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Massachusetts Progressive Candidates Outraise Centrist Opponents in Last Days of Primary Campaign
Both Sen. Ed Markey and Alex Morse outraised their opponents in recent days, even after an endorsement by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for Markey's challenger and a smear campaign directed at Morse.
Aug 21, 2020
Progressives running in two high-profile Democratic primary elections in Massachusetts reported Friday that they outraised their centrist opponents in a recent fundraising push, raising hopes for the outcome of the September 1 primary in the state.
Sydney Levin-Epstein, special projects manager for Sen. Ed Markey, who is running to retain his seat, tweeted that the campaign raised triple the amount amassed by Rep. Joe Kennedy III's campaign since House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) endorsed Kennedy on Thursday.
Kennedy, who Markey has denounced as a "progressive in name only," raised over $100,000 while Markey's campaign raised more than $300,000 via 9,000 individual contributions.
Markey, who co-authored the Green New Deal with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), has rejected Kennedy's attempt to cast himself as a youthful candidate who will bring bold reforms to Massachusetts voters' lives. The senator condemned Kennedy in a recent debate for spending time working for a right-wing prosecutor, neglecting to prioritize action, and failing to back Medicare for All until 2019.
Pelosi's endorsement angered progressives this week, with the Sunrise Movement saying it revealed a "ridiculous double standard," considering the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's (DCCC) blacklisting of vendors who work with candidates who challenge incumbent Democrats.
"In less than 24 hours, Ed raised $300,000 after Nancy Pelosi endorsed our opponent," tweeted Sam Delgado, a fellow with Markey's campaign. "The progressive movement is real, it's alive, and it's sticking with Ed."
Also on Friday, Holyoke, Massachusetts Mayor Alex Morse announced that his U.S. House campaign against longtime Rep. Richard Neal raised more than his opponent in the pre-primary filing period.
Morse amassed $475,000 in donations in recent weeks while Neal received about $367,400.
The vast majority of Morse's funds in recent weeks came in the form of small donations under $200, while just 1% of Neal's contributions were under $200.
The news out of Morse's campaign follows a controversy over the mayor's consensual relationships, which the Massachusetts Democratic Party reportedly helped a College Democrats chapter to orchestrate.
"Alex Morse looks very likely to join the ranks of new progressive millennials in Congress," tweeted TIME magazine correspondent Charlotte Alter.
Medicare for All advocate and infectious disease physician Robbie Goldstein, who is running to unseat Rep. Stephen Lynch, also outraised his opponent. Goldstein amassed $174,000 through 1,646 donations in the final FEC filing period while Lynch raised less than 10,000.
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Nancy Pelosi Endorsing Joe Kennedy Over Ed Markey, Critics Charge, 'Reveals a Ridiculous Double Standard'
Progressives accused the House speaker of "proving she's not, in fact, against Dems primarying Dems, as long as it's to remove anyone who advances halfway progressive ideas."
Aug 20, 2020
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi came under fire from progressive activists and advocacy groups in Massachusetts and nationwide on Thursday for endorsing Rep. Joe Kennedy III in his bid to unseat Sen. Ed Markey--a move that critics said suggests the Democratic establishment's threat to blacklist firms and strategists that help primary challengers to incumbents was always about blocking candidates from running to the left of the party's current members of Congress.
"Never before have the times demanded we elect courageous leaders as today, and that is why I am proud to endorse Joe Kennedy for Senate," Pelosi said in a video Thursday, citing Kennedy's record of campaigning and fundraising across the country during the 2018 midterm cycle, when he served as a mid-Atlantic and New England regional vice chair for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC).
\u201cThis is the Speaker of the House being divisive at a time when we're trying to bring the party together.\u201d— Bhavik Lathia (@Bhavik Lathia) 1597947487
"Pelosi's endorsement is both a boon to Kennedy and a snub of Markey, who was an ally of the California Democrat during his long tenure in the House," reported the Boston Globe. "In 2007, during her first turn as speaker, Pelosi chose Markey over several other prominent lawmakers to head a select committee dedicated to energy and global warming issues, and then supported the 2009 climate legislation he co-wrote, bringing it to a vote on the House floor."
In response to the endorsement, Markey--who represented Massachusetts' 7th Congressional District from 1976 to 2013 before being elected to the Senate--tweeted: "Speaker Pelosi is an effective leader who has shattered glass ceilings throughout her career. I had the privilege to work alongside Nancy in the House for decades and any candidate would be proud to have her endorsement. I congratulate Joe Kennedy on securing her support."
However, some of Markey's supporters and groups that have worked to elect progressives expressed frustration with Pelosi's decision to get involved in the high-profile, tight race ahead of the September 1 primary election--particularly given the DCCC's incumbent-favoring blacklist policy, which Pelosi and other party leaders have stood behind despite criticism that it blocks progressives from replicating primary victories like that of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) in 2018.
Justice Democrats, which backed Ocasio-Cortez's 2018 challenge to a longtime Democratic congressman, called Pelosi's decision to endorse Kennedy "outrageous" in an email Thursday, declaring that "this move reeks of hypocrisy: the party is setting one standard for progressives and one entirely different standard for the establishment."
The group's email also highlighted that Ocasio-Cortez--who is a lead sponsor of the Green New Deal resolution with Markey and has endorsed him in this race--responded to Pelosi's move in a pair of tweets noting the DCCC's blacklist policy:
\u201cIlhan\u2019s multimillion challenge was bankrolled by DC lobbyists & dark money groups.\n\nHe blatantly admitted to using shell corporations to get around the DCCC blacklist, which all but means his vendors work w/ the Democratic Party.\n\nYet DCCC hasn\u2019t enforced policy. I wonder why \ud83e\udd14\u201d— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) 1597944389
The New York congresswoman was far from alone in mentioning the policy. The youth-led Sunrise Movement, which advocates for a Green New Deal and is among the activists and groups backing Markey, pointed to it in a statement Thursday.
"This endorsement is an embarrassment for Speaker Pelosi, and we're honestly shocked she had the gall to invoke social movements in endorsing Joe Kennedy," Sunrise said. "Despite millions of dollars from Joe Kennedy's family, Ed Markey is surging because his movement-connected campaign has inspired genuine grassroots support and because voters have seen him show throughout the years that he's willing to stand up for working people and movements when it counts."
"This endorsement is embarrassing because it plainly reveals a ridiculous double standard," the group continued. "When progressives challenge incumbent Democratic lawmakers who vote with Trump two-thirds of the time, Nancy Pelosi cries foul and works with the DCCC to make a blacklist for anyone helping the challenger. But with today's announcement, Speaker Pelosi is saying that when she likes the challenger, or the challenger has a rich and wealthy family, helping challengers is okay."
Sunrise--which has a record of pushing Pelosi to be better on climate policy--added of the DCCC's blacklist policy that "this has never been about protecting incumbents, it's been about protecting big Democratic donors profiting off the status quo."
Journalists and progressives piled on, with Zach Carter of HuffPosttweeting that "this endorsement makes pretty clear that Pelosi's leadership is not about protecting incumbents or maximizing majorities, but realizing a particular vision for the party."
\u201cPelosi proving she's not, in fact, against dems primarying dems, as long as it's to remove anyone who advances halfway progressive ideas. And she really does not like the Green New Deal. https://t.co/Wh26vjs1Wa\u201d— Sarah Lazare (@Sarah Lazare) 1597943965
\u201c(1) I'm so old that I remember when Pelosi said that primarying Democrats was bad. \n\n(2) LOL at Joe saying he isn't the establishment when this is an endorsement he touts. LOLLLLLLLLLLLL\n\nhttps://t.co/kuMzqcsMYo\u201d— Jonathan 'Boo and Vote' Cohn (@Jonathan 'Boo and Vote' Cohn) 1597941502
\u201cThe fact that Nancy Pelosi is endorsing Joe Kennedy is a good sign that you should support @EdMarkey.\u201d— Gravel Institute (@Gravel Institute) 1597943700
\u201cWhen has a top Dem ever endorsed against the DSCC-backed candidate? \n\nThis is just a just a needless and gratuitous shitting on the Left.\u201d— Rebecca Katz (@Rebecca Katz) 1597941549
\u201cPelosi also cut an ad for Richie Neal in his primary. She could go 0 for 2 on Sept. 1, taking a real risk. \n\n(Also, yes, Kennedy is a House member but Pelosi served with Markey in the House for more than 25 years.)\u201d— Ryan Grim (@Ryan Grim) 1597942353
ABC political reporter Johnny Verhovek tweeted Thursday that a Pelosi aide told one of his colleagues the speaker took issue with Markey's twist on a famous line of former President John F. Kennedy, his challenger's great-uncle, in a recent campaign ad.
\u201c@JTHVerhovek @MKhan47 With all due respect, it's time to start asking what your country can do for you.\u201d— Johnny Verhovek (@Johnny Verhovek) 1597945451
As Common Dreams reported after Markey's campaign released the ad last week, the three-minute video won high praise from supporters and political commentators, who said that it "has the exact right message: we live in a society, it has a contract, the government can't just let people die."
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'The Clear Progressive Choices': Working Families Party Endorses Markey and Morse in Primary Contests
"The progressive cavalry is headed to Massachusetts."
Aug 06, 2020
The Working Families Party on Thursday endorsed Sen. Ed Markey for re-election and Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse for Congress, calling the two Democrats the "two clear progressive choices" in their respective contests in the upcoming September 1 primary.
"Sen. Markey and Alex Morse are the clear progressive choices in this race," said WFP national director Maurice Mitchell said in a statement. "They're leaders on a Green New Deal, Medicare for All, they have the political will to shift the balance of power in Washington, and they're committed to building a Massachusetts that works for the many, not the few."
\u201cYay! @WorkingFamilies\u2069 going in for \u2066@EdMarkey\u2069 and \u2066@AlexBMorse\u2069. \n\nLet\u2019s go! https://t.co/DxZKxck3Nb\u201d— Rebecca Katz (@Rebecca Katz) 1596713310
Markey, facing a challenge from Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-Mass.), earned the group's endorsement for his longtime advocacy of progressive causes and his work to advance those goals through legislation in the Senate, including the Green New Deal and Medicare for All.
In a statement welcoming the endorsement, Markey noted his record and tied it to the priorities of WFP.
"I'm grateful they've chosen to endorse me in this race," said Markey. "Throughout my career, I have worked to challenge the wealthy and powerful, from big oil to the NRA, and fight for the needs of working families. I'm thrilled that working families across the country support my campaign to carry on that fight."
Morse, who is running in Massachusetts' 1st District against longtime incumbent Rep. Richard Neal (D-Mass.), said that "as someone who comes from a working family in a working class town, I am proud to be a Working Families Democrat."
"The Working Families Party has a track record of helping grassroots campaigns like ours unseat corporate-backed incumbents like Neal, and I'm excited to have their support," said Morse. "I'm ready to go to Washington to join the WFP to fight for policies that help people, not corporations and wealthy donors."
The endorsements come in the wake of progressive wins in Tuesday's primaries. In Missouri, Cori Bush charged to an upset victory over 10-term incumbent Rep. Lacy Clay (D-Mo.); in Michigan, progressive Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) steamrolled a challenge from Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones.
"The progressive cavalry is headed to Massachusetts," tweetedCNN reporter Greg Krieg.
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