# Ogonowski plans Senate run against Kerry



## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

_Associated Press - January 12, 2008 12:14 PM ET _

BOSTON (AP) - Republican Jim Ogonowski, who narrowly lost a congressional race to Niki Tsongas in October, is making preparations to challenge U.S. Sen. John Kerry, The Associated Press has learned.
Ogonowski, the brother of an airline pilot killed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, said he's been attending Republican events around the state since his 6-point loss to Tsongas, a Democrat.
"There's nobody in Washington who represents the status quo more than John Kerry," said Ogonowski, who would not officially declare his candidacy.
Kerry, the Democratic nominee for president four years ago, hasn't faced a serious challenger since he fought off former Republican Gov. William Weld in 1996. The state GOP had no candidate against Kerry in 2002.
A spokeswoman for Kerry had no immediate comment.

http://www.wwlp.com/Global/story.asp?S=7614837


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2008)

I'd give Ogonowski my vote if he ran, for sure.

I cannot stand John "Ashamed-to-Admit-He's-Jewish" Kerry.


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## JoninNH (Jan 29, 2004)

I'll donate money to anyone who can defeat Kerry. I'd donate money to any bartender who'd serve Fat Teddy, again and again and again.


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## omd (Mar 18, 2004)

This is good. We need to get Kerry out of there as well as al the other millionaire bums in there. Massachusetts needs a new infusion of people *representing US*


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## Guest (Jan 23, 2008)

I'd support him for sure, but in this screwed-up state;


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## Dane (Sep 26, 2003)

I supported Ogonowski in his bid against Tsongas' old lady, but let's not forget Jeff Beatty:
http://www.jeffbeatty.com/home.html


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## Guest (Jan 26, 2008)

Dane said:


> I supported Ogonowski in his bid against Tsongas' old lady, but let's not forget Jeff Beatty:
> http://www.jeffbeatty.com/home.html


He looks like a great candidate, except Jesus Christ himself could run for elected office in Massachusetts but if he has the "R" next to his name, he's probably going down.


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## alphadog1 (Oct 16, 2006)

*EXCLUSIVE: Ogonowski confirms he'll run for Senate*

DRACUT -- Republican Jim Ogonowski, just three months removed from his 
first-ever campaign for political office, will challenge Sen. John Kerry for a seat in the U.S. Senate.

Ogonowski, a Dracut hay farmer and retired lieutenant colonel from the Air National Guard, ran a surprisingly strong, albeit unsuccessful campaign for Congress last fall, falling 6 percent short of U.S. Rep. Niki Tsongas.

Ogonowski, 50, now hopes to parlay that performance into a statewide campaign for Senate against one of the country's most recognizable senators in Kerry, the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee.

"People are absolutely fed up with Washington. Nothing's getting accomplished. There's too much squabbling, and nobody represents that status quo more so than John Kerry," said Ogonowski, sitting down with The Sun in the kitchen of his Dracut home to formally declare his candidacy.


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*


Photo by Jack Foley
Jeff Beatty stands next to the camper he is using to take his campaign for U.S. Senate across the Bay State. Beatty, a Republican, is running against longtime incumbent Senator John Kerry, a Democrat.

By John Moss
Herald News Staff Reporter
Sun Feb 10, 2008, 07:31 PM EST 

Fall River - Nearly 100 area Republicans rallied Sunday around former Delta Force member Jeff Beatty - their hope to defeat U.S. Sen. John Kerry in November. 
The occasion was a Lincoln Day breakfast at the TA Restaurant. 
"For over 30 years, I have dedicated myself to our great nation and to the citizens and government of this commonwealth," said Beatty, 55, a resident of Harwich. 
"My experience and knowledge is rooted in hard work, strong ethics and common sense. I am proud to be part of the middle class and I understand the difficulty and hardships we face to pay a mortgage, heat our homes and put food on the table," he said. 
He said the public appears to be focused on three major issues: the war in Iraq, the economy and undocumented immigration.
"First, to do well in other areas, we need to be safe. Public safety and national security are the top items," he said. 
Beatty has planned for and participated in combat operations. In 1983, he was wounded in action when his Black Hawk helicopter was shot down in Grenada during the rescue of nearly 1,000 American medical students held by Cuban and Grenadian forces. 
The military veteran said Iraq is only one front in the larger war on terror, and that failure there would lead to broader devastation. 
A favorable outcome in Iraq will assist in cooling potential regional conflicts and reducing the threat of terrorism as well, he said.
"We need to have a successful outcome from our presence there," he said. A withdrawal would have to be done "under successful conditions for us." He described those conditions as "anything Al Qaeda sees as non-success." 
Beatty told the crowd that Kerry has suggested setting a timetable for U.S. soldiers to withdraw from the country. That plan would not produce a favorable outcome, he said. Instead, Beatty says he supports a comprehensive military and political plan for U.S. success in Iraq, including increasing Iraqi self-defense capabilities while drawing down U.S. troop levels. 
"Once the strategy is implemented, it will allow for a phased withdrawal of 100,000 U.S. troops within 18 months," he said.
On the economy, Beatty blamed federal policies for recent company shutdowns, and said it's clear the Massachusetts is lagging economically. 
"Particularly in southeastern Massachusetts, companies have moved overseas and outside our borders," he said. "We need policies to recognize the need for meaningful work for our citizens."
Beatty charged that Kerry "neglected that possibility by standing by. ... Where's John Kerry been for 24 years? Are we better now than 24 years ago?"
He said Kerry "only gets interested when he has a competent opponent for the Senate seat."
Beatty said the proper approach to undocumented immigration is "no amnesty, enforce the law and secure the borders."
The candidate said only people who pay into the government and are legally entitled should receive benefits such as Social Security, quality schools and health care. Undocumented immigrants should not receive the same benefits, he said.
"Enforcing our laws will also result in higher wages for all working Americans and less of the unfair competition from illegals that is facing our small businesses," he said. 
Beatty said employers who have hired illegals can outbid legal businesses for jobs because their workers are paid much less. 
"Family businesses find they have to either hire people illegally to be competitive or get out of the business," he said. "We need to enforce the law. Just give work and benefits to people here legally."
"Illegal labor is pressing on the wages of law-abiding citizens in Massachusetts," he said. "We can't afford this. It is taking the quality of life downhill." 
Reminding listenders that he is a member of the middle class, Beatty said, "It's time to replace John Kerry with one of us. For John Kerry, it's politics. For us, it's personal."
Other guest speakers at the breakfast were Peter Torkildsen, state GOP chairman; Bristol County Sheriff Thomas M. Hodgson; Joe Schlieff, chairman of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth College Republicans, and Bob Heroux, candidate for Bristol County register.

http://www.heraldnews.com/news/x1973324823


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## justanotherparatrooper (Aug 27, 2006)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

Awesome!


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

His Website:

*Jeff Beatty* for Massachusetts US Senate 2008

*Jeff Beatty*, Republican U.S. Senate hopeful against John Kerry in Massachusetts


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## justanotherparatrooper (Aug 27, 2006)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

I think him and Kerry should go mano a mano and the winner becomes the senator 
...Oh I forgot Kerry is a Vietnam vet so it wouldnt be a fair fight.


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

I don't think Kerry would stand a snowballs Chance in hell against him mano to mano


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## Nighttrain (Dec 10, 2004)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

I'm on board. Nice to have someone who has "been there, done that" in public office. It's definately time for a change.


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## TacEntry (Nov 29, 2006)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

He's got my vote.


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## Dane (Sep 26, 2003)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

Stand by. There's only a few of us Republicans here in the Commonwealth. Beatty (whom I have supported since he first announced) and Ogonowski (whom I supported in his effort against Tsongas) are both great candidates, but could divide this tiny party in the primary. Another thing to think about is what if Mitt comes back and decides to take a stab at a Senate seat to use as a launch pad for a '12 presidential bid? He's got statewide name recognition, serious funding, and political experience. If it turns into a three way fight, I just hope that the Mass. Republican party emerges as a stronger entity in the end. Strong enough to unseat that stiff Kerry.


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## Deuce (Sep 27, 2003)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

Anyone from the Stockade gets my vote..


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## KozmoKramer (Apr 25, 2004)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

Campaign Slogan for Jeff Beatty vs. John Kerry.
_"The Hero vs. The Zero!"

_I suppose we could change the election procedure to an old fashioned Jack Johnson bare knuckles parking lot brawl... Gee, I wonder who wins that one...


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## PaulKersey (Nov 28, 2007)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*



kwflatbed said:


> I don't think Kerry would stand a snowballs Chance in hell against him mano to mano


But Kerry won three purple hearts. If you don't believe it, just ask him.


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## wgciv (Jan 4, 2007)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

I'm on board.


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*Re: Delta Force vet aims for US Senate*

*Candidates line up to face Kerry*

*Junior senator raises visibility in Bay State*

By Matt Viser

Globe Staff / April 6, 2008

Republican Jeff Beatty spent his Friday night talking politics over cocktails in Fall River. Democrat Ed O'Reilly has been laying the groundwork for his campaign for more than a year.
And this week, Republican Jim Ogonowski plans to make 36 campaign stops from North Adams to Chatham in an effort to lift his campaign and his adrenaline: 30 of the stops are for coffee.
Six months before the primary, the candidates are all hoping to gain momentum for a Herculean task: unseating John F. Kerry from his US Senate seat.
"There is an extra challenge to going against an incumbent, but not when they haven't delivered," Ogonowski said yesterday in a phone interview. "You don't see him in Massachusetts. He's more interested in being a national figure than a representative of the people of Massachusetts."
Kerry, in his fourth six-year term, has not faced a serious challenge since Governor William F. Weld, a Republican, in 1996, and even fellow Democrats joke about Kerry's absence from Massachusetts. At the Saint Patrick's Day Breakfast last month, Suffolk County Sheriff Andrea Cabral compared him to Halley's Comet, appearing quickly every six years.
But lately his public appearances have seen a noticeable uptick. Over the past week, the junior senator was in Roxbury and Lawrence to talk about home foreclosures, and stopped by the opening ceremony for a Coast Guard command center. Tomorrow he is scheduled to be at a State House hearing on federal immigration raids in New England.
"The senator's served the state very well over the last four terms," said Roger Lau, who was brought on as campaign manager several weeks ago and said to expect "grass-roots, Iowa-style politics - talking to one voter at a time."
"From healthcare to the economy the Massachusetts delegation is at the forefront," he said, "and John Kerry is proud to be a part of that."
Still, few observers are predicting a close fight for the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee. Unseating an incumbent is rare, and Kerry's $9.9 million war chest dwarfs his opponents'.
What attention there has been has focused on a possible Kerry and Ogonowski matchup. But both candidates have challengers to overcome in the September primary before they could meet in November's general election.
O'Reilly, a Gloucester lawyer and former city councilor, voted for Kerry in the 2004 presidential race but is challenging the senator largely on the very issues that plagued Kerry during that quest.
O'Reilly says Kerry did not oppose the Iraq war strongly enough and that spending on the war has diverted money from other areas such as education. In a previous interview with the Globe, O'Reilly also contended that issues raised by the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth reflected poorly on Kerry's character, although he said yesterday that after speaking with Kerry, he agreed to drop that issue.
O'Reilly would have to gain support from 15 percent of the delegates at the Massachusetts Democratic Party Convention in June to secure a spot on the ballot.
The Republicans have largely been holding their fire, saving their ammunition for Kerry.
"It's definitely an uphill fight, but it's a winnable fight," said Beatty, a military veteran from Harwich who ran unsuccessfully in 2006 against Representative William D. Delahunt. "We're not getting the representation that we deserve in the Commonwealth."
Beatty said yesterday that his campaign has raised more than $1 million, a large sum that will not be confirmed until campaign finance reports are filed this month.
Ogonowski, the brother of a pilot killed in the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, lost the Fifth Congressional District race last fall to Democrat Niki Tsongas by 6 points in his political debut. But he received 45 percent of the vote and made the contest closer than expected in a heavily Democratic area.
The Dracut farmer and retired military officer ran as a populist reformer committed to challenging the status quo and cracking down on illegal immigration.
The candidates are doing whatever they can to distinguish themselves.
O'Reilly notes on his campaign website that he is a former commercial lobsterman.
Beatty has taken to driving around the state in The Beatty Mobile Headquarters, a giant used recreational vehicle plastered with his face, an American flag, and the text, "It's time to replace John Kerry with one of us!"
Ogonowski has a spoof ad on his website called "Mr. Ogonowski Goes to Washington," which shows him walking on Capitol Hill, pointing out the perks senators get - gym access, elevators, and trains for their exclusive use.
"John Kerry has been here for 24 years," Ogonowski says. "He's not going to change Washington; he represents the status quo. He is Washington, D.C."

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/04/06/candidates_line_up_to_face_kerry/


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*Sparks Fly In GOP Race For Kerry's Senate Seat*

*Beatty Calls Ogonowski Candidate Of Insiders*

*WASHINGTON -- *Some sparks are flying as two state Republicans battle for the right to take on Sen. John Kerry in the fall.

Jeff Beatty and Jim Ogonowski both cast themselves as grassroots candidates and Washington outsiders. But Beatty said his opponent is really the candidate of insiders.

Beatty, a former Army Delta Force officer, said Ogonowski is a "puppet" whose strings are being pulled in Washington.
Ogonowski, a former Air Force officer, shrugged off Beatty's comment. The hay farmer said the idea that he's a career politician is "funny."

Ogonowski narrowly lost a Congressional race to a well-funded Niki Tsongas last fall.

And Beatty made waves when he reported raising $1 million between March 2007 and March 2008.

Kerry has $9 million in his campaign account, far eclipsing both rivals.

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/16009990/detail.html


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## Tuna (Jun 1, 2006)

anyone who runs against kerry will get my vote.


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## Guest (Apr 27, 2008)

Mr. Flatbed,

Thanks for your very intelligent and mature response to my reply. I look forward to your future political analysis. For the record, I have never cast a vote for Sen. Kennedy.

Neithier one of these guys will come close to beating Kerry. They should be running for the State Senate not the US Senate. Both of them lost races for the US House so now they think the can be elected state wide. That's why the Republican party is such a joke in this state, all the candidates think they are to good for local elective office.

George W. Bush will go down in history as the worst president in our lifetime.


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

masscopguy said:


> Mr. Flatbed,
> 
> Thanks for your very intelligent and mature response to my reply. I look forward to your future political analysis. For the record, I have never cast a vote for Sen. Kennedy.
> 
> ...


Dream on little broomstick cowboy

Well I never voted for a TRAITOR which Kerry is in my book and in the book of most of the nam veterans in MA.
He is a LIAR about his military record and about just about everything else
he quotes with his dribble.
A Kerry or Kennedy will never get a vote from me,I would rather vote for a
monkey swinging from a tree than a TRAITOR or MURDERER.
The only joke that I can see is someone who would vote for a DUMMYCRAT.


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## Guest (Apr 27, 2008)

masscopguy said:


> Neithier one of these guys will come close to beating Kerry. They should be running for the State Senate not the US Senate. Both of them lost races for the US House so now they think the can be elected state wide. That's why the Republican party is such a joke in this state, all the candidates think they are to good for local elective office.


Mister Political Science major,

In case you didn't notice, the three elected governors of Massachusetts before Deval Patrick were Republican. If that isn't a statewide office, please tell me what is.



masscopguy said:


> George W. Bush will go down in history as the worst president in our lifetime.


You forgot to mention his role in planning 9/11.


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## Guest (Apr 27, 2008)

Both Bill Weld and Mitt Romney had 3 things going for them that these two guys don't. 1. very large personal fortunes 2.They were not running against an incumbent. 3.They both had opponents who had melt downs just before the election.

Before being elected Lt.Governor and Governor, Paul Cellucci was a Hudson Selectman and spent 10 years in the State Senate. Before being elected Lt. Governor, Jane Swift spent 6 years in the State Senate and 6 years working as an aid to the Senator she succeeded, Peter Webber. 

The last two Republicans elected to Congress, Torkilson and Blute both served in the State Legislature. Before them, Silvo Conte and Paul Cronin (the only guy besides Bush to defeat Kerry) were State Reps and Margaret Heckler served on the Governors Council.

With the exception of John Tierney who was an Asst. DA and Jim McGovern who worked for Joe Moakley for years, every member of the Massachusetts US House delegation held lower office before going to Washington.

You can jump up and down all you wan't but John Kerry, who was in Vietnam while Bush was playing fly boy in Alabama, will be our US Senator until he decides to quit. Just ask Bill Weld what it is like to run against Kerry in Massachusetts.

BTW, my degrees are in Broadcast Journalism not Political Science.

I would never accuse Bush of planning 9/11 becasue he isn't capable of planning a one car funneral.


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*Ogonowski falls short on signature deadline*

By Frank Phillips

Globe Staff / May 28, 2008

When the deadline for certification passed yesterday, Jim Ogonowski, the Republican leadership's choice to challenge US Senator John F. Kerry, was 82 signatures short of qualifying for the GOP primary ballot, according to the state's central voter registry.


But Ogonowski's campaign aides contend there are enough certified signatures at various town offices around the state not filed yet on the computerized registry to put him across the 10,000 threshold.
Local election clerks were legally required to finish their certifications yesterday. The majority of those clerks have shipped their results to the secretary of state's office via computer, but some may still be submitting the certifications by hand.
Each campaign has until Tuesday, June 3, to deliver final signature papers to the secretary of state's office.
"We are confident that we have the required amount of signatures," said Alicia Preston, Ogonowski's press secretary.
Even if Ogonowski does get the 82 signatures he needs, his fight probably is not over.
Election specialists say he will not have the needed cushion of extra signatures to insulate himself from legal challenges.
Ogonowski's only primary opponent, Jeff Beatty, is expected to challenge the validity of his signatures before the ballot law commission.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/05/28/ogonowski_falls_short_on_signature_deadline/


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