Just last month Rep. Fred Doucette, R-Salem, member of the extremist group Liberty Alliance, resigned from his seat in the State House to take a position as the Region 1 administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in Boston. Wait, isn’t FEMA on the federal chopping block, too?
I digress. . .
With this open seat in the House and nearly a year and a half to the next election in 2026, one would expect a special election to be held to fill it. Doucette held that seat for six terms. So why did the Salem Council Republicans, fellow Liberty Alliance member Rep. Joe Sweeney among them, vote to leave that seat open for more than a year? This leaves Salem folks with no representation in Concord. Brings to mind the phrase, “Taxation without representation.”
But we’ve seen this dishonorable move before. Harken back to Pres. Obama, an open seat on the Supreme Court and Mitch McConnell.
What could they possibly be afraid of?
Well, we continue to shine a light on the terrible bills being passed by, yes, the Republican majority in Concord. Bills that suppress votes, slowly destroy local control and public education. We continue to let our voices be heard in person, by emails or by contacting them online. It is working! And we can’t let up or slow down now. We have a year and a half to continue to hold their feet to a fire that is heating up, get some great candidates on board and show the oppressive majority the door in 2026!
Then the real work begins, cleaning up their damage! Together, we can do this!