In what must be a bit of an annoyance to Deb Goldberg, the Brookline Tab has decided to back Andrea Silbert for Lt. Gov. Here’s their endorsement.
On Silbert, the Tab cites the usual suspects – her commitment to creating new jobs, her work with the Center for Women and Enterprise, and her sense of social justice (Brazilian street kids, ending homelessness). They add:
Silbert impresses with her readiness to roll up her sleeves and get to work and with her progressive, grassroots style. She has a practical view of the limits of the lieutenant governor, yet a clear determination to negotiate a meaningful role. We are also not swayed by her opponents’ claims that she lacks government experience. Her managerial background, ability to think on her feet and analytical skills give us confidence that Silbert could ably step into the governor’s shoes, if needed.
The Tab notes that it would be “remiss” in not explaining why they didn’t back town resident Goldberg:
We believe Goldberg has been taking too much credit for wonderful things about Brookline, especially considering she was chairman of Brookline’s Board of Selectmen for only two years. Her recent comment that she had “58,000 lives to worry about, especially in a post-9/11 world” and her bragging about managing a nearly $200 million budget, doesn’t just over inflate the chairman’s job. It’s an insult to Brookline’s public safety workers, the town manager, the other selectmen and Town Meeting members.
And while Goldberg is campaigning under the slogan “people first,” we can think of few events during her years as a selectman where that sentiment drove her decision-making. In fact, we think of a May 2003 incident when Goldberg was stopped for speeding and reportedly flashed her selectman’s badge to avoid a ticket as more symbolic of her priorities.
Oof. They go on to say that they like Tim Murray, but that they think Silbert’s the best candidate.
That can’t feel good in the Goldberg camp, although $2+ million does buy a lot of pain relief. They’re probably chalking it up to sour grapes, which it may well be…
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But flashing the badge? Hilarious image, if you think about it: the burly officer sidles up to the driver’s side of the Lexus, looks up into the driver’s side window (cuz the SUV ‘s window is higher than he is), the tinted window rolls down… you fill in the rest….
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High, high comedy.
I love how these newspaper blogs give reporters a chance to have things they write make it into print somewhere.
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The Globe’s Political Capital blog notes in this entry that Silbert was endorsed by Goldberg’s hometown paper.
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Nothing like piling on while the gittin’s good…