Joanna Gonsalves, the candidate challenging state Sen. Robert A. Havern III, pledged Monday to “not accept campaign contributions from lobbyists or special interest groups.”
Gonsalves, an alderman-at-large from Woburn, will face the incumbent senator from Arlington in the Democratic primary election Sept. 19.
She also said, “My opponent, Sen. Havern, and I disagree on this subject. Indeed, campaign finance records show that he accepted donations from individuals with ties to the Big Dig.”
Gonsalves said these records list Havern’s contributions from principals at Big Dig companies such as Modern Continental. Some of the contributions came while he was co-chairman of the Joint Committee on Transportation, the committee which has legislative oversight on the Big Dig. The Boston Phoenix and Blue Mass Group recently publicized this connection.
Gonsalves said, “My pledge will let me maintain my independence as a state Senator. It also rejects the ‘Big Dig Culture,’ which favors political power over the public good through campaign contributions.
“This culture is not right. Legal, but not right.”
She concluded, “I urge all candidates for elective office to adopt this pledge. It is a very simple idea which, if widely adopted, could restore confidence in Massachusetts politics.”
For more information, please go to www.JoannaGonsalves.org.
She signed the anti-marriage petition. Now that she’s running, it’s “Oops. I didn’t know what I signed.”
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I like Havern’s take on marriage.
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From JoannaGonsalves.com…
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Gonsalves, meanwhile, pledged to bring to the state Senate the same accessible style she said she has shown as an alderwoman. She contended that Havern should be more accessible, partly by having a district office.
Then why did she sign the petition?
We know many people signed that petition when they thought they were signing the beer & wine petition or the greyhound racing petition or one of the others. Thanks to Reilly & Galvin, that fraud was never investigated, and all of the signatures got certified, including possibly thousands, or even tens of thousands, of duped pro-gay-marriage people. What does she say about it? Did she support the petition, or get tricked?
According to the Globe:
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Elected officials should know a little something about petitions.
Havern doesn’t have a campaign web site as far as I can tell. He was endorsed by the Mass Alliance and this is what they say about him:
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Even though he has no web site, as an incumbent, he does have a record which some other sites and organizations track:
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I have no position in this race. From the little I know, both candidates seem good, and I don’t know of any serious black marks against either of them. But in an environment like that, the challenger needs to make a case that she’s significantly better than the incumbent, or people will re-elect the incumbent. I like Joanna’s pledge. Is there more?
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(I am Mass Alliance’s webmaster, but had no involvement in their endorsement process for him other than taking the statement and photo they sent me and putting it on the web site. I tried to find a web site for him, but all I found was his official state house web page.)
I could see this excuse if it was a one-time misstep, but she has used it when faced with criticism many times. She voted to discontinue health care for several employees in the City of Woburn and then claimed she didn’t understand what she was voting on. Is this the type of Senator we need, someone who doesn’t do her homework?
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Also, she may have progressive ideas, but has done nothing in her tenure on the Woburn City Council. Actions speak louder than rhetoric.
Anyone who has ever seen Alderman Gonsalves in action would know that she is an empty suit. Book smart – common sense dumb – plain and simple. Her comments and perspective on issues (zoning, municipal code, prop 2 1/2) make her sound like she is on the “Student Council” not the City Council. Last night’s results bare that out. She didn’t exactly get the vote out in Woburn and didn’t even manage a 2 to 1 advantage in her home city. Meanwhile, Havern went almost 7 to 1 in his home town of Arlington. She basically went down in flames. Her opinions on state wide issues are her Daddy’s opinions.
True, Alderman Gonsalves should read petitions before she signs them. But Senator Havern should read the names on his checks before he cashes them (or at least read his finance report before posting it).
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According to his recent OCPF filing, his campaign took $100 from the “Alcohol Beverage Control Commission”, which appears to be a MA state agency.
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If true, that would be an OCPF oopsie.
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Check out Dan Dunn’s post here.