Obama in Boston: Was it enough to turn Senate race for Coakley?
| Boston
With only two days left in the race for Massachusetts' open US Senate seat, President Obama delivered exactly what Democratic candidate Martha Coakley was hoping for: the potential for a momentum shift.
In recent weeks, Republican Scott Brown had turned the race toward the economic issues that are angering so many voters: high unemployment numbers, worries about healthcare reform, and the soaring federal deficit.
His success has imperiled Mr. Obama's agenda. If he wins 鈥� and weekend polls showed the race even 鈥� the Democrats will lose their filibuster-proof 60-seat majority in the Senate.
Led by Obama Sunday, Ms. Coakley tried to turn the voters' anger on its head. The frustration was justified, they said, but it was misplaced.
鈥淲e have had one year to make up for eight,鈥� a dressed down Obama told the crowd, referencing the eight years of the Bush administration. 鈥淚t hasn鈥檛 been quick, it hasn鈥檛 been easy.... But we鈥檝e begun to deliver on the change you voted for.鈥�
It was his exhortation to motivate Democrats and independents with sour memories of the Bush years: 鈥淲e don鈥檛 want to go backwards to the policies that got us into this mess in the first place,鈥� he said.
Coakley the 'incumbent'
It was also a clear attempt to change how Massachusetts voters view Coakley.
Without an incumbent in the race to fill the seat vacated by the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, Coakley has become a stand-in for Washington in many voters鈥� minds. She is Massachusetts鈥� attorney general and is well recognized in the state.
As such, she is suffering from the anti-incumbent attitude currently sweeping much of the nation. Mr. Brown has worked to emphasize this image, calling Coakley a 鈥渕achine politician鈥� at a rally timed to coincide with Obama鈥檚.
鈥淣ow voters think a vote for her is a vote for what鈥檚 going on in Washington,鈥� says Dan Payne, a Democratic media consultant based in Massachusetts. 鈥淪he鈥檚 got to deal with Washington issues that she had never intended to be a part of her campaign.鈥�
With Sunday鈥檚 rally and a similar event Friday with former President Bill Clinton, Coakley sought to turn those connections to her advantage. Obama brought to the Coakley campaign some of the enthusiasm that led him to victory in 2008.
A crowd 1,500 strong chanted 鈥渇ired up, ready to go鈥� 鈥� a slogan from Obama鈥檚 2008 presidential campaign 鈥� while waiting for the event to begin and screamed 鈥淲e love you Barack!鈥� during pauses in his speech. Another 2,500 people watched a live broadcast in a Northeastern University student center nearby, and still thousands more were turned away, the Coakley campaign said.
The importance of Obama
Indeed, for many Massachusetts voters, who voted Obama into office in 2008 by a 26-percentage point margin over Sen. John McCain, just having the president campaign in the state was enough to make an impression.
鈥淚t let me know how serious it is,鈥� says Jeremy Smith, a graduate student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. Mr. Smith wasn鈥檛 planning to vote before Obama鈥檚 visit but says that now, even though he wasn鈥檛 able to make it into the rally, he plans to cast a ballot for Coakley on Tuesday.
鈥淟iving in a heavily blue [Democratic] state, you can lose sight of the fact that your vote matters,鈥� said Smith, who volunteered for Obama鈥檚 presidential campaign. 鈥淚f it wasn鈥檛 serious to Obama鈥檚 agenda, he wouldn鈥檛 have come.鈥�
Steve Moran works in the health insurance industry and said he was also undecided before Sunday鈥檚 rally. 鈥淚 hadn鈥檛 made a clear choice,鈥� he said. But after attending the rally, he said he will likely vote for Coakley.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important enough to bring the president here,鈥� he explained.
That鈥檚 exactly the message Obama hoped to impart.
鈥淚f you were fired up in the last election, I need you more fired up in this election,鈥� he said.
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