Talk Elections

will this geezer run again in 2006?  i hope not.

will he receive a serious challenge if he runs again?

who are the favorites from each party if kennedy (wisely) decides to retire?

personally i think senator jane swift has a nice ring to it.

Ted Kennedy will continue to run for office until his death, much the same as Robert Byrd.

If Jane Swift were to run, she would be defeated by about a 30-point margin, something close to 60-32. Even if she ran against someone like Cheryl Jacques, Swift would still lose by 20 points.

jane swift will make her comeback.  she did makes some mistakes, but all in all, they were pretty minor.  some people in massachusetts just decided to go on a witch hunt and they tried their best to destroy swift's character.

i think she could challenge kennedy.  sure, swift used a state helicopter unathorized so she could visit her sick child.  kennedy, on the other hand, left a young woman at the bottom of a lake and didnt bother calling authorities until he sobered up. 

which is worse?

If Ted Kennedy is still alive in 2012, he'll have been Senator for 50 years. No ands if or buts.

Weren't her approval ratings very, very low though, Walter? I think she's done with politics.

To bad that even if he dies in the next two years, we still don't get the seat.

Let me cry some crocodile tears.

yes they were low. 

but she is only in her late 30s.  she has plenty of time to repair her political career

That's the rub. Political losers can make comebacks by stumping for local candidates in tight races--Nixon did so famously in 1966. In MA, a loser politico-hack like Jacques could make a comeback just by shilling for certain Democrats locked in tight primaries. Swift has no such option, because in MA, the Republican party is essentially defunct and bereft of local candidates to support.

Okay, 13 days til inauguration day :) :) :)

I think he's already said he'll retire in 2012. It doesn't matter if he retires, The GOP has zilch chance of winning the seat. If Weld can't do it, no one can.

As for a serious challenge, why? What's the point in wasting money in a race where your best case scenario is a 30 point loss?

brtd:  if mitt romney can win statewide in mass, what makes you think a moderate republican cant win a senate seat?

gee, governor's races are different from senate races? Look at all the states with governors of the different party. Do you expect Wyoming to elect a Democratic senator soon?

Even William Weld, who won reelection with 70% of the vote couldn't do it. Who can?

Even if it were possible, why would anyone have a chance against one of the Senate's most entrenched incumbents whose opponent didn't even get 20% last time?

john kerry broke his promise of a spending limit in the closing weeks of that 96 senate race.  bill weld kept his word. 

Does anybody know where to find county results for Kerry vs. Weld?

Nope, but it was something like 55-44.

It'd be great if the GOP used all thie resources in targetting Kennedy.

I fear that it would be a futile effort, but Senator Swift does sound nice!

When did he say that? He'll only be 80. It'll be time for him to start on a second half century of being Senator!

Who are New York's Senators, and who is New York's Governor?

um yes, you just proved my point.

Anyone who thinks Kennedy can be beat is beyond delusional.

The Republicans have absolutely no chance of taking Ted Kennedy's senate seat.

Considering that the Reps don't even have a single congressman (out of a possible 10) from that state, they really don't have a platform even if the seat were open.

Oh, and Mitt Romney doesn't count.  As previously mentioned, governors are a completely different kettle of fish.

Massachusetts is the stronghold of New England and Swift is politically dead.

yeah at least you get it.

I don't know why Walter loves her so much, but an unelected governor who was extremely popular at the end of her term is hardly a rising star.

she was wronged by both the democrats and the republicans.  she made some minor mistakes and some people went on a witchhunt.  it is kind of ironic that some of those same people dont have a problem with kennedy leaving a young woman at the bottom of the lake, however.  just dont use a state helicopter unauthorized.

and brtd, i dont know why you love mark dayton so much.  he is a horrible senator that hasnt accomplished much of anything.

I thought Kennedy said he was going to keep running for reelection for as long as they would have him... Mass isn't going to vote him out and he knows that... so you're stuck with him until the man croaks.

Democratic favorites for this seat are congressmen, notably Marty Meehan, Barney Frank, and Stephen Lynch.  One of these would probably win. It doesn't matter who the Republicans nominate, as they will lose.

what about andy card?  ive heard rumors that he may be interested in running for senate.

he's too old.  Thing is, back in the day, the Kennedys had a really great image. He really messed it up for the family. He's the epitome of what's wrong with politicans, and probably one of the most loathsome in my book (of course my book is 12,000 pages long, but he's made the top 100 list).  Provided that he doesn't drive anyone else off a cliff, or die of alcohol poisoning, he's got a good chance of getting elected.  Republicans might not even run a candidate against him.  Of course, in the rare event he steps down (probably due to health reasons), and there's an open election, I still doubt they'll elect a Republican.  Massachusetts people are generally liberal and proud of it.


"He weighs about seven-THOUSAND pounds.  You can shoot a bullet in Los Angeles and hit him in the ass in Boston later.  He'd be standing in the lawn at the Kennedy compund goin' 'ah-ah-ah there's a bullet in my ahss. ah-ah-ah'--Denis Leary, No Cure for Cancer