Is the Massachusetts Senate race a referendum on Obama's first year? The true culprit of a Coakley loss is that the independent vote - who represent a majority of registered voters in Massachusetts and the silent majority of ... Does Paul Kirk Get To Vote After Today? The one "out" here is that Republicans will say that temporary senator Paul Kirk can't vote if Republican Scott Brown wins, because Brown will have been elected and be "qualified" to hold office, thus fulfilling the two statutory requirements in Massachusetts.Does "qualified" mean "certified?"No, say GOP lawyers -- although it is not yet clear whether national Republicans will insist that Kirk be de-seated immediately.Democrats contend that the law cannot be construed to mean that a second vacancy automatically occurs between the date of the election and the certification. And Kirk has vowed to stay in office until the winner of the election is sworn in. Vote in MA could derail health care? But, some say change in Massachusetts could put those hopes on hold. On Tuesday, the Commonwealth will vote to replace the Senate seat held by late Ted ... Watch for Pre-Emptive Maneuver Thru "Calling the Race" in MA If that fails, look for an attempt to force abstention on the Massachusetts vote while stall tactics play out. Sixty votes are needed. If Coakley is called and installed, they've got the 60. If Brown is called and stalled, they've got 59. Either way, the media "call" on Massachusetts is going to be under exceptional political pressure.No matter where you stand on the controversial healthcare bill, be aware that what you see reported on Election Night is not only not "official" or "final", but is not even real, and may not even be the numbers written down by poll workers or printed out by the voting machine. ISSUING FALSE NUMBERS TO THE MEDIA TO CREATE A FALSE... Analyzing Obama's First 364 Days With the 60-vote Senate majority hanging by a Massachusetts thread, the Democrats have no margin for error. I think they might have wanted a slightly bigger cushion. Perhaps forging common ground on health care was never in the cards. But they’d probably like to have Olympia Snowe’s vote right now. 3) Will future political benefits of reform — which you suggested in a December Politico column could boost faith in progressive government — outweigh the drawbacks of a potential backlash in the 2010 midterm elections? Over the long term, if reform is ultimately enacted, it could have lasting political and policy ramifications. My own sense is that the anger towar... Massachusetts special election, Martha Coakley vs. Scott Brown Seems like that line of attack might have scared or inspired enough Bay State Dems to show up today and vote. We'll see what happens... _______________________ Be careful what you wish for ...: So, I guess the Republicans will be euphoric if they win in Mass. and surely they will do everything they can to scuttle health care reform and most certainly deny what at least a majority of American want. Will it now be up to the Democrats (if they can -- because at the moment they seem to once again crumble under the lockstep of the GOP) to portray the Republicans as the Party that KILLED health care? Ed O'Keefe: Yes, you can expect to see that emerge as a... Not Exactly A "Hole In The Shoe" Campaign ... the MA SEN race. Kennedy, on why it's a close race: "But I think we have to ask for people's vote. Certainly that's the way my husband always ran. ... State of the Nation One month after the September 11th attacks, Scott Brown was one of only three Massachusetts State Representatives to vote against a bill to ... Radio Ink Magazine SRN will also produce a live network special, Massachusetts Votes: The Scott Heard Round the World, anchored by Hugh Hewitt, who'll also provide live ...

One Side Has An App For That They can download a Blackberry application to reach out to their neighbors and get text messages asking them to take the day off work to get out the vote. Visitors to Democrat Martha Coakley's site are asked to "contribute," and people who sign up for her mailing list are taken to a donation page. There are links for supporters to make calls from home - efforts being fielded by the Democratic National Committee's Organizing for America. Brown (R) has taken the smartest elements of Barack Obama's presidential campaign Web site, and is using technology in a similar fashion. Reporters comparing their social networking have found Brown's presence much stronger on Twitter a...