Nelson Benton
It's been almost half a century since the seat was open, so it's no surprise there are lots of people "mulling" the idea of running for the U.S. Senate.
Give Attorney General Martha Coakley credit for actually taking out papers and not waiting until former congressman Joe Kennedy decided whether he was in or out, making her the early frontrunner.
Congressman John Tierney, D-Salem, who hasn't received much mention in the ongoing speculation about a possible successor to Ted Kennedy, says he's thinking about it. And while the North Shore historically has not been a great base for running statewide, his boosters point out that none of the Bay State's 10 congressmen — other than Barney Frank — are well known outside their home districts.
Tierney's now in his seventh term and has never been seriously threatened since he won his 1998 rematch against Republican Peter Torkildsen. On the other hand, a loss in the Senate primary might make Tierney seem vulnerable to other Democrats interested in the 6th District seat and provide encouragement to Republicans itching to put one of their own back in office.
Meanwhile, Beverly's Kerry Healey continues to receive encouragement from party stalwarts ranging from Essex County Sheriff Frank Cousins to former state committeewoman Marjorie Thompson.
And late this week there was intriguing talk of a possible run by former Red Sox ace and conservative blogger Curt Schilling. A Republican by inclination, his lack of party status would likely force him to run as an independent, however. He could call his the Bloody Sock Party.
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Tierney continues to take heat for his refusal to hold a public forum on health care reform this summer.
He claims his mass telephone conference call Monday allowed him to reach more people and address more issues. But detractors are accusing him of displaying arrogance or cowardice, and Tierney wasn't helped by the fact Sen. John Kerry held a public meeting Wednesday that attracted an estimated 3,000 people to Somerville High School.
Tierney says he has traditionally held his town hall meetings in the fall and will do so again; adding that by then the shape of a reform bill will be in clearer focus. Currently there are three separate pieces of legislation pending in the House and two in the Senate.
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Interesting police log item out of Boxford the other day.
The local weekly reported that a Herrick Road resident, William Hudak, had been the subject of complaints about the number and size of anti-Obama signs on his property.
"I was looking to wake people up and it worked," Hudak told the Tri-Town Transcript, which reported, "Hudak asserts that Obama was not born in the United States but in Kenya, according to affidavits that he made available to the Tri-Town Transcript. He said that Obama has ties to the Muslim faith through an extremist cousin that is from Kenya."
Describing Hudak as an attorney and Republican, the paper failed to note he is also a declared candidate for Congress who hopes to take on Tierney in 2010.
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Datebook: Tuesday (7 p.m., Salem State College Enterprise Center) the South Salem Neighborhood Association will hold a question-and-answer session with the three candidates — John Phelan, John Ronan and Jerry Tache — running in next month's preliminary election for the Ward 5 City Council seat ... This reporter's interview with two of the three candidates — incumbent Barry Osborne and Anthony Carli — for the Ward 1 seat on the Peabody City Council, is currently airing on the city's public access channel. Robert Forti, the second challenger, was unable to attend.
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Nelson Benton's column on North Shore politics appears every Friday. Read him daily at blogs.salemnews.com/fullnelson.
