Carpundit

Robert Travaglini or Ted Kennedy Can't Drive

I assume, without knowing, that Massachusetts motor vehicle registration plate Senate 1 is assigned to Senate President Robert Travaglini.  I know, without assuming, that the driver of Senate 1 is an ass.

Saturday morning, in a storm, with snow and ice on the highway and rain falling, Senate 1 was a left-lane tailgater, zooming up behind reasonably-driven cars and bumper locking them until they moved.  His lights were off -when everyone else's were on- and the day was gray.  The road spray and falling rain made the visibility very bad, but Senate 1 didn't seem to care.  Off he sped, at 70+, down route 3 as fast as his shitty Ford would go.

Maybe he was off to sign an employment contract, but that was bad judgment.  And worse driving.

If I'm wrong about who gets those plates, it must have been Ted Kennedy, as senior man.  I won't make another joke about his driving.  But it said "Senate," not "U.S. Senate."  Sorry about the lack of detail but, as I said, the conditions sucked and the sucker was fast.

Give the Party to the Senator With the Funny Name

How would Hilary best cede the party to Barack Obama?  I'm not sure of the best way, but this is certainly a good start.  It even annoyed me.

Mayor Deludes Self As He Gives Up Residency Rule

The city of Boston negotiated a new contract with its employees; now they only have to live in Boston for the first ten years of their employment.

"Residency is not something that's being given away; it's something that's being negotiated," said Dot Joyce, the mayor's press secretary. "And we feel that after 10 years, our employees will choose to stay in Boston."

Nope.  Not the ones who find themselves with wives and young children - children who need schools.  After ten years on the job, a lot of employees will be in their 30's with kids under ten, and they'll pick up and run to the suburbs just as fast as everyone else who doesn't live here anymore.

The Candidate's Parking Problem

Barack Obama is a scofflaw.  Until this year, he left a bunch of parking tickets unpaid in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts, where he attended Harvard Law.  The Obama campaign, according to this article on the Somerville News, discreetly paid them off in January.

So what?  You don't leave citations unpaid if you respect the law.  Why didn't he pay them when he was in Cambridge?  Would he have paid them if he weren't trying to be President?

Sure, it's not lying under oath.  And it's not gross incompetence.  But it's no good, and it's a bad sign about a man who could become President.  Believe it or not, I'd like to hear his explanation.

The city says it's pretty common for people to leave their tickets unpaid.  I'm willing to attribute a lot of that to arrogant Harvard students who can't be bothered.  I don't much want a President who's one of those.  And I don't much want a President who thinks he can do whatever he wants.  We're already got one of those and I'm sick of him.

Governor's Admission

Yes, Governor, you sure did.

How much more of this will we see?  On one hand, I like it; it means he's squandering his political capital instead of using it for programs I'm sure to oppose.  On the other hand, if we're going to have a governor like that, let's have a governor, not another empty suit.

Governor Patrick? Yep, Him Too.

I love that the populist lefty, the champion of the little guy, the grassroots governor, is exactly as whorish and corrupt as all the rest of the politicians.

It was totally improper for a government official to make this call.

Monday Bits

A joke maybe, but not funny. Still, Howie's letter to the judge is like running from the sandbox to the teacher.

Smoking with children in the car is idiocy, but we can't regulate everything.  What's next, banning it in the home with children present?   How can that be enforced?  Anyway, cops have enough to do.  And the problem will sort itself out eventually, if only through natural selection.

I was at Best Buy in Fenway yesterday.  I tried to pay cash for about $100 worth of merchandise.  "I'm sorry, sir, I can't take cash."  My cashier was covering for someone else and she "can't use someone else's money."  I'm sorry, I thought that's what money is for.

Massachusetts Judge Opines On Law Enforcement - Oh, the Irony

U.S. District Judge William Young is a pretty serious guy; he takes his job and his rulings seriously and examines issues the way a judge should, logically and disinterestedly.  So his criticism of the U.S. Marshals Service is worth thinking about.  But if Young was prompted by the expected nomination of Reed Hillman to the post in Massachusetts, he doesn't know what he's talking about.

Hillman is a career professional law enforcement officer who rose through the ranks of the State Police to the top job: Colonel/Superintendent.  When that was over, he went to the state legislature and made issues of crime and punishment his top projects.  He would have done a great job as Lieutenant Governor and he will do a great job as Marshal.

Sure, you have to be political to get the appointment, but that doesn't make you unqualified.  Or does it, Judge Young?

Governor Regrets His Cadillac

So the Governor is sorry he went with the Cadillac.   Lame, Governor.  You didn't screw up -unless you mean in running for office in the first place and screwing up the whole state, in which case I accept your anticipatory apology and would you please resign?

You're the governor.  Have a new car.  Get some new furniture.  It's not as if they give you a mansion.  What's really going on?  It's the scrutiny he's bringing to the party and gold-domed palace.  The entrenched, trough-feeding, pocket-picking hogs (yes, I think a trained pig could pick a pocket) on Beacon Hill have an established manner of stealing from the populace - patronage jobs and kickbacks political contributions.  Not Cadillacs.  Jeez.  People notice Cadillacs.

That could be why he's defending the hiring of an aide for his wife.  His wife.  Now that takes guts.  And greed.  He's learning.

Paying for the Governor's Cadillac

Deval Patrick, Governor of Massachusetts, feels guilty about his ride.  If he didn't, he'd be using it shamelessly, on the taxpayers' dime.  Like the helicopter.  But he's not; he's paying for the cost difference between the Caddy and whatever Mitt Romney drove around in.  (A CVPI?)

Hey, Governor, if you want to make an empty statement about money that echoes the prior governor's empty statements, I suggest you do what he did: decline your salary.