For a man who had to stroll thru a police "informational picket line" to get to his own town hall forum, Deval Patrick exuded a nonchalant attitude to the very last. His picture ought to be plastered next to the word "unruffled" in the dictionary. He may be down in the polls and beset on all sides, nonetheless Patrick brims with the confidence of a man who thinks he will win next year in a walk.
He even looks better and more relaxed in shirtsleeves than Mitt Romney, who always looked like a half dressed Jordan Marsh mannequin.
The pickets by the way were numerous and reasonably orderly, no epithets were shouted and no one's access was barred to the venue.
However, their issues (the flagmen reform the demise of the Quinn Law) are a dead letter, normally local politicians fear the patrolman's union the way a vampire dreads garlic salad dressing. However last night the hall was brimming with state reps, selectpersons all the usual suspects, that tells you a lot about just how concerned the political elite really is about the loss of construction detail pay.
I give Patrick credit, he is uncommonly well informed and good at linking particular concerns to the general line pursued by his admin...because lord knows that was the response he gave to about a dozen questions over ninety minutes. Serious detailed answers on everything to cuts in the budget for the disabled, local school policy, senior citizens issues and on to smart growth and Cape Wind Farm. Not sure he missed a beat at all....the Scot LeHigh's dismiss him on grounds of a tin ear for politics but his instincts were sound as a dollar last night.
Granted, Menotomy is Deval Patrick's base and more than a few activists found their way to the microphone ( I suspect he recognized them from prior forums) but the overall effect was serious positive and even a tad optimistic. I was frankly expecting edgier stuff especially from the famously fractious Menotomy voters....but no comity of a sort reigned.
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