Does Scott Brown’s Fox News Gig Kill His Chances at Governor?
Within minutes of the announcement that Scott Brown will become a paid contributor to Fox News—he makes his big debut tonight at 9 p.m. on Hannity—a consensus formed among the local politicos on Twitter . See if you can spot a pattern in the commentary:
No, it eliminates him as a candidate. @brianstelter: While Scott Brown mulls a run for Mass governor, Fox News is a high-profile platform…
— David S. Bernstein (@dbernstein) February 13, 2013
Interesting… not the move of a guy planning for a MA gov. run @joshtpm Scott Brown Joins Fox News As A Contributor livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/scott-br…
— Daniel Drezner (@dandrezner) February 13, 2013
To me, today’s news is that Scott Brown took himself out of the race for Governor. #MaPoli
— David Guarino (@davidguarino) February 13, 2013
They’re talking about a position as a contributor at Fox News like its some kind of sex scandal. It’s true—associating with the Evil Empire that is Roger Ailes’s 24-hour right-wing fun fest doesn’t seem like it would play well with the Massachusetts electorate. On the other hand, look at how Fox’s press release and Brown’s statement portray his planned role on the network:
“Senator Brown’s dedication to out-of-the box thinking on key issues makes him an important voice in the country and we are looking forward to his contributions across all FOX News platforms,” Shine said in the statement.
Of his role, Brown said in the statement: “I am looking forward to commenting on the issues of the day and challenging our elected officials to put our country’s needs first instead of their own partisan interests.”
They make it sound like Brown’s still looking to play the non-partisan independent thinker. If he pulls that off, and if he’s willing to disagree loudly with his compatriots there, well maybe it wouldn’t play so poorly here in true blue Massachusetts. Plus, it’d definitely make for some good television. On the other hand, maybe Brown is abandoning all hope of returning to office and cashing in on his role as a national personality. Still, let’s not go so far as to say that the Fox position automatically eliminates him from contention.
