Ouch! BG column takes Steve Lynch apart on HCR votes

[TayTay]

Oooowwwww! I felt that hit even way up here near the New Hampshire border.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/03/24/evasive_maneuvers/">Evasive Maneuvers

Brian McGrory

With all the surprising confusion over United States Representative Stephen F. Lynch’s very straightforward position on health care reform, I thought I’d use this moment to clarify his stance.

He’s forgainst it.

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What does his forgainst vote get Lynch? He watched Scott Brown get elected on a message of sending health care back to the drawing board. He’s read about the Republican Party organizing in his native South Boston. He certainly witnessed the Tea Party activists gathered outside the Capitol during the votes.

When he’s running for reelection, or challenging Brown in 2012 (yes, a man can dream), he can tell all those Brown supporters that he, too, voted against health care reform. And he can tell liberals that he tried to be with them, but the bill wasn’t up to his standards.

And they say statesmanship is dead.

Ah, things are starting to get real, real, real interesting around here.

[beachmom]

1. Primary Lynch.

What a jerk. I saw that headline when it was announced he would vote no, and I just thought what a weakling.

[wisteria]

2. Of all the Dem's that voted no, his vote stood out because it just seemed mean spirited.

Vickie Kennedy even tried to get him to change his vote and he wouldn't do it.

[karynnj]

3. It was also rather demented if his goal was really to get the Democratic

nomination against Brown. It would seem that that vote would LOSE him the union support and possibly the reat of the Congressional delegation would push delegates to the convention to not vote for him.

But, let's say he gets it, how does he run against Brown as "like Brown"? He's not going to win on his looks - even if he buys a more macho truck.

It might, more logically be fear of losing his House seat - but as an incumbent he is in a better position than Coakley was and by then Brown may seem progressively a good choice. The question is whether he could lose a primary challenge. (MA people could Harmony Wu have a chance or is that district so culturally Irish that he would win - even if people are angry with him? I hope this is not an inappropriate question - just the reputation of South Boston.)

[wisteria]

4. What he did can not be good for him politically. n/t