In Politics, Image Counts–For Better and For Worse

Massachusetts Rep. Karyn Polito, right, with SPC board member Carol Chester.

A well-attended Dec. 9, 2008, meeting of the SPC began with a welcome from board member Deena Madnick, who also introduced a special, seasonal guest, Jean McMurray, executive director of the Worcester County Food Bank.

McMurray expressed her thanks to the group for their donations of food and monetary support. “This has become an annual tradition and we’re very grateful for your continuing support.” Acknowledging the support of government and work by the likes of the meeting’s guest speaker Rep. Karyn E. Polito, McMurray said that the Mass Emergency Food Assistance Program is getting $12 million from the state for four food banks. “Their help at a time like this is keeping us from having to go to the media to report that our shelves are empty.”

In her introduction of the keynote speaker, board member Carol Chester recalled how, as a reporter for the Shrewsbury Record weekly newspaper, she found Rep. Polito to be “always available and helpful.”

Chester outlined a few of the many committee positions held by Polito, who is assistant ranking minority member on the House Ways and Means Committee and also serves on the joint committees on Community Development and Small Business and Bonding, Capital Expenditures and State Assets, and Labor and Workforce Development, as well as the House Committee on Rules.

Polito began her talk by recognizing that, in this difficult year, it’s important for people to know they “have a safety net in place,” adding that groups like SPC offer support to help people “maintain a business, grow a business, and stay in business.”

Polito shared her insights on the recent election, discussing the factors in a voter’s choice. “By and large, the average voter isn’t super informed,” she said. Despite the record turnout in 2008, she wondered, “Were these voters really that much more informed?” Probably not, she speculated.

The focus, as always, is on appearance and connections. She pointed to the “sad reality” of an “election of sound bites, offering that many people probably remember the Tina Fey comic mimicry of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin better than they’ll recall Palin’s actual platform or comments. Polito held up a few magazine covers to illustrate points on how media manage–and manipulate–messages about candidates, especially focusing on gender-related images.

Rep. Polito addresses the SPC's December 2008 meeting.

Relating to her own political career, Polito shared some background: She entered public office at age 25 at a time when central Massachusetts was booming. From her first zoning board involvement to her status now, after eight years in the House of Representarives, she stressed a strong work ethic. “I’ve positioned myself as an individual thinker and voter. As a female and as a minority member of the legislature, I feel I’ve had to work harder.”

The lifelong Shrewsbury resident is the mother of two children, ages 5 and 3. As one of the rare Republicans on Beacon Hill, she said she relies on a laser-beam focus and carefully chooses what battles to fight. One of those battles is to end child abuse. She filed the bill known as Jessica’s Law, which seeks to protect children from sex offenders. The bill was hard fought and, although she did not win all the provisions she had sought, she marks its passage as a strong victory.

Polito expressed concern about the dearth of Republicans in the State House, citing a 9-to-one ratio of Democrats to GOP representatives. “Republicans are not being represented on Beacon Hill. This contributes to a breakdown of good government. Who’s holding them accountable? The two-party system is how the people are going to be best informed.”