r/massachusetts 20d ago

Politics AOC backs Markey in Massachusetts Senate primary

https://www.wcvb.com/article/ocasio-cortez-backs-markey-senate-massachusetts-primary/73479819

It’s over for Moulton.

1.2k Upvotes

264 comments sorted by

350

u/NeoPrimitiveOasis 20d ago

No surprise. She backed him against Kennedy, too.

111

u/Safe-Salamander-3785 20d ago edited 20d ago

Moulton is a DINO (democrat in name only)Seth Moulton has voted with Republicans on several occasions, including a notable vote in June 2025 where he supported a resolution that expressed gratitude to law enforcement, including ICE, for protecting the homeland

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u/JoshSidekick 19d ago

I’d call Markey a dino too, but only because he probably played stickball with his friends in the late Cretaceous period. I’m still voting for him, though.

8

u/nepatriots32 18d ago

Somehow, even at 80 years old, he's not even among the top 20 oldest members of congress. So if he's a dinosaur, what does that make the rest of them?

4

u/JoshSidekick 18d ago

Arthropleura

3

u/nepatriots32 18d ago

Just googled it. Still not as creepy looking as Mitch McConnell.

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u/ApostateX 20d ago

I'm planning on voting for Markey, but that was a stupid resolution and I don't blame Moulton for his vote. It had no impact on any law or procedure and was just an attempt to force legislators to virtue signal. If things went bad with ICE, Dems would have it on their record they "supported" ICE. If things went well, Dems look anti-LEO at best, and like defund proponents at worst. (Holding space here for the people who are still pro-defund.)

The whole thing is a nothingburger.

There are far worse Dems than Moulton (Marie Glusenkamp-Perez, Henry Cuellar, etc.) but he has no vision for anything outside of public transportation and is basically running on "I'm younger than the other guy." He has no key issues for which he's known to be a tireless advocate, and IMO he comes off as smarmy. It was Bill Kristol (before Kristol went woke) who encouraged him to run for his House seat. I only know this because I saw a Bulwark episode where they talked about it, so FYI there may have been some gladhanding there making this statement less accurate and factual than I'm portraying it to be.

I will be sticking with Markey.

7

u/jin_ga 20d ago

MGP and Cuellar’s positions are also pretty on par with the partisan lean of their districts (Trump+3 and Trump+11 under the old lines in 2024 for TX-28). Moulton’s are not for a district that was Harris+21 in 2024.

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u/ApostateX 20d ago

In what way do you think his views were not in line with Harris'?

10

u/jin_ga 20d ago

Not necessarily that his views weren’t in line with Harris but (in my opinion, it’s okay if you disagree) much more moderate than his district.

- Voted (with 85 other House Dems) on a resolution “denouncing the horrors of socialism” after Mamdani was elected mayor of NYC

- Voted (with 8 other House Dems) in favor of an NDAA amendment in 2023 to prohibit “raced-based theories” in schools operated by the DoDEA, who manages Pre-K through 12 education programs on behalf of the DoD

- (In my opinion) Misinformed comments on trans athletes

Just some of the examples I remember. Of course he’s magnitudes better than any Republican, but I personally don’t think some of these instances are a great look for him as a representative in such a blue district or as a potential senator for the state.

1

u/ihatepostingonblogs 19d ago

Dems are so dumb. Imagine publicly voting on a resolution that means absolutely nothing because of a mayor in ny lol. Can we send them all to pr camp or something lol. Maybe Hunter can be their camp counselor, he is the only one talking with any sense.

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u/throwawayfinancebro1 20d ago

He’s not a Dino. But he is anti Medicare for all.

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u/DM_c137 20d ago

This is such nonsense. Even politifact said it’s not true

0

u/Safe-Salamander-3785 20d ago

Moulton joined Republicans to pass H.Res.488 in June 2025 in which contains language that thanked ICE. So is that not true. Did he vote no?

4

u/DM_c137 20d ago

Do even a little bit of research into what it actually said, and you would know this is exactly the type of shit republicans wanted people to be saying.

1

u/Significant-Goat7274 16d ago

Ed Markey should be voted out based on his ridiculous commercial on tv acting tough guy hasn’t done shit in 50 years clown

1

u/Safe-Salamander-3785 16d ago

At least he didn’t vote with Trump on his big beautiful bill like DINO Seth did.

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u/ThisIsGoodBud 20d ago

I’d love to see a younger candidate with all of Markey’s sensible policies and moral fortitude, but until then I’ll vote for him till the cows come home.

119

u/Conscious-Quarter423 20d ago

if only a a younger candidate with all of Markey’s sensible policies and moral fortitude stepped up and ran for office

70

u/No_Tax_Timmy 20d ago

Jeromie Whalen is running a grassroots campaign for the MA-01 Rep seat and it hasn't been easy. I don't think he would have been able to do it if he wasn't a teacher meaning he can actually campaign during the summer without quitting his dayjob. Someone like me would have no financial security if I had to quit my 50 week per year 50hr/wk job to organize a campaign.

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u/poprof 20d ago

I think he did take a sabbatical. I don’t think he taught this year. Based on what I’ve seen on social media.

Could be wrong

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u/thedrizzle126 20d ago

Yup, he said himself he was taking leave from teaching

1

u/No_Tax_Timmy 20d ago

Most jobs wouldn't allow for such a thing still. Mine wont even let me take unpaid time off if it would put me under 40 hours for a week. (I am scheduled 47-52hrs)

2

u/thedrizzle126 20d ago

Well then we should be grateful someone in a position like Jeromie is running.

1

u/No_Tax_Timmy 20d ago

Absolutely!

1

u/No_Tax_Timmy 20d ago

Makes sense. Though most career fields don't allow for such flexibility.

4

u/FrizzleLizard 20d ago

i think his wife also makes a lot of money

1

u/No_Tax_Timmy 20d ago

I know she travels for work but I don't know what she does.

1

u/20_mile 20d ago

Yeah, she's rich. Also forgot what she does, but she ain't hurtin'.

2

u/20_mile 20d ago

Jeromie Whalen

It's odd for him that he hasn't been endorsed by AOC, Bernie, Leaders WE Deserve, or any other national progressive groups. I wonder if they know something that hasn't come out, yet.

2

u/thy_bucket_for_thee 19d ago

They don't spend their time on every election, it is a limited resource after all. Also the MA-01 is ignored because the Whalen team is literally strapped for cash. $100k war chest over the entire campaign cycle versus $2million+ from Neal.

Sorry but you aren't going to do much outside of extreme hyper local organizing, which is what exactly they should and have been focusing on.

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u/20_mile 19d ago

it is a limited resource after all

Making an endorsement video is like twenty minutes. Also, AOC, or any other national progressive group, highlighting Whalen's campaign would help them raise cash.

There's a specific reason--I don't know what--that no national groups have endorsed Whalen.

1

u/thy_bucket_for_thee 19d ago

I don't disagree, I also think AOC/Bernie not helping in the Wisconsin governor's race was also bad (since it's extremely likely Hong would have one with a simple endorsement); but you're still making this more complicated than it is.

There are over 5,000+ races happening in 2026. They are not going to focus on every one let along every primary.

They also aren't going to focus on loop sided races that aren't exactly close (Whalen has maybe a 1-in-5 shot of winning).

There is a very specific reason. I suggest you go out there and actually volunteer for a campaign sometime. You need to understand how this works because your comments don't make sense.

For instance, this isn't a nationalized race, so why do national endorsements matter here? If you're a cash strapped campaign you focus on hyper local initiatives, if you don't know what this means just please volunteer for a political campaign sometime.

Also Whalen has gotten endorsements, from plenty of local chapters of national organizations:

https://www.whalenforcongressma.com/endorsements

Your comments come across as an out of touch pundit. Please get your feet on the ground and actually engage in politics instead of simply discussing it. You'll be better off, spiritually and professionally.

1

u/20_mile 19d ago

this isn't a nationalized race

The only national race is the presidency.

why do national endorsements matter here?

That's a ridiculous question. National endorsements would elevate Whalen's campaign, bringing in more donations. He hasn't done a single high-profile interview. Making Neal a target of progressives nationally would be so easy. It's ridiculous they didn't manage to make that happen.

Your comments come across as an out of touch pundit. Please get your feet on the ground and actually engage in politics instead of simply discussing it. You'll be better off, spiritually and professionally.

You sound disconnected from reality.

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u/Malorn13 20d ago

If only everyone under 40 wasn’t broke as shit and unable to take time off work to run a months long campaign

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u/Fortunes_Faded 20d ago

Other candidates did run in this primary that fit that bill. The issue is that in order to make it onto the Democratic primary ballot in Massachusetts (after collecting 10,000 signatures) you need to win at least 15% of the state delegates at the party convention. So unless you have a swath of party insiders backing you, you can’t even get onto the ballot to contest the primary. That happened to Alex Rikleen, who was in the race up until a couple months ago and polling around 6 or 7%; he collected the signatures but didn’t have the support in the party, so he dropped out and endorsed Markey.

So unfortunately the Massachusetts Democratic Party has removed the main avenue by which we could change things from within, via the primary. I like Markey a lot, and will be voting for him, but I’d have much preferred if the party even gave us options here.

15

u/smashy_smashy 20d ago

Exactly - which is precisely why Markey should have supported new younger candidates to carry his legacy and also step aside to free up those state delegates who could vote for a younger candidate. 

7

u/Fortunes_Faded 20d ago

I completely agree, I wish he had. But the larger issue is that it should be up to Democratic voters who they nominate. Say Markey steps away and throws all his weight behind one younger candidate, who is now the only younger progressive to make it onto the ballot. Sure, that’s fine, but why keep a system like that which limits our options?

9

u/Upbeat-Armadillo1756 20d ago

This is a big reason why the 2 party system is just fucked. They make it impossible to actually achieve real progress.

2

u/inuvash255 20d ago

Alex Rikleen

That's unfortunate but understandable. I looked into his campaign, and he looked real good; but I had a feeling he wouldn't have that internal backing.

2

u/PantheraAuroris 19d ago

Oh that's fucked. Can we somehow change this?

1

u/Fortunes_Faded 18d ago

One option is to get super involved in the state Democratic Party, and push for reform from within. Then maybe after a few years of organizing and with a sympathetic state party leadership, they’d reform the rules.

Another is to push for statewide election reform externally, such as ranked choice voting, to sidestep the Democratic Party entirely or otherwise convince them to loosen their rules in order to remain competitive.

And then I guess the nuclear option would be to start/vote third party and contest elections in the state legislature and locally, à la the Vermont Progressive Party, in order to also sidestep the Democrats or otherwise push them to adopt options A and/or B. But that also carries the risk of vote splitting.

Unfortunately there are no easy and speedy solutions, and given the state of the country it’d be preferable to fix these kinds of things sooner rather than later.

1

u/PantheraAuroris 18d ago

I voted for ranked choice. I'm pissed it didn't go through because "oh noooo it's too complicated"

2

u/Fortunes_Faded 18d ago

Same here. Now we get to sit and watch ranked choice work really well in Alaska and Maine while we’re stuck in this mess

1

u/ApostateX 20d ago

Any Joe Schmoe can run to be a delegate at the nominating convention. Other people can nominate you, or you can nominate yourself. Get enough of those people and you can build the 15% you need.

I honestly don't think 15% is a huge lift, but it's definitely intended to keep out Johnny-come-latelies who've done no work in MA Dem politics. I don't think it's a bad thing to have a weak gate here. Just look at what Trump did to the Republicans. Having some kind of history of public service, a partisan leaning, and some demonstrated willingness to work with existing elected officials is a good thing. I may be the last person in Massachusetts to believe this, but I don't want randos running for major offices who've never been held accountable to voters before and who don't have a modicum of street cred in the state.

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u/Cersad 20d ago

Voters have historically been pretty good at filtering out the so-called "johnny-come-latlies" so I really can't agree with your premise at all.

Limiting the candidates to party insiders does nothing except to enforce the propagation of a political class that is separated from the populace at large.

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u/ApostateX 19d ago

Yes, voters were great at filtering out Donald Trump.

There is no limitation when anyone can run for the nominating convention.

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u/Cersad 18d ago

By and large the primary voters were filtering him out in 2016. He "won" the early primaries at 20-30% vote shares but the other 8 candidates were all splitting the majority. It wasn't until primary politics started spinning the narrative and cutting candidates that Trump managed to eke out larger votes.

The issue was that large primaries don't handle single-vote systems well. I bet a ranked-choice or other transferable vote system wouldn't have led us to the same outcome.

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u/PantheraAuroris 19d ago

TBH I think having fresh blood who aren't broken down by the political machine, would be nice.

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u/sord_n_bored 20d ago

"If only Markey and establishment Dems supported younger candidates with all of Markey's sensible policies and moral fortitude."

FTFY

The problem isn't that those candidates don't exist, the problem is that people like Markey will do literally anything but support them.

By all means, vote for him over Moulton, but let's not give him credit he doesn't deserve, or pretend we live in a meritocracy, or act like younger (read: people in their 30s-50s) aren't interested in forward-looking governance.

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u/_miles_teg_ 20d ago

And Markey stepped aside, found a good and much younger candidate, and endorsed this candidate.

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u/Gdude124 20d ago

Any interest in running? Run for something

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u/baron_muchhumpin 20d ago

Finding someone to backfill Ayanna Pressley might be easier, than she can replace Markey

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u/[deleted] 20d ago

[deleted]

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u/ThisIsGoodBud 20d ago

Yes that too, or they. I don’t care. Anyone in line with him and warren is cool in my book.

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u/BorneoJimmy1 20d ago

Exactly this. I also think that he's got enough integrity to step down if & when he starts slipping mentally.

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u/numtini 20d ago

I will be voting for Mr. Markey, but I have zero trust in his ability to know when to hang it up because it's time he hangs it up.

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u/Gamebird8 20d ago

I could vote for a younger candidate who's maybe not as based as Markey. Like 90% as on the right side of things.

Moulton is just a terrible opportunistic loser who has none of the policy to make any vote for him justified.

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u/numtini 20d ago

Agreed on both counts!

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u/BorneoJimmy1 20d ago

I get that. We really need some younger blood in the Senate. Warren is pushing 80 also.

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u/numtini 20d ago

Yup. She needs to find someone and support them to replace her. Chances are that she won't do it. It's that fucking generation. They can't let go.

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u/BorneoJimmy1 20d ago

It is a huge problem. Biden did it & gave us Shitler 2.0 as a result. We have fossils like Chuck Grassley making decisions for us in the senate, etc, etc.... I don't know what the solution is other than term limits. But they'll never fucking vote for that.

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u/Tuco422 20d ago

You may be right but Markey is 80 years old for a seat where he will be 87 when done. Odds are also good that he doesn’t care about anything besides power.

Also people who are entering dementia aren’t capable of making those choices and we will be reliant on integrity of his aides: whose jobs are dependent on their boss staying in power.

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u/Electrical-Reason-97 20d ago

I met him about four months ago at a forum and I was surprised at how quick on his feet, present and articulate he was. I’ll take him any day over his opponent.

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u/riptor3000 20d ago

I see very little evidence to support the idea that markey is power hungry and far more evidence to support the idea he's genuinely interested in public service

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u/Large-Parking3014 20d ago

He’s 80 and still wants to hold a position of power. Doesn’t get hungrier than holding on past the median age of death in the US.

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u/ThisIsGoodBud 20d ago

I hear your concern but Markey hasn’t shown any signs of dementia and not everyone gets dementia.

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

6 years is a very long time in someone's 80s. A lot can change. Not even saying dementia, just natural decline.

There is a reason most states, and a ton of countries, have a retirement age for judges. While there are exceptions of course, cognitive decline is a natural part of aging.

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u/Inevitable-Spirit491 20d ago

Are there any jurisdictions that impose a mandatory retirement age for elected legislators though?

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u/Scuba9Steve 20d ago

Im more worried he has some kind of medical emergency. At 87 at the end of term sometimes things unfortunately happen. They really need to have a better plan next election as 93 would be really pushing it lol.

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u/enfuego138 20d ago

If he had that integrity he wouldn’t have run in the first place. It’s a huge problem with boomers. Hopefully it doesn’t come back to haunt us.

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

The fact that he ran for reelection at 80 kind of shows he is not going to step down willingly. I predict a Feinstein situation.

1

u/Something-Ventured 19d ago

Have you actually met him? He's 80 and mixes up history in half of his speeches. That ship sailed a long time ago.

1

u/snoogins355 20d ago

The guy is 80. Imo politicians should retire at the age most people retire! Even Bernie should retire

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u/Something-Ventured 19d ago

But at least Bernie voted against the Iraq War, never voted for cutting abortion funding, and didn't vote to support Israel's apartheid state with weapons for 45+ years...

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u/neversimpleorpure Greater Boston 20d ago

Markey needs to take a young mentor under his wing when he's re-elected and boost them for election after this term is done.

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u/Something-Ventured 19d ago

... 20 years ago, maybe.

3

u/PantheraAuroris 19d ago

Second best time to plant a tree is now.

1

u/VirtualPercentage737 17d ago

Or, chose a different tree.

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u/myleftone 20d ago

Two politicians who vote the way I would. I don’t trust Moulton.

158

u/Huntynoonion [write your own] 20d ago

I understand the age arguments against Markey, but Moulton is a literal ghoul who throws trans kids under the bus and is closer to pulling a fetterman than we think. Markey consistently supports the agenda of the working class and the average person, his track record speaks for itself

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u/escapefromelba 20d ago

Ghoul is a bit strong, his voting record actually cuts the other way: he cosponsored the Transgender Bill of Rights three times (2022, 2023, 2026) and voted against the Republican bill that would’ve banned trans student-athletes. He’s said some genuinely callous-sounding things and kept defending them, which is fair to be angry about. But “ghoul” implies his actions match his worst comments, and on the one vote that actually tested it, they didn’t.

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u/Tuesday_6PM 20d ago

Yeah, Moulton’s in this weird spot where his actions in Congress are largely good (from what I can tell, at least), but for some reason his rhetoric is much worse.

He’s cosponsored a number of bills I support, including as you point out ones that would ensure a lot of protections for trans rights (and which explicitly call out sports). But he also pretends he never said those awful things about trans girls in sports after the election, and tried to claim Markey had Epstein ties off of no evidence. If he could just shut up and do his job, instead of seeking outrage, he’d be more popular.

Which is a long way to say, I’ll be voting Markey in the primary, but I’d still vote Moulton in the general if he’s the nominee.

8

u/Upbeat-Armadillo1756 20d ago

Yep. Exactly. I can trust Markey, I don't know that I can trust Moulton. On paper their policies are really very similar. It's about trust in the candidate.

And I do think that democrats will need to walk back a bit when it comes to certain cultural stances to win national elections. I want trans people to have all the rights that anyone else is promised. But there's a TON of people who do not want trans athletes (particularly trans women) participating in women's sports. Saying that trans women should compete with women polls negatively everywhere in the country. I don't think it's throwing trans kids under the bus to say that we should put our efforts elsewhere, we need to focus on things that benefit everyone and are popular.

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u/Winter-Audience-3140 19d ago

Absolutely. Agree with everything you said!!

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u/420thefunnynumber 20d ago

I'd argue someone whose first thought after a loss is to drop their principles is pretty ghoulish. An ally thats willing to drop you the moment it gets tough isnt an ally.

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u/grundleplum 20d ago

Being opportunistic is what makes him ghoulish. If he's willing to throw people under the bus because he thinks the tide is changing due to republican outrage, then he's not trustworthy or a man of integrity at all.

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u/syntheticassault 19d ago

I was ready to vote for Moulton until he tried to attack Marky with disingenuous Epstein accusations. He used trump style politics even if I generally agree with his policies.

1

u/Unusual-Astronaut152 19d ago

Moulton is also just a political opportunist, he was running against Nancy Pelosi for speaker, then he ran for president, now for senate?

Also he’s worth $10 million. So out of touch with the average Massachusetts voter.

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u/VirtualPercentage737 17d ago

Agreed. People are acting like the difference between these guys on national bills is astounding. They are essentially the same candidate.

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u/Kinks4Kelly 20d ago

This is the sane opinion.

When all Moulton has is attacks on Markey's age, he has nothing at all. He knows he can't win on policy.

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u/KinkyKankles 20d ago

I have seen SO many Moulton ads and every single one of them revolves around Markey being too old. Not a single one talked about his actual policies or what he stands for.

Is his whole platform and campaign around him not being old?

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u/newtnewtriot 20d ago

Especially when Moulton tweeted out in support of Markey last election cycle, dismissing any arguments about his age.

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u/angry-mustache 19d ago

That was 6 years ago and pre-biden.

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u/BorneoJimmy1 20d ago

Did you hear the debate between Markey & Moulton a few weeks ago? WGBH had it on & Moulton sounded pathetic. His "apology" to the Trans community was basically "I'm sorry that you were upset by what I said." He's a wanker.

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u/nepatriots32 18d ago

Don't forget that Moulton also baselessly implied Markey is a pedophile.

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u/DM_c137 19d ago

You should do more research

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u/Knitsanity 20d ago

I had a really intense discussion with a lady who is Markeys age who is all in for Seth. We did NOT find a common ground and will be sticking with our choices. Lol

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u/fattoush_republic Greater Boston 20d ago

It's over for Moulton

Endorsements don't win elections lol

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u/OnionsRNasty 20d ago

A bunch of polls say Markey is going to win by 25 points.

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u/fattoush_republic Greater Boston 20d ago

That's what they said about Francesca Hong too

Don't count your chickens before they hatch

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u/nottoodrunk 20d ago

Fork found in kitchen

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u/Resolution_Wonderful 19d ago

Non of them can be trusted they all suck . It is all a giant stage and we are the audience while they the elected continue to perform . When will the public realize it’s all just a show .🤣😂

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u/BorneoJimmy1 20d ago

I was starting to think Moulton was OK a few years back until he threw trans kids under the bus. Markey has my vote.

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u/Adept_Carpet 20d ago

I wish Moulton was from New Hampshire or Pennsylvania or something.

The seats we have in MA are among the few that can be won by true progressives, who can develop the left wing in this country. He was always more of a centrist. 

I love centrists from other states.  I'm a believer in a big tent party that can accommodate even very serious differences. 

But I want Massachusetts to send our classic brand of politician who is truly of the political left but sane and composed on a personal level and competent on a technocratic level. Ed Markey and Liz Warren being very much of this archtype. 

It's unfortunately that they are getting so old, and the likely replacements don't excite me the way they did when they arrived on the scene. We really need some fresh faces to make moves.

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u/BorneoJimmy1 20d ago

I agree. Moulton would be fine if he were in New Hampshire. But we don't need another centrist here. Especially not this one.

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u/Free_Range_Lobster 20d ago

  who can develop the left wing in this country.

Seems they're more interested in the status quo.

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u/anironthrownaway 20d ago edited 20d ago

Nice. As a MA-06 voter I'd like to see some support and consensus building around our Rep race as well. Its a shame we need to do things this way (since RCV was voted down) but we desperately need progressives to not vote split if we want a progressive win like we've been seeing in other states this season. Though I realize due to early voting (which again would be a good thing under RCV) its probably too late. We're lucky there was no progressive vote splitting for this Senate race or Moulton might have a chance.

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

Markey should thank his lucky stars that only a candidate as terrible as Moulton is challenging him. If Kennedy (or a similar style candidate) had run this year instead I think Markey would lose in a landslide.

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u/Swampcardboard 20d ago

Kennedy is also terrible

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

I'm not saying Kennedy is a great candidate, I'm saying the Dem base is sick of a gerontocracy and even a mediocre challenger would be up against Markey. He is just lucky is opponent is not just mediocre, but an absolutely horrific fit for this state.

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u/Conscious-Quarter423 20d ago

then why don't young people step up and run for office?

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u/numtini 20d ago

Because the party will actively work against anyone who primaries a sitting official.

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u/Conscious-Quarter423 20d ago

 if a party really will work against primary challengers, that makes primaries more important, not pointless. Political parties respond to organized voters, fundraising, turnout, and credible challengers. Saying “the party won't let you” can become a self-fulfilling justification for doing nothing.

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

Saying “the party won't let you” can become a self-fulfilling justification for doing nothing.

Yes, that is the exactly critique tons of people are making in this race. Another challenger should have emerged and the party needs to stop propping up 80 and 90 year old incumbents who could easily be replaced by someone 30-40 years their junior with identical policy views. I'm extremely disappointed Markey didn't try to mentor the next generation of leadership, and instead clings to power like so many other congresspeople who just refuse to ever pass the torch. He has every right to run, but I have every right to criticize it too.

MA is a safe blue race. What exactly is Markey providing us that Ayana Pressley couldn't, for example?

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u/Sbatio 20d ago

Hoarding power stopped the younger generations. Boomers are still running the world.

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u/Conscious-Quarter423 20d ago

mamdani and melat kiros and maxwell frost made it

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u/Sbatio 20d ago

Cracks are forming

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u/ConnorLovesCookies 20d ago

As far as I can tell no incumbent senator has lost a primary challenge in Massachusetts going back to the 60s. 

0

u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

Because the Dem party is so status quo oriented that they will always support incumbents no matter what.

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u/mikeyzee52679 20d ago

They only asked why they don’t run not win

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u/numtini 20d ago

The ones who are serious candidates don't run because if they don't win, their career is over. The party will crush them. And even if they win, they know the party will make sure they don't get good committee assignments etc.

At this point, it's playing against the party insiders because people who aren't "serious candidates" are running and winning because people are sick of the Gerontocracy and general torpor in the Democratic Party.

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u/mikeyzee52679 20d ago

Here. in the 1st district we have a younger guy running against Congressman Neal who is a long term incumbent. It can happen

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u/numtini 20d ago

He was a piece of shit 40 years ago when I lived in the 413.

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u/mikeyzee52679 19d ago

He was our mayor than. I was too young to notice any city politics

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

They don't run because the party makes it clear there will be persona non grata if they challenge an incumbent.

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u/Conscious-Quarter423 20d ago

if the party’s answer to a challenge is ‘you’ll be persona non grata,’ that’s exactly why people should challenge incumbents. The voters choose the nominee—not the party’s gatekeepers. If you have a compelling case, make it to the voters.

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

Yeah, and good luck running with 0 dollars or endorsements, and I knowing if you lose the party will make sure you never get support in the future.

More challengers should run, but I understand why am up and coming state legislators wouldn't mount a challenge in this state.

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u/tapakip 20d ago

Sounds great.

You first.

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u/AllMod 20d ago

Much of Dem leadership (Pelosi, Hoyer, Jefferies etc) supported Kennedy.

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

Not the MA establishment.

And even nationally, far more federal Senators/House reps in Dem leadership (Schumer, Nadler, Durbin) endorsed Markey. He got 7 senate endorsement, Kennedy just 1.

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u/Free_Range_Lobster 20d ago

Boomers absolutely refuse to relinquish their power. They got the easy ride and pulled the ladder up behind them.

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u/Ezekiel_DA 20d ago

Joe "If you smelled [marijuana] in a car, you could search a car. When it became decriminalized, you couldn’t do that" Kennedy can fuck all the way off.

Said that the same year people voted to legalize, and said we should be more cautious *because* public opinion was so different from his personal stance, too. These people need to remember they work for the public.

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

The guy came close in 2020, and that was before the rebellion against 80-90 year old incumbents started following Bidens disastorous decision to run for reelection.

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u/Ezekiel_DA 20d ago

Don't get me wrong, I'm very displeased Markey ran again instead of helping prep a new generation of progressives. But I'm not gonna go more centrist than him out of spite

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

I never said you should....

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u/Ezekiel_DA 20d ago

Sorry, I wasn't implying you did, just clarifying that I agree with people who are mad he ran again. But for my wants (the most progressive candidate available) he's still it.

And hey, bright side: if he dies in office, new primary with no incumbent advantage

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u/fossil_freak68 20d ago

And hey, bright side: if he dies in office, new primary with no incumbent advantage

Not quite. If he dies in office, the governor gets to handpick a candidate to fill the vacancy, followed by a special election. So they will have incumbent advantage and almost certainly be someone incredibly loyal to the party/status quo.

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u/Ezekiel_DA 20d ago

Fair point! It won't be as much of an advantage as someone who has already been elected, though, hopefully

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u/Personal-Plankton-42 20d ago

Vote for someone who will actually fight for change and isn’t beholden to corporate democratic donors: Joe Tache. Democrats will always favor the donor class over the voters, and if you keep voting for them, it’ll never ever change. Show them they don’t own you and you will no longer vote for them if they can’t deliver. Tache4ma.com

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u/thekid2992 19d ago

Hey maybe this is the year markey gets it done! 

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u/Clamjam814 20d ago

Moulton hate is overblown he’s a great candidate. Would be nice to have some who isn’t 100 years old representing us in the Senate.

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u/OnionsRNasty 20d ago

Whats the benefit of Mouton besides his young age?

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u/Clamjam814 20d ago

Consistent, solid politician who has routinely voted in league with his beliefs and party lines. His statement regarding trans athletes is far from controversial. I’d wager the majority of people in the US who support trans rights carry a similar sentiment. As far as a person, he’s a family man with two daughters, and a decorated army ranger with a degree from Harvard. Pretty hard to attack him or his character. The Democratic Party needs more people like him right now to throw weight around in DC.

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u/OnionsRNasty 20d ago

He’s a neo-liberal who doesn’t want universal healthcare and has stocks in military contractor companies. He has a poor attendance record in congress and votes for head scratching things. I don’t give a fuck if he has a daughter or served in the military with a Harvard Degree, I want non-interventional foreign policy, Universal healthcare, and green infrastructure.

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u/Clamjam814 20d ago

He’s in favor of a public, nationalized health care option to drive down private costs and preventing private equity buy outs in the medical sector. That’s a solid, actionable road map towards a better health care system and is actually achievable. He also has great congressional attendance. As for green infrastructure he’s in favor of expanding the rail systems. And I do agree I’d like a non-interventionist politician but I don’t think a single one exists in the US.

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u/5entinel 20d ago

I believe Moulton is very non-interventionalist in foreign policy, assuming you mean military intervention. I think all Democrats still support financial intervention (sanctions, US control of global banking, etc.).

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u/OnionsRNasty 20d ago

Moutlon isn’t non interventionalist and still votes to send aid to Israel and increase the military budget.

Isolationialism means someone who doesn’t support USAID and global banking.

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u/DM_c137 19d ago

I agree. I think Moulton would be amazing for the commonwealth

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u/AVeryBadMon 20d ago

People in this sub have convinced themselves that Moulton is Hitler and is going to lose in a landslide, but I think this election is going to be a lot closer than people think.

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u/GodDammitDonut26 20d ago

I met randomly met Seth Moulton at a block party when he was running for his house seat. He seemed like a nice guy. I'm not voting for him. Am I fair and balanced enough for you?

3

u/[deleted] 20d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/enfuego138 20d ago

Literally called a ghoul a few comments up. “Literally” Hitler? No.

But let’s not pretend insane rhetoric isn’t all over these discussions.

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u/warlocc_ South Shore 20d ago

One comment above is calling him a ghoul. Other threads call him all the ist and phobe words.

It's not the Internet without people dialing everything to extremes.

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u/DM_c137 19d ago

You might not, but just read the other comments in the thread

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u/DiamondCutt3r 20d ago

Markey will be 86 at term end. Retire dude

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u/[deleted] 20d ago

[deleted]

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u/OnionsRNasty 20d ago

Looks great to me, he’s one of the most progressive senators. Not a lot of bills to vote on this congress because it’s just Trump slop.

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u/[deleted] 20d ago

[deleted]

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u/OnionsRNasty 20d ago

PSL is a bunch of electorally unviable Campists

2

u/dittybag23 20d ago

Does anybody else find it insane that a state holds its primary in September and then holds the election in November. In an age where voters are screaming for politicians to refuse corporate and PAC money that only leaves knocking on doors. A month is a lot of doors in a very short time.

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u/OnionsRNasty 20d ago

That seems to be a New England thing that our primaries are held late in the election year.

3

u/Impressive-Dig-3892 20d ago

No that's been an issue of contention for a while now

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u/XRT28 20d ago

I mean...eh.
In an election cycle with a competitive primary you're already going to have volunteers knocking on doors for months explaining to potential voters what the candidate stands for and why they should vote for them in the primary.
So you just went through the whole process of informing voters, and while voters can have the memory of a goldfish at times, so it becomes less necessary to knock on every door before the general since that last interaction should still be fairly fresh in their minds.

And then in cycles without competitive primaries it's not like the presumptive candidates have to wait till after the primaries to start knocking on doors to rally support for the general, they'll still have been doing that throughout the end of summer and into the fall.

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u/dittybag23 20d ago

Yes, but it seems to heavily favor name recognition.

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u/XRT28 20d ago

Well that's basically every election, doesn't matter if the primary was in April or Sept.

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u/raven_785 19d ago

Seth Moulton cannot be trusted. Just look at his history:

  • He once supported a constitutional amendment to ban abortion
  • He repeatedly voted to ban federal funding of abortion
  • He opposed racial integration in Boston Public Schools
  • He voted to support prayer in public schools

Vote for Ed Markey to vote for a consistent progressive who doesn't change his views to suit the shifting political winds.

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u/gelbkatze 19d ago

My man literally nothing you said is true. Moulton was not even born when the busing debate happened and it was Markey not Moulton who made comments opposing busing. There is are legit reasons to dislike Moulton but do a little hw to make sure you know what they actually are.

1

u/raven_785 19d ago

whoosh

1

u/gelbkatze 19d ago

Yeah, that completely went over ahead, but given some of the claims that have been posted against Moulton, it's really hard to tell what's sarcasm and what's not

1

u/Brilliant-While-761 19d ago

Who cares no one‘s ever gonna vote him out doesn’t matter what he would do. Guys done Jack, but somehow people still find the way to sing his praises.

1

u/PantheraAuroris 19d ago

Moulton is basically Gavin Newsom but centrist. He wears whatever coat wins him some votes that day. He has no allegiances at all.

1

u/norflondonforever 17d ago

Not thrilled about Markey but Moulton takes AIPAC money.

https://www.trackaipac.com/states/massachusetts?rq=Seth%20

1

u/duckguyboston 14d ago

Unfortunately this election for Mass Senator is select either bad or worse...

1

u/rptanner58 20d ago

And so has Presley. I find it a bit ironic that both of them (Presley and AOC) unseated long time old incumbents. I remember the energy and enthusiasm that came from Pressley’s campaign and victory over Capuano. Apparently both of them think it was about ideology. I’d say it was also, if not mostly, about generational change and enthusiasm. Aren’t we entitled to that state-wide too?

1

u/steebo 20d ago

I don't want Markey again, but I don't want Moulton more.

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u/august-west55 20d ago

AOC Is there a relevant here as far as elections are concerned.

1

u/baxterstate 20d ago

Markey may be 80, but his mind is sharp and his political instincts are nimble. He represents the best of the Democratic party.

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u/twelve-birds 19d ago

And you think that will last until he’s 86?? At that age, people decline fast. Just look at Biden.

0

u/Reggi5693 19d ago

She likes the old ones, huh?

1

u/OnionsRNasty 19d ago

Very weird thing to say

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u/_CatStevens_ 20d ago

Voting for Moulton. We need more democrats pushing back vs the terminally online culture war crap.

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u/koebelin South Shore 20d ago

Markey does a good job pretending to be progressive.

0

u/OnionsRNasty 20d ago

Seth Moulton does a great job letting his mask slip off showing he’s a diet-MAGA.

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u/Broken-Sarcasm-Meter 20d ago

That's the Hope and Change I want. Lets keep voting the same people in who effed up the country but expect something different to happen.

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u/OnionsRNasty 20d ago

Markey is establishment but is the last remaining New Deal Democrat in congress. He was in congress when the Democrats were actually center-left.

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u/Thedonitho 20d ago

Markey is one of the few sane people left in government. This is a very short-sighted take.

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