An endorsement of importance

By Libby

As Super Tuesday looms large, this endorsement in Massachusetts carries some weight with me. My dear friend and former employer Tom Lesser has come out for Obama. I see in the local paper that "Lesser's law offices on Main Street are doubling as a local campaign headquarters where volunteers and paid Obama staffers have been busy working the phones, organizing and raising money."

I managed that law firm for almost 20 years and one of the things I loved about it was how involved and politically connected the partners were. We donated office space and staff time to many campaigns, both local and national, over my tenure and I have to admit I felt a twinge of regret in reading that they were in the thick of the race and I'm not there anymore.

Working in a law firm is generally a tedious business. Nobody gets up in the morning and says, "Geez, I feel so good, I think I'll call my lawyer." You're mainly dealing with people in crisis and believe me when I tell you it doesn't usually bring out the best in them. But I always thought the occassional high profile trials and especially the politicking, was the reward for slogging through the tedium. There's nothing quite like the excitement of organizing a political campaign.

I'll be watching the outcome there with the greatest of interest. Tom says western Mass is solid for Obama but the Beacon Hill crowd are going for Hillary. It's a classic matchup that I've been through many times and we've lost more often than we've won. Still, the Happy Valley has grown a lot thanks to a huge influx of urban refugees since I've been gone. They may have the numbers to tip the balance this time.

I'm still conflicted about who to vote for in the primary but the good news is since I don't have to vote until May, the question may be moot by then. Meanwhile, I suppose in my heart, I'll be cheering for Obama in Mass at least, so my friends can beat out the formidable Boston machine.