An Old Post: Polls Closed, Republicans Confident, Doug Flutie Playing Drums
BOSTON – (Note: This post was written when the polls closed, but the Internet connection at Brown headquarters decided to collapse. So rather than just scrap it, here it is.) Inside Scott Brown headquarters listening to Boston's "More Than A Feeling" on the PA; a perfectly horrid song from a band that's actually from Massachusetts (unlike The Standells, whose "Dirty Water (Boston You're My Home)" masked the terrible shame that the band was actually from California). But the mixtape is off, the polls are closed, and Doug Flutie, the Boston College and CFL great, is playing a cover of "We're an American Band" with his gang of bearded brothers.
But one thing is becoming increasingly clear canvassing the crowd: If this ends in defeat for the Brown campaign–and all of the chatter, both from Democrats and Republicans, suggests that won't happen—I am girding myself for the largest mass suicide since Jonestown. But very preliminary reports suggest a Brown edge (52 percent) and incredibly strong showings in places like Marshfield, Danvers, and Ashland (bellweather!). A GOP staffer forwards this, from Boston.com:
The mood at the Coakley party is subdued. A few dozen people are snacking on hors d'oeuvres and checking their Blackberries. 8:10.
Between chants for Mitt Romney and photo ops with local conservative talker Jay Severin, a rather charmless chappy who was recently suspended after identifying Mexico's two largest exports as "women with mustaches and VD," the assembled are chugging down $7 beers and telling each other that their candidate is going to win by 10 points. The two things this room is not lacking for: confidence and washed up sports stars.
I will update throughout the night, though make sure to also check out libertarian wunderkind John Vaught LaBeaume's blogging over at the Washington Examiner, also here at the Brown party.
UPDATE: Internet was down at Brown HQ, so now you all know that Coakley conceded and you can't get LaBeaume's blog posts either. An ecstatic crowd is breaking out into chants of "seat him now" and "John Kerry's next." More coming—fascinating analysis of which towns surprised and why! Sen. Brown's thrilling victory speech, overflowing with truck gags!—when this is all sorted.
l Brown crowd chanting "na-na-na-na, hey, hey, hey, goodbye." Even in political matters, the people of Massachusetts react as if they won the ALCS.