red states rule
01-16-2010, 10:46 AM
You know things are bad for the Dems when the Boston Globe tries to make you feel sorry for Coakley
They write how it is hard for a women to run for office
Did the Boston Globe and this writer show any sympathy for Sarah Palin?
Adrian Walker
Coakley’s rocky run
By Adrian Walker
Perhaps it is true that Martha Coakley has run a lousy campaign and Scott Brown has run a terrific campaign. Actually, that is true.
But, really, this is all about the voters, many of whom are clearly tired of being told what to think and who they should vote for, and are taking things into their own hands.
Even as someone who criticized Coakley early on for blandness, I find it hard not to feel sorry for her. She is suddenly being savaged - especially in the national media - as mediocre, which she certainly is not. (That would be Scott Brown.) Popular just a few weeks ago, suddenly it’s as though no one quite knows how she got on the ballot.
She became a credible Senate candidate by being competent and methodical. She has been a good prosecutor and solid attorney general. But qualities of hers that were viewed as admirable a few months ago have morphed into liabilities.
And clearly she has had no idea how to deal with it. It was downright painful in the debate Monday night to watch her trying to assure voters that she has a personality and a sense of humor, without actually daring to say anything personal or funny.
It’s hard to remember a candidate for major office so afraid of revealing his or her personality.
Her single biggest problem is that voters don’t feel like they know enough about her. Fixing that in a weekend may not be possible.
Understand that I am not hosting a Coakley pity party here. First of all, she may well win. Still, if she doesn’t win, after entering with every conceivable advantage, her defeat will be well-earned.
Some of Coakley’s struggles reflect, I think, a common hazard for female politicians.
Because they are judged more harshly than their male counterparts, they struggle to project competence, seriousness, earnestness. They work within the mainstream, the better to not be dismissed.
And then they find themselves branded as “too cautious,’’ even “boring.’’ In a state that has only sent men to the Senate, Coakley is, remarkably, cast as the status quo candidate.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/01/16/coakleys_rocky_run/
They write how it is hard for a women to run for office
Did the Boston Globe and this writer show any sympathy for Sarah Palin?
Adrian Walker
Coakley’s rocky run
By Adrian Walker
Perhaps it is true that Martha Coakley has run a lousy campaign and Scott Brown has run a terrific campaign. Actually, that is true.
But, really, this is all about the voters, many of whom are clearly tired of being told what to think and who they should vote for, and are taking things into their own hands.
Even as someone who criticized Coakley early on for blandness, I find it hard not to feel sorry for her. She is suddenly being savaged - especially in the national media - as mediocre, which she certainly is not. (That would be Scott Brown.) Popular just a few weeks ago, suddenly it’s as though no one quite knows how she got on the ballot.
She became a credible Senate candidate by being competent and methodical. She has been a good prosecutor and solid attorney general. But qualities of hers that were viewed as admirable a few months ago have morphed into liabilities.
And clearly she has had no idea how to deal with it. It was downright painful in the debate Monday night to watch her trying to assure voters that she has a personality and a sense of humor, without actually daring to say anything personal or funny.
It’s hard to remember a candidate for major office so afraid of revealing his or her personality.
Her single biggest problem is that voters don’t feel like they know enough about her. Fixing that in a weekend may not be possible.
Understand that I am not hosting a Coakley pity party here. First of all, she may well win. Still, if she doesn’t win, after entering with every conceivable advantage, her defeat will be well-earned.
Some of Coakley’s struggles reflect, I think, a common hazard for female politicians.
Because they are judged more harshly than their male counterparts, they struggle to project competence, seriousness, earnestness. They work within the mainstream, the better to not be dismissed.
And then they find themselves branded as “too cautious,’’ even “boring.’’ In a state that has only sent men to the Senate, Coakley is, remarkably, cast as the status quo candidate.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/01/16/coakleys_rocky_run/