Massachusetts State Rep. Marie Parente

Massachusetts State Rep. Marie Parente

The Globe editorializes (like its parent corporation) in its news and headlines. The two letters and the article to which they refer (Andrea Estes, "VOCAL FOE OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE OUSTED - PARENTE ONLY INCUMBENT LEGISLATOR TO BE DEFEATED," Boston Globe, September 20, 2006) show clearly that the headline is misleading as Carmenker says.
Marie Parente was the most fierce advocate for the rights of vulnerable persons in the state! She spoke vigorously to protect foster care children and against the human services industrial complex as she referred to the caring professions, which the Globe idolizes. That was not mentioned in the article or by the letter writers. (Brian Carmenker, September 21, 2006; ED KEATING CHRIS GOSSELIN, September 26, 2006)
I am a great admirer of Parente although she is not my Rep. I did not know her position on same sex marriage. So much for that being the reason she lost.
Howie Carr quoted (September 22, 2006) a Parente supporter who said to her, "You're old." to explain his vote against her. Ageism is not as important as homophobia to the Globe headline writers. It shows once more the solitary focus of the homosexual lobby, and the misguided support for the Marshal Court's flawed court decision which violates the state constitution.
For more than forty years politicians use the pages of the Boston Globe for propaganda.

--
Roy Bercaw, Editor
ENOUGH ROOM
Cambridge MA USA

Result hardly a referendum on gay marriage
BRIAN CAMENKER,
Newton
Letter
Boston Globe
September 21, 2006

THE STARK headline of your Sept. 20 post-election article "Vocal foe of same-sex marriage unseated" (City & Region) seems intended to give the reader the impression that the defeat of state Representative Marie Parente, of Milford, was a mini referendum on the same-sex marriage issue. Is that wishful thinking on the Globe's part? In fact, as the article itself says, the victor, John Fernandes, said the major focus was on ``pocketbook issues" such as property taxes and Big Dig spending. It's entirely possible that most of the voters didn't even realize there was a difference between the candidates on gay marriage. The Globe should save its editorializing for the editorial page.
BRIAN CAMENKER,
Newton
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Gay marriage was indeed put to vote
Letter
Boston Globe
September 26, 2006
BRIAN CAMENKER'S
Sept. 21 2006
letter,

``Result hardly a referendum on gay marriage," in response to the article about Representative Marie Parente's primary defeat, appears to express his own ``wishful thinking." It is an accurate statement that Marie Parente has been opposed to equal marriage rights for gays and lesbians. Many gays and lesbians live and vote in Parente's district.
Over the last three years several of us have had multiple conversations with her asking that she reconsider her position . But she would not budge, and she continues to support an amendment that would alter the Massachusetts Constitution enabling discrimination. What Mr. Camenker would have you believe is that voters in Parente's district would not cast their votes based on this issue.
We and many others in the district cast our votes for John Fernandes because of his support of equal marriage rights. This issue bore considerable weight.
ED KEATING
CHRIS GOSSELIN
Milford
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Boston Globe
VOCAL FOE OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE OUSTED - PARENTE ONLY INCUMBENT LEGISLATOR TO BE DEFEATED
Andrea Estes,
September 20, 2006

Outspoken state Representative Marie Parente of Milford, one of Beacon Hill's most conservative voices for more than 20 years, was defeated yesterday in her bid for another term. She was the only incumbent legislator to lose a primary fight. John Fernandes, a lawyer and former Milford selectman, beat Parente throughout the district, chalking up decisive margins in every neighborhood of Milford, Upton, and Mendon. He will face Republican Robert P. Burns in November. Parente, who was first elected in the early 1980s, is a vocal and staunch opponent of same-sex marriage and extending benefits to undocumented workers.
Now 78, she frequently spoke of retiring, but ran for reelection time after time. "What it says to me is that people were ready to transition to new representation and responded to the positive campaign I tried to run in this race," said Fernandes last night.
Also yesterday, Willie Mae Allen, 69, a neighborhood activist and veteran member of the Democratic State Committee, defeated William R. Celester Sr., a former Boston police commander who served two years in federal prison after pleading guilty to fraud charges while serving as Newark's police chief. They battled over a House seat left vacant by the retirement of longtime Mattapan state Representative Shirley Owens-Hicks. "It was a clean fought fight, " said Celester, who once served as a Boston police deputy superintendent. "Willie Mae has been a friend of mine for 40 years. and she'll remain so . ... We had an organization, but no money."
In the Parente race, Fernandes held different positions than his opponent on gay marriage, stem cell research, and immigration, but he said his major focus was on "pocketbook issues. We talked more about the impact of property taxes and the Big Dig on spending priorities." Fernandes, who is of Portuguese and Italian descent, said immigrant issues were not central in the campaign, though Milford has a large and growing Portuguese and Brazilian immigrant population.
Ali Noorani, executive director of Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, called Parente's defeat "a stunning remark on a representative so willing to talk about immigrant issues. "While we disagreed on many issues," said Noorani, "I personally have respect for her as an individual. She was a passionate advocate for her constituents."
Aside from Parente, other incumbents survived primary challenges -- including state Senator Robert Havern of Arlington, majority leader Representative John Rogers of Norwood and Representatives Antonio Cabral of New Bedford, John Fresolo of Worcester, Robert Correia of Fall River, Benjamin Swan of Springfield, Joyce Spiliotis of Peabody, William Pignatelli of Lenox, Mark Falzone of Saugus, and Paul Kujawski of Webster. The fiercest contests were for 12 open seats given up by lawmakers who decided not to seek reelection.
Voters picked successors for Senators Andrea Nuciforo Jr. of Pittsfield and Brian Lees of East Longmeadow; and Representatives Shirley Gomes of South Harwich, Virginia Coppola of Foxborough, Philip Travis of Rehoboth, Arthur Broadhurst of Methuen, Emile Goguen of Fitchburg, Mark Carron of Southbridge, Gale Candaras of Wilbraham, and Daniel Keenan of Agawam. Nuciforo, Lees, and Candaras are running for other offices. Voters in Everett chose Stephen "Stat" Smith as the Democratic candidate to replace the late Representative Edward Connolly, a Democrat who died in May.
State Representative Marie St. Fleur also won her primary. Same-sex marriage supporters, who had been actively campaigning on behalf of key candidates across the state, last night claimed victory in several races and said they expect to pick up new supporters on Beacon Hill. MassEquality, which distributed 250,000 pieces of mail to primary voters, zeroed in on seats being vacated by two of the most vocal opponents of gay marriage -- Philip Travis of Rehoboth and Emile Goguen of Fitchburg.
In the race for Goguen's seat, MassEquality backed Stephen DiNatale, who won the Democratic nomination. The group also supported Steven D'Amico, who won the Democratic nomination to succeed Travis. They also worked on behalf of Rosemary Samblin, who won the Democratic nomination for Candara's seat in Agawam, and for incumbent Senator Dianne Wilkerson, St. Fleur of Boston, and Falzone.
Copyright (c) 2006
Globe Newspaper Company
Andrea Estes, GLOBE STAFF
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‘Too old,’ genuine public servant shown the door by loyal Democrats
By Howie Carr
Boston Herald Columnist
Friday, September 22, 2006 - Updated: 08:26 AM EST

Rep. Marie Parente of Milford opposes gay marriage, abortion and free college tuition for illegal aliens. How do you suppose she did in the moonbat-dominated Democratic primary Tuesday? “I feel a winner,” she was saying on the day after, but of course, she wasn’t. At the age of 78, after 26 years in the Legislature, she was dumped, beaten by a Milford lawyer.
Marie gets the bum’s rush just eight months after what may have been her finest moment in the Legislature. Marie was part of what started as a tiny band of solons determined to stop another handout for illegal aliens - in-state (i.e., free) tuition at public colleges. As usual, even though the illegals supposedly all have jobs, somehow large numbers of them were able to gather at the State House on a weekday in a brazen attempt to extort yet more money from the stupid gringo taxpayers.
Marie Parente looked up at them in the gallery with scorn. “If I were in a foreign country illegally,” she said, “I think I’d be hiding. I wouldn’t be in the capitol, demanding more money.” The illegal-alien welfare bill was crushed, 96-57. Thank you, Marie.
On Tuesday, one of Parente’s allies in the anti-gay marriage movement drove out to Milford to hold a sign for her. But just as she was pulling into the parking lot at the precinct, the woman’s car was broadsided. “She got hit,” Marie said, “by an eight-months pregnant illegal alien. Totally demolished the car. How’s that for an omen?”
Of course it wasn’t primarily the moonbats who were responsible for Marie Parente’s defeat. Her main problem was, she got old. I first realized Dapper O’Neil, the Boston city councilor, was in trouble when I was standing with him one Saturday in the Roche Bros. parking lot in West Roxbury getting signatures. He was maybe 77 at the time. When the shoppers coming out kept telling him, “You knew my grandfather,” I knew it was over.
You can survive being the age of the average voter’s father, but not the grandfather. Your voters who aren’t dead have moved to Florida, or into a nursing home. “I still have the energy,” Marie Parente was saying. “I went door to door more than my opponent. I was knocking on doors as late as Saturday, climbing the hills of Mendon. I spent over $50,000.”
But when it breaks against you, everything goes, all at once. “I must have spent 15 or 20,000 on newspaper ads,” she said. “Just one half-page ad cost me $3,700. And the paper endorsed my opponent.” You can’t trust newspaper people, present company excluded of course. Marie didn’t seem bitter on Wednesday, just slightly disappointed by the fact that people she’d done favors for over the years suddenly decided they didn’t want her at the State House anymore.
“I wish I had a dollar for everyone who said to me, ‘I’ll never forget you as long as I live.’ People I’d made a call for when they got behind on their mortgage, or who needed help visiting their kids who were with their ex. But there they were Tuesday, some of them, holding signs for the other guy. I went up to a couple of them and asked, what’s going on here, and they said, ‘You’re old.’ ”
And so another lunch-bucket Democrat bites the dust. Only this happened in Milford. The only moonbat I ever knew from there was Charles Laquidara, the disc jockey at the old WBCN, and he moved to Hawaii years ago. “Everything’s changed, but it’s a bad change,” Marie said. “People think abortion anytime is OK, man marrying man, or family marrying family, everything’s fine. But you know, I had a great ride - 214 laws bear my name.” I told her she did a great job. “Thanks,” she said. “I guess I’m just a dinosaur." That makes two of us, Marie.