http://www.capecodonline.com/cctimes/go ... gers16.htm

September 16, 2006

GOP challengers hope to unseat Sen. Kennedy
By KEVIN DENNEHY
STAFF WRITER
In less than two months, one of two men will try to do what no Republican has been able to do in 44 years - defeat U.S. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.

But first, Kenneth Chase or Kevin Clark will have to convince Republican voters that he is the one who can do it.

Neither Chase, who has never held political office, nor Scott, a former Wakefield selectman, is a household name in the Bay State. And neither can promise the big money it usually takes to knock off a political institution like Kennedy, the 74-year-old Democrat who is the third-

longest serving senator in U.S. history.

But both insist that the state's senior senator's time has come, that he is no longer in touch with the regular citizens of the Bay State.

And both say democracy is best served by a competitive race.

''I think the state is starving for a good bipartisan representation,'' said Chase, 45, a Belmont Republican who lost a congressional bid two years ago. ''We don't benefit when we have the same person in office for 30, 40, 45 years - we lose.

''Massachusetts has fallen astride of the mainstream, not by dint of who we are, but by dint of who represents us.''

Scott, 42, a good-natured former selectman who speaks proudly of his local record, takes offense to the notion that the U.S. Senate is an exclusive club.

''I can't represent the people of Massachusetts if I don't know what their concerns are,'' he says. ''And I don't think Ted Kennedy can say that.''

Whoever wins the Republican primary on Tuesday will have an uphill struggle through November.

Since 1962, when he took over the Senate seat vacated by his brother, President John F. Kennedy, Edward Kennedy has faced barely a competitive race.

The closest came in 1994, when now-Gov. Mitt Romney led in some early polls before falling badly.

In November of that year, Kennedy won, 58 percent to 41 percent.

But both say Kennedy is vulnerable, and that he doesn't represent the majority of citizens, even in Massachusetts, the bluest of blue states.

Blunt and plain-spoken, Chase says the nation hasn't solved its dependence on Middle East oil over four decades, and that's the reason the nation had to send its soldiers to Iraq.

And it is the nation's longest serving leaders, such as Kennedy, who should be held accountable.

''The man had 44 years to do something about energy,'' Chase said. ''And he sat on his hands.''

Both Chase and Scott are critical of the war in Iraq.

A greater focus on diverse sources of energy would have made the war less likely, Chase said.

As to whether the troops should be brought home, he says that is a decision for Pentagon leaders, not the politicians.

Scott says it's not so much about winning a war as it is stabilizing Iraq, although he says that would have been easier if the president had created a larger coalition before entering the war.

''In the future, we need to follow the example of George Herbert Walker Bush, who built the largest alliance in the history of the world before sending our troops into harm's way,'' he said.

While both said they have concerns with the proposed Nantucket Sound wind farm, both say they support the project - and take shots at Kennedy for his opposition.

Both also seize on the issue of immigration.

Chase says Kennedy's approach has been to pander to illegal immigrants. He says he'd challenge them to become greater, to learn the language, and to embrace their new nation.

Scott talks more about securing the borders, of building a wall and using technology to keep illegal immigrants out. And he talks of retooling the system to make it easier for hard-working immigrants who follow the rules.

Chase, who was nominated by state Republicans during the party convention this spring, offered little detail in how he differs from Scott.

He says he is paying attention only to his race, though said he wonders why Scott was a registered Democrat until 2001.

Scott says he became a Republican later in life because the Democratic party had shifted so far to the left.

And Chase, he said, should be glad that the state Republican party is growing.

''Half the Republicans in this state were once Democrats,'' he says, ''and the vast majority of Republicans in the state want to grow the party.''

Kevin Dennehy can be reached at kdennehy@capecodonline.com.

(Published: September 16, 2006)