File this one under the “well no shit” category.
As the Massachusetts race is nearing its climax, the two parties are experiencing starkly different responses from their respective crowds. While the Republicans are finding it easy to get their constituents fired up, the Democrats aren’t having nearly as easy a go of it.
He’s drawing crowds rarely seen by Republicans in this state and seems to have more organic support than Coakley, an impression underscored by the imperfect measurement of yard signs spotted for the Republican (many) and the Democrat (none) along the South Shore and on the Cape.
Brown’s message of taking on the state’s entrenched Democratic majority—what he repeatedly calls “the machine”—and addressing a larger discontent among voters here toward Washington has given Republicans an opportunity to win their first Massachusetts Senate contest in nearly 40 years.
In times of discontent, it is always easier to be the opposition party than the incumbents, and right now that swings a lot of momentum toward the Republicans.
Keep in mind the Democrats aren’t exactly happy with things either, and this poses a huge problem because it means the two parties have incredibly different messages. Usually the opposition says “things are bad, we’ll fix them” and the incumbents say “things are great, we’ll keep going.” Unfortunately, the Dems haven’t exactly made things great, so what they’re stuck with is promising that if we don’t lose the 60-seat supermajority, then they’ll make things great. Sort of a “stick with us, it’ll work” kind of thing.
If they have any aces in the hole, they might want to break ‘em out soon. Once the midterm election season ramps up, there won’t be jack shit actually getting done.
