There are more than a billion reasons for Massachusetts voters to dump Gov. Deval Patrick.Not only has he given the biotech industry a billion in corporate welfare and failed to produce one dollar’s worth of property-tax relief, as promised - this August, as parents shop for back-to-school supplies, they will be hit with the Patrick pinch: the $1 billion sales-tax increase.
Although Gov. Patrick has worked relentlessly to make it easier for a Republican to win the Corner Office on Beacon Hill, Charlie Baker has to give voters a reason to hire him.
Fortunately for the commonwealth, he has the credentials, intelligence and likability factor to outshine Deval, as well as other potential rivals such as state Treasurer Timothy Cahill.
Some pundits believe Cahill’s entry into the race as an independent is going to complicate a Baker victory. Wrong! Voters are in an anti-incumbent mood and will be looking for someone other than a Beacon Hill insider.
It is not as if Cahill can run on a message of change or fiscal responsibility. Massachusetts voters have learned the hard way that Democrats cannot be trusted and we all know that Cahill bleeds blue despite his chickening out of the Democrat primary.
Baker starts with 36 to 38 percent of the vote - not 30 percent, as has been suggested. Sen. John McCain acquired 36 percent while Kerry Healey and George Bush both received 38 percent. Baker needs to find only another 10 percent, with Cahill consuming a maximum of 7 percent of the vote.
During this initial name identification stage, Baker has done well to characterize himself as a Weld Republican and a job advocate while distancing himself from Romney/Healey.
He should keep up the mantra by reminding voters that he was part of the Weld team that cut taxes 41 times and reformed welfare.
UPDATE: More from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, the American Spectator, ABC News, the Boston Herald and Boston Globe.
SECOND UPDATE: More from Red Mass Group.
THIRD UPDATE: From the Boston Globe, Red Mass Group, Boston Herald, Boston Metro, NECN, Holly Robichaud and Michael Graham.
