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By Noah Bierman, Globe Staff SPRINGFIELD - After building questions about the durability of herSenate candidacy, Elizabeth Warren displayed brute strength todayby winning the endorsement of 96 percent of delegates to the stateDemocratic convention and blocking potential opponent MarisaDeFranco from the party s primary ballot. The win allows Warren to instead focus on Republican Senator ScottBrown in the general election. I d love to see some debates with Scott Brown, a bubblingWarren told reporters moments after her victory was announced. Let s get started on this. I m ready. DeFranco left the convention hall without a formal pressconference. Before the results were announced, and as it wasbecoming evident that she would not make the ballot, she said wouldnot commit to endorsing Warren. But she also seemed prepared to return to her North Shoreimmigration law practice. I m a real person with a real job, so I have other obligationsto take care of, said DeFranco. DeFranco submitted the 10,000 voter signatures needed to meet statequalifications for appearing on the Sept. 6 primary ballot, butunder party rules, she also needed to secure the vote of 15 percentof the convention delegates to qualify. Party officials said they could not recall such a large margin ofvictory in a two-person nominating contest. Addressing the delegates before the vote, Warren said Brown wouldrather attack her family than talk about his own voting record. Well I say this, if that s all you ve got, Scott Brown, I mready, the Harvard Law School professor said to sustainedapplause. And let me be clear: I am not backing down. I didn t get in thisrace to fold up for the first time I got punched, Warren said. Warren, who called Brown a Mitt Romney Republican and a WallStreet Republican, listed a series of votes the incumbent hadmade, including votes against a Democratic bill to prevent adoubling of student loan interest rates and in favor of big oilsubsidies. She also invoked the memory of the late Democratic Senator EdwardM. Kennedy, who for 47 years held the seat that Brown won in aspecial election in 2010. It s a long way from Ted Kennedy to Scott Brown, said Warren. In the days leading up to the convention, Warren made perhaps hermost concerted effort to address several weeks of questions abouther past claim of Native American heritage, which she has beenunable to formally document. First, Warren acknowledged that she had told Harvard Law School andher previous employer, the University of Pennsylvania, of herNative American heritage, but said she did so after she was hiredand that it had never been a factor in advancing her academiccareer. Brown has said the issue raises questions about Warren struthfulness. In a series of follow-up interviews, Warren provided more detailabout the family lore that had convinced her of Native Americanancestry. She said her mother and father had been forced to elopebecause of her mother s background in the Cherokee and Delawaretribes. Warren attributed the lag in her addressing the controversy toneeding more time to go back and recall details of events that hadoccurred decades ago. DeFranco had little name recognition and through the first quarterof the year had raised just over $41,000 for her campaign, comparedto the $15.8 million that Warren s campaign had pulled in. For those of you who know me I don t scare easily. I have aproven track record of ... taking on long odds and winning, saidDeFranco in asking for the votes of the delegates. Let s have a good and healthy primary and go after Scott Brown together, she said. We ll be stronger for it. Party Chairman John Walsh opened the convention with a coy jokefrom the podium, predicting we would send a strong woman to theUS Senate from Massachusetts. Peter Blute, deputy chairman of the Massachusetts Republican Party,panned the final vote, even though it mimicked the GOP s actiontwo years ago when it blocked Christy Mihos from appearing on the2010 gubernatorial ballot in favor of giving Charles Baker a clearshot against incumbent Governor Deval Patrick. They took the opportunity to snuff out a burgeoning campaignbecause they were afraid she might raise some uncomfortable issuesin a primary debate, said Blute. Labeling it a very thorough and complete slapdown of acandidate, Blute added: To me, it shows the power of the bigout-of-state money and interest groups that she has behind her. Hours earlier, Patrick gave the most fiery speech of the day,telling delegates it s time for Democrats to grow a backbone andstand up for what we believe. The governor said: Democrats, quit waiting for pundits andpollsters and economic indicators to tell us who the next presidentor senator or member of congress is going to be. We shape our ownfuture. The speech, similar to those he often delivers to party activistsacross the country, excited the thousands in the audience,prompting many to repeatedly stand and cheer. Patrick s speech was far more nationally oriented than those byother speakers, praising President Obama and criticizingRepublicans as unprincipled bullies, seeking power rather thanprinciple. He singled out his predecessor, Mitt Romney for what hecharacterized as bad economic stewardship. Patrick then exhorted Democrats to stand up for Obama. I for one will not let him be bullied out of office, he said. I m in for 2012, are you in? Most of the state s US House delegation also paid tribute toBarney Frank and John Olver, two retiring congressmen. They stood up every day for men and women in the Commonwealth whowanted the opportunity to succeed, said Representative WilliamKeating, a Bourne Democrat. Representative James P. McGovern of Worcester called Frank aDemocrat who strikes terror in the hearts of Republicans andalluded to the time the two men were arrested protesting thegenocide in Sudan, joking that Frank was a lot of fun in jail. In his tribute, Representative Edward J. Markey of Malden, the deanof the delegation, said, When they build a Mt. Rushmore forliberals, Barney Frank will be up there. Olver, who lives in nearby Amherst, gave a short speech, but Frankdid not appear on stage and was not evident in the convention hall.Also missing was Steve Lynch, the South Boston congressman who isthe state s most conservative Democrat. Material from The Associated Press was used in this report. NoahBierman can be reached at nbierman@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter@noahbierman. I am an expert from titaniumsheetplate.com, while we provides the quality product, such as China Zirconium Rod , Titanium Seamless Pipe Manufacturer, Titanium Anode Basket,and more.
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