The Honorable Mr. Tierney, Congressman

Yes, I’m a Democrat. True blue, bluer than blue.  Happily I have been in situations where the Democrat is the best candidate. Once again, I can submit to you that John Tierney, as the incumbent candidate for Congressman in the Sixth Congressional District here in the North Shore of Massachusetts is the best candidate for the Sixth Congressional District.

Friends of Cong. Tierney’s opponent, Richard Tisei, claim he is a man of integrity. Unfortunately after about a year of campaigning, we can see that Mr. Tisei has no integrity at all. He has allowed a super-PAC to pay for television advertisements that provide no information about Mr. Tisei. There is no mention of his plans to help the District if he should be elected.  Rarely do you hear Mr. Tisei’s name being used.

What we have heard for three-plus months are attacks on the integrity of Mr. Tisei’s opponent. In fact, Cong. Tierney’s name is mentioned almost to the exclusion of Mr. Tisei. These advertisements while trying to portray Cong. Tierney as lacking integrity prove nothing except to allow some actors claim that they aren’t going to vote for Mr. Tierney again.

Why? Has the Congressman failed to provide assistance to his constituents? Has the Congressman pocketed money from bribes? Has the Congressman not voted the way that is best for his District? Is he cheating on his spouse? Are there pictures of him coming out of some run-down gin joint in Salem, staggering and singing “100 bottles of beer on the wall?” at the top of his lungs?

Not at all. He is being vilified by Mr. Tisei’s Republican friends in Washington for the injudicious efforts of Congressman Tierney’s wife. The commercials ask you whether you believe Mr. Tierney had no knowledge or involvement in the efforts of his wife to help her family with what was, unfortunately, ill-gotten gains. She has pled guilty, spent her 30 day term in jail and testified about the dealings of her brothers who are involved in illegal gambling to help place them behind bars.

The judge and state’s attorney investigated these crimes and found the Congressman was in no way involved in his wife’s misdeeds. However Mr. Tisei’s Republican Washington friends still want you to question whether Mr. Tierney really could not have been aware of what his wife was doing? Don’t be fooled. Defeating Congressman Tierney has nothing to do with his wife’s legal problems. Mr. Tisei’s Washington Republican friends want to stop this progressive Democrat from voting for the needs of the middle class.

Mr. Tisei has made frequent claims that he would be an independent vote in the U. S. House of Representatives. He likes to claim that he would be “another” Sen. Scott Brown who votes occasionally with the Democrats. Leaving aside Sen. Brown’s claims to bi-partisanship, Mr. Tisei is not running for Senate where debate rules and rules in general are different than those in the House.

As a first year Congressman, Mr. Tisei wouldn’t have the freedom to act as Senators do. If the Republicans keep control of the House, Mr. Tisei’s first vote will be for leadership including Mr. Boehner, the Speaker and Mr. Cantor, the Majority Leader. These men oppose two of Mr. Tisei’s most important principles: He is for women’s access to abortion and birth control and is opposed to the Defense of Marriage Act, (DOMA).

To be sure that these principles will be honored in the Sixth Congressional District, you need to vote for Cong. John Tierney, as his track record on women’s issues and equal rights has been unwavering since his first day in Congress. If luck holds out, there could be a Democratic control of the U. S. House. What good will Richard Tisei be then?

Either way, the right vote is for Cong. John Tierney. I know this man; he is courageous, a fighter and will stand up for what’s important to this congressional district. Mr. Tisei is a Republican. He will vote with the Republican’s because the Republican leadership in Washington has paid for his vote already.