John Kerry, Massachusetts Senate Race, Talk Radio

RUNNING SCARED?

Elusive Kerry Suddenly Eager For Talk Radio Visits







When a formerly unavailable US Senator is suddenly eager to appear on local talk radio programs, he must be worried about his political future.

And with John Kerry making the rounds of Boston- area talk shows this week, it's probably no coincidence, coming after poll results found shaky 2008 re- election prospects for the sullen senator.

Were he to run for president again, this wouldn't be an issue, but Kerry appears to see the writing on the wall within a crowded Democrat Party field. As a fallback, he must settle for another six years as a US Senator from Massachusetts.

In the past, "Liveshot", as he's known in the Bay State, usually couldn't be bothered to expend precious moments dealing with the lowly local media, especially talk radio. With national ambitions comes a need for nationwide publicity. On that level, he loved to appear with his friend Don Imus on that now- defunct morning show.


Now, however, booking Kerry locally is as easy as having one's producer make a phone call. This week alone, he's had time to visit with two morning shows, including Mike Barnicle's WTKK-FM program today. Sure, he does have a book to promote, but could ominous Bay State favorability ratings have him running scared?

From the Boston Globe's Joan Vennochi earlier this week:

Like it or not, Kerry could end up a US senator for life, even though his popularity is down since his glory days as a presidential nominee.

A December 2006 Survey USA poll put Kerry's approval rating in Massachusetts at 43 percent, with 53 percent disapproving. A more recent poll conducted by Suffolk University and 7News suggests that Bay State voters are, fittingly, for and against their junior senator. When 400 registered voters were asked whether Kerry should run for another six-year term, 56 percent of them said that it is time to give someone else a chance. However, in the same survey, Kerry easily beats two Democrats -- Secretary of State William F. Galvin and unsuccessful gubernatorial candidate Christopher Gabrieli -- in hypothetical head-to-head matchups.

The political reality: It's hard to imagine a credible, well-funded challenger who is ready, willing, and able to challenge Kerry in a Democratic primary. "You never say never, but we'd certainly be surprised," Morris said.

Every significant Democrat is backing Kerry's Senate bid, said Philip Johnston, the former Democratic state party chairman and co-chairman of the May 21 event. "He will have the unanimous support," Johnston said, "of all the Democratic Party office holders, the entire congressional delegation, organized labor, women, and the gay community. There isn't one constituency where he won't have strong support. And he is very well financed."

It's even harder to imagine a Republican challenger strong enough to defeat Kerry in a Massachusetts general election, especially during a presidential election year. The name of Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling was bandied about for awhile; but even Schilling's enormous popularity within Red Sox Nation would run up against the immense unpopularity of the current Republican regime in Washington.

By state law, Kerry couldn't be a candidate for both the presidency and the US Senate on the November 2008 ballot. That put pressure on the senator -- even though a second Democratic presidential nomination would be a long shot -- to announce his intentions about 2008 earlier than he might have preferred. If Kerry chose the presidential run, an open Senate seat could have lured a slew of Democrats, including US Representatives Martin Meehan and Stephen Lynch, into a primary race. Once Kerry said he was running for re election, Meehan decided to leave Congress to take on the chancellorship of the University of Massachusetts Lowell.

Sure enough, she's right: the Bay State's Democrat Party machine will protect Kerry no matter how unpopular he might be. However, a well- financed challenger from either party could give him the scare of a lifetime, as Mitt Romney did against Ted Kennedy in 1994.

Despite his tremendous personal baggage, Kennedy remains fairly popular in Massachusetts because he spends a good chunk of his time dealing with local issues. By contrast, Kerry is an invisible man, a senator who simply doesn't have time to deal with his home state.

Given the Democrat Party's historic hostility toward talk radio, isn't it ironic to see one of their kingpins turning to the medium during a time of particular unpopularity with local voters?


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