![]() ![]() Smith of the University of New Hampshire says that the Democrats have reasons to worry about turnout in the working-class communities of the South Shore. (The 4th District, thanks to some clever gerrymandering, is a hash of different communities from the wealthy progressive suburbs outside of Boston-Frank’s backyard-to the Republican-leaning bedroom communities-think, Scott Brown-to the blue-collar cities of Fall River and New Bedford.) In short, Bielat, a former registered Democrat who opposed the Iraq invasion and who favors gay marriage, does New England political iconoclasm well.Īlso in his favor: The Republican candidate is running in a district where Scott Brown beat the high-profile Attorney General Martha Coakley with 53.5 percent of the vote. With that background, Bielat convincingly unites the Scott Brown and Bill Weld strands of the Massachusetts Republican Party, and has received friendly treatment in the conservative journals of record. Running against Frank, the 35-year-old Bielat, who served as a Marine officer for four years and is still active in the reserves, brings Ivy League credentials (stops at Harvard and Wharton) as well as business props (consulting stints at McKinsey & Co. The American Victory Fund, which seems to rely principally on the donations of orthopedic surgeons and other physicians, has cut an ad, attacking Frank’s role in the Fannie-Freddie fiasco. We do realize while trending in our favor, it’s still Barney Frank and Massachusetts,” says committee spokesman, Tory Mazzola.īut other-less predictable-groups are piling it on. Still, the National Republican Congressional Committee itself is holding on to its money-at least for now. And a bus tour will arrive in Massachusetts before the election with the goal of drawing attention to Bielat’s campaign. In less than two days, the Tea Party Express, a group behind a number of conservative upset victories, raised more than $38,000 to fight Frank. Rand Paul’s Maddest Debate YetFrank, it is clear, faces some tough battles in the final days of the campaign.A radio ad put together by the Iowa-based America Future Fund centers on that exact complaint. Republicans and Tea Partiers would like to tar the 70-year-old Democrat as standing in the way of fixing insurance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. He has also taken $40,000 from bank executives, after promising that he wouldn’t touch campaign money tied to those who benefited from the federal bailout.Īnd that’s just grist for conservative mills. Going up against Bielat, Frank has raised more than $3 million during this cycle-much of the money coming from the insurance and financial industries that depend upon legislation made in his committee. (“He is a prime target,” confirms Tea Party Express spokesman Levi Russell.)įor the first time in his career, the powerful House Democrat is in trouble. 1 target-apparently one thing he can agree on with his opponents. He recently announced he was giving his campaign a $200,000 loan, taken out of his personal retirement savings, and he’s telling anyone who’s willing to listen that he’s the Tea Party’s No. Since then, they’ve been busy saying they are ready for all Republican comers-and Frank, ever the political pugilist, is no exception. Especially considering it’s not that long ago that Scott Brown knocked the Massachusetts Dems on their tails. “I’m not worried at all-honestly,” says Frank spokesman Harry Gural.īut then again, when candidates and their handlers start tagging on “honestly” to a sentence, perhaps that is reason for pause. ![]() Such a record at the polls may give rise to a certain swagger. As Salon noted, Frank has never won by fewer than 20 points. ![]() In 1990, when he appeared vulnerable following revelations about a relationship with a male prostitute, Frank still trounced the Republican gadfly John Soto by 28 points. In the previous three campaigns, Republicans declined even to challenge him. He won his last election by more than 40 points. In past, it’s been easy pickings for Frank. But a new poll out this week shows that Frank’s opponent, Republican Sean Bielat, is trailing by just 13 points among likely voters, putting the Democrat in the closest fight of his long, political life. ![]()
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