The lieutenant governor candidates are yet to arrive here at the Lowell Telecommunications Corporation, who will be streaming it live starting at 2:30 and archived later. Mike (MassMarrier), sco (.08 Acres), Andy (MassRevolutionNow!), and Lynne (LeftinLowell) are liveblogging at a Blue Mass Group thread. I, for my part, have forgotten my Blue Mass Group password so will be liveblogging here. Elias Nugator of Chimes at Midnight is using trusty paper notepad technology to cover the debate, so expect updates from his site. Reporters from the Boston Globe and Lowell Sun are here as well.
The candidates are
Deb Goldberg
Sam Kelley
Tim Murray
Andrea Silbert
2:24 Andrea Silbert arrives and greets the bloggers.
2.37 Everyone’s arrived - Elias Nugator quips that if the candidates smile blankly then they don’t read you - and the telecast is beginning.
2.41 Andrea Silbert is stressing economic development. As an opening statement, it’s fine, but I’m wondering if that’s a bit of a panacea, given that macroeconomic tides overdetermine so much of what you can do on a state level.
2.43 Sam Kelley is stressing health care - he really needs to make a larger policy point, since I’m not electing a doctor. The prescription drug importation might work far better in short term than long term.
2.45 Deb Goldberg has a “not just access, but quality” structure to her opening statement that works well enough, though it sounds like she’s trying to cover too much.
2.47 Like Goldberg, Tim Murray is stressing state government’s response to the recent flooding as an entry to talk about provision of basic services. Fine enough, but the “proactive”, “partnership” speak sounds more like a local official than a statewide candidate. On stylistic grounds, Murray needs to work on this.
2.52 Wow, from the first question (about federal government’s rule in flood recovery), you get a sense of localness in a debate format that’s not put on by an established news outlet.
2.55 Deb Goldberg has a nice, pithy response to the question about the role of the lieutenant governor, about the LG being a liaison between corner office and town. Compare and contrast hers with Murray’s latinate response.
2.59 I’m really behind Kelley’s call for a unified payer health care system, but he needs to sell it in an accessible way for those not versed in the terms and options.
3.02 The moderator makes some apologetic note about the age of soundbites and fitting complex issues into thirty seconds, but I’ll defend the soundbite. At least candidates should be able to express complicated policy concerns in concise language that voters of various knowledge and political sophistication can understand.
3.03 Great dig from Goldberg about moving to “Washington or Utah or Canada or whereever.”
3.05 Kelley’s Romney jibe seems flat coming after Goldberg’s.
3.08 Bully for Murray for making intercity transit both visionary and practical. And nice forthright statement on the illusion of a tax cut under rising property taxes
3.09 Andrea Silbert - I know you have a lot to say, but don’t rush!
3.10 I’m not sure I’m buying Goldberg’s businessperson-governor ideology.
3.11 Silbert’s giving a nice, measured response to wi-fi, which is clearly an important issue for her. I, of course, am not crazy about municipal hi-fi schemes.
3.13 Whoops, technical difficulty.
3.16 Kelley is speaking on family leave, with way too many qualifications and subpoints. I’m not believing that there’s plenty of money there, with funds to be freed up. Enough with the multiplier effects!
3.23 Goldberg and Murray hedge on Cape Wind. Silbert is reputedly for it, but her answer was confusing. Kelley wants windmills on cell phone towers, which sounds kind of nutty, but - who knows? - may work.
3.28 Kelley seems to want jettison charter schools. I’m a fan of building public education, but axeing charter schools seems wrong-headed to me.
3.30 The questions submitted at Blue Mass are pretty good. I’m liking the speed round format. I submitted a question on second-city development, but it’s really a long-answer question.
3.34 Lynne doesn’t like Murray’s answer to housing cost question (”commuter rail”) and neither do I.
3.35 Silbert urges reopening debate on MCAS. I keep wondering if a statewide democratic candidate will back away from the requirement in an unambiguous fashion.
3.37 This lightening round is going by too fast to liveblog.
3.38 The moderator brings up the New Bedford MCAS test. I don’t think Silbert’s response is making anyone happy. Kelley’s touchy-feely is bugging the crap out of me (”the MCAS doesn’t measure things like hope”). I don’t understand Goldberg’s rifle reference. I couldn’t disagree with Goldberg more. If the school system doesn’t operate with some judgment, the labor market will happily do so - and does. Murray focuses on funding, which seems novel, but might not play well with the general electorate.
3.47 It’s interesting to see how candidates get their plug in for their website. Murray’s been smoothest on that so far.
3.50 I’m liking Murray’s stirring defense of public higher ed.
4.01 have to say this community access format is giving me total Tanner ‘88 vibes.
SUMMARY: Mike called it early:
Deborah Goldberg has the strongest opening. She said little, but everything very well. She is very convincing and very sincere. I can see her steamrolling the others.
Tim Murray is a very pleasant and locally oriented politician. We had seen him before, at our BlogLeft conference in Worcester.
Unlike the other sweeping, wide angle comments from the other three candidates, he starts locally, speaking to flooded resident and expanding out to broader issues. He seems sharp.
He also set the stage for urban/exburan unity on issues, savvy for a big-city mayor.
I’m impressed with Murray’s positions on the issues - stalwartly liberal and Democratic but not with adherence to certain progressive positions that are limited in their appeal sociologically - and in the closing he came across strong. At times, he could use more polish. Goldberg was the most ready for primetime, but probably focuses too much on the personal biography at the expense on the philosophy of government that Murray communicates. Silbert gets credit for conviction, but somehow isn’t in the league with Goldberg and Murray as a candidate. Kelley is strictly leftfield. But I applaud all the candidates for agreeing to this forum. I think it was a positive venture all around and definitely provides something the network debates do not.
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