Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ayanna Pressley have convincingly made the argument that in the Trump era, blue states need to go bigger and bolder when it comes to progressive policy-making—which makes it really weird that Charlie Baker is still so popular in Massachusetts. #mapoli
I would love to know what kind of logic allows someone in Massachusetts to simultaneously vote for Ayanna Pressley and Charlie Baker—for a woman whose campaign slogan is #changecantwait and a guy who chains progressive policy-making to the Trump/GOP agenda. I don't get it #mapoli
The pro-Baker argument that I hear from my friends and colleagues who identify as liberals is that re-electing Baker promotes checks and balances, as well as civil bipartisanship. The trouble with this logic is that it's totally detached from the reality of who Baker is. #mapoli
Baker tries to portray himself as an outlier—a moderate Republican who opposes Trump. But the Trump agenda is the common denominator for each policy-making decision that Baker has to make. And quite often, he leans further to the right than MA liberals ought to tolerate. #mapoli
On climate change, tax reform, the opioid crisis and especially immigration, Baker has pulled the state legislature closer to where the GOP would like it to be. These are issues with life/death consequences for the well-being of those who are vulnerable under Trump's rule #mapoli
In theory, a state as "blue" as MA should have a governor who recognizes the urgency of these times and rejects the Trump agenda for its cruelty and nihilism. Baker pretends to do this, but when forced to choose between progressivism and Trumpism, he goes for the latter. #mapoli
Just look at Baker's endorsement of the entire GOP ticket for Massachusetts. This ticket includes Geoff Diehl—a Trump acolyte who propagates racist myths about undocumented immigrants murdering white people and wants to repeal the ACA. The guy has Charlie Baker's blessing #mapoli
What the Diehl endorsement should make clear to MA liberals is that Charlie Baker doesn't worship at the altar of civil bipartisanship like many Democrats seem to believe he does. Baker is a party guy, and when push comes to shove, he's going to cling to the GOP orthodoxy #mapoli
Propping up a governor who remains loyal to GOP orthodoxy in 2018 is not checks and balances—it's kneecapping your own state's potential for being a trailblazer on progressive policy-making. It's ensuring that the Ayanna Pressley agenda will be whittled down into sawdust. #mapoli
Look, I like the *idea* of bipartisanship as much as the next person. But in America, politics is more of a knife fight. And while the Republican Party has fully embraced this, Democrats routinely hurt themselves by supporting leaders like Baker. It's so self-defeating. #mapoli
Now that Ayanna Pressley has won her primary race—now that MA liberals have signaled that they actually have a stomach for political earthquakes—it's time to double down, eject Charlie Baker from office this November, and elect a truly progressive governor for a change. #mapoli
I think a gubernatorial upset could actually happen, despite all those polls that cite Charlie Baker as the most popular governor in America. But it will only happen if MA Democrats get real about who Baker really is, what his priorities are, and how he's holding us back #mapoli
So with that, check out Jay Gonzalez and tell your friends about his campaign. Because it would nice to see Massachusetts fix its public transportation, protect its immigrant communities, expand healthcare to all, support public schools, build windmills, and tax the rich. #mapoli
