At Saturday’s “3 T and 2 C” (Three Towns and Two Cities) Democratic Breakfast, Congressman John Tierney highlighted a major difference between Democrats and Republicans: “Democrats are not inclined to do nothing” when faced with tough challenges.
Before a capacity crowd of Democratic activists, the Congressman, Lieutenant Governor Timothy P. Murray, State Senator Steven Baddour, Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett, Governor’s Councilor Mary-Ellen Manning, State Democratic Party Chairman John Walsh and Newburyport High School student Elias Earls all gave testimony as to why the Democratic Party has once again become the majority party not only in Massachusetts but also across the country.
State Representative Harriett Stanley was also in attendance although she had to leave to attend to House Budget Committee work. State Representative Michael Costello could not attend as he was participating in an American Bar Association Conference where he was helping to draft ABA guidelines to reduce recidivism among prisoners.
photo by Nancy Weinberg
Lieutenant Governor Murray started by listing the accomplishments of the Patrick Administration. He noted that Republican Administrations had “abdicated” their responsibility to future generations by failing to invest in the state’s educational system, transportation infrastructure, broadband capacity, life science sector, energy systems, environment and public parks. In spite of the very tough current economic conditions, he said that the current Administration, working with Democrats in the State House and Senate, had created a blueprint for “sustained and robust” economic growth.
photo by Nancy Weinberg
State Senator Baddour, Chairman of the State Senate’s Transportation Committee, spoke to the fact that, after this current economic crisis had passed, residents of the Commonwealth would see a “different state government” than the one they had seen in the past. From reform of the broken transportation system to pension reform he pledged a fundamental change for the better.
photo by Nancy Weinberg
U.S. Congressmen Tierney started by saying that no Democrat in Washington was happy with the large deficits resulting from the Stimulus Package and FY10 Budgets, but they saw no choice when confronted with the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. In contrast, he noted, Republicans had offered nothing other than “Hoover Economic Policy” and more tax cuts for the rich.
He reminded people that Democrats, eight years ago, had plenty to be angry about. Many thought that Bush’s election was the result of questionable Republican activities in Florida to say nothing of the fact that he was selected by the Supreme Court. Nevertheless, Democrats in Congress worked with President Bush in a bi-partisan manner. There was plenty in the Bush Education Bill that Democrats disliked but, led by Senator Ted Kennedy, they compromised and helped pass Bush’s legislation. What a difference from the Rush “ditto-heads” who profess that they want President Obama to fail.
Tierney said Democrats and President Obama were not going to stand pat. They would deal with the economic crisis and simultaneously build a foundation for the future based upon a vigorous new approach to education, health care and energy independence. He finished by saying that Democrats were the real patriotic Americans because we aren’t “trashing” America; we are moving it forward.
photo by Nancy Weinberg
With a comment both on last week’s protest and more generally post-election politics, Master of Ceremonies Dave Tibbetts offered a new slogan for our opponents: “Republicans Are Revolting.”
photo by Nancy Weinberg
Essex County District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett continued with the theme of the day by speaking to two successes: 1. a tough new domestic violence bill with five year sentences for serial batterers and 2. Essex County’s Youth Diversion Program that serves to prevent kids who make mistakes from falling into further trouble.
photo by Nancy Weinberg
Next, Governor’s Councilor Mary-Ellen Manning said that there was no more important task than the selection of fair judges at a time when people were worried about whether or not they would be able to “hold onto their house, or their job or even their family.”
photo by Nancy Weinberg
State Chairman John Walsh told the crowd that "tough times are not times to do nothing" and that Democrats "are not hiding and running" from the challenges presented by tough times. He raised the qustion: "Can we survive?" and answered in a phrase from the Obama campaign with a rousing: "Yes we can!" He exhorted Democrats not to rest on their laurels (having won all 15 open seats in the state legislature - three of them previously held by Republicans) but to be community organizers and build ever broader connections in expanding the democratic base.
photo by Nancy Weinberg
Finally, Elias Earls, a Newburyport High School student who attended President Obama’s Inauguration, inspired Democrats with his description of the joy and hope infused throughout the huge crowd that had gone to Washington to witness the beginning of a new age for America.
THANKS TO Nancy Weinberg for all the great photographs (click here for a really spectacular slide show of Nancy's breakfast photographs)
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