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→U.S. Senate campaign: update
==U.S. Senate campaign==
==U.S. Senate campaign==
Democrats had been favored to keep this Senate seat, and are in a state of shock as Coakley has lost her 30 point lead and trails Republican [[Scott Brown]] by a few points in the latest polls. Coakley has proven to be an ineffective candidate who is unable to reach independents. Brown is a much better campaigner, and leads 2-1 among independents, who will elect him if they turn out and vote. Brown's main theme is that he will be the 41st senator and will block the Obama health care plan--which Massachusetts does not need, he explains, because it has its own plan now in operation. Coakley responds by attacking bankers and bringing in big guns like Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, though their appearance underscores her strength among Democratic party regulars and her weakness against independents. A defeat for Coakley, coming on the heels of the Democrats' loss of Virginia and New Jersey in Nov. 2009, would be a major blow to the liberal cause and would reinvigorate the Republican party nationally.
Brown has the momentum going into the final days of the campaign, and leads Democrat [[Martha Coakley]] by a small margin in recent polls.<ref>[http://thephoenix.com/BLOGS/talkingpolitics/archive/2010/01/05/coakley-brown-polling-fwiw.aspx Coakley-Brown Polling, FWIW, The Boston Phoenix, January 5, 2010]</ref> Public Policy Polling shows Brown with a 1 point lead. <ref>[http://www.politico.com/blogs/scorecard/0110/Poll_Scott_Brown_leading_Coakley_4847.html Poll: Scott Brown ahead of Martha Coakley by 1 point, Politico, January 9, 2010]</ref> A Rasmussen poll has Brown leading Coakley among independents 71-23. <ref>[http://news.bostonherald.com/news/columnists/view.bg?articleid=1225447 Rattled Dems fret over health of Senate seat, Boston Herald, January 14, 2010]</ref> The race originally was expected to heavily favor Democrats, since there are a million more registered Democrats than Republicans. But independents are the largest bloc and they have moved heavily to Brown. The anti-Democrat sentiment in the country and high GOP and Independent turnout should make this a tight race.
==Endorsements==
==Endorsements==