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David you Asked: Here it is – Niki’s Top Ten an Analysis

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Trying to jump start the bilge pump on her sinking campaign ship, Niki Tsongas recently released a top 10 list of “Things Jim Ogonowski Doesn’t Want You to Know about his Candidacy”.  Actually Jim does want you to know these things and they help Jim.  Let’s look at the list one by one.

1. His position on the Iraq war is in lock step with President George Bush and he favors keeping the troops in Iraq indefinitely.

Tsongas lies here.  Jim Ogonowski, unlike myself, was against the Iraq War in the beginning, but knows that a precipitous pull out will lead to greater instability.  This is a position shared by all the major democratic candidates for President, none of who would answer in the affirmative when asked if all troops will be out of Iraq by January 2013.  Jim’s position is not George Bush’s position.

2. He is a card-carrying graduate of the National Republican Campaign Committee’s candidate training school prominently featuring Karl Rove.

Oogity-boogity Karl Rove, Karl Rove, Karl Rove oooohhhhhh.  The horror a registered Republican took advantage of his parties candidate school, where he learned things like.  You need to knock on doors, you need to listen to people, you need to raise money.  Ooooohhhhhh.

3. Using tactics learned directly from top GOP operatives, his principal strategy is to distort the record instead of proposing any solutions.

He has proposed solutions.  He is in favor of increasing tax credits for renewable energy, against amnesty for illegal immigrants, and for a more streamlined tax code. 

4. He opposes a bill that would expand a successful program providing health care coverage for kids-standing with George Bush when every member of Congress in New England, including

Republican Christopher Shays-supports the legislation

The Democratic party has done an effective job of scaring the bejesus out of Republican’s in swing states on this bill.  Oh and PS Chris Shay’s is the only republican from New England.

5. His “non partisan, non politician” base of support includes donations from former Governors Cellucci and Swift, members of the Romney family, Republican Lt. Governor nominee Reed Hillman, and a $2,500 contribution from the Main Street Republican PAC, a Washington-based

Republican political action committee.

Let’s see, Celluci-Swift-Romney won the district, and Hillman almost did.  And the Main Street PAC is a moderate republican PAC.  Not exactly the fire and brimstone group its made out to be.  Why Niki would want to open this can of worms is hilarious.  She is the candidate of Tspecial interests.  She has taken thousands upon thousands of dollars from PACs.  Jim gets one PAC contribution and it’s oh lordy the sky is falling. 

6. He supports the Bush tax cuts which have given nearly one-third of the benefits to the wealthiest one percent of Americans – people earning more than $450,000 per-year.

Those same Bush Tax cuts that remove a marriage penalty, if Niki’s elected can we call the extra that newlyweds will pay in taxes the Tsongas Bill?  This is a district that almost voted to eliminate the income tax in Massachusetts all together.  Do you really want to remind the voters that you support tax increases Niki?  Really?  Oh and the top one percent garbage is just that.  The top one percent of wage earners pay over 35% of all taxes, so it would stand to reason that they would get a similar percentage cut with an across the board tax cut. 

7. He’s said that Marty Meehan’s greatest achievement was “leaving office so a conservative Republican can fill his seat.” [Lowell Sun, 8/31/07

That’s called a joke Ms. Tsongas.  Perhaps if you lightened up the people of the district would be taking a liking to you.

8. He says he’s “nonpartisan” but when “pressed to come up with one Democratic idea he could support, Ogonowski had no answer.” [Boston Globe, 9/27/07]

He supports Renewable energy, that’s not a Democratic idea, but one they could support. 

9. When asked about what he would do about the tragic situation many families in this District are facing as their homes are being put up for foreclosure, an issue that has dominated the news for several months, he said, “he would need to know more about it, adding, ‘I have no good answer on that right now.'”

You mean a politician actually said, I don’t have an answer, I’d have to study the situation.  My god the horror of that.  It’s actually refreshing to hear a politician say he’s going to study something.  Perhaps in the interim Deval Patrick could help those families, since it was most probably his company ACC Holdings that got them into the situation in the first place.

10. He has the wrong priorities for the Fifth Congressional District.

Really that’s one of the top ten, that’s kind of lame isn’t it Niki?  Really lame.

Niki this race is easy.  People like Jim, they don’t like you. 

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Comments

  1. Isn’t he pro-choice? 

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    About number 9, didn’t Deval do that about the casinos?  For months? 

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    About number 5, didn’t Niki get donations from Raytheon?  That big defense contractor? 

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    Great post.

      • Washington DC, like the Pace Commercial guys say New York City?

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        David it’s a weak argument and you know it.  He went to a candidate school.  Where they teach people campaign basics.  I’m sure if you looked hard enough you could even find the materials from said school on-line.

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        I’m sure Niki went to the DCCC school as well.  They open these things up for anybody who is interested to go.  Ogonowski has never run for anything before, he wanted training, so he gasp went to training.

  3. Let’s go through it.

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    1.  You haven’t explained what Ogo’s position on Iraq is, only what it isn’t.  That’s because you don’t know, and neither does he.  What is your basis for saying that he’s not four-square with Bush with respect to what to do going forward?  2003 was a long time ago.

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    2.  Oh please.  No one, including Ogo, needs Karl Rove to tell them that it helps to knock on doors to win a campaign.  If that’s all Rove is doing at his candidate school, he’s fleecing a lot of people.  I’d wager there’s a bit more to it.

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    3.  He’s against “amnesty.”  Great, that’s really going to move immigration policy forward.  Is he for anything?  What does he want to do?

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    4.  Nice try, EaBo, but a hilarious failure on your part.  “Swing states,” like Utah.  Orrin Hatch is really in danger of losing his seat.  So are lifers like Chuck Grassley.  The remarkable thing about the SCHIP issue is that it has totally fractured the GOP in ways that have nothing to do with swing states or at-risk seats.  It’s just that, once in a blue moon, even a few Republicans are willing to stand on principle and buck the president.

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    5.  This is perhaps not Niki’s strongest argument.

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    6.  Oh come on.  The Bush tax cuts have been shown time and again to overwhelmingly benefit the very rich, for no good reason.  If you support them, you favor helping the rich pay less.  It really is as simple as that.

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    7.  Oh, so it’s OK for Republicans to make nasty jokes, but God help us, if a Dem should ever do so, he’s a traitor.  IOKIYAR.

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    8.  Pathetic.  Everyone supports “renewable energy.”  And the Globe story stands — he couldn’t come up with a thing.

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    9.  Again, deeply pathetic.  Sure, it’s fine to say you want more information.  But it’s not as if the subprime crisis hasn’t been the issue in the financial markets for the last few months.  Surely he might have had a thought or two on what Congress might do.  Maybe FEMA could take care of it?

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    10.  It’s a rhetorical point, EaBo.  Chill.

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    By the way, your last comment is a borderline personal attack.  Consider yourself warned.

        • Looks like I touched a nerve.  This race is going to be decided by which candidate people like better.  And that candidate is by far Jim Ogonowski.  It was a statement of how the race is shaping up.  The people, not Republicans, but the everyday people that I’ve talked to Republican and Democrat in the 5th district don’t like Niki Tsongas.  They feel that she feels she is entitled to this seat due to her last name.  That she is a carpetbagger.

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          It’s like up in Prince Edward Island, you could have lived on the Island for your entire life but if you were born whilst on a trip to the mainland, you’d be considered from “Away”. 

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          Whether or not you choose to believe it, that’s what the dynamic in this race is. 

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          Rob Eno

          • I don’t live in MA-05, so I have no idea whether what you say is accurate or not.  My point is that I expect discourse here to remain civil and, to the extent possible, issue-focused.  We don’t always adhere to that as closely as we’d like, but we do try.

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            The “carpetbagger” charge is of course absurd on its face.

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            As usual, I see no response from you to my substantive points, and just more blather about who likes whom. 

          • IMHO, this comment is something Republicans understand and Democrats don’t understand enough. That’s why you’ll see PP go to the mat for Romney, but Democrats just regard character attacks on Hillary as part of the environment.

          • down in Washington,D.C.?  A candidate cannot win if people won’t campaign for him or her.  If he has such a following, why does he have to rely on phone banking from the DC?

          • a public figure is now considered a personal attack? Does this interpretation also apply to the endless Romney bashing here? or the Bush is a moron chants? What are the rules?

    • The point is that Ogonowski is pushing PAC money and Washington insider on Niki.  Her point, Ogonowski hypocritical stance as he takes cash from PACs and politicians.  I personally don’t care, but her point is mostly about being a hypocrite.

      • Ogonowski went to Washington twice to attend the National Republican Campaign Committee’s candidate training school.  That’s Rove’s baby, he likely had sessions directly with Rove. 

    • 1.  You haven’t explained what Ogo’s position on Iraq is, only what it isn’t.  That’s because you don’t know, and neither does he.  What is your basis for saying that he’s not four-square with Bush with respect to what to do going forward?  2003 was a long time ago.

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      Ogonowski’s position on Iraq can be found here.  He hasn’t changed his position on it since June.  Unlike Niki Tsongas who has changed her position on senior citizen issues when she saw she was losing that critical demographic to Jim Ogonowski.  I don’t know what more to tell you David. He outlined a 12 page position paper on the war on terror.  Read it if so inclined.

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      2.  Oh please.  No one, including Ogo, needs Karl Rove to tell them that it helps to knock on doors to win a campaign.  If that’s all Rove is doing at his candidate school, he’s fleecing a lot of people.  I’d wager there’s a bit more to it.

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      Ogonowski has never run for office. He wanted training.  The NRCC offered it.  He took them up on the offer.  It really is that simple.  This was just an attempt to bring up the boogey man.  Ooggity Boogity.

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      3.  He’s against “amnesty.”  Great, that’s really going to move immigration policy forward.  Is he for anything?  What does he want to do?

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      He wants to increase tax credits on renewable energy, protect our borders from illegal aliens, and streamline our tax code.  I wrote it before, I’ll write it again.  You may not like those things but it is what he’s for.  He also wants to save social security for seniors and not raise the retirement age.  Unlike Ms. Tsongas.

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      4.  Nice try, EaBo, but a hilarious failure on your part.  “Swing states,” like Utah.  Orrin Hatch is really in danger of losing his seat.  So are lifers like Chuck Grassley.  The remarkable thing about the SCHIP issue is that it has totally fractured the GOP in ways that have nothing to do with swing states or at-risk seats.  It’s just that, once in a blue moon, even a few Republicans are willing to stand on principle and buck the president.

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      If Orrin Hatch wants to increase the size of the federal beuracracy and give a new entitlement to upper middle class families, while not asking for proof of legality to receive that benefit. So be it.  Doesn’t mean he’s right.

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      5.  This is perhaps not Niki’s strongest argument.

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      Ya think?

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      6.  Oh come on.  The Bush tax cuts have been shown time and again to overwhelmingly benefit the very rich, for no good reason.  If you support them, you favor helping the rich pay less.  It really is as simple as that.

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      The evil rich people have not received benefits of the tax cuts in any larger proportion to their tax burden than other clases.  In fact the Bush tax cuts have taken a large portion of people in lower income ranges off the tax rolls completely.  It is not an argument that in good faith you can win David.  The fact is they were across the board tax cuts and as a percentage of total tax paid those at the higher tax end, now pay a higher percentage of all taxes than those at the lower end of the spectrum.  This is not a good issue for Niki in this district.

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      7.  Oh, so it’s OK for Republicans to make nasty jokes, but God help us, if a Dem should ever do so, he’s a traitor.  IOKIYAR.

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      So joking that the only good thing Marty Meehan ever did was resign is a nasty joke.  Seems your priorities are askew.

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      8.  Pathetic.  Everyone supports “renewable energy.”  And the Globe story stands — he couldn’t come up with a thing.

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      I wasn’t in the room, don’t know how the question was phrased.

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      9.  Again, deeply pathetic.  Sure, it’s fine to say you want more information.  But it’s not as if the subprime crisis hasn’t been the issue in the financial markets for the last few months.  Surely he might have had a thought or two on what Congress might do.  Maybe FEMA could take care of it?

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      I repeat my assertion.  Ask Deval how he’ll handle the mess he helped create as Jesse Jackson’s “fixer”?  It is a complex issue that needs to be studied.

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      10.  It’s a rhetorical point, EaBo.  Chill.

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      OK, I’m going down to the Red Hat for a Brewski to chill out.

        1. First, thank you — and I mean that — for posting the link to Ogo’s Iraq plan.  Because I still can’t find a link to it anywhere on his site.  I just did a separate post on this, because no one else can find it either.  So here’s “what more” you can tell me: why is he hiding this thing?  And are there other issue papers out there for which we don’t yet have the secret handshake?

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        2. Let me just ask you this: do you know whether Rove shows up at these NRCC things?  I’m guessing yes.  But you guys can’t bear to admit that, because it would sully Ogo’s carefully-crafted non-insider non-partisan non-DC image.  At this point, Rove is far more of a liability for Republicans than he is for Democrats, because he represents exactly the kind of politics that most Americans are sick of.  Ogo’s decision to go study at the master’s feet is an unfortunate fact for you guys.

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        3. Just as a fer-instance, has Ogo ever explained what he means by “streamlining” the tax code?  Or is that information in one of the secret-handshake issue papers not yet available to the public?

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        4. You’ve lost the war on SCHIP, and you know it.  Ogo’s painted himself into a very difficult corner on this one, and moaning about illegal aliens isn’t going to help — especially since the bill expressly does not authorize benefits for illegal aliens.  What Ogo has actually said about the SCHIP bill — that it “include[s] … legislation that would allow illegal immigrants to access government health benefits” is so misleading as to qualify as false.  No, the bill doesn’t require a photo ID.  But to construe that as “allow[ing]” people who are expressly disqualified under the bill to obtain benefits is insulting to the people of MA-05 that you claim to care so deeply about.

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        6. This is another one that you guys have lost on, but just can’t bear to admit it.

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        By 2010, when (and if) the Bush tax reductions are fully in place, an astonishing 52 percent of the total tax cuts will go to the richest one percent-whose average 2010 income will be $1.5 million. Their tax-cut windfall in that year alone will average $85,000 each. Put another way, of the estimated $234 billion in tax cuts scheduled for the year 2010, $121 billion will go just 1.4 million taxpayers…. CTJ’s new study conclusively exposes the chicanery of the Bush administration and its supporters in arguing that the tax cuts were even-handed. “After all,” they claimed, “the rich pay most of the taxes, so it’s only fair that they get the lion’s share of the tax cuts.” But in fact, in 2010 before the Bush tax cuts, the top one percent was expected to pay just over a quarter of all federal taxes (don’t feel too bad for these people; they’ll take in 19 percent of all the income). So a tax cut that gives the richest Americans more than half of its benefits is obviously anything but even-handed.

        Compared to the federal taxes that would have been paid in 2010 before the tax cuts, Bush’s program reduces taxes on the wealthiest by 15 percent. For the remaining 99 percent of us, the tax cuts average only 5 percent. More tellingly, by 2010, the very rich will see their taxes fall by 5.7 percent of their income. For the remaining 99 percent, the average tax cut is only 1.2 percent of income.

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        That was just #1 from my Google search for “bush tax cuts.”  And their unfairness is on top of their grotesque fiscal irresponsibility that has plunged us into decades of deficits after Bill Clinton finally restored fiscal sanity to the federal budget.  And sorry, but you know that one’s true too.

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        7. Whatever dude.

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        8. It’s pretty simple — the Globe asked him if there was “one Democratic idea” he could support.  He couldn’t come up with anything.  Link.

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        9. sputter fume IT’S DEVAL’S FAULT!!!

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        10. Have one for me!

        • Google “ogonowski + iraq plan” and you get my link. It was the front page of ogonowski’s site for lik 5 months.  Dude you are really internet inept.

          • …which is, why is that material neither on or linked to by Ogonowski’s campaign’s web site?  If he believes that his plan is so good, it seems to me that he should not only be proud of it, but tout it on the campaign web site.

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            That he doesn’t at least link to it on his campaign web site, why should people reading through that site even have reaason believe that a web page somewhere on the Internet containing a position paper on the issue even exists?

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            BTW, what is Ogonowski’s position on Bush’s predicted attack on Iran?

            • website for the last 4 months.  It was teh first thing you saw when going to his page. It’s not something new. 

              • …I don’t live in the district, and cannot vote for or against him.  As such, I am not going to go rooting around his web site (whose URL I don’t even know).  Can you post a link?

              • He linked to it as the splash page on his Website for the last 4 months.

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                …why didn’t he just leave it there?  It takes time and effort to remove something from a web page.  It takes no time or effort to just…leave it there.

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                There is something very fishy going on with this issue.

            • is contained in the blueprint as well.  He believes that we should send Bill Clinton Bush 41 and Jimmy Carter to Iran and Syria to talk.  Not my first choice, but if you read his plan you’ll find it. 

              • In order to improve relations with Iran, Ogo wants to send a man primarily responsible for our policy of arming and cheerleading Iraq in its war with Iran?

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                What’s next — send Clinton to talk sense into the Serbian government?

          • including by raj, why on earth should I have to go to Google?  Why shouldn’t I find it from Ogo’s website?  And I don’t care whether it “was” on his site for 5 months.  It’s not there now, and now is when people are paying attention.

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            The only people who are internet-inept, here, “dude,” are the people running Ogo’s website.

            • …eabo already pointed out that it was on Ogo’s site for like 5 months. Case closed. Dude, you are so Ogo inept, dude.

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              Seriously, though, good luck getting an answer. I find it interesting how eabo cherry picks the questions he answers. Also, is anyone keeping score on how many personal insults eabo has made in the last week? It’s nice to see that eabo finds civil discourse and engaging facts extremely challenging, but he also shows little respect for the rules of the road.

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              I admire The Editors’ patience in giving eabo every opportunity to prove himself a worthwhile contributor and redeem himself. It’s too bad eabo could not seize the opportunities.

  4. is your shortest answer. #8.

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    Plus on George Bush and Ogonowski, tell me again how their positions are different.  Telling whether we should have gone into Iraq doesn’t answer that question.  Tell us specifically the difference between George Bush and Ogonowski in Iraq going forward.

  5. Too bad someone like George Bush came up with “Uniter” vs. “Divider”, because that’s just what’s going on in this race.  Niki is a solutions person, as Bill Clinton said, the other party are dividers and use the tactics of smear and fear.  Why define issues, when you can run on “Simple Life” terms. Isn’t it insulting?

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    Niki is bad, Ogi is good. 
    Niki is a politician, Ogi is a farmer.
    Niki is an insider, Ogi is an outsider.
    Niki is for economic largesse for the district, Ogi will eschew government waste.
    Niki broke Congress, Ogi will fix it.

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    As far as the issues, hold on, I must be current and check Ogi’s web page…

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    …yep, still no issues section on the web site, only newspaper coverage.

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    Other than being against then for the war, against “illegals” and for a green environment (commendable), what does this man stand for?  He’s angry and not going to take it any more, OK.  But what’s he for?

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    EaBo, you are disdainful of Niki’s top ten list but your guys next seven issues are missing and can’t be found.  At least Reagan had his “City on a Hill” and “Morning in America,” uplifting themes. 

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    Please invite your man to comment meaningfully on:

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    Housing policy
    Smart growth
    Education
    Transportation policies
    Global warming
    Civil rights
    Human rights
    Full position on women’s rights and choice

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    And the last questions for anyone considering not voting in this special election are:

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    What if the next Representative from this district is the ONE vote that can end the war as opposed to sustaining GWB’s position or veto?

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    What if the next Representative from this district is the ONE vote that can guarantee children’s health care, or instead, uphold a Bush veto and compromise these childen?

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    As David has pointed out, these are not hypothetical questions.  In a divided Congress, Niki vs. Ogi could be a matter of life and death.

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    • It’s been a while. How are the offices going on Market STreet.  Has Sam Poulten given you guys a good deal on the office space yet.

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      Will

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      I was the oppo research person on the Chuck McCarthy Campaign vs. marty meehan and even I wasn’t this sloppy.  And damn was I sloppy.  You are so an employee of the Niki Tsongas campaign yet you can’t disclose it.  But hey who’s counting. 

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      Niki’s going to lose and your career is over because of it, too bad, I’ve liked your banter here and on richardhowe.com

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