Carpetbagger Turned Native Son

Former Massachusetts governor, William Weld, has formally announced intentions to run for governor of New York. Weld, according to NPR, currently works at an investment firm in Midtown Manhattan and wishes to govern the state he grew up in. The rest of the story here.

In conclusion, the Northeast loves carpetbaggers. Although New York is Weld's homestate, the idea that he, a Republican, was elected governor in Massachusetts, a state that had not only suffered from what The Party's Over might characterize as "liberal tendencies" but an eight decade world series drought, is mind boggling. He must be a Mets fan.

However, this race should be healthier in atmoshere than the Hillary-Piro battle. Weld is a moderate who won in Massachusetts with a traditional Republican platform: lower taxes, lower crime, reform welfare. He is not weighted down by tough social issues (despite suffering an awkward moment in 1996 when he challenged Sen. John Kerry on his anti-death penalty stance) or the most recent Republican policies of Bush Jr., the Republican Congress, George Pataki, and Mitt Romney, all of which are viewed unfavorably in New York.