Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Brown Eager to be GOP LG

It looks like we're one step closer to Margery Egan's dream ticket. Today's Boston Herald reports that Sen. Scott Brown (R-Wrentham) is ready to run for Lieutenant Governor, if only Kerry Healey would tap him. Why the hold up? I'll let the Herald itself explain:

[O]ne Republican operative said party leaders are concerned about losing another Republican senator. There are only six now and GOP leader Brian Lees of Longmeadow is not running for re-election.
My hunch is that if the state GOP can't find a strong candidate for the Norfolk, Bristol & Middlesex District, they'll leave Brown waiting in the wings so they don't have to defend two open seats. I can certainly understand that they'd be a little gunshy after their setback in 2004 when they lost three seats in the legislature despite aggressive campaigning, a couple million of Governor Romney's own dollars and an unusually high number of GOP challengers. Any further losses, particularly in the Senate, would not only be embarrassing for the Republicans, but could also potentially leave important committees without any representation from their side of the aisle.