal like Amherst. Of course Boston is pretty liberal too. Worcester isn't really that liberal though. I think Republicans like Scott Brown and the 2010 Republican Nominee for Governor Charlie Baker did well in the Eastern Part of the state. I mean a few districts in the Eastern Part of the state were trending Republican before the Redistricting happened(MA-3, MA-4, MA-6, and MA-9.)
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: hopper on April 16, 2012, 04:29:29 PM Every state has extremes on both sides. For instance, my insane fundamentalist aunt lives in...Essex County, New Jersey. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian. on April 17, 2012, 12:08:39 PM On Massachusetts yeah the West Side of the state of the state is liberal like Amherst. Of course Boston is pretty liberal too. Worcester isn't really that liberal though. I think Republicans like Scott Brown and the 2010 Republican Nominee for Governor Charlie Baker did well in the Eastern Part of the state. I mean a few districts in the Eastern Part of the state were trending Republican before the Redistricting happened(MA-3, MA-4, MA-6, and MA-9.) It's really just some of the Boston exurbs and parts of Worcester and Plymouth Counties that are Republican as such in Massachusetts, and even then a lot of the more conservative people who would otherwise live there fled to southern New Hampshire in decades past. Places like the suburbs of Springfield, Essex County outside its cities, Norfolk County less Brookline and Quincy, and Cape Cod are a bit squishier politically and give Republicans a lot of such statewide victories as they get. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: morgieb on April 17, 2012, 08:39:22 PM On Massachusetts yeah the West Side of the state of the state is liberal like Amherst. Of course Boston is pretty liberal too. Worcester isn't really that liberal though. I think Republicans like Scott Brown and the 2010 Republican Nominee for Governor Charlie Baker did well in the Eastern Part of the state. I mean a few districts in the Eastern Part of the state were trending Republican before the Redistricting happened(MA-3, MA-4, MA-6, and MA-9.) It's really just some of the Boston exurbs and parts of Worcester and Plymouth Counties that are Republican as such in Massachusetts, and even then a lot of the more conservative people who would otherwise live there fled to southern New Hampshire in decades past. Places like the suburbs of Springfield, Essex County outside its cities, Norfolk County less Brookline and Quincy, and Cape Cod are a bit squishier politically and give Republicans a lot of such statewide victories as they get. ? Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: tpfkaw on April 17, 2012, 10:02:03 PM Their partisanship is much weaker than the rest of the state and so they are likely to swing to Republicans whenever they run a reasonably competitive race.
Essentially, Republicans have a "base" of perhaps 30% or so, (https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=25&year=2008&f=0&off=3&elect=0&class=2) and have 2-3 ways of getting that extra 20%. 1. Appeal to socially liberal but fiscally conservative wealthy/suburban voters. (https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=25&year=2002&f=0&off=5&elect=0) 2. Appeal to socially conservative (for MA) working-class voters ("Reagan Democrats"). (https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=25&year=2010&f=0&off=3&elect=7) - This one is probably the most promising for the MAGOP in the future. 3. Appeal to "ancestral" WASP voters with identity politics. (This one may no longer be possible). (https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=25&year=1998&f=0&off=5&elect=0) Edit: This is the 300,000th post in this forum! How cool is that! Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Vermin Supreme on April 18, 2012, 10:52:31 AM How would getting white working class voters for the MAGOP the most promising for them? Social issues such as abortion and gay marriage are supported by most citizens in the state and yet this would hurt the social conservative positions by the GOP. You can't play moral politics in a state like Massachusetts. Massachusetts was the lone state that voted for George McGovern in 1972. I'm guessing the way you could get these voters is fear mongering about black people, illegals, college grads, and Hollywood.
Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian. on April 18, 2012, 11:56:24 AM A little more subtle than that, but sort of, yeah.
Cellucci won Berkshire County? Yeah, I really don't see that sort of thing happening again. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Vermin Supreme on April 18, 2012, 12:14:28 PM A little more subtle than that, but sort of, yeah. Cellucci won Berkshire County? Yeah, I really don't see that sort of thing happening again. I'm guessing were going to see more of those WASP Republicans to start voting more Democratic and blue collar Catholics more Republican. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Napoleon on April 18, 2012, 03:28:43 PM A little more subtle than that, but sort of, yeah. Cellucci won Berkshire County? Yeah, I really don't see that sort of thing happening again. Maybe having Swift on the ticket helped. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian. on April 18, 2012, 03:30:10 PM A little more subtle than that, but sort of, yeah. Cellucci won Berkshire County? Yeah, I really don't see that sort of thing happening again. Maybe having Swift on the ticket helped. Oh, right, I forgot she was from North Adams. I like North Adams so I might have blocked that out for that reason. Title: Re: Is Massachusetts not that liberal/progressive? Post by: tpfkaw on April 18, 2012, 05:36:37 PM A little more subtle than that, but sort of, yeah. Cellucci won Berkshire County? Yeah, I really don't see that sort of thing happening again. Maybe having Swift on the ticket helped. Swift on the ticket helped a lot, as did being Weld's lieutenant gov. |