On Saturday I wrote about how singer/song writer Carole King would be in Boston fundraising for Congressman Ed Markey (D. MA) who is up against businessman Gabriel Gomez (R. MA) in the special election on June 25th to fill Secretary of State John Kerry's (D. MA) seat in the U.S. Senate. King today stated why she endorses Markey:
http://www.masslive.com/...
In a stump speech that married music with politics and activism, award-winning singer/songwriter Carole King told a room full of Ed Markey supporters in Springfield Sunday that the longtime Massachusetts congressman's stance on environmental issues is, in her eyes, another reason to support his bid to become the state's next U.S. senator.
"I've known Ed for a very long time. I first started coming to Capitol Hill to work on a bill to protect the northern Rockies, where I live, and there were very few people who knew what an ecosystem was. Ed was one of them," King said, while also giving kudos to the environmental prowess of for U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, D-Springfield. "I've watched Ed's work and tireless successes to help the people of Massachusetts and protect the environment by accepting science. What a concept."
Markey talked about his support for environmental protections while referencing a report released on Friday which concluded the level of heat-trapping carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is now higher than any time in the past three million years on Earth.
"We have crossed another dubious threshold in terms of dangerous global warming. We've gone from 280 parts per million at the beginning of the industrial age to 400 parts per million now meaning we've put up a blanket up there to hold in these greenhouse gases," Markey said. "They warm the planet, melt the Arctic ice, warm up the ocean which creates a concoction that results in storms like Superstorm Sandy. Had that hit Massachusetts from Provincetown up to Plum Island, we'd be digging out for a generation in terms of the harm that would have been done. It's a warning."
Markey said the way forward should center on supporting renewable energy on a legislative level to create a new job sector that can also lower the level of carbon dioxide and pollution in the air.
"We have to create a new industrial revolution. A new job-creating, Massachusetts-centric revolution. Wind technologies, solar technologies, geothermal, biomass- these are the jobs that we should be creating for the next generation," Markey said. "This is how we say to the next generation, the green generation, 'We know you want to save the planet and we know you want a job as well.'" - The Republican, 5/12/13
The environmental community is determined to ensure Markey is elected to the U.S. Senate on June 25th:
http://www.masslive.com/...
Environmental activists are vowing to do everything they can to help Democratic U.S. Senate hopeful Edward Markey in his special election battle with Republican challenger Gabriel Gomez.
During the Democratic primary, environmental groups spent nearly $1.8 million in outside money to help Markey defeat Stephen Lynch.
Markey and Lynch had agreed to the so-called People's Pledge, which discouraged outside groups from launching television, radio or Internet campaign ads. That forced the groups to spend most of their money on organizing and get-out-the-vote efforts.
But Gomez has rejected the pledge, allowing environmental and other groups on both sides to pour millions into ads if they want.
For many environmental advocates, the most pressing issue is the fate of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, which Markey opposes but Gomez supports.
President Barack Obama is considering whether to approve the pipeline, which would carry 800,000 barrels of oil a day from Canada across six U.S. states to the Texas Gulf Coast. A decision is expected this summer.
Opponents say the pipeline poses an environmental risk, but supporters say it will create desperately needed jobs.
The pipeline is the top concern for the NextGen Committee, which spent $887,452 during the primary to defeat Lynch. The group is backed by California billionaire Thomas Steyer.
A spokesman for the group said they're discussing options for television and radio ads with their local partners in the general election, but are committed either way to helping Markey defeat Gomez, given the clear differences between the two.
"The more we learn about Gomez, the more he looks like Mitt Romney without the experience," NextGen Committee spokesman Chris LeHane said in a statement.
The League of Conservation Voters spent nearly as much as NextGen in the Democratic primary, $830,932, to ensure Markey's victory.
Jeff Gohringer, a spokesman for the group, said while they were encouraged by Markey's primary win, they're taking nothing for granted.
Gohringer said the group's support for Markey goes beyond his opposition to the Keystone pipeline. He called Markey "an environmental hero" and pointed to what he described as Markey's more than three decades in Congress fighting for environmental causes and combating climate change.
"This is the most important race this year for us," Gohringer said. - Associated Press, 5/12/13
King has been hitting the campaign trail with Markey in Massachusetts:
http://www.cbs3springfield.com/...
Markey wrapped up his four-city tour, visiting supporters and volunteers at his campaign field office off Island Pond Road.
Earlier in the day, he spent time in Greenfield, Amherst and Northampton.
Markey, who has been in Washington, DC, for three decades, told CBS 3 that facing a newcomer like Republican candidate Gabriel Gomez poses some challenges.
"He is in favor of repealing the Wall Street reforms that put a cop back on the street, a watchdog to protect ordinary citizens from a reoccurrence of what happened in 2007 and 2008," said Markey. "So we are going to have big differences in this race and I am excited for the people of Massachusetts to understand those differences and then go out and vote."
Markey was joined in Northampton and Springfield by songwriting legend Carole King. - CBS 3 Springfield, 5/12/13
By the way, look who's coming to campaign for Gomez:
http://www.masslive.com/...
John McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, will visit Boston next week to fundraise for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Gabriel Gomez.
The Boston Globe’s Political Intelligence blog reported that McCain, an Arizona senator, will hold an event at the Fairmont Copley Plaza on Monday, May 20 with tickets ranging from $2,600 for a noon lunch to $37,600 per person for a VIP roundtable. The money will benefit a joint fundraising committee that supports Gomez’s campaign and the National Republican Senatorial Committee. - The Republican, 5/13/13
Funny McCain would endorse Gomez, especially since he's a proven Swiftboater:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Before he was a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate from Massachusetts, Gabriel Gomez was active in an organization that released a controversial video attacking President Barack Obama for jeopardizing national security by releasing information related to the 2011 killing of Osama bin Laden.
Gomez, a former Navy SEAL, was a media spokesman for Special Operations OPSEC Education Team, a group of former members of the military and intelligence services who say their mission is to stop politicians – particularly Obama – from “politically capitalizing on U.S. national security operations and secrets.”
The group released a 22-minute film in August, during Obama’s reelection campaign, titled “Dishonorable Disclosures: How leaks and politics threaten our national security,” which got more than 5 million views on YouTube.
Much of the film is dedicated to Obama’s handling of the killing of bin Laden, the mastermind behind the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks. In the film, retired intelligence and military officers criticize Obama for taking credit for the killing and revealing too much information.
Gomez appeared on MSNBC after the video was released as an OPSEC spokesman. Gomez took a less harsh line against Obama than the film did, saying Obama deserves credit for deciding to kill bin Laden. “You have to give him absolutely 100 percent credit for making the call to send the unit in to get bin Laden,” he said. But Gomez criticized Obama for taking too much credit and not giving enough to the troops.
“The only time that…(Abraham) Lincoln and (Dwight) Eisenhower and other wartime presidents ever used the word 'I' was when they said 'I thank you' to the troops,” Gomez said. “The point of the video is to highlight the difference between the current administration and how they viewed giving credit as opposed to other wartime presidents that have given credit in a different way.”
The Obama campaign accused OPSEC of trying to “Swift Boat” the president, a reference to attacks regarding 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry’s military service in Vietnam. - The Republican, 2/15/13
Then again, what do you expect from McCain, especially since this isn't the first time he endorsed a swift boating campaign:
And the GOP is already attacking Markey in hopes of helping Gomez be this year's Scott Brown (R. MA):
http://www.bostonglobe.com/...
A new web video from the National Republican Senatorial Committee hits Senate Democratic hopeful Edward J. Markey for his involvement along with more than 300 other members in a check-bouncing scandal more than 20 years ago.
Although the video is currently not backed by any money online or on TV, the fifty-second video gives a window into a potential line of attack Republicans may use against the longtime congressman in paid advertisements in the run-up to the June 25 special election.
The House bank allowed members, who got paid at the end of the month, to overdraft their accounts without penalty.
The video begins with a clip from Markey’s own ad in an old-fashioned television.
Then the screen flashes with static and a foreboding male narrator comes in.
“I’m Ed Markey. It’s hard to believe but 20 years ago…” Markey begins.
“Twenty years ago, Ed Markey was caught up in a major ethics investigation,” the narrator says.
“Markey bounced 92 checks, using his account at the exclusive congressional bank. That’s 92 bounced checks!” the narrator says.
“Insider perks are nothing new for him,” the narrator intones as an image of Markey holding a bundle of cash up to his nose appears on the old TV. “Over 36 years in Congress. Markey voted to raise his pay by nearly 40 percent. Scandals and special insiders benefits. Haven’t we had enough of that in Washington? Now Markey is asking for a promotion. Don’t think so.”
Brad Dayspring, a spokesman for the NRSC, said the video would likely turn into a targeted web ad in the future. - Boston Globe, 5/13/13
If you would like to donate or get involved with the Markey campaign, you can do so here:
http://www.edmarkey.com/
And here's some Carole King for ya: