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Somebody's really interested in the idea of a primary between Mike Capuano and Ayanna Pressley
By adamg on Thu, 12/14/2017 - 9:32pm
A roving UHub reporter who spent the evening at home tonight reports getting a push poll on the prospect of at-large Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley running against US Rep. Mike Capuano next year:
Tons of questions about a Capuano vs. Presley primary. If you would vote for a Democrat over a sitting Democrat, questions that really highlight how great Ayanna is, etc.
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Comments
Ayanna
Has done what so far? She may wont to pump the breaks or risk being unemployed like Tito.
Consult a calendar
If Pressley does run and then loses next year, she'll still be a city counselor (same with Zakim running for secretary of state).
On that point I wonder how
On that point I wonder how long it is until someone at the State House decides to try to make all major city elections happen on odd years to eliminate potential competition. Up until recently there was always just the Steve Murphy odd year menace but this crop of Councillors are ambitious, capable and young. This may just be the start of a wave.
Ayanna
Pressley founded and Chairs the City Council’s Committee on Healthy, Women, Families, and Communities and has built broad and diverse coalitions to advance lasting, meaningful reforms to complex social issues like teen pregnancy and trauma. She also led the effort to reform to the city’s anachronistic liquor license system.
I believe this
My gut feeling all along is that Pressley ran for City Council so she could run for Congress down the road. It's why I've been a bit skeptical of her. She was almost at that place where I'd vote for her for Congress, but now I don't know.
Career path
They all have a career path. Will you be doing the same job in ten years?
Not sure why the desire to primary a sitting rep who seems well liked. This could also be divide and conquer ratfucking.
Capuano is kind of vunerable.
18 years in Congress and Pressley riding the rising tide of black female voters and I think she's got a shot if she busts her balls and works it. Lord knows there's enough guilty white liberals in Cambridge alone to vote her in.
BUT....
voters in Cambridge are in a another congressional district.
EDIT: Didn't know parts of Cambridge was in the district. My mistake.
Is he vulnerable? Capuano is
Is he vulnerable? Capuano is very popular among the grassroots in the state and remains very popular among the middle level of policos state wide. He lost to Coakley in the primary when he ran for Governor but if you look at the people that were with him then , they are all pretty much still in place and many moved forward. Including many Walsh connected people. I suspect the Mayor would stay out of the race out of respect for Ayanna looking the other way when Tito was floundering but that means his people can do what they please in the race and I think that breaks Capuano.
There is a reason why Brianna Wu started off posturing for the seat and very quickly realized that was a mistake.
People look at places like Cambridge and assume they will just vote for whoever the most liberal person but if you follow their voting records they are among the most loyal voters you will ever find. Same thing can be said of all the liberal enclaves Ayanna would have to target. For all their gusto about being so liberal they also have had YEARS of being directly targeted by people like Capuano that voting against him would be voting against someone who knows them by name. Plus he has all that stock footage of yelling at Bankers being willling to jump into a fight.
She would be better off crossing the street into the Lynch district and telling Brianna Wu to scram.
Not a follower of Ms. Wu on Twitter?
If anything her rhetoric has been on the rise regarding her political ambitions. She doesn't have much of a shot, but she's in there.
Also, you mention the Walsh factor. As I stated previously, that blue collar support Lynch gets in his district may not translate well for Capuano. Capuano and Lynch are both owned by the unions, just like Walsh. Pressley could exploit that fact.
People are starting to get sick of these lifetime pols living large while they're struggling. Ask Stan Rosenberg.
You keep on randomly
You keep on randomly connecting Capuano to other politicians for no reason whatsoever. Stan Rosenberg seemed to be doing quite well for himself in spite of his husband running around causing problems. People LIKED him so much that even though his husband was running around harassing some pretty powerful people they chose to look the other way rather than cause drama. Rosenberg was a fairly new President, surely he was not powerful enough to have kept all of these people, especially his colleagues, quiet out of fear alone. Plus his husband was by no means a powerplayer he was a leach. If his hubby didn't cross the sexual line Rosenberg would still be in place and nobody would be saying a peep.
What he and Capuano have in common is almost totally zero. Plus it should be noted that Capuano in contrast has an amazingly genial extended family that shows up when elections get heated. His wife alone is the center of attention at almost any political event she pops up in even though she has a very low key demeanor.
Hell, he's Captain America's uncle!
That has to count for something ...
Capuano is very popular
I don't see how he is at all vulnerable to a challenge from the left, or even what such a challenge would consist of.
Ever think that people
might just be a little tired of bought and paid for by the trade unions Congresspeople? Capuano has some weaknesses that Pressley, if she has the right consultant behind her, can exploit. Especially considering the changing demographics of his constituency.
Changing Demographics?
I don't really care one way or another - but Capuano's demographics have probably changed to whiter and richer. Downtown Boston, Cambridge, Somerville etc. - haven't checked the census info, but I don't see these areas getting as diverse as many other areas around here.
Maybe younger would help Ayanna. Will say -did see her at a council debate and was sadly unimpressed. Lots of talk, lots of buzzwords and asked someone after if she said anything I should care about because I didn't understand a word she was saying (I could hear her - just didn't think it was English) - they didn't understand any of it any better than I did.
I like tend to like my pols a little more intellectual - but people like Capuano and Walsh relate very well to everyday folk which is why they keep getting elected.
The "Demographic" Shift Helps Her
In the last redistricting the district picked up Hyde Park, the western parts of Milton, and Randolph. If you don't head out that way, you'd be surprised with the racial makeup of those areas. I won't be blatant about it, but one gets the feeling there is a general plan for whoever succeeds Capuano.
That said, if the Congressman is doing his job, he has little to fear.
Interesting analysis
Thanks. Though I still think Capuano has little to.waorry about.
Also picked up...
... my part of Roslindale ;-)
Mine, too
Of course, we are in adjoining precincts (unless you are 18/9, too). I didn’t know how to put Roslindale in the narrative. The section that Capuano is, well, diverse, and in this case the diversity somehow didn’t provide the evidence of increased diversity.
Yeah
That's definitely the only reason white people would vote for her: guilt over their own race. It certainly has nothing to do with the fact that she ran on a more progressive platform than anyone else in the CC@L race, has busted her ass working for the state Dems, and has actually acknowledged the elephants of gender and race in the room.
I'm sorry...
Where did I say that's the only reason white people would vote for her?
They all have a career path.
You know who I really want to vote for? Someone with ZERO ambition.
One should have ambition
but that ambition shouldn't be to have a career in "politics". Get elected, serve your neighbors for a certain amount of time, then get out and get back into the private sector.
Then stop voting
You think people get into politics to help anyone other than themselves at this point?
My problem with the "career path"
Looking too far ahead means you ignore what's right in front of you. It's like the Patriots mantra of concentrating on one game at a time. Sure, there is a thought that they could be playing in Minneapolis come February, but they know that beating Pittsburgh and their sexual predator quarterback is what they have to do now.
In 1983 Tom Menino was elected to the Boston City Council. That was most likely what he was thinking of when he got sworn in in 1984. By 1993 he was mayor. The likes of Matt O'Malley might someday serve in higher office, but you know he is concentrating on the City Council gig. John Connolly always wanted to be mayor, which is why he was a city councilor. Stephen Murphy was obsessed with running for office to the detriment of being a good city councilor. I am one of the rare voters who links Murphy, Connolly, and Pressley, but the similarities are there. As far as my job goes, it's a good job with duties I enjoy. If I do a good job and develop well, perhaps I will go up the chain, but I won't screw up what I do now for the sake of dreams of the future. If in 10 years I am helping society, I will have succeeded regardless of my job title.
Word is she feels threatened by the number of
photo ops councilors George and O'Malley have been in in 2017. Those two even show up in peoples Christmas picture orders at CVS. Out picturing her means the congressional run may be doomed. In addition, the tangible results Campbell gets by actually doing things is upsetting the apple cart. By the way did you know she knows John Kerry...
Pressley
She has served the City Council and the City of Boston well for since first elected in November 2009. I would love to have her move on to Congress. She should not expected stay a Councilor forever and we deserve her leadership in higher office.
Seniority is worth something too...
It's hard to get anything done in congress but seniority does hold a lot of value when "your" party is in power...
Short of being a reprehensible person with disagreeable views, I don't think I could vote to unseat easily...
Presley is opportunistic and disloyal, plus one issue pol.
Her choice not to back John Connolly for mayor after he saved her in the previous election cycle will never be forgotten by people I know. He took her to every house party, asked for votes on her behalf because she was in serious risk of not making the council because she had done very little campaign prep and was frequently out of town because a relative was dying.
She didn’t support him for mayor when it counted and this city is worse off for it. We sure wouldn’t be having this school start time debacle.
This is on top of the fact that she only talks about female empowerment (I am female). Important, yes, but we need more than talk, and we need more to make a successful city.
Never Ayanna as far as I am concerned.
Ayanna vs Mike
Ayanna is a sexual assault survivor a nice person and a good campaigner. Mike tends to be nasty and sometimes comes across as cranky older white male. This has the potential to be a great fight in the battle of the sexes.
She also runs the risk of
She also runs the risk of well meaning supporters trying to over leverage the fact that she is a woman and he is a man. Capuano is an angry old white guy who tends to be angry because of the crazy angry old racist white men he has to deal with every day.
Angry? You better be
“If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention” - Heather Heyer, Aug. 12, 2017. Posted on social media hours before Heather was murdered in Charlottesville by a white supremacist.
Truth be told, we need MORE pissed off pols like Capuano & fewer career-climbing opportunist candidates.
#RESIST
Boston City Council as political experience for higher Office.
Being a Member of Boston City Council is a mind deadening experience leaving you less qualified to represent your communities' constituencies. There are potential Candidates with better experience than the experience of a Boston City Councilor.
This is an unnecessary virtual (see electronic) attack on
the hard working members of the Boston City Council. I plead with you to send a FOIA request to the City Stenographer to obtain the paper records of council meetings which will clearly demonstrate the diligence of members producing numerous citation awards to the dead and obscure that make this city run.
City Councilors to Chair Committees?...
Appointment of Boston City Council Committees' Heads
https://www.boston.gov/departments/city-council#committees
What City Councilors would folks contributing/writing here prefer Appointed to Chair each City Council Committee?...
1) Arts, Culture, And Special Events Chair?...
2) City, Neighborhood Services, And Veteran Affairs Chair?...
3) Education Chair?...
4) Environment And Sustainability Chair?...
5) Government Operations Chair?...
6) Healthy Women, Families, And Communities Chair?...
7) Homelessness, Mental Health, And Recovery Chair?...
8) Housing And Community Development Chair?...
9) Jobs, Wages, And Workforce Development Chair?...
10) Parks, Recreation, And Transportation Chair?...
11) Planning And Development Chair?...
12) Public Safety And Criminal Justice Chair?...
13) Rules And Administration Chair?...
14) Ways And Means Chair?...
15) Committee of the Whole Chair?...
16) Special Committee On Charter Reform Chair?...
17) Special Committee On Civil Rights Chair?...
18) Special Committee On Community Preservation Act Chair?...
19) Special Committee On The Status Of Black And Latino Men And Boys Chair?...
__________ ______________________________
All 2017 Ordinances at http://meetingrecords.cityofboston.gov/sirepub/meetresults.aspx
Docket #0104 Ordinance Amending The Boston Residents Job Policy and Boston Employment Commission http://meetingrecords.cityofboston.gov/sirepub/cache/2/kzonbzql2jinap0dd...
Docket #0544 Ordinance. Revolving funds. Municipal Modernization Act http://meetingrecords.cityofboston.gov/sirepub/cache/2/kzonbzql2jinap0dd...
Docket #0655 Ordinance. Amend Boston Fire Prevention Code regulation for Hot Work Operations
Docket #0123 Ordinance creating Community Preservation Committee http://meetingrecords.cityofboston.gov/sirepub/cache/2/kzonbzql2jinap0dd...
Docket #1380 Ordinance. Appointments to the Community Preservation
Committee, scroll down past midway at http://meetingrecords.cityofboston.gov/sirepub/cache/2/kzonbzql2jinap0dd...
Docket #1325 Ordinance Promoting Equity in The City of Boston Contracts https://www.boston.gov/public-notices/35491
Docket #1487 Ordinance. Acoustic Live Entertainment http://meetingrecords.cityofboston.gov/sirepub/cache/2/kzonbzql2jinap0dd...
That's decided by the City Council President
Who hasn't been elected yet, as the new council that would vote on who will be president has not been sworn in yet.
Check back again in January.
Uh oh
Now you done it.
I just now got the same poll call
from Public Policy Polling . Will they publish the results?
LOL! Roving reporters
I read this story in the Globe and skimmed ahead since I KNEW they heard about it from uHub. Here's their direct quote:
I couldn't tell if the writer was making a sly inside joke about the roving reporter OR if they were clueless.