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Republican Charlie Baker announced his 2014 candidacy for Governor of Massachusetts yesterday not with a speech to supporters, nor with a press conference to assembled media outlets, nor with any event featuring the candidate appearing live and in person. Rather, Baker chose to announce the sequel to his failed 2010 gubernatorial bid with a YouTube video.
By failing to announce his own candidacy in a live setting, Charlie Baker risked giving greater credence to former U.S. Senator Scott Brown’s notorious assessment of Baker: “Is he Mr. Personality? No… everyone knows that, he’s not.” It was a sizable gamble, and the gamble didn’t pay off. The reviews of Baker’s announcement were highly negative.
Charlie Baker’s YouTube gubernatorial announcement falls flat
Charlie Baker may have announced he is running for governor on the Republican ticket, but he spent the day avoiding reporters.
It’s a curious strategy for a candidate who ran and lost to incumbent Democrat Gov. Deval Patrick in 2010. So what’s changed?
In a rambling, under-produced two-minute YouTube video, Baker said he is running for governor, but later declined to sit down with FOX 25 until Thursday.
WGBH News special contributor Peter Kadzis:
It was- well, the words “abject failure” come to mind… I would say it was a failure… it’s “politics-light.” You want the man or the woman in the flesh in front of people doing it for real.
WGBH News “Boston Public Radio” co-host Jim Braude:
It sounds like he’s on valium!
WHDH 7News political reporter Andy Hiller:
The Hiller Instinct: Charlie Baker is already a day behind
Charlie Baker announced, and state Democrats pounced, stepping on his opening day message by reintroducing his role in the Big Dig as he reintroduced himself. […]
In his announcement video, Baker makes no mention of the Big Dig, and his involvement in the budget busting project when Bill Weld and Paul Celluci were in the corner office on Beacon Hill.
But the state Democratic party sure did…in its own video, called “Remember Big Dig Baker?” […]
Baker was not available today. According to a campaign source, he wants to let his video get all the attention.
And he wasn’t in his campaign office, either. His headquarters was almost as empty as it looks. There were a few people working, but they didn’t want their pictures taken.
Charlie Baker will be talking to reporters tomorrow, but that may be a day late.
Somehow–on the first day of his campaign, Baker fell a day behind.
Republican strategist Pat Griffin:
Republican strategist Pat Griffin agrees the video was not on message.
“I think what the Baker video proved today is that slick was not what they were going for. This is a video that looked a little bit like it was shot by the neighbor’s kid,” Griffin said. Adding, “The narrative wasn’t there.”
Griffin also says Baker tripped up by announcing now instead of after the holidays.
“I think Charlie Baker has made tactical error in jumping in too soon. The field is clear. There’s no reason to do it this soon. You could be exploring it, but being in suddenly makes him the Democratic foil,” Griffin said.
Pat Griffin distilled my lengthy thoughts from David’s post quite nicely:
Yep. It was weird and it didn’t really do anything. I couldn’t have said it any better myself.
One thing I disagree with Griffin on: I don’t think Baker jumped in too soon. If Baker had good messaging or was a talented politician, it wouldn’t matter.
I just don’t think he has very good people running his campaign and especially messaging, whether they’re the same mediocre lot as last time or different. I’m betting the same — there’s not many to choose from in these parts — but it doesn’t matter.
Scott Brown could get by with a mediocre team in the special because few people were paying attention for most of the campaign and Mitt Romney did because it predated Deval Patrick’s influence on our party — when the state party simply wasn’t very good at campaigning — 16 years of uninspiring, moribund campaigns tends to do that.
Now Republicans can’t skate by with mediocrity and bad Etch-a-Sketch messaging.
Yeah, Eric Fehrnstrom, I’m talking about you.