In addition to Obama, the other corporate Dems, and Coakley, we can "thank" Senator Menendez

[brentspeak]

for an unknown Republican picking up Ted Kennedy's old seat. My own senator, Robert Menendez, as Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairman, was the genius who helped select an uninspiring loser as the Democratic candidate.

[Clio the Leo]

1. that's a story I'm going to be reading more about.....

.... over the next few days .... I know ccharles and others kept us abreast of the primary but I didnt wake up until last week when it was too late ... and I'm puzzled as to how she ended up being the nominee.

[liskddksil]

2. Menendez is trying to freeze out progressive Jennifer Brunner in OH

Lets not let him give us another crappy candidate.

[nsd]

3. Also Bill Clinton .... he endorsed Coakley over Capuano.

[JI7]

4. President Bill Clinton endorsed Coakley in the Primary

so include him in your list

[Lord Helmet]

5. I missed this before --

interesting backstory

[karynnj]

6. It sounds like she missed a good party

I wanted to post one the articles, but they all seem no longer available - but here is a DU thread on that - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=273&topic_id=151171

It is funny that Kerry said that Obama wanted Virginia, Indiana and Colorado for his birthday. Then I would guess few thought Indiana possible. (I remember watching those Ind numbers getting closer - knowing that the last chunk is always Lake County, which is VERY Democratic and on Chicago time.)

[Lord Helmet]

7. yes it sounds like a great time

John Kerry was very supportive of Obama.

I enjoyed reading this -- thanks for the link

[karynnj]

8. He paid a real price for that in MA

It was mostly angry Hillary supporters that allowed a nasty primary competitor on the ballot. (He actually even said Kerry had to answer the SBVT charges - that had already been thoroughly debunked.)

Kerry bore the brunt of the anger against Kennedy and him.

[Lord Helmet]

10. that was a slimy comment he made about Kerry

Ax-grinding is alive and well and I think has poisoned dem politics for a long long time.

[jgraz]

11. Yep. Whenever a weak centrist Dem loses, Bill Clinton's gotta be around somewhere

The only Democrat Clinton was good at getting elected was Bill Clinton.

[JI7]

13. Coakley was a centrist Dem ?

[karynnj]

14. Hard to tell

She was a DA, not a legislator or Governor, so there is not the same type of record. Her positions - like initially saying she would not vote for HC if the Stupack amendment was in it and suing to end DOMA are socially liberal positions. But, the centrists were often socially liberal - it was on economic issues that they were at odds with progressives.

Her work as DA and AG seems mixed, but she did go after Wall Street, something the centrists really don't do, and she went after the predatory lenders. I would assume that as DA of that huge county, there were hundreds of cases a year, and I think that was her job for years. I suspect that just as you can cherry pick a Senate career's voting record to make anyone look awful, you could do the same here. The cases the Republicans spotlighted were atrocious and her campaign didn't do a good job putting her role in each in context. I would hope it was not because she really did screw up in all these cases. (At any rate, you didn't get image that Kerry had from effectively doing the same job, as first deputy to an incapacitated DA, for a far shorter time - where he set up the first rape counseling group in a DA's office, fought the MAFIA, worked to hire women lawyers to what had been a mostly male organization, and did a lot of work with underpriviledged kids.)

[karynnj]

9. I was surprised he was given this job

I thought his 2006 election really badly run.

[JI7]

12. so OP has nothing to say about Clinton endorsing Coakley ?

in the primary