Yes, I would vote for her if I was eligible to vote in Massachusetts. And yes, I do expect she will win. I could be wrong – wouldn’t be the first time (I wanted Joe Biden in the 2008 primary), but that’s my prediction.
Regular readers can guess why:
I’m a reliable left of center voter except on a few issues (I vote against casinos and am very independent when Israel is involved, rarely going into the move all Israelis to Siberia territory but also reliably against settlement expansion).
And Scott Brown is an untenable option for me just on the basis of his positions on pretty much every single issue that matters to me:
He is anti-choice bordering on being anti-woman (see more here, where the Boston Globe compares the candidates’ positions on choice), he thinks Obama was born out of wedlock, he espouses a position that denies decency to rape victims, anti-immigration groups love him, gun rights advocates want him, he opposes same-sex marriage, disparaged and then apologized for disparaging lesbian adoption, supports the federal DOMA and is considered anti-science.
Many left of center folks have come up with reasons to be extremely miserable with Martha Coakley – Taylor Marsh’s posts exemplify that group’s discontent. Amy Siskind of The New Agenda, in an entry at The Huffington Post called “The Coakley Hangover,” conveys similar sentiments.
But as Digby says in her post, “Hitting the Wall” (read PunditMom’s post, “Am I Angrier at Martha Coakley or the Democratic Party?” for a variation on the same theme):
I think a lot depends upon this election in Massachusetts, frankly. If Martha Coakley loses, it will be very bad for progressives. Worse than we can imagine. After the so-called lessons of Virginia and New Jersey, there will be no fighting back the perception that the party is in big trouble, regardless of whether it’s true — and it’s hard to argue at that point that it isn’t. Sadly, the lesson that will be taken from losing Ted Kennedy’s seat to a right wing Republican is not that the Democrats have been too liberal, I guarantee it. What will follow will likely be a sharp turn to the right.
So, job one is to make sure that Senator Playmate is defeated. If you live in Massachusetts, and I know I have readers there, please do what you can to get out the vote. The consequences are quite dire if Coakley loses.
…
Seriously, if you live in Massachusetts, do get yourself out to vote for Martha Coakley and volunteer to help if you can. A loss will be so devastating that I’m afraid the Democrats will end up calling to invade Yemen and institute shoot to kill orders for illegal immigrants if they don’t win this race. They will panic, bet on it.
Not surprisingly, Coakley has been treated with sexism from the start, been analyzed on her “babe factor” (for real) and she gets nothing but grief for being a serious campaigner. Sounds reminiscent of how Hillary Clinton was treated by the pundits as well. Women are too mushy if they cry, or they’re faking, and they are cold if they are serious. Cannot win for losing.
Feh.
NB: Not once have I mentioned the abomination that is the 17% of women in the U.S. Senate and the fact that she would be the first woman to represent Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate. However, these are both critical milestones that bring our country’s federal government closer to a truly representative body.
For more, please visit the original post at Writes Like She Talks.