The Scrum

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Joe Biden's Boston Roots Nov 16, 2020

Show notes

Quick: if you hear the name “Joe Biden,” what places spring to mind? Delaware, for obvious reasons. Scranton, probably, along with the requisite dose of earthy Irish-American wisdom. But Boston should, too. The president elect didn’t grow up in this area, but some of Boston’s top political power brokers helped shape and guide his career — which was also defined, for years, by an embarrassing presidential setback inflicted by the campaign of one Mike Dukakis back in 1987.

In this episode of the Scrum, Adam Reilly talks through Biden’s #bospoli and #mapoli connections with Boston Globe op-ed columnist Scot Lehigh. First, though, Peter Kadzis sizes up Biden’s performance during one of the most bizarre political transitions in American history — and what the coming months have in store for a deeply conflicted Democratic Party.

Election 2020: The Night(s) Before And The Morning After Oct 31, 2020

Show notes

If you’ve been around long enough, you still think of presidential elections as efficient events that provide clear answers in a finite period of time, exceptions to the rule notwithstanding ([cough] 2000 [cough]). But the 2020 election may shatter that romantic ideal once and for all — and when the dust settles and the results are in, whenever that is and whatever they are, we’ll still be facing huge questions about the future of American democracy. Peter Kadzis and Adam Reilly talk about what we’ll be grappling with after the presidency is decided, and how to get from here to there without losing our minds, with help from four Scrum favorites: Sue O’Connell, Joan Vennochi, Wilnelia Rivera, and Yawu Miller.

The Electoral College: What Is It Good For? Oct 22, 2020

Show notes

You already know that the Electoral College lets candidates win the presidency while losing the popular vote (Donald Trump in 2016 springs to mind). But you might *not* know about the long history of failed attempts to reform or eliminate the institution — or how little guidance the Electoral College actually would actually provide in a close, hotly contested election like the one we’re currently having.

Spend a half hour with this Scrum, though — in which Peter Kadzis chats with Harvard’s Alex Keyssar, author of the new book “Why Do We Still Have The Electoral College?” — and you’ll gain that knowledge and more. (Warning: you may also be significantly more anxious about what the coming weeks may bring.)

Kevin O'Connor's Pitch To Non-Republicans Oct 14, 2020

Show notes

If you haven’t paid close attention to the US Senate race between Ed Markey, the Democratic incumbent, and Kevin O’Connor, the Republican challenger, you might assume O’Connor is coming from the same place as the Massachusetts GOP: staunchly pro-Trump, and steadfastly opposed to all things Democratic. And if you have assumed that, O’Connor’s own messaging could be one reason why.

As it turns out, though, O’Connor’s political identity and philosophy are more nuanced than you might expect. In this episode of the Scrum, O’Connor makes his case to the unenrolled and Democratic voters whose support he’ll need to beat Markey in November — offering, in the process, some unexpected biographical details and assessments of Elizabeth Warren and Donald Trump. After Adam and O’Connor talk, Peter Kadzis weighs in with his assessment of O’Connor’s pitch.

Lessons From Lincoln For The Age Of Trump — Plus, What The Mass. Senate Debate Says About The Mass. GOP Oct 07, 2020

Show notes

In the wake of the first and only debate between Democratic US Senator Ed Markey and Republican challenger Kevin O’Connor, Peter Kadzis flashes back to the Kennedy-Romney race and sizes up the trajectory of the Mass. Republican Party in the quarter century hence. (He and Adam Reilly also take stock of O’Connor’s candidacy and political future.) Then it’s on to a Kadzis convo with presidential historian Ted Widmer, whose new book — Lincoln On The Verge: Thirteen Days To Washington — offers an instructive portrait of the nation in another moment of crisis.

Storm Clouds: Aleksandar Hemon On Yugoslavia Then And The US Now Sep 29, 2020

Show notes

When war broke out in his hometown of Sarajevo, Aleksandar Hemon turned what was supposed to be a brief stay in Chicago into an entirely new life — and went on to become a National Book Award finalist, a regular contributor to the New Yorker, and a professor at Princeton University. Now, though, Hemon has also become a political Cassandra, warning in stark terms that he sees the US sliding toward an outbreak of political violence akin to the eruptions that destroyed Yugoslavia.

In this episode, Adam Reilly talks with Hemon about the parallels he sees between Yugoslavia then and the US today. First, though, Peter Kadzis ponders Andrea Campbell’s newly announced candidacy for mayor of Boston, and how the politics of racial and ethnic identity will play out as Campell and Michelle Wu vie to become Boston’s first mayor of color.

Wu For 2021: A GBH-MassINC Poll Sets The Stage For The Mayoral Race Sep 21, 2020

Show notes

Right now, the 2021 Boston mayor’s race has one (1) official candidate: at-large city councilor Michelle Wu, who made things official last week after months of speculation — and after the incumbent, Marty Walsh, gave her campaign an unconventional “soft launch” of his own. So how does Wu stack up against Walsh (if he runs) — and her fellow city councilor Andrea Campbell (ditto)? And what are the big takeaways from a new GBH News / MassINC poll on the state of the race and the issues on Boston voters’ minds? Peter Kadzis, Adam Reilly, and Saraya Wintersmith talk it through.

#MAPrimary 2020: The Exit Interview Sep 04, 2020

Show notes

What to make of this week’s primary election? On the one hand, a slew of incumbent Democrats had credible challengers — which suggests an era of intra-party stasis and timidity has finally come to a close. Then again…those challengers all lost. So maybe incumbency still has some advantages? In this, the first Scrum of the GBH era, Peter Kadzis and Adam Reilly kick it around with Boston Globe columnist Joan Vennochi — along with Joe Kennedy’s future and whether the drama in #mapoli is done for the year (spoiler: it isn’t).

Dr. Robbie Goldstein Makes His Case For MA8, Plus - Kadzis On The Surreal, Socially Distant DNC Aug 21, 2020

Show notes

After a brief hiatus, the Scrum returns with a pre-election conversation with Dr. Robbie Goldstein, the MGH physician who's challenging Congressman Stephen Lynch in the Eighth District Democratic primary.
First, though, Peter Kadzis offers some instant reaction to the strange, socially distant event that was the 2020 Democratic National Convention.
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Things Are Getting Competitive In Western Massachusetts -- Plus, Kadzis On The State Legislature's Looming Extension Jul 31, 2020

Show notes

What’s going on in Western Mass? In the past few weeks, the Massachusetts 1st Congressional District race between longtime incumbent Rep. Richard Neal and Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse has started to get competitive. Carrie Saldo, recent host of Connecting Points on WGBY in Springfield, and Matt Szafranski of Western Mass Politics and Insight, talk Adam Reilly through just how interesting the race has become, despite -- or maybe because of -- the challenges presented by campaigning in the middle of a pandemic.
But first, Peter Kadzis and Reilly give a status update on the state legislature, where it's looking like lawmakers may not get that summer off during an election year after all.

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