Boston Globe Endorses Tisei

Today the Boston Globe endorsed homocon GOP House candidate Richard Tisei over eight-term Democratic Rep. John Tierney, whose campaign has been saddled with a financial scandal involving his wife.

Over the years, the voters of Massachusetts have generally been reluctant to turn out incumbent members of Congress; the implicit bargain has been that, in exchange for being granted long tenure, they are expected to exert outsize influence on public policy. This approach produced such legislative giants as Tip O’Neill and Ted Kennedy. But while Tierney can be proud of his role in expanding access to college loans and heightening scrutiny of contracts in Afghanistan, his accomplishments aren’t so impressive as to negate his liabilities. All of this raises a question for Massachusetts voters: Are there any conditions, short of accusations of criminal wrongdoing, under which an incumbent should be unseated by a promising challenger? There should be.  If Tisei replaces Tierney, the GOP challenger will have much to prove — that he can be effective in protecting vital federal research dollars from cuts, that he can be a force for education reform, and above all that he can function effectively in a Republican House caucus that’s pushing ever more to the right. But voters should give him the chance.

Tisei has also been endorsed by both GOProud and the Log Cabin Republicans. If he wins, he will become the first-ever Republican member of Congress who was out before the election.