Balancing Act

Martha Coakley finds herself in the following odd position: the standard Democratic brand is taking a beating even in Massachusetts, but her biggest advantage may be the appeal to Democratic loyalty. As Chris Cillizza notes, Coakley's campaign ads do not emphasize her party affiliation. So she may be trying to differentiate herself from national Democrats. However, the whole "save-Ted-Kennedy's-seat" argument seems to be premised on the fact that Coakley will indeed be just another (albeit very left-wing) Democratic senator. The latter argument undercuts the former, so she needs to make them to different audiences.