Brown Wins Massachusetts Senate Seat, Potentially Upending Obama Agenda
GREG HITT PETER WALLSTEN
BOSTON -- A little-known Republican upended the balance of power in Washington by winning a U.S. Senate seat in Massachusetts, a result that imperils President Barack Obama's top legislative priorities and augurs trouble for his party in this year's elections.
With 75% of the vote counted, Republican Scott Brown was leading his opponent, Massachusetts' Democratic Attorney General Martha Coakley 52.7% to 46.3%, according to the Associated Press, which declared Mr. Brown the winner.
The Brown victory forces the White House and Congressional leaders into a mad scramble to decide how—or whether—to salvage their long-sought health-care overhaul. Rushing the bill after losing Massachusetts carries political risks. So does allowing it to collapse.
House Democrats Tuesday opened the door to passing the Senate version of the legislation, which the president could then sign into law. The White House has floated that idea, but it will be a hard sell. The Senate bill contains abortion, immigration and tax provisions opposed by many House members.
Anticipating rough sledding for the bill, the S&P health care sector index surged by more than 2% Tuesday, leading all other industry sectors, with managed care stocks posting strong gains.
Other policy priorities are also uncertain. Although Democrats still hold substantial majorities in both chambers, nervous members with an eye on November midterm elections could start to keep their distance from the White House. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D., Conn.) will be under increasing pressure to negotiate with Republicans who oppose the administration's overhaul of financial regulation, another centerpiece bill, Congressional aides said.
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Residents in Seekonk, Mass., cast their votes in a special election to fill Sen. Ted's Kennedy senate seat on Tuesday.
As recently as a couple of weeks ago, few gave Mr. Brown, 50, a state senator, a chance to win the special election prompted by the death of liberal icon Sen. Edward Kennedy. A Republican last held a Senate seat here in 1979. Yet polls showed Mr. Brown benefited from anti-government sentiment, a sour economy and discontent with Mr. Obama's agenda.
Mr. Brown will become the 41st Republican in the Senate, breaking the Democratic Party's 60-vote majority, and ensuring the minority has enough votes to block legislation.
See a timeline of the Massachusetts Senate race.
The election results in Massachusetts signals challenges for Democratic prospects in mid-term elections this fall, when the party will try to protect its majorities in the House and Senate. A handful of Democrats facing competitive races have announced plans to retire, and party officials are trying to prevent more following suit. Republicans, too, face challenges as the party navigates internal strife between anti-establishment activists and the party's Washington leadership, which remains unpopular.
Independents, who swung for Mr. Brown in Massachusetts, are more anti-incumbent than anti-Democrat. A new Wall Street Journal/NBC poll shows nearly six in 10 independent voters think it's time to "give a new person a chance" rather than reelect their representatives. About half of all voters feel that way.
In Littleton, Mass., Alex Olsen, a professor at the University of Massachusetts and an independent, said he's fed up with Mr. Obama and Democratic majority. He voiced strong discontent with efforts to push the health bill through the Senate. "They're just trying to ram things down our throats," said Mr. Olsen, 65.
Democratic officials scrambled to assess their plans for this year's elections. Strategists said Tuesday that for the rest of the year the party must downplay health care and focus almost on addressing voter concerns about the economy.
"You've got to focus on jobs. Nothing is more important in this economy than jobs," said Delaware Gov. Jack Markell, chairman of the Democratic Governors Association.
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That suggests a glimmer for gloomy Democrats. A faster recovery could sooth the national angst. Presidents Reagan and Clinton suffered big reversals in their first two years in office, only to rebound along with the economy.
Coming almost a year to the day of his inauguration, Tuesday's result is a blow to Mr. Obama, who was elected with heavy support from independents. The president put his clout on the line, flying to Boston Sunday to stump for Ms. Coakley and taping ads on her behalf.
Even before Mr. Brown's win, Democrats engaged in a round of finger pointing, with some blaming Ms. Coakley for running an ineffective campaign and others arguing that the party's national leadership and its focus on health care helped turn swing voters against the candidate.
On the campaign trail Mr. Brown, sounded like a member of the Republicans caucus in Washington, D.C., calling for tax and spending cuts, as well as opposing the current health-care bill. He touted himself as the "41st" Republican senator, reinforcing the threat he poses to the Obama agenda.
More on Massachusetts
- ROLLING UPDATES: News and analysis from Washington Wire
- Democrats Set Plan to Pass Health Bill
- What Happens When the Vote Count Is Done?
- Capital Journal: How the Tables Turned
- Kennedy Death Upsets Status Quo
- Massachusetts Race Key to Health Bill
- Agenda on the Line, Obama Stumps for Coakley
- Fearing Loss, Democrats Weigh Health Options
- Massachusetts Republican Taps Into Voter Unease
Not all of his stances are clearly conservative. On social issues, he supports some abortion rights, although he opposes partial-birth abortion and supported efforts to overturn Massachusetts's same-sex marriage law. In one bill he sponsored, Mr. Brown took aim at auto emissions, a goal more commonly associated with Democrats.
"I'm Scott Brown from Wrentham," he said over the weekend, skirting questions about whether he's a conservative.
In a recent interview, State Sen. Brian A. Joyce, a Coakley supporter, described Mr. Brown as a "moderate" along the lines of most Massachusetts Republicans. Mr. Joyce said Mr. Brown was once considered a "sacrificial lamb," running a presumably losing effort to catapult himself into higher state office. "I guess he didn't get the memo," Mr. Joyce said.
From the start, Mr. Brown was the more aggressive candidate. He moved in late December to shape the race, airing one television that featured President John F. Kennedy and highlighted his support for tax cuts, and another that portrayed him as a regular driving a pickup truck.
By the second week of January, polls suggested he could pose a serious challenge. In the final days, Democrats tried to make the election about health care and abortion rights, not about personalities. Ms. Coakley seemed to gain momentum, especially over the weekend, as she condemned Wall Street's latest round of bonuses.
One intangible has been Mr. Brown's easygoing way with voters, in contrast with Ms. Coakley, who sometimes seemed uncomfortable on the trail. In the stretch run, he even turned Democratic attacks to his advantage, mustering mock anger after Mr. Obama and others derided his pick-up truck. "When you start talking about my truck, that's where I draw the line," he said.
"He's given Massachusetts voters a voice for change," said Kelly Marie, a homemaker from North Andover. She's an independent who leans toward Republicans, and has been frustrated by the Democratic lock on the state's Senate seats. "I've felt disenfranchised for a lot of years," she said.
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