Rachel Maddow: Scott Brown Claim I'm Running for Office Not True

In a full-page ad in the Boston Globe, talk show host Rachel Maddow criticized Massachusetts Republican Senator Scott Brown for falsely claiming she has been tapped as the state's Democratic candidate for the 2012 senate race.

"I never said I was running against Scott Brown. The Massachusetts Democratic Party never asked me to run against Scott Brown. It's just not true. Honestly. I swear. No, really," Maddow said in the open letter.

The ad was a response to a fundraising email sent by Brown earlier this week in which he claimed that the Massachusetts "political machine" was trying to recruit the "liberal MSNBC anchor" to run against him. Maddow said the rumor had no merit and that Brown "never even tried to find out if it was true."

"Some like Rachel Maddow. I'm sure she's a nice person -- I just don't think America can afford her liberal politics. Rachel Maddow has a nightly platform to push her far-left agenda," Brown said in the email.

Maddow accuses Brown of fear-mongering and using a bogus threat "to try to scare donors into giving him more money."

She writes: "Do you remember when Mitt Romney ran for President after being our Governor and he went around the country insulting Massachusetts, talking about what an awful state we are? To have our new Senator raising money around the country by saying how "terrible" one of his Massachusetts constituents is, kind of feels the same way to me."

In addition to calling Brown's loyalty to his home state into question, Maddow berated him for transforming into just another Washington conservative who invents "scary fake threats to run against."

As any good talk-show host would, Maddow ended the letter by challenging Scott Brown to appear on her show, something he has thus far refused to do. "Maybe he'll change his mind -- I hope he does," she wrote.

Brown adviser Eric Fehrnstrom e-mailed a response to the ad to Hotsheet.

"It was an open secret that the Democrats were trying to recruit Rachel Maddow to run against Scott Brown in 2012," he said. "Now that she's said no, I'm sure they'll scurry around looking for someone else. Maybe Keith Olbermann's available."

Scott Brown Calls Obama Rhetoric "Inappropriate"

[lucilioness]

I KNOW RACHAEL IS NOT RUNNING AGAINST SCOTT BROWN, BUT IF SHE WAS, SHE'D EASILY TOPPLE HIM. SHE'S AN INTELLIGENT, GIFTED ORATOR, WHO KNOWS WHAT SHE'S TALKING ABOUT. HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE THE DECIDING VOTE TO DEFEAT HEALTHCARE REFORM. THEN, HE JUMPED OUT OF HIS TRUCK AND OPENED HIS MOUTH AND FAILED MISERABLY. RACHAEL CAN RUN CIRCLES AROUND MOST OF THE SEASONED, VETERAN SENATORS IN WASHINGTON. BUSH JR. WON TWO TERMS IN OFFICE. SARAH FAILIN WAS ON THE REPUBLICAN TICKET FOR VICE PRESIDENT. AND SOME FOLKS WANT TO SAY THE RACHAEL IS NOT QUALIFED TO RUN FOR OFFICE. REPUBLICANS, BE FOR
REAL!!!!

[wfw3536]

I can't believe this story. If the democrats want to run her they would really be brain dead. I hope she runs as this will mean Scott
Brown's winning back his senate seat for 6 more years. Maybe she should work on her terrible ratings for her show.

[wervahi]

Thank God your not running. You are to smug.

[adolf2286]

Democrats will not waste time recruiting for anyone because Im sure that anyone there can beat Brown next year.

[pasmalltown]

Brown adviser Eric Fehrnstrom e-mailed a response to the ad to Hotsheet.

"It was an open secret that the Democrats were trying to recruit Rachel Maddow to run against Scott Brown in 2012," he said. "Now that she's said no, I'm sure they'll scurry around looking for someone else. Maybe Keith Olbermann's available."
_____________________________

You can argue whether or not you think Maddow is qualified or not qualified to run against Brown, but the fact remains that she isn't. And this glib email from Fehrnstrom tells me the Brown camp was never really serious about their claim. Afterall, what the hay is an "open secret"? Either they are covering up a mistake or they just threw this out to "attract some political attention" for the freshman Senator. It would seem this political ploy was not entirely unsuccessful, all be it completely lame............... If Brown's camp continues along these lines more people will see that Brown is more suited to center folds than the center of serious political attention.

[pasmalltown]

The "fact" is that she stated she is not running against Brown, so trying to determine who is better qualified for this Senate seat, at least at this point in time, appears to be moot. Who cares if "both" are beyond eligible? It doesn't matter as Maddow stated she is not running against Brown. And how did Ann Coulter get into your reply? I have no love for her or her politics, yet maybe I missing something here, has she thrown her "hat" into ring in MA?

[pasmalltown]

I'd like to "qualify" my use of "moot", I use in the sense that it is "debatable". Discussing who is better qualified for this Senate seat, Brown or Maddow, is "debatable" because Maddow said she is not running against Brown. Why argue about something that(probably) will not happen? I am sorry if my use of words lead you believe that I was implying that either Maddow or Brown, or both were not "qualified". I was not, I'm not "qualified" to do that(nor do I profess to have an opinion one way or the other about their "qualifications"). But you lost me when you threw Ann Coulter into your comments, she wasn't mentioned in this article at all.....

Along a slightly different line of discussion, What exactly did Fehrnstrom mean when he used the phrase, "open secret"?

[RunLoganRun]

Darn, I was hoping she would run so I would not have to see her snickering or hear her opinionated rhetoric along with those other Liberal boneheads on MSNBC every night while I'm surfing the news channels. Thank goodness my channel clicker works. They all Lie at some point. More so if they have an agenda.
She would fit right in with Pelosi and her posse.

[starleo146]

Her doctorate in politics is more of a qualification than being a medical doctor. At least she doesn't see Russia from her house. I would love to put her up against Palin, Maddow would eat her alive. She is very intelligent. What degrees does Palin have????

[starving1968-3]

by fairfaxjoe March 26, 2010 5:27 PM EDT
She has a PHD? Pilled High and Deep?






Actually she's a Rhodes scholar as well.

It's no wonder conservatives decry education with people as smart as her on the other side.

[ll2owt]

this "brownie" is the MALE counterpart of sarry palin..both dumba$$es. they had to teach both of them to eat.

[thebob-bob]

Come on Rachel, he's a Republican!! Of course he lied! Bush lied about Iraq, there were no WMDs. Republicans lied about health care reform, pretty much their own proposals all of a sudden became Tyrannical Socialism. Cantor lied about his office being shot at, the police told him it was a stray bullet before he got up there and said it.

Fear, Hatred, Distortion, Distraction and Division is all they have to offer.

[tonyatq]

That's Scott Brown fear because he knows he can't beat the queen liberal in a liberal state Massachusetts. RUN RACHEL RUN!

[starving1968-3]

He barely squeaked by the worst of the worst that the democrats had to offer!! Someone as smart as Maddow would CRUSH him by 20+ points or more!!