Posted on 06/26/2002 6:22:52 AM PDT by Lance Romance
Ruling leaves Mitt home free
Republican Mitt Romney reclaimed his spot on the gubernatorial ballot yesterday with a sweeping legal victory that browbeat Democrats' residency challenge as legally flawed and absent proof. The hard-hitting, 41-page Ballot Law Commission ruling, reached unanimously by the bipartisan board after only a day of deliberations, prompted the Massachusetts Democratic Party to drop appeals and left even Romney's opponents pleading for all sides to move on. A buoyant Romney said Democrats should be ashamed at trying to beat him on a technicality rather than at the ballot box. ``I'm pleased that this campaign can go back to focusing on the things that the people of Massachusetts really care about - great schools, affordable health care and a clean environment,'' Romney told reporters while campaigning in the Berkshires. Romney lawyers called the residency challenge a frivolous waste of the public's time and money. ``The case simply had no merit,'' said Romney attorney John Montgomery. ``It was a misuse of the process to the extent that the Democratic Party chose to use an available legal process to try to create a circus around Mitt Romney's candidacy.'' The five-member ballot commission chastised Democrats for not proving Romney violated the seven-year residency requirement while heading the Salt Lake City Olympic Games committee the last three years. The commission ruled Democrats ``failed to demonstrate by a preponderance of evidence that (Romney's) domicile was any place other than Massachusetts.'' Commissioners then plucked apart the Democrats case piece by piece. From Romney's Utah and Massachusetts tax filings to the tax break he received for his Utah vacation home, the commission said none offered compelling proof Romney had left his home in Massachusetts. The commission flatly didn't believe there was any mystery in Romney amending his Massachusetts tax returns, calling his testimony ``reasonable and credible.'' The evidence commissioners believed all favored Romney's claim that Massachusetts was always his home: that he gave to Massachusetts charities while in Utah, that his possessions stayed in Belmont, that he paid bills here and has voted only here since 1971. Democrats, seeing the handwriting on the wall hours before the decision, announced they wouldn't appeal the case and claimed victory at forcing the issue into the public spotlight. Only days after insisting the residency challenge could - and should - succeed in knocking Romney off the ballot, Democrat legal counsel James Roosevelt Jr. said the case itself was a secondary goal. ``The point of this was to bring out the truth about the residency before the people of Massachusetts - we believe that that was done,'' Roosevelt said. ``The Ballot Law Commission made its decision, the people will now make their decision.'' Roosevelt told reporters that information about Romney's amended tax returns and the tax break he received in Utah wouldn't have come out without the legal challenge - even though both were revealed before the challenge was even filed. Democrats who for weeks refused to publicly criticize the case suddenly backtracked, suggesting the ruling was apt and calling it now ``time to move on.'' ``Today's ruling . . . was not unexpected,'' said state Treasurer Shannon P. O'Brien. ``I now look forward to getting on with the campaign.'' ``Ho, hum,'' added former state Sen. Warren E. Tolman. ``Can we talk about substantive issues now and get on with the campaign?'' Senate President Thomas F. Birmingham completed the Democratic troika, saying, ``We should stop talking about Utah and accountants and start talking about'' schools and health care. Each, though, had refused to offer anything more than the slightest criticism before the resounding loss and, in many cases, sources said, privately pushed the Democrats' case. Democrats Steve Grossman and Robert Reich had urged the party to drop the case earlier. Several of the Democrats said, though, that Romney's credibility is now a legitimate issue in the campaign. Birmingham said it follows Romney's broken promises not to run against fellow Republican Jane M. Swift or pick a running mate before the primary - both of which he did. ``So there are certain patterns that pre-existed the (residency) challenge . . . that I think we saw a continuation of,'' Birmingham said. Romney said he's worried this instance will be just the start of a negative race. ``I'm concerned that this is going to be a campaign that O'Brien and Birmingham will try to pull away from issues and, instead of focusing on what's happened on Beacon Hill for these last many years, they are going to try and attack me,'' Romney said. ``I hope they don't. I hope instead we can take it to the voters on the basis of issues.'' Karen E. Crummy and Joe Battenfeld contributed to this report.
by David R. Guarino
Wednesday, June 26, 2002
Read as "We would have done it if you had made a better case in the media, but you guys are a bunch of losers". When Barney "Hot Bottom" Frank tells you to drop it, you know that even the communist left has abandoned your cause.
Course: Propaganda and Spin 301.
Prerequisites: Liberal Logic 101, Lying and Cheating 202, Public Deception 210.
Required texts: Anything from Carville, McAuliffe et al from DNC.
Suggested texts: Anything from Environmentalists, EU, and the UN.
Description: Instruction on tactics and strategy of deceit and manipulation. Students will learn how to develop and execute operations to defeat an adversary using frivolous and unethical methods. Instructions on procedures when caught and/or exposed.
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