Governor Charlie Baker will deliver his annual State of the Commonwealth address this evening against a very different backdrop than last year's, when he lead the speech with declaring victory over vaping. This year, the coronavirus pandemic has upended nearly every sector and industry in the state and forced the Republican governor to make difficult policy choices. Jon Keller, WBZ-TV Political Analyst, says the optics will also be a big departure for Baker, as he will deliver the speech alone in his office and not in front of a joint session of legislators.
“It takes away something that has really benefited Baker: the annual image of being pretty warmly embraced by the overwhelmingly Democratic legislature,” he told host Joe Mathieu on GBH's Morning Edition today, adding that the “bucolic bipartisan atmosphere” of the Baker era, a contrast from gridlock in Washington, is exactly what voters want right now. Those optics will also “convey a sense of how lonely it is to be the governor these days,” Keller said.
Keller noted that Baker’s approval ratings have dipped slightly, but have "defied gravity" and still remained high throughout the pandemic. Baker’s best bet for a successful address this evening, according to Keller, is to stress his bipartisanship efforts while recognizing the dire and somber state of the pandemic. “I would point to the police reform bill as something that’s unprecedented and represented a difficult meeting of the minds on Beacon Hill,” Keller said about the bill, which will establish a new oversight board for law enforcement in the state.
Watch: What should Governor Baker say in his annual State of the Commonwealth address?
Baker is up for re-election in 2022, and Keller said that now is an apt time for Baker to make his case before Democrats like Attorney General Maura Healey and former Congressman Joe Kennedy III jump into the gubernatorial race. “He [Baker] needs to make a case right now for why his brand of governance is the way to go forward,” Keller said.
With numerous challenges facing the state in healthcare, economic recovery, higher education, tourism, and transportation, Keller said that Baker has an opportunity to show he’s still the right person for the job. “Baker’s best case to make is: ‘Look, I’ve proven I can work in a bipartisan way and that’s going to be needed more than ever going forward,’” Keller said. “‘Don’t throw me overboard now.’”
