Josh Goodman is a former staff writer for GOVERNING..
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The Barack Obama of Massachusetts?
The New York Times profiles Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, in an article that makes the inevitable (and overly simplistic) Barack Obama comparisons:
Mr. Patrick, who easily won office in 2006 after dazzling voters with a message of hope and change, suffered a nasty defeat last week at the hands of the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, which quashed his proposal to increase revenues by allowing three resort casinos in the state. None of the governor's major policy proposals have cleared the Legislature, in fact, and he and Salvatore DiMasi, the speaker of the House, have taken to trading barbs publicly.
...
So why has he struggled for traction in a heavily Democratic state with a Legislature that should be on his side?
He blames Speaker DiMasi, a veteran of Beacon Hill who embraces old-school ways of doing business and holds far more sway than the governor over his members. Mr. Patrick believes his casino bill could have passed if Mr. DiMasi, who said gambling would be a scourge on the state, had not pressured lawmakers to oppose it.
...
Mr. DiMasi, who supports Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York for president, has openly tried to link Mr. Obama to Mr. Patrick's difficulties, suggesting, along with other critics, that the two are alike in their lack of executive experience.
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