Democratic Party Chair John Walsh has posed five questions to Republican candidate for Governor Charlie Baker, which I have posted below. I took the questions from a very interesting post over at Blue Mass Group which Walsh wrote. Baker has gotten the Patrick campaign’s attention, and the mismanagement of the Big Dig from its inception will clearly play a large role in this campaign. I don’t anticipate Baker will be posting a response any time soon, but the folks over at Red Mass Group were sniping at the Governor over the federal vs. state prevailing wage law as it applies to federal stimulus money. The bell hasn’t rung yet, and the candidates are storming to the center of the ring.
1)Now that you announced you are running for Governor, why do you refuse to answer questions about the Big Dig, one of the biggest financial challenges facing the state–and your past role in creating it?
2)When you were in charge of state finances, why did you claim, “I don’t see how anybody could argue that the artery will be pulling money away from non-artery projects”–even as the state had shut down scores of other highway projects due to the cash crunch?
3) Why does your campaign today claim you had “a limited role in the financing process” when in fact you literally wrote a key Big Dig financing report?
4) When you were in charge of state finances, why did you dismiss warnings that Big Dig spending was spiraling out of control–and instead insist you had the “right mechanism” in place to pay for it?
5) When you were in charge of state finances, why did you remain silent in the face of false claims “no one’s contemplating toll hikes”–or did you really believe this?
Bill Manzi.com 
Your Honor,
We all have questions to answer.
My questions to you;
How can you support a party that is driving jobs and companies from Methuen through it’s increase in sales tax? You your self called it a “jobs killer”.
How can you support a party that is about to saddle your constituents with abusive taxes (cap and trade and health care) that will have a horrible effect on your local businesspeople which combined with the sales tax will further drive the local economy down further?
Jules
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Jules,
I strongly disagree with the sales tax increase, and have said so repeatedly. I do not agree with every policy that the Democratic Party promulgates. In terms of energy and health lets talk about that.
Energy policy on its current path is not sustainable, in my opinion. The importation of oil on the scale we utilize has left us financially weaker, and has been a national security nightmare. To do nothing, as apparently has been suggested by the Republicans, is not an energy policy. And drill baby drill is not an energy policy. Global warming, while dismissed out of hand by some, in my opinion is a real problem that needs to be addressed. Republicans just want to ignore it. Democrats are not perfect on energy, but this idea that everything is fine and status quo is acceptable is hogwash.
Health care costs are currently bankrupting this country, and while I agree that Democratic proposals up to now have not made enough inroads on cost containment the very idea that you could leave this system in place as is on its face is absurd. If we do nothing the cost of health care will destroy us economically. The Democrats at least are trying to put forward proposals to cover the uninsured and bring cost containment to the table. What are the Republicans bringing to the table?
Bill
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Your Honor,
You “disagree” with the sales tax policy, and all you do is to “say so”. Do you realize that the sales tax and the income tax surcharge could wipe out several of the local businesses and be a disincentive to start another. And remember the Massachusetts legislators voted this dog in place because it did them minimum political harm, the heroes that they are. They knew they were hangng us out to dry. What have our legislative team, you brag about, do to save their constituents? Nada.
To make my point, this is the same political class who are trying to drive imperialistic health care plan through congress, you know 1000+ pages and no time to read it.
It’s interesting that the Romney Massachusetts plan is getting thumbs down in the medium.
How can you support global warming caused by human activity when you haven’t a clue what makes it work? How can you support a cap and trade bill that is corrupted aborning (Big give aways to supporters of the President) that will apply an additional tax burden while you have no knowledge of the science. Not the politics of science, science.
I will debate anyone regarding these things as long as you use facts and not Blog poop.
As far as relying on foreign oil, that is the fault of the lack of political will to open a host of areas in the North American continent.
Tax and Spend. Tax and Spend. Solves all issues.
Jules
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Jules:
You can debate me, if you’d like. But, where are you going to get your facts? You’re no more a climatologist than I am.
I’d suggest starting with temperature records. What do they show you, and over what period of time?
And for the fact that humans cannot have a significant effect on the world’s atmosphere and hence climate: did we not open up a rather large hole in the ozone with our use of CFCs, which now appears to be closing due to their phase out?
What is the surface temperature effect when the polar ice melts, as it appears to be doing at a relatively rapid rate (hint: think white body / black body)?
How do you possibly ignore the signatures of the overwhelming percentage of actual climatologists on this issue? Or does your Republican faith trump reason, and you simply do not believe?
I’m going with the scientists on this one.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_opinion_on_climate_change
-FM
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Jules:
The Romney plan is getting sapped because it’s not meeting objectives: it does nothing to contain costs, the majority of healthcare is still tied to jobs, it’s a boon to private insurers here in the Commonwealth, and everyone is not covered.
I will give it a partial grade: it appears that the cost of a policy pre and post enactment is lower now than it would have been otherwise.
But I expect more of the national plan. I would expect to use the best of the cost containment models from other countries around the world who have universal health care.
-FM
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Jules:
And for your foreign oil reserves comment: do you know what the United States current reserves are, and thus why “drill, baby, drill” doesn’t work for us?
-FM
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Fred,
So you think the problem with the Romney Healthcare plan is that it is tied to jobs?
So you would make people join the state plan and then ration service to achieve savings. This will include limiting service to end of life issues. If you get what you want you have a good portion of the Obama plan.
You are not qualified to comment on the ‘drill baby, drill’ plan as you have never surveyed the potential fields. You Dems denied drilling anywhere.
I would be curious what your energy policy would look like.
Jules
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Jules:
1) I think I outlined what I think the problems with the Romney plan are.
2) Are you poking at strawmen again? Where other than Fox News or Republican blogs that enrollment in the state plan would be forced?
Where have you read the “Obama plan”, and not “Congress’ plan”?
3)1.54% of the world’s proven reserves. Down 46% since 1970.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_proven_oil_reserves
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_reserves_in_the_United_States
4) I’ve posted on what my energy policy would be in previous postings. Not that it’s important.
Hint: it wouldn’t involve drilling for something we ain’t got.
-FM
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Fred,
American proven reserves = 209 billion barrels and 314 trillion CF natural gas
Jules
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Jules:
I think you’re off by a factor of 10 on oil … and if my calculation is correct, at our current consumption rate, that represents 3.6 years of oil supply. Not a very comfortable margin.
You may also be off by close to a factor of 10 on natural gas, but to the low side.
http://www.adn.com/money/industries/oil/story/836557.html
Won’t change my opinion that we need to get off the stuff until and unless we can stop and begin to reverse the warming trend. Unless you’re talking about shuttering all coal plants and converting them to NG, and getting China to do the same …
-FM
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