I wonder what his internal polling is saying that continues to propel Brown to play dirty like this. Apparently 18% of voters in Massachusetts are undecided. Do continuing to belabor Warren's ethnicity and mocking allusions to her being a professor help him with them? He seems to think so.
Brown's most memorable line was where he shot back that he is not one of her students in her classroom. I wonder where this professor obsession comes from. Does Brown have something against teachers in general or just those in higher institutions of learning?
"Republican Sen. Scott Brown and Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren met Monday night for their second debate of the top-tier Massachusetts race — in a knock-down, drag-out fight filled with attacks and vitriol."
"The bitter exchanges between the two reached a crescendo, as the audience of several thousand at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell booed and applauded."
"During an exchange on unemployment benefits and President Obama’s jobs proposals, Warren attempted to interrupt Brown on a key point. Brown retaliated: “Excuse me, I’m not a student in your classroom. Please let me respond.”
http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/10/brown-warren-massachusetts-senate-debate.php?ref=fpb
Are these undecided voters particularly women undecided voters going to be impressed with this? Is his seeming disdain for teachers mean he plans to support Mitt Romney's plan to cut teachers if elected?
He also again flagged the Cherokee issue with the forms. What is it in those internal polls that suggests this is a winner? Who are those who don't already plan to vote for Brown that cares about this trumped up issue?
I mean the Howie Carrs of the world-the Boston Herald columnist and Right wing talk radio host-love this no doubt but it's kind of like the Birthers. Making a Birther joke as Romney has done pleases the base but he already has them.
Brown did try to argue he's an independent and that he's not in lockstep with the GOP. He also made a point of distancing himself from Mitch McConnell. Of course his victory makes it more likely McConnell who cares only about putting the President out of work-not helping millions find work-could gain a promotion from a Brown win.
“With regard to working with any person on opposite side of the aisle, she couldn’t reference one person, except someone who’s retiring — a truly bipartisan gentleman, Sen. Lugar. I have a history since day one,” Brown said, citing his votes soon after he took office for Obama administration initiatives and that he has only voted with his party 54 percent of the time. “Very few members of the Democratic Party right now do it. Thank goodness we have people like me and others like me. Sen. Snowe, Sen. Collins, Sen. Lugar. There are other people down there who can actually get things done.”
"During the same exchange, Brown also said he would be “undecided” on whether to support Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) for leader: “When it comes to dealing with the majority or minority leader, I’ve already let it be very clearly known to Mitch McConnell that I’m completely disgusted as to what is going on down there. And he has a lot of work to do to earn my vote, because I don’t work for him or Harry Reid. That’s the beauty of being independent. When I go in, I can vote however I want. You’ve seen it. You have evidence of it.”
The trouble is that there aren't many moderate Republicans left. Brown criticized Warren because she only named Dick Lugar-who of course lost his primary. Yet, the list shows how precarious moderate Republicanism is. While Brown can show some non party votes when the GOP has need his vote they've had it.
As for his claim to being prolife-how did he then support the Blunt Amendment? His definition of a right to choose seems to mean not for a woman to choose whether she has an abortion or not but for her doctor to decide whether he's comfortable with it or not.
You can look at the 18% undecided in different ways. On the one hand it might seem to be good news for Brown as most polls since the DNC convention have shown him trailing. The DNC seems to have given not just the President but Warren a permanent bounce in the polls-so in truth it was more than must a bounce.
It might be that he can make up for this among the 18%. However, it's also not a good omen that as an incumbent 18% are still undecided about him. I'm not sure that casting aspersions about Warren's ethnicity much less harping on the fact that she's a professor is going to be what brings the majority of the 18% to him.
While Brown has enjoyed a reputation of being a nice guy who the voters like. he hasn't seemed very likable lately using such tactics. What has happened I think is that Warren took some of the criticism of Democrats to heart-Schumer, etc.-and has improved her campaign's focus. I think the day that Akin's scandal broke were a game changer for the race-as well as many races across the country.
That was the start of Warren being able to successfully portray a vote for Brown as a vote for McConnell, Akin, Ryan, and Romney. That was the day when he got very testy saying he "doesn't need her to talk about my record."
This was because she hit a nerve in pointing out his support for the Blunt Amendment among other Republican initiatives. Then a prolife group gave Brown a 80% rating despite his claim to be prochoice.
Brown may simply be frustrated-not exactly the way someone who's confident of victory acts.
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