Oh Happy Day
TAGS: Charlie Baker, Christy Mihos, Deval Patrick, Education, Michael Graham, Richard Tisei.
Charlie Baker surges financially.
In one of the most aggressive political fund-raising pushes in recent memory, Republican gubernatorial hopeful Charles D. Baker has amassed a $1.85 million war chest over roughly five months of campaigning, tapping into a broad range of supporters and establishing himself as a major threat to Governor Deval Patrick’s reelection bid.
Baker doubled, in less than half the time, what Patrick raised for the entirety of 2009, despite a fund-raising visit by President Obama this past fall for the Democratic governor. Baker’s coffers currently hold more than 10 times the amount in Patrick’s campaign account.
The Republican has also raised 3 1/2 times the amount that state Treasurer Timothy P. Cahill, an independent rival in the governor’s race, collected last year. Baker’s rival for the Republican nomination, Christy Mihos, lags far behind, relying mostly on personal wealth.
Baker’s fund-raising haul, which has broken records for a nonincumbent candidate who is not yet a party nominee, provides another jolt for Democrats already discouraged over Patrick’s underwhelming poll numbers and comparatively slow pace of fund-raising.
“This is the political fund-raising version of shock and awe,’’ said Warren Tolman, a Democrat and former state senator who ran for governor in 2002. “Baker has cast a pretty wide net.’’
Campaign finance records show that Baker has collected $2.3 million since late summer, when he assembled a team of Republican fund-raisers and set up events almost nightly from Labor Day into late December. In addition, his running mate, Richard Tisei, the Senate minority leader, who joined the ticket in late November, raised $313,000.
Last month, typically the toughest of the year to collect political donations, Baker reported raising a whopping $726,000, ending the year with a donor base of 7,449 people. Raising money every year is key for candidates in Massachusetts, because the annual contribution limit for individuals is $500.
The fund-raising success has allowed the campaign to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars already to position itself for this election year.
Baker’s feat exceeds the expectations his aides had when the former CEO of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care decided to jump into the 2010 governor’s race.
UPDATE: Tune in Wednesday night at 8:00pm EST for the latest edition of The Notes on Blog Talk Radio. Our guests will be Arnold Kling and Nick Schulz, authors of From Poverty to Prosperity. Plus, more from WBZ and the Herald.
SECOND UPDATE: More from Michael Graham, Gov. Patrick, the Globe and Herald.
THIRD UPDATE: From Michael Graham, the Herald and Globe.
Who Isn’t An Insider?
TAGS: Charlie Baker, Christy Mihos, Legislation, Richard Tisei, Timothy Murray.
State Senator Richard Tisei is being labeled an “insider” by critics of his selection to be Charlie Baker’s running mate.
Gubernatorial rivals yesterday pounced on Republican candidate Charles Baker’s choice of Sen. Richard Tisei as his running mate, painting the GOP minority leader as an entrenched insider who has strayed from the party’s anti-tax gospel.
Republican Christy Mihos said Baker’s pick means more of the same for tax-weary Bay State voters. “You can’t paint yourself as an outsider if you’ve worked on Beacon Hill for more than two decades,” Mihos told the Herald.
You know who wasn’t an “insider,” and was supposed to be the savior of the Commonwealth back when he was elected Governor in 2006? Sorry folks, but being an alleged “outsider” isn’t a guarantee of success either.
So what does Lt. Governor Tim Murray, an insider, have to say about it?
Said Democrat Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray: “Sen. Tisei is a 25-year State House insider who typifies the Republican establishment elite that created record levels of debt and deferred maintenance. I was a quarterback on my high school football team when Sen. Tisei started serving in the Legislature.”
Excuse me, Lt. Governor, but who is responsible for the record levels of debt and deferred maintenance in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts? It isn’t the Republicans…
So if being an “insider” is such a terrible thing, where is legislation for term limits? The State House is running rampant with insiders…
No way am I going to buy the argument that being an “insider” is more of a bad thing than being an outsider. The fact is, the minute you start serving elected office, you are an insider.
Being an outsider is a wonderful campaign slogan, and being an insider is a great label to throw around, but it doesn’t mean a thing. The people of the Commonwealth are repeatedly reelecting insiders that are doing a lousy job…and electing outsiders who are doing lousy jobs.
Insider? Outsider? Who cares? Everyone is an insider.
Baker Picks Tisei
TAGS: Charlie Baker, Christy Mihos, Deval Patrick, MassGOP, Polls, Richard Tisei, Scott Brown.
Republican gubernatorial hopeful Charlie Baker has picked state Sen. Richard R. Tisei as his running mate, according to his campaign Web site and Facebook page.
An announcement is scheduled for 11 a.m. today at the American Civic Center in Tisei’s hometown of Wakefield, State House News is reporting.
Baker’s campaign manager could not be immediately reached for comment.
“Richard has years of experience fighting for the taxpayer on Beacon Hill and I’m thrilled to have him on the team,” Baker said in a statement posted on his campaign Web site.
The Web page contained on CharlieBaker2010.com included a photo of Tisei and an image of Baker-Tisei 2010 bumper sticker.
Baker and the Senate minority leader will take on convenience store magnate Christy Mihos in the Republican primary. The winner is set to face off against state Treasurer Timothy Cahill and incumbent Gov. Deval Patrick in a three-way contest in 2010.
I’m curious why Baker made this announcement now, instead of say, in late January or February. Baker has been trailing in the polls versus Christy Mihos since day one, and to make such an important announcement the week of Thanksgiving seems poorly timed. Baker may have been much better suited to have waited until after the US Senate Special Election. This would have accomplished two things.
First, that election would be over and done with. Right now, the special election is hot to trot, and the election is virtually around the corner; the gubernatorial contest isn’t for another 11+ months. What would the harm of been to wait two more months?
Second, of course, is knowing whether or not Scott Brown would be available as a running mate, should he even want it. Picking Brown, who would have just completed a fast-paced state wide campaign, would offer the campaign someone with some state-wide name recognition; I don’t think Tisei can offer that. There is a reason why Mihos is ahead of Baker in every poll…and it’s not because Mihos is a favorite of the MassGOP establishment. Tisei, the Senate Minority Leader, has served in the state senate for 25 years and is (still) up for reelection next year. If Baker-Tisei wins, that could lead to another lost Republican seat in the state senate. Why give up a seat in the senate held by a Republican for 25 years?
Additionally, by making the pick now, Baker has given Christy Mihos the opportunity to “out do” his choice of Tisei, as well as take advantage of the expected media attention while the gubernatorial race is hot on everyone’s minds. There’s something to be said about getting the last word.
Seeing as Baker has not seen a lead in the polls, ever, I’d say this was poorly played. Mihos still has the upper hand here…let’s see what he does with it.
[Editors Note: This post has been updated. It was previously stated that Scott Brown was not seeking reelection. To clarify, Scott Brown has said he will serve one more term in the State Senate, but is not seeking reelection in 2012.]
Barry in Boston
TAGS: Barack Obama, Deval Patrick, Economy, Richard Tisei.
Gov. Patrick’s BFF arrives for a fundraiser.
President Barack Obama flies to Boston on Friday to tour a research laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The lab is working on cutting-edge clean energy technology.
The president then delivers remarks at MIT challenging Americans to lead the global economy in clean energy and to highlight Recovery Act investments that the White House says are creating jobs and making advancements in wind energy.
While in Boston, he’ll also attend fundraisers for Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick.
UPDATE: More from the Harvard Crimson, WBUR and the Boston Herald.
SECOND UPDATE: More from Todd Feinburg, Joan Vennochi, NPR, Globe and Herald.
THIRD UPDATE: More from the Herald, Richard Tisei and the American Thinker.
Here We Go Again…
TAGS: Deval Patrick, Education, Howie Carr, Maine, Richard Tisei, Therese Murray.
Legislative leaders on Beacon Hill believe they have narrow majorities in both chambers to give Governor Deval Patrick the power to appoint an interim US senator, in a sign that the controversial measure may pass. But the bill must still survive Republican attempts to delay or kill it through parliamentary maneuvers.
In a key development, House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo, who has been publicly noncommittal, made a decision to back the proposal and was privately calling members yesterday to make the case. House vote-counters said support among lawmakers numbers in the mid-80s – more than enough in the 160-member body.
Patrick has signaled privately that he’d like to sign the bill by Friday and make an appointment within days, possibly having an interim senator in place by next week.
But in the other chamber, Senate President Therese Murray has remained far more reserved in her support, talking with senators but not advocating for the change, according to Senate sources.
One high-ranking Senate official familiar with the vote count said the numbers are there for passage – but narrowly. It is that chamber that Republican Richard Tisei, the Senate minority leader, will try to table the bill with the hopes of delaying it beyond its usefulness, or shaming Democrats who are on the fence over to his side.
“The fact that they think this is going to move like a knife through a stick of butter – that this is going to be a ‘shazamm’ bill that goes through – well, it’s not,’’ Tisei said in an interview last night. “We’re going to slow it down.’’
Republicans don’t oppose the concept of an interim senator, but they think it’s unfair for Democrats to change the law for this appointment.
Murray and DeLeo both declined to comment last night.
UPDATE: Please be sure to listen to The Notes Wednesday night at 8:00pm EST on Blog Talk Radio! Plus, more from Howie Carr, Scot Lehigh and the Globe.
