Jason VelázquezPodcast (top-left-corner): Play in new window | Download
Yes, this is the Top Left Corner, Episode #82 to be exact. Today is Thursday, July 16, 2020, and I’m your host, Jay Velázquez — thanks for joining me for what’s going to be a great half hour.
The entirety of this episode will be spent getting to know Alex Morse, (website) primary challenger against U.S. Representative Richard Neal here in Massachusetts’ First Congressional District.
Before we get to that though, I want to let you know that, mostly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Greylock Glass has NO ADVERTISERS. That’s right. No sponsors. We have a couple dozen loyal members whose generosity covers the web hosting and other tech costs, and beyond that, I’m paying for it all out of pocket. I’m asking you, right now to becoming a member, either directly through this site or through our Patreon page. Links to both in the shownotes. The Berkshires deserves fiercely independent news and only you can make that happen. It takes mere moments to sign up, and you can do it while you listen the rest of the show, which begins right now.
So Alex Morse was the youngest person ever to have won the office of Mayor in the City of Holyoke, Mass., and he’s been favorably compared to other progressives who recently given the boot to centrist and right-leaning Democratic incumbents in the House.
Richard Neal, garnered notoriety most recently for his persistent refusal to meet with climate activists of the Sunrise Movement to urge him to join every other member of the Massachusetts Congressional Delegation in supporting the Green New Deal.
Listeners may recall that I interviewed Springfield attorney Tahirah Amatul-Wadud during her campaign to unseat Neal two years ago. At the time I invited the Congressman to come on the show and give his pitch for why he deserved another term. Well, the Greylock Glass is still…waiting…for Neal to RSVP. And actually, Richie? If you’re listening, consider that offer back in 2018 an open invitation. You just ring me up or shoot me an e-mail and we’ll set that interview right up.
Neal, now in his 16th term, first took his seat in Congress in 1989 — the same year that the New Kids On The Block released “Hangin’ Tough.” Okay. Alright. I’m sorry — that was all kinds of cruel and unusual. 1989 was ALSO the the year that Nine Inch Nails released Pretty Hate Machine, and I’ll drop a Spotify embed in the shownotes to help you delete that first song from your memory. In fact, after listening to this episode, why don’t you e-mail me with what YOU remember as either the best — or the worst — song of 1989.
Right now, let’s go to my conversation with Alex Morse, here on the Top Left Corner.
RELATED COVERAGE
from our colleagues at The Shoestring
May 6, 2020
Richard Neal, congressional leader in corporate PAC money, remains the only Mass holdout on Green New Deal.
Hey, wow, so what an interview, right? I love it when my guests make my job so easy. Actually, some times I don’t, since it makes it look like I didn’t actually have any questions prepared.
In any event, Alex Morse faces off against Richie Neal in the Massachusetts Democratic primary September 1st.
Voter Registration Deadline to vote in that contest is Saturday, August 22 8:00 p.m.
Early Voting: August 22 – Aug 28
Deadline to Request an Absentee Ballot:
Wed Aug 26, 2020 12:00 p.m.
Deadline to Return Completed Absentee Ballot:
Tue Sep 1, 2020 8:00 p.m.
Well, that is our show for the week!
