I think you're the second person in a week who has suggested I write a book on MA politics (I wrote a much longer-winded essay on the decline of the state GOP on another group, and just wrote one on recent NJ political history yesterday). While I'm somewhat familiar with the "big names", I'm far less versed on the plethora of characters that have inhabited the political landscape of MA for many years. I'd rather leave it to someone who knows the little people and the small stories to pour into a book to paint that larger story.
"Wasn't Bill Weld reelected by something like 83%, the highest margin ever?"
Oh, no. It wasn't that high, but it was 71%. I'm not sure I can recall any Gubernatorial race in the state that was that lopsided, and I'm a bit lazy to look it up at the moment. ;-) As you well know, his 'Rat opponent was his wife's cousin. That always struck me as a bit fishy, as I always suspected that the order came down that no Democrat of any name was to challenge Weld (perhaps in exchange that Weld would sabotage any GOP challengers to Ted Kennedy, who was extremely vulnerable going into 1994).
"He is a smart guy, but one of the laziest guys in the world, and when he found out there wasn't much he could accomplish in a one party state, he got bored, and had nothing to show for his second term."
I was taking a gander at Barone's Almanac from 1996, and I found a soundbyte from Mark Roosevelt (Weld's opponent) that was about as dead on the money as you could get where Weld was concerned. "(Weld is) indifferent, apathetic, feckless, aloof, passive and lazy. Did I say uncaring ? He's uncaring." He left out arrogant with an attitude that could best be described as having delusions of grandeur. I'd never call Weld stupid. Many RINOs aren't, but then neither are many master criminals. But their goals are always the same.
"Frank Sargent...at least he killed the inner ring."
Sargent was a strange man. From chuckling about the time a lynch mob from Southie tried to come out to his house when the school integration order came down (it was dark and they couldn't find his house), and writing me a letter shortly before his death making light about his wife's poor health - "She had a stroke, and that's no joke !" I think my jaw dropped when I read that.
"And I'm still trying to remember who ran for AG in 78 :)"
I wish I could forget. 8-0
"And I'm still trying to remember who ran for AG in 78 :)"
> I wish I could forget. 8-0
Right. Weld, of course. I was thinking Peter Fuller ran for statewide office in the 70s, and there was some kind of scandal...