It’s hard to tell who is more fired up about Elizabeth Warren’s likely US Senate candidacy. It’s a close call, but I’m going to give it to the GOP. In a flurry of press releases, they’ve been pushing an image of Warren - who established the new federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau - as an outsider from Oklahoma, a Washington insider, and an Ivory Tower elitist who knows little of the world beyond Cambridge. In addition to these all-over-the-map appellations, they’re also calling her “militant.’’ Seen most often in the company of “Islam’’ and “feminist,’’ it’s a dog-whistle word, meant to freak out voters who identify with men in barn jackets and pickups. Warren is certainly passionate and direct. In a press call a few weeks ago, she blamed Republicans for trying to throttle the agency she set up even before it gets going. “I’m saving all the rocks in my pockets for Republicans,’’ she said in an Atlantic Monthly account. “A year ago, we had a fight about whether to make it a strong, independent agency, or make it some weak, lame thing that isn’t going to get anything done. Republicans lost that fight. Now they want to turn around and see if they can fight it again. They want to embrace the system that failed.’’ Warren called it right. The new agency is designed to protect consumers from the deceptive, predatory practices of mortgage and credit card companies, and of banks - the institutions that led us into the subprime morass, derailed the economy and, in some cases, were rewarded with bailouts using our money. Republican lawmakers, some of them in the pockets of these very institutions, are trying to declaw the bureau, partly by making it dependent on Congress for funding. Increasingly allergic to regulation of any kind, they’ve pulled out their tired “let the market work it out’’ argument - the very approach that got us into this mess in the first place. “We’re not here to serve banks,’’ Warren said. “We’re not here to serve Wall Street. We’re not here to serve Congress. We’re here to serve American families.’’ Warren fought for a fully independent agency, or nothing. She is determined not to let it go down without a fight, or, as she told local Democratic activists, without “blood and teeth on the floor.’’ I could do without the bodily injury metaphors, but I’m grateful for Warren’s tough talk. (I’m less thrilled that she has declined to let local reporters hear it so far.) We could have used more of that frankness from other Democrats, and especially from President Obama, during the debt ceiling fiasco, laying out exactly what the Republicans were doing: holding the economy - and especially poor and middle-class Americans - hostage to the interests of the rich and powerful. For all of his strengths as a campaigner, directness is a quality Scott Brown lacks - or avoids. He declines to state clear positions on most issues until his vote doesn’t matter, often ducking reporters altogether. Warren isn’t the only Democrat hoping to unseat the Republican who tells it like it is. But right now, she has the biggest megaphone. If she runs, I hope she resists the temptation to go native, to start sounding like a politician. That she’ll be as forceful and unvarnished as a candidate as she is as a consumer advocate. Massachusetts voters like politicians who say exactly what they think. They can handle the truth, without hedging or sugar-coating. And now, more than ever, they need to hear it. Berkshire Democrats Want Warren to Run, Run, RunBy Andy McKeeveriBerkshires Staff  |
| Local attorney and Democratic leader Sherwood Guernsey said the amount of people who came to his office to support Elizabeth Warren was 'fantastic' — especially on three-days notice, in the summer and on a Friday. |
http://www.iberkshires.com/new/story.php?story_id=39237
The Berkshire Brigades decorated the law office with mock signs, buttons and large banners encouraging Warren to run.
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| Elizabeth Warren has been meeting with Democrats across the state as she debates running against Scott Brown for the U.S. Senate seat next year. |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — More than a few local Democrats would be ecstatic if Elizabeth Warren decides to run against Scott Brown for the U.S. Senate.
Warren is kicking around the idea of running and stopped in Pittsfield on Friday to meet with party members to gauge their support as part of a listening tour across the state.
What she found in Berkshire County was a whole lot of support.
"She is exactly the person we need in the U.S. Senate," Lee Harrison, chairman of the local Democratic organization, said. "We're going to campaign like hell for her."
Warren, a Harvard professor teaching contract, bankruptcy and commercial law, boasts a resume that includes chief adviser to the National Bankruptcy Review Commission, member of the Federal Judicial Education Committee and most recently appointed as assistant to the president and special adviser to the secretary of the Treasury on consumer financial protection.
A movement to draft Warren for a Senate run has raised $100,000; on Thursday, she filed to form an exploratory committee. Many Democrats see her as a home-run candidate to oust Brown, a Wrentham Republican who won in a special election last year to complete the late Ted Kennedy's term.
In 2008, Warren was picked to chair the special Congressional Oversight Panel for the government bailout and she pushed for formation of a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that was signed into law last July.
"We just kept pushing. We not only got the bill, we got a stronger version of the bill. We got a consumer agency," Warren told a packed room in the Law Offices of Sherwood Guernsey. "It repairs one hole in the bottom of the boat. There is so much more that is going on."
The country is now in a time where it can re-write the rules regarding economics, she said, and she wants to focus on rebuilding the middle class. The Senate seat could provide an avenue but if she is going to make a successful run, Warren said it will need to be a "truly" grassroots campaign.
Warren is kicking around the idea of running and stopped in Pittsfield on Friday to meet with party members to gauge their support as part of a listening tour across the state.
What she found in Berkshire County was a whole lot of support.
"She is exactly the person we need in the U.S. Senate," Lee Harrison, chairman of the local Democratic organization, said. "We're going to campaign like hell for her."
Warren, a Harvard professor teaching contract, bankruptcy and commercial law, boasts a resume that includes chief adviser to the National Bankruptcy Review Commission, member of the Federal Judicial Education Committee and most recently appointed as assistant to the president and special adviser to the secretary of the Treasury on consumer financial protection.
A movement to draft Warren for a Senate run has raised $100,000; on Thursday, she filed to form an exploratory committee. Many Democrats see her as a home-run candidate to oust Brown, a Wrentham Republican who won in a special election last year to complete the late Ted Kennedy's term.
In 2008, Warren was picked to chair the special Congressional Oversight Panel for the government bailout and she pushed for formation of a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that was signed into law last July.
"We just kept pushing. We not only got the bill, we got a stronger version of the bill. We got a consumer agency," Warren told a packed room in the Law Offices of Sherwood Guernsey. "It repairs one hole in the bottom of the boat. There is so much more that is going on."
The country is now in a time where it can re-write the rules regarding economics, she said, and she wants to focus on rebuilding the middle class. The Senate seat could provide an avenue but if she is going to make a successful run, Warren said it will need to be a "truly" grassroots campaign.
"This is not about going down to be a polite senator," Warren said. "We don't have 30 years to fix these problems."
Warren spent more than an hour with the local group discussing politics and the goal of rebuilding "middle-class opportunities."
"Families are caught in a squeeze - no higher income but all the big costs are going up," Warren said.
That middle-class focus resonated with the local Democrats, many of whom pleaded with her to run. The office was decorated with signs and buttons reading "run, Elizabeth, run."
"I'm here to endorse your running," Democratic doyenne and former Middle Berkshire Registrar of Deeds Mary O'Brien told Warren. "What we'd like to do for you is to go out and speak to people across the state."
Brigade member Ethan Klepetar said a grassroots campaign for Warren is "the way to go."
"I'm very excited about Elizabeth Warren," Klepetar said. "She has terrific ideas about economic policy."
With just three days notice on a rainy Friday in August, Democrats from all over the county jumped at the invitation and filled the offices for a chance to speak with Warren. Guernsey, a former state representative, said it was one of the biggest turnouts he's seen for a person who is not an announced candidate.
"The energy she brings is something people are yearning for," Guernsey, also a Brigade member, said. "She has stood up for people in the middle class for years."
Harrison said he likes her leadership and ability to stand up against pressures — traits that will help her lead a successful campaign.
Warren has held 12 meetings in five days with Democratic leaders across the state and has four more scheduled. Announced candidates for the Democratic nomination include Newton Mayor Setti Warren; Wayland Rep. Tom Conroy; City Year founder Alan Khazei, immigration attorney Marisa DeFranco and activist and nonprofit executive Robert Massie.
Warren spent more than an hour with the local group discussing politics and the goal of rebuilding "middle-class opportunities."
"Families are caught in a squeeze - no higher income but all the big costs are going up," Warren said.
That middle-class focus resonated with the local Democrats, many of whom pleaded with her to run. The office was decorated with signs and buttons reading "run, Elizabeth, run."
"I'm here to endorse your running," Democratic doyenne and former Middle Berkshire Registrar of Deeds Mary O'Brien told Warren. "What we'd like to do for you is to go out and speak to people across the state."
Brigade member Ethan Klepetar said a grassroots campaign for Warren is "the way to go."
"I'm very excited about Elizabeth Warren," Klepetar said. "She has terrific ideas about economic policy."
With just three days notice on a rainy Friday in August, Democrats from all over the county jumped at the invitation and filled the offices for a chance to speak with Warren. Guernsey, a former state representative, said it was one of the biggest turnouts he's seen for a person who is not an announced candidate.
"The energy she brings is something people are yearning for," Guernsey, also a Brigade member, said. "She has stood up for people in the middle class for years."
Harrison said he likes her leadership and ability to stand up against pressures — traits that will help her lead a successful campaign.
Warren has held 12 meetings in five days with Democratic leaders across the state and has four more scheduled. Announced candidates for the Democratic nomination include Newton Mayor Setti Warren; Wayland Rep. Tom Conroy; City Year founder Alan Khazei, immigration attorney Marisa DeFranco and activist and nonprofit executive Robert Massie.
Warren Edges Closer to Senate Run
By ABBY GOODNOUGHBOSTON — Elizabeth Warren has enlisted two former aides to Gov. Deval Patrick of Massachusetts to help her assess whether to run for the United States Senate and will make a decision after Labor Day, a Democrat familiar with her efforts said Thursday.
Ms. Warren, who set up the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in Washington but was not nominated by President Obama to run it, also seemed to be laying ground for a Senate run in a posting Thursday on the liberal blog Blue Mass Group.
She described her working-class background, noted that she and her husband were returning to “our home of 17 years in Massachusetts” and added that while she had left Washington, “I don’t plan to stop fighting for middle-class families.”
“It is time for me to think hard about what role I can play next to help rebuild a middle class that has been hacked at, chipped at, and pulled at for more than a generation – and that is under greater strain every day,” Ms. Warren wrote on the blog. “In the weeks ahead, I want to hear from you about the challenges we face and how we get our economy growing again. I also want to hear your ideas about how we can fix what all of us – regardless of party – know is a badly broken political system.”
She described her working-class background, noted that she and her husband were returning to “our home of 17 years in Massachusetts” and added that while she had left Washington, “I don’t plan to stop fighting for middle-class families.”
“It is time for me to think hard about what role I can play next to help rebuild a middle class that has been hacked at, chipped at, and pulled at for more than a generation – and that is under greater strain every day,” Ms. Warren wrote on the blog. “In the weeks ahead, I want to hear from you about the challenges we face and how we get our economy growing again. I also want to hear your ideas about how we can fix what all of us – regardless of party – know is a badly broken political system.”
Doug Rubin, a former chief of staff to Mr. Patrick who also ran his two campaigns for governor, and Kyle Sullivan, Mr. Patrick’s former spokesman, will be working with Ms. Warren as she makes a decision over the coming weeks, according to several Democratic operatives here.
Ms. Warren, a 62-year-old native of Oklahoma, lives in Cambridge and teaches at Harvard Law School. Seven other Democrats have already jumped into the race against Senator Scott Brown, a popular and well-financed freshman who won a special election in 2010 for the seat that Edward M. Kennedy had held for 47 years. But some state and national Democratic officials say that so far, the field lacks a standout.
Elizabeth Warren, the darling of progressives, on Thursday moved a step closer to running against Sen. Scott Brown by forming an exploratory committee and launching a website for her likely race in Massachusetts.
A consumer advocate and Harvard law professor, she has been signaling for weeks that she is preparing to run against Brown in what will become a closely watched Senate race in 2012.
Amid the frenzy over President Obama’s healthcare overhaul, Brown, with the backing of the “tea party” movement, captured the Senate seat held by the late liberal icon, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy. When Brown won in 2010, he gave the GOP a 41st seat, ending the Democrats’ effective supermajority so that the majority party and its independent allies were no longer able to block a Republican filibuster.
Top Democrats, including Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, have been urging Warren, now visiting with groups around the state, to run. With Thursday’s actions, she can raise money and solicit volunteers on her website as she decides whether to formally announce her run. About a half-dozen other Democrats are eyeing the race.
EMILY’s List, a group that helps elect to office Democratic women who support abortion rights, gave Warren an immediate boost. In a posting on the group’s website, president Stephanie Schriock praised Warren.
“The EMILY's List community has been telling me loud and clear that they want Elizabeth Warren in the race to beat Scott Brown,” Schriock wrote. “Today, they got a little bit closer to getting their wish. I’m thrilled that Elizabeth is pursuing this next endeavor with the thoughtfulness and respect that's been such a hallmark of her career. Starting a listening tour is not only a great way to find out what folks need, it's a perfect contrast to Republican Scott Brown, who has yet to hold a single public town hall.”
Warren has never run for public office before, but she has been highly visible in consumer circles. President Obama chose her to launch the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, but strong congressional Republican opposition proved to be too much of a barrier. Obama eventually picked someone else to head the agency.
A consumer advocate and Harvard law professor, she has been signaling for weeks that she is preparing to run against Brown in what will become a closely watched Senate race in 2012.
Amid the frenzy over President Obama’s healthcare overhaul, Brown, with the backing of the “tea party” movement, captured the Senate seat held by the late liberal icon, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy. When Brown won in 2010, he gave the GOP a 41st seat, ending the Democrats’ effective supermajority so that the majority party and its independent allies were no longer able to block a Republican filibuster.
Top Democrats, including Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, have been urging Warren, now visiting with groups around the state, to run. With Thursday’s actions, she can raise money and solicit volunteers on her website as she decides whether to formally announce her run. About a half-dozen other Democrats are eyeing the race.
EMILY’s List, a group that helps elect to office Democratic women who support abortion rights, gave Warren an immediate boost. In a posting on the group’s website, president Stephanie Schriock praised Warren.
“The EMILY's List community has been telling me loud and clear that they want Elizabeth Warren in the race to beat Scott Brown,” Schriock wrote. “Today, they got a little bit closer to getting their wish. I’m thrilled that Elizabeth is pursuing this next endeavor with the thoughtfulness and respect that's been such a hallmark of her career. Starting a listening tour is not only a great way to find out what folks need, it's a perfect contrast to Republican Scott Brown, who has yet to hold a single public town hall.”
Warren has never run for public office before, but she has been highly visible in consumer circles. President Obama chose her to launch the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, but strong congressional Republican opposition proved to be too much of a barrier. Obama eventually picked someone else to head the agency.
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