Last week, Newton Mayor Setti Warren dropped out, because, he said, “I no longer believe I have a clear path to victory in this race.’’ Other Democrats insist they’re staying in, but it’s going to be tough.
Ultimately, voters will decide who wins the first round and then goes onto challenge Brown in the general election. But by the time Warren’s name comes up on a ballot, the race will be shaped by forces that have little to do with “the people.’’
It’s already happening. The spotlight is trained on Warren, the Harvard law professor who got into this US Senate race because Obama didn’t nominate her to run the consumer protection agency she set up for him.
An inner circle of wealthy donors decides who gets their blessing and money - and Warren will easily win that “wealth’’ primary. The press decides who gets coverage - and most of it is already Elizabeth Warren-centric. Liberal bloggers, meanwhile, can’t stop fawning over her. Endorsements are going her way, minus the usual process of giving all candidates a chance to make their case.
It’s happening on the weight of Warren’s well-delivered Labor Day breakfast speech; an interview with Rachel Maddow that was so friendly that the MSNBC host began it by congratulating the candidate for getting into the race; and a video clip circulated by Democratic activists which shows Warren waxing eloquent about the “social compact.’’ Be still my liberal heart.
This rush to judgment puts tremendous political and financial pressure on other Democrats who are not just being pushed aside, but insulted as inconsequential gnats.
