I have great affection for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, which is quite blue in most respects, but this state still has some issues with racism, which they are overcoming, and sexism, which is a slower slog, IMO.
There's a reason why the Commonwealth has never had a female governor "in her own right" (Jane Swift minding the store doesn't count) nor a female Senator. You'd think if Maine and California could manage it, we surely could--but there's this "working man's viewpoint" towards unions and compensations and safety nets, on the one hand, and this bias towards women on the other. And when I said "working man's" I meant that deliberately. It is a very ODD thing about the state. I notice that as the older generation dies off, it's less pervasive, but some of the younger ones learned the lessons from their papas.
Scottie came off as an ASSHOLE in that debate. Even better, a PETTY asshole. I was pleased that Gregory--despite his bias towards the smarmy little shit--did push him on the "Professor" thing, because he does say it like he's saying (Insert Your Favorite "Gasp At The Formal Dinner Table" Expletive Here).
Scott Brown ran around in a fucking barn coat in a pick up truck during the last contest, trying to paint himself as a regular white guy who loves hockey and is protective towards his all-female household (never mind his wife did the heavy lifting in the paycheck department for more than a few years). He played the Manly Man game and was damn near visceral about it--it appealed to a certain category of gents who are mad because "those women" have taken their "jerbs" or have gotten those promotions ahead of them -- they feel entitled as a consequence of their gender and their historical 'rights,' even though they haven't done the work, gotten the additional degrees, performed up to par, etc. He targeted those blowhard guys, many of whom are seen at bars after work, with red faces who drink too much, scream too loudly at the television over sports contests, and shoot off their mouths in inappropriate ways, and he motivated those couch potatoes to vote in much larger numbers than they usually did. He also targeted the female voters who find the opinions of those blowhard guys personally important and will agree with them to secure their own popularity.
That said, I think EW did a very good job of making it clear that Scottie is a "Hail Fellow Well Met" at home, and a fucking tool of the GOP when it comes to voting against the interests of MA citizens. You'd have to be a moron to miss the points she made--she really made it clear that a vote for Scottie is a vote for higher taxes and fewer jobs for Massachusetts, and that this has been his modus operandi all along while he feeds those dipshits a line of shit. Also, she came across as the pleasant and nice one at the table--he came across as a snake, a sleaze, a guy who would try (but fail) to bully a woman just because he didn't like what she had to say. It was an astounding performance, particularly since she was crossing swords with two people--her opponent in the race, and the so-called Moderator.
This won't be easy but I think we can pull out a win for EW. I am highly motivated to do what I can to get EW in Ted's seat. I might borrow my friend's van so I can shuffle more people to the polls at a crack next month!
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