Republicans Give Thanks

Kinnaman Hints at Another Congressional Run

November 26, 2002
By Curt Lovelace

Democrats have long been known for their 'unity breakfasts' and other such events after bruising primary election campaigns. Now, as the Commonwealth's majority party squabbles over what went wrong in the most recent general election, Republicans have taken a page from their playbook.

Sponsored by the Baystate Republican Council, Republicans from all over the state came together in Chicopee Sunday night to thank all Republican candidates who, in the words of Council President Marshall Moriarty, "had the courage to run as Republicans in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts."

More than twenty recent candidates, both successful and defeated, assembled along with party activists to have dinner, listen to some Irish music and rally the troops for 2004.

Candidates and activists came from as far as East Boston to attend this first-of-its-kind event. In welcoming the attendees to the 1st Annual Republican Fellowship Dinner, Moriarty told the candidates in attendance, "As President of the Baystate Republican Council, I'm sure I'm joined by thousands of others in the state when I ask you to please run again."

The mood was festive. Mayor Richard Kos of Chicopee did nothing to dispel the mood when he proclaimed, "There is an excitement in the air." He went on to urge candidates to make sure that they "stand for something." He added, "If you stand for nothing, people will fear that you'll fall for anything." Decrying government waste and the emphasis on "bringing home the pork," the four-term Republican Mayor, proclaimed, "What we don't need in government is more waste. What we don't need in government is old ideas."

		The highlight of the evening for many in the gathering was the speech of Matt Kinnaman. Recently garnering more than 30 percent of the votes in his run against 1st Congressional District incumbent John Olver, Kinnaman was sounding very much like a candidate as he implored the crowd to "seize the historic moment" just as Massachusetts citizens had done more than 200 years ago when they started the Revolution. Democrats "contravened against the people of Massachusetts," when they eliminated the voter-approved tax break and when they took away the charitable deduction the people had voted for, according to Kinnaman.
"We are the party of the people." -Matt Kinnaman

The Democratic Party and its loyal media still talk about being the party of the people, while the Republicans are characterized as the party of the rich. "They've got it exactly backwards, Kinnaman declared, adding, "We are the party of compassion. We are the party of generosity. We are the party of the people."

Not content with the idea that Republicans want to return the Commonwealth to bi-partisan parity, Kinnaman said, "We need to do more than that. We need to lead the conversation." He reminded his now-rapt audience that Massachusetts had been a "Republican state" for more than 80 years, and called for each person in the room to work to return the minority party to its "rightful" status as majority party.

When MassNews asked Kinnaman if his speech could be considered an announcement that he is definitely in the race for the 1st Congressional District in the next election, he demurred. He did, however, declare, "The mission continues." Most in the room were hopeful and encouraging about another run at Olver, who needed to spend about $500,000 to defeat Kinnaman. Some even considered it an omen that when the raffle tickets were drawn, Matt Kinnaman was one of the winners.

The Baystate Republican Council was formed in December 2001. Its primary focus is, "To promote the election of Republicans to local, statewide, and federal office, by organizing Republican activists on the grass-roots level and by helping activists obtain the tools, resources, and support they need to assure the victory for Republican candidates." An unabashedly conservative organization, the BRC includes in its Mission Statement the notion that, "our nation was founded on faith in God, in family, in country and in freedom for all."

Membership in the BRC is open to all Republicans. The mailing address is 1756 Boston Road, Springfield, MA. Marshall Moriarty can be reached at 413-827-0777 or 413-283-2170. His email address is mmoriarty@moriarty-connor.com.

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