The next inevitable question–if Baker was not substantively involved with the conspirators (denials of written internal discussions aside)–is: how can a guy with such a lousy campaign run the Commonwealth of Massachusetts? This is the question that helped do in John McCain. Baker would probably do better in charge of Massachusetts than he has of his campaign. As a dull man, he would be unlikely to hire conspiratorial cabalistas to work in his administration.
Even if Baker were able to convince the electorate that his campaign wouldn’t foreshadow his administration, he has to deal with the fact that his days of effective campaign messaging are done. From here on out, all questions focus, not on policy, but on the lawsuit implicating his campaign. Even if policy questions come up, the media will continue to focus on answers about his campaign.
Doubling down with the defection division of the Baker campaign, Paul Loscocco is playing the Rovian strategy of accusing Cahill of collusion, that which he himself is accused:
Most disturbing, however, was Tim’s admission during our meeting that his top political advisor, Neil Morrison (a former aide now at Goldman Sachs who claims to be a close personal friend of senior Obama advisor David Axelrod), has been in direct communications with Doug Rubin (Deval Patrick’s top political advisor and former top advisor to Cahill), discussing and otherwise coordinating matters involving negative ad strategy against Charlie Baker, the timing of such ads, and coordination of the specific role that the Democratic Governors’ Association will play in the race (including $4 Million Tim claimed was
now being targeted by the DGA against Charlie Baker in this race). When I asked, Tim did not deny the rumors that jobs in the prevailing administration among members of their currently opposing camps (with longstanding prior relationships in the Democratic Party) were also being arranged.
Get it? Cahill and the Democratic Governor’s Association were really guilty of what Loscocco, the Baker Campaign, and the Republican Governor’s Association are accused.
Massachusetts isn’t Mississippi. Our stupid people are smarter than their stupid people, and that goes double for our unenrolled voters. I don’t think they’re going to fall for Loscocco’s guilt by assocation. He’s toast.
And hang on to your hats, this one’s going national. It may not make a difference electorally, but stay tuned.
And by the way, it looks like there is some internecine warfare in the national GOP after all.
I LOVE POLITICS!
In this case, I think the right thing to do and the expedient thing to do coincide. Show the people an adult who has some idea how to run the Commonwealth, and let the Baker/Cahill clown show speak for itself. Turn every question about the clown show into “the people want to hear what I’m going to do about creating jobs, etc.”
“It was actually Tim Cahill that was conspiring- with Deval. Yeahhh! That’s the ticket!”
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p>If that was at all the case, why would Loscocco the Liar wait a full week before coming out with that story? Shouldn’t his political version of LeBron James’ Decision special have included a statement to the effect that he left the campaign because Cahill was conspiring with Deval? Why would he wait? Why?
Only one side in this has submitted anything in court. The other side has some excuse how they were just about to go to Coakley, but…
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p>It’s essentially the Chewbacca defense. They’re throwing everything out there, including the kitchen sink.
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p>And I haven’t strictly compared things, but on my first read through of “Loscocco’s Official Statement” it seemed that there were things at odds with his previous official statements. Like generally the I was shut out of the Cahill campaign, they tell me nothing, so I left. And now he’s saying, But before I left, Tim took me aside and explained the whole plan, in detail, and even named some Goldman Sachs guy who is tight with Obama.
I find the whole I was going to be a whistleblower thing to be strikingly odd coming from the campaign manager. Aren’t whistleblowers usually some rung lower than the CEO?
How high-minded! The Globe’s reporters will not let these events go nor will its columnists. This kind of story is the bread and butter of newspapers. And why hope that the impact on the candidates will be limited? Why shouldn’t everyone involved should get what he deserves? And how are voters to settle for nothing less than what passes for an issues-oriented campaign? That comment gets my Banality of the Day Award.
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p>Am I happy? Yeah, I’m happy. Governor Patrick–Loscocco’s McCarthyite insinuations notwithstanding–has done nothing wrong. He’s been given the opportunity to rise above the fray, and as DaveMB suggests, he’s going to do so.
this kind of stuff is far more revealing than what a candidate picks for his or her stance on issue X. So often those stances just aren’t relevant, but the way they go about their business absolutely is. The dirty tricks to which Baker’s campaign is willing to engage in should tell people a lot about how he’d choose to govern. He’s a very prickly person and it’s always showed.
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p>Expect Kerry-Healey-esque ads in T-1 week, as the desperation in Baker’s camp mounts.
The reason why Baker’s campaign consists of “conspiratorial cabalistas,” is because after 10 years of Rove-style politics, and the 10 years of Gingrich-esque tactics that predated it, that’s all there is left. Republicans are having a hard time finding good people to run their campaigns because there aren’t very many good Republican campaigners left. What few may have survived to this point certainly won’t survive the Tea Party purge.
… ratfucker, always a ratfucker.
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p>Pardon the language, but it’s their term, not mine…
Ten years ago, it wouldn’t have been hard to name Republicans whom I respected and even admired. Jim Jeffords, Lincoln Chaffee, Christie Todd Whitman, to name three.
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p>Now look what’s happened…
of “moderate” Republicans ousted by the Tea Party. She’s going to have an important choice to make coming up — become a Democrat or lose election. The purge continues.
but I imagine she’d be an improvement over the candidate Pine Street Militia/Tea Party would want. I can’t think of too many times when extremists taking over a conservative organization has worked out well for the organization, or society at large.