Outrage over the more liberal provisions of the bipartisan immigration bill put forward last year had everyone from Harry Reid to John McCain to George Bush running for cover.
Yet here we are less than a year later and McCain is leading the GOP pack despite opponent Mitt Romney’s best efforts to paint him as soft [...]
Archive for January, 2008
Illegal immigration: How big an issue?
Posted in 6th District, Massachusetts politics, Nelson Benton, Presidential race, Uncategorized on Jan 31st, 2008 Comments
But how will it play in Peoria?
Posted in Massachusetts politics, Nelson Benton, Presidential race on Jan 29th, 2008 Comments
Much is being made of the Kennedy family’s anointing of Barack Obama as the candidate best suited to follow in JFK’s footsteps.
Sen. Ted Kennedy, who’s long since given up his dream of becoming the second Kennedy brother to occupy the White House, was at his rip-roaring best Monday as he declared Obama “ready to be [...]
“Massachusetts is on the move”
Posted in Massachusetts politics, Nelson Benton on Jan 24th, 2008 Comments
That was the mantra for Gov. Deval Patrick’s State of the State speech tonight, repeated five times in the first half of a speech meant to inspire the Legislature into giving him his budget and the means of paying for it.
At the other end of the half-hour speech came several choruses of “the cost of [...]
Though he remains a serious contender for the GOP nomination, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney has become a favorite target of his fellow politicians, media pundits and late-night talk show hosts. David Letterman has a new segment devoted to the Mittster, and his testy exchange with AP reporter Glen Johnson (formerly of the Salem News, [...]
Once again, it’s the economy
Posted in Nelson Benton, Presidential race, Uncategorized on Jan 21st, 2008 Comments
It’s the stupid candidate who’s not talking about the economy these days.
Stock markets were plunging in Asia this morning — another reminder of the precarious state of the U.S. economy.
Little wonder those overseas investors are worried. They finance a large portion of the U.S. debt simply because they rely on American consumers to purchase what [...]
Another Ogonowski run
Posted in 5th District race, Massachusetts politics, Nelson Benton, Uncategorized on Jan 15th, 2008 Comments
It’s says something about the sad state of the Massachusetts Republican Party that an also-ran in last fall’s 5th District congressional election can be touted as a credible opponent for incumbent U.S. Sen. John Kerry.
Though he’s been in office since 1985, Kerry should be vulnerable on any number of issues. (Like taking an unofficial two-year [...]
Two weeks ago, a close finish in New Hampshire would have been a huge win for Barack Obama. Unfortunately for him, by the time the primary arrived, he was expected to win big and that second-place finish became a major disappointment for his camp.
It was just the opposite for Hillary, once considered a prohibitive favorite, [...]
The stakes were highest tonight for Mitt Romney on the Republican side and Hillary Clinton among the Democrats.
Score a win for the feisty former first lady who got in a couple of good shots at her most formidable opponent, Sen. Barack Obama, and promoted herself as the the candidate “who can deliver change” rather than [...]
Sky’s the limit for Laboy
Posted in Municipal meltdown, Nelson Benton, Uncategorized on Jan 5th, 2008 Comments
Imagine what Lawrence school Superintendent Wilfredo Laboy’s compensation package might look like if the city’s schools were among the top performers in the state.
While others in the city are facing the loss of their jobs, the Lawrence School Committee recently granted Laboy a raise bringing his annual salary close to the $200,000 mark. And it [...]
Count U.S. Rep. John Tierney, D-Salem, among those who are understandably concerned about the effectiveness of U.S. aid to the Musharraf regime in Pakistan.
He was quoted in a New York Times story published around Christmas as having serious doubts whether money designated to quell terror cells in Pakistan’s tribal area will have the intended effect.
Jane [...]
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About
Nelson Benton is editorial page editor of The Salem News. Over the past four decades he has covered all the cities and towns of the North Shore, as well as the Statehouse. His political column appears every Friday on the Opinion page. Categories
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