Are There Any Massachusetts Libertarians Whom We Could Support For Kennedy's Seat?

[clb09]

I'd love to contribute to a "Money Bomb" for a liberty candidate in Taxachusetts!

 

[Flash]

Bob Hedlund is the answer.

 

[IamPersistent]

Do you really think they are going to allow someone what isn't hand picked by the DNC? They will change the law again about replacing a Senator.

 

[Aratus]

thusly when thinking and talking LP... if i say quietly & timidly "me,me,me" am i egotistical? am i being a drama queen?
seriously, if i vote in the Republican primary for the special election Senate seat, i can run in 2012 as a G.O.P person...

 

[Flash]

Do you really think they are going to allow someone what isn't hand picked by the DNC? They will change the law again about replacing a Senator.

I think the Governor chooses a Senator until a special election could be held in 5 months. I'm not completely sure though.

 

[Aratus]

the bill that could let Deval Patrick pick an interum senator has yet to sail through our legislature...

none of the Democrats dare to suggest that we totally ELIMINATE having the special election

and go back to having the governor hand pick people! --- i.e the way things were before 2oo4...

 

[KCIndy]

Sounds like the seat is going to remain vacant until the special election, according to this news report:

http://www.11alive.com/news/national/story.aspx?storyid=134386&catid=166

 

[youngbuck]

At first I was thinking that Mass. and libertarianism were mutually exclusive.

 

[Number19]

Carla Howell ran against Kennedy in the 2000 election on the LP ticket and got 12% of the vote. The Republican candidate got 13%. She has big name recognition in the state - being president of the Center For Small Government and chaired the 2002 ballot initiative to end the state income tax, which got 45% of the vote. I believe she is interested. I'll be keeping an eye on this to support her with a donation.

 

[clb09]

How can we convince her to run?

Can you imagine a Constitutionalist U.S. Senator from Massachusetts?

I can imagine the U.S. Senate 30% liberty based by 2016 if we work hard!

 

[FSP-Rebel]

You're dreaming if you think Mass will ever elect a decent Governor, US Rep or US Senator. The state just endorsed their state income tax recently (state referendum) more than they did back in '02(?). If you love liberty and live in Mass, you are SOL. Get up here to NH via the Free State Project!

 

[cindy25]

better for mitt to run, this is one time where the lesser evil is so much better than than the greater evil (the Dems will nominate the child rapist)

 

[Number19]

The biggest obstacle to a serious challenge is splitting the non-liberal vote between a Libertarian candidate and a Republican candidate. The LP has a second strong personality in the state - Michael Cloud - and it is almost certain that one of these two will be the LP nominee. I would guess that Romney will be the Republican nominee - positioning him to be the primary challenger to Obama in 2012. But this could also work against him - if he were to run and lose to the Democrat. So it's possible that the decision will be made to run another candidate. With the exception of Romney, I don't think the Republicans have a chance of winning because of the votes the LP candidate will get.

Unless Romney decides to seek the Senate seat, the Republican Party should ask Howell or Cloud to run as both the LP candidate and the RP candidate.

 

[Theriot]

Massachusetts changed the law in 2004 so the governor could not pick a replacement. They did this because if Kerry won then Mitt Romney would have replaced him with a Republican senator. Now I'm reading they want to change the law back since they have a very liberal governor now.

 

[lx43]

Why couldn't Carla run as a Republican?

 

[Number19]

Does anyone know how this is likely to play out? Will each of the parties go through a preliminary selection process to select their candidate; and then the state have a final election between the candidates from each party? Or will it be an open, non-partisan election with the candidates required to submit a qualifying number of petition signatures?

Would the Mass Republican Council allow a Libertarian to run under their banner? And how much consideration would these two strong advocates for the LP give to such a request.

Someone from Mass will have to provide some insight into the internal power and politics within the two parties.

 

[bill50]

At first I was thinking that Mass. and libertarianism were mutually exclusive.

You're dreaming if you think Mass will ever elect a decent Governor, US Rep or US Senator. The state just endorsed their state income tax recently (state referendum) more than they did back in '02(?). If you love liberty and live in Mass, you are SOL. Get up here to NH via the Free State Project!

Youngbuck: I'm a libertarian from MA. I think MA and libertarianism are mutually exclusive to an extent. There can't be more than 100 of us.

FSP-Rebel: I wish I could get out of MA. I graduated top of my class. I knew MA was bad and I wanted out as early as 12 years old, but I didn't know that the economy would crash and no one would employ me after graduating top of my class from college. I went to the career fair at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and there was nothing for jobs. I think people were trying to hold back laughs because I had a degree in math and was looking for a non teaching job.

The only possibility now is working as an insurance salesman in CT until I can go to grad school to get a PhD next year. If you remember correctly, people died trying to escape the soviet union. We're not to the point of dying to escape yet, but they have the 4th plank of the manifesto in as much as they can