At one inch shy of five feet, Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate Robert Reich may not be a tall man, but the economics professor - who also holds a degree in law - has big ideas. Promising to fill what he called a "vacuum of leadership" in the governor's mansion, Reich pledged Wednesday to improve the Commonwealth's economy while fighting for the middle class.
The Brandeis University professor spoke to a crowd of 60 students and faculty, including University President Emeritus John DiBiaggio. Saying that the election would be driven by young people, he encouraged students to register to vote in Massachusetts.
"There is a philosophy behind the name and word 'commonwealth,'" Reich said. "We need to start talking about the common good again."
The former Clinton labor secretary made a late entry into the race on Jan. 9, and has been struggling to regain lost time before the upcoming caucuses. Though recent polls show Reich would either lead or tie Republican Governor Jane Swift in a general election, the new candidate said his biggest challenge will be carrying enough convention delegates to take part in the primary.
Reich, one of five democratic candidates, must carry 15 percent of the delegate votes at the Massachusetts Democratic Convention in June in order to take part in the democratic primary in September. Many of the convention delegates will be chosen by cities and towns at party caucus events on Feb. 2. The other five Democratic candidates have been courting party regulars for more than a year, leaving little room for a newcomer like Reich, who has never run for elected office before. "It's like capture the flag, and I haven't caught the flags yet," Reich said.
His campaign advisors said that college students will play a large role in mobilizing support for his campaign. "This is going to be a candidacy driven by a field of people like you," Tufts lecturer and Reich political advisor Michael Goldman told students. Though he acknowledged that the other candidates are quality challengers, Reich said he brings something extra to the table.
After teaching at Brandeis, Reich says he is returning to politics out of a desire to change the state of the economy. "After Sept. 11 a lot of people started asking, 'What can we do?'" Reich said.
He said he is determined to use his political experience to better the state of affairs in Massachusetts. "When I got out of grad school, Massachusetts was the place you went if you wanted to make a difference," Reich said. "[Now] state government, especially the governor's office, is an embarrassment."
Reich said the median income for Massachusetts households decreased by roughly $4,000 during the prosperous 1990s even though most Americans saw their incomes go up. "I'm not a miracle worker, but I do know something about the economy and maybe I can help," he said.
He began the speech by outlining his qualifications, riddled with anecdotes ranging from his experiences representing the US in front of the Supreme Court to serving as labor secretary under Bill Clinton. Reich recalled the first time he met former Clinton as a seasick Rhodes scholar on the ship to England. "He had chicken soup in one hand and crackers in the other hand, and he said, 'Hi my name is Bill Clinton and I heard you weren't feeling well.'"
Reich said he would not engage in mudslinging towards his opponents. "It is a crowded field," he said. "I'm not going to say anything negative about any of them. They're good people. Some of them are my friends... or they were until last week."
Armed with a strong record in public service - as labor secretary his office won more Reinventing Government awards than any other department - and faith in his ideas, Reich said he is not afraid of the competition. "The way to compete is to be yourself," he said. "A lot of people would like someone like me who's not afraid to be a Democrat."
After his introduction, Reich opened the event up to a question-and-answer session. Asked about the difficulty of competing against a moderate Swift in the general election, he said that her approach to government - for example, her disallowance of job training to count for welfare benefits - would make it easy. "It's very easy to campaign against that," Reich said. "It may be moderate, but in my book it's not right."
Well-versed in topics ranging from renewable energy to the Bush tax cut, Reich inspired some students to sign up with his campaign. Following the rally, he spoke to Goldman's class, "The Media Since Sept. 11." Tufts Democrats President Sarah Molenkamp said Reich's level of student outreach was impressive. "We haven't had a candidate in a very long time that reaches out so strongly to a student base," she said.
Reich has spoke at other local universities, including Harvard and Brandeis, precisely to further that effort. "If young people get involved in my campaign they can be the army that can make this possible," Reich said.
