Every baseball fan loves statistics, but there are no good statistics for judging the performance of legislators. One of the few statistics available is percentage of roll call votes missed, so that number takes on an outsize importance. I have worked hard to maintain a near perfect voting record in all my voting roles — as a citizen, as a Town Meeting member, as a Selectman, as a State Representative and as a Senator.
However, on July 30, I chose to attend an important meeting outside the State House in my role as Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary, even though I knew it would cause me to miss several hours of busy roll call voting. As a result, my stat for this year so far is the worst in the Senate — an abysmal 64.2% through July 30. The only votes I missed were on that day, but it looks bad. It is a token of my commitment to my job that I made this choice — doing the most valuable thing instead of the thing that looks best.
July 30 was the last day before the summer break. The Governor had vetoed a number of line items in the budget and the main agenda for the day was to cast dozens of roll call votes overriding those vetoes in quick succession. Generally, legislative leadership does not take up veto overrides unless they are certain they have the votes they need. The overrides were all expected to be heavily lop-sided and my vote would make no difference in the outcome.
The Massachusetts District Attorneys Association was also holding its summer meeting on that date. This was a special opportunity to sit down with the District Attorneys and hear their perceptions and concerns about legislation pending before the joint Committee on the Judiciary.
The voting agenda for the day included some potentially controversial issues in addition to the routine overrides. I coordinated with the Senate President to assure that those issues were voted on or otherwise resolved earlier in the day. Knowing that nothing controversial remained on the agenda, I announced on the floor that I was departing for the meeting and left the State House at 4PM. I returned to the State House at 10:30PM. By then the Senate had adjourned, so I missed 57 routine roll calls in the hours after 4PM. Afterwards, I submitted a statement for the record indicating how I would have voted on each of the roll calls that I missed.
Chairing a legislative committee is a great opportunity for leadership and service to the Commonwealth. Doing the job well means that you reach out to key constituencies relevant to your committee and understand their needs and concerns. I spend much of my time these days meeting with people involved in the criminal justice process — everyone from victims to ex-prisoners. I also spend a lot of time visiting courts, prisons and programs. I frequently travel long distances for these meetings. Each one of these meetings is valuable and hard to arrange.
I wanted to let people know the story behind the statistic.
Will,
U do a great job. I am grateful 4 ur service.
DeAnn
No problem in my mind, Will. Keep up
The good work
Will, you’re doing a great job while being in one place at one time. What more could one ask? Thanks for your service,
Andrei
I trust your integrity and commitment to public service.
thank you
Thanks so much for this note. It reinforces my inclination to be skeptical of “facts” presented by an opponent without also hearing the other side of the story. Makes it hard to ferret out the truth, if there is one. Democracy is not easy, though it’s usually worth the effort.
Hello
I usually shy away from politics. And pretty green with it all. The whole dysfunction in congress and the house of reps, makes one sick and wishing for something different from the OLD BOY system.
Although I dont read all your emails, I at least brose through them. I think your going a great Job reaching out to the general public, and keeping us current. More politicians should follow your example.
Dear Senator Brownsberger,
Benjamin Disraeli: “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.
You do a wonderful job for your constituents.
Thank you.
Will, I applaud the
respect for constituents that your note represents.
It is also fascinating to get some insight into “day in the life of a committed legislator”.
Carry on-
Sue S.
Your reputation as committed and dependable is solid with people who know you, but its a nice courtesy that you followed up with this brief.
The challenge is for voters who only know you from a stat.
Will ,
Though we don’t always walk down the same path I will never question your dedication to your job. Keep up the good work!
Jack
We support you not because of your stats but because you think and vote in a way of which we highly approve. Fortunately, there are no sportscasters with more interest in themselves than the game they’re covering who can keep the camera on themselves by quoting the kind of statistics that computers have enabled. So don’t worry, keep up your excellent work, and thanks for representing us so well!
Thanks for the explanation Will
You are doing great work.
You made the right choice, Will. Thanks.
We all need to make difficult decisions regarding conflicting scheduling issues. You were faced with one and made a decision which you thought was correct. It seems like it was one which was well thought-out. You have been a dedicated elected official committed to the needs of not only the people who elected you but also to all of the citizens of the Commonwealth.
No need to apologize for using your judgment in determining priorities. I trust your decision.
Your doing a great job. I see no problem here. Thanks much for the heads up!
Senator Brownsberger, chairing the Senate Joint Committee on the Judiciary is a tough responsibility. You have done well and I am certain you will continue to do well. Thank you for the note.
Your honesty is commendable! Your party is deplorable!m
Cheers!!
Thanks for the rational makes sense to me
Keep up the good work
Gene
Will, no one does transparency better! Thank for the update. Thanks for being committed to your constituents and committee members and those who matter most. Agreed, people can choose to interpret reported data on only one level. We all need to stay vigilant and seek the fuller story before making decisions.
You’re doing a great job, Will! Keep up the good work.
Deb
I don’t care about arbitrary calculations. I am convinced whatever you decide to do for our
State is always for the best.
I don’t need statistics to confirm my trust in you.
Thank you for your service.
Nicole
Will you are the best. Hard to be in two places at once. As usual your transparency is admirable.
Lynn
Good for you, Will. Keep up the good work.
Will. You did the right thing. You are still batting up there with Ted Williams in my opinion even though you missed those meaningless votes. In my opinion,it would have been wrong as Chair of Judiciary to miss that meeting.
Will your voting track record is a one time event it is not important. If your voting track record becomes a trend then your constituents should become concerned
Einstein said it best. Not everything that counts can be counted. And not everything that can be counted counts.
You lost me when you said that your vote would not make a difference. The reason was that they had enough votes to pass the bills. That is sad. What you are saying is that bills do not go for a vote unless the Speaker or President have the votes to pass a bill even if it is a bad bill. You should do something about that. If that is what is happening maybe we should have term limits. Wait, we did have term limits but DeLeo changed that. It is called public service. It is not called career opportunity.
I wouldn’t look at as a term limits issue, John.
We have a budget with hundreds of line items in and we just have a very cumbersome process where every branch can adjust any of those items. The Governor can make dozens or hundreds of tweaks to the budget and we have to vote on each one of those by roll call if we wish to enforce the decisions we made earlier in the process. That can take hours and hours, so it is appropriate for leadership to streamline that voting through a negotiation to the extent possible.
We might be able to rethink cumbersome nature of the budget process, but that’s the issue in this case.
Thanks for the note, Will. It’s good that you filled us in on your reasoning – which makes good sense.
Best,
Lee
Thank you, Will, for your excellence.
Dear Senator Brownsberger,
You are to be praised for writing such a frank letter and explaining how you prioritized your time and your votes. I am very grateful for the effort and work you do, particularly keeping a close watch on Gov. Baker who has indicated a desire to eliminate some regulatory safeguards. You have my continuing support!
Sincerely,
Barbara Cullen
Will, you are the most impressive representative that we could have. Thank you for taking the time to send this email.
Best wishes,
Marilyn
Your honest came through the very first time we spoke. Since then you have earned my trust. That has not changed.
Aldwin
Hi Will,
Thanks for giving us the background and context. I admit I often see statistics and make a decision from them without knowing how they are compile – my bad. I’ve always enjoyed your columns and appreciate your looking at the long and the big picture. I’m glad you are there, and just wish I was in your district!
cheers,
MIke
I forgive you Will! It sounds like you did all the right things under the circumstances.
Will, you clearly thought the situation through and made the right decision, even it it wasn’t politically expedient. That’s what I would have hoped you would do.
And following up with this communication helps us understand–also the right thing to do.
Well done.
Will,
Your missing votes sounds very justifiable. There must be other legislators whose official duties cause them to miss votes, also. Why isn’t there a third way of recording votes other than “Yes” or “No” to account for
absences due to performing other legislative duties? Or allowing you to call in your vote when you working on
legislative business? could you arrange to be called when a vote is occurring?
Anne Covino Goldenberg
It happens. I’m not sure I would change the voting system. It’s designed above all to be accurate.
Placing substance over form was the professional way to deal with the conflict and you chose correctly. I understand that if there had been a controversial roll call in which your vote would have made the difference, you might have chosen otherwise.
With all best wishes for continued success,
~~Steve
Thank you for you continued service.
Will, thanks for the explanation. I appreciate all you do.
Tony
I always appreciate your clear, honest communication and your dedication to your job and your constituents. Thank you for your explanation and your service.
You made the correct choice
Keep up the dedicated service! It is appreciated.
Will – Thank you for your excellent representation, presentations, and informed judgment on the issues. Your thoughtful work – and persistence in arriving at solutions – are greatly appreciated.
All the best,
Betsy Sharawara
Will, I read all the comments that you received> I second every one of them.
Thank you!
I am totally confident that you made the right decisions. Thank you Senator!
Jim Hartmann
Thank you for letting us know the reason for your bad stat. I am confident you made the right decision and always act in the best interests of your constituents.
You did the right thing, of course, by your action and the right thing to explain why and the important and positive consequences resulting. Keep up your excellent performance!!
Dear Will,
I read your penance. Say three Our Father’s and three Hail Mary’s and you shall be justly absolved.
Sincerely,
David Benoit
Will, this is commendable. You are an amazing public servant.
Your devotion to your job and your integrity
Should be a model for every legislator to
emulate.
Howard
As Lynn Bishop said “hard to be in two places at once”. However if you could I would be glad to vote for you twice.
Our President said his terms would be transparent, he should look at your record and see what transparency is all about.
Continued success.
Richard B. Sullivan
Two observations:
1) Needless to say, the next time the Herald runs an “expose” of legislators missing votes, they’ll say nothing about the reasoning you presented here.
2) Your explanation is a reminder that as tempting as it may be to take seemingly damning “facts” at face value, it is important to dig into the facts behind the facts and listen to explanations with an open mind. Not all is as it seems at first glance.
No one who knows your record of public service would doubt your dedication and conscientiousness!
thank you for your explanation and for your service- we who have been supporting you throughout your career are not surprised you did the right thing and continue to serve us very well
Transparency,wisdom, courage, untheatrical, focused – these are good deeds that should go UNpunished. You continue, unsurprisingly, to be my favorite politician. Keep on, stay healthy, and have some fun too. Best, J&C
We know you are doing a god job/
Pat n Burt
Thank you for the explanation
Thanks for the explanation, Will. You are still the Best.
Thanks for the explanation. It’s good to know you have good priorities.
Dear Will,
I appreciate your concern for accountability, and explanation. But even without it I would have known there must be a good reason for your absence.
Thanks for your service!
Tom Best
Will – Thanks once again for your outpouring of information – good or bad; however, always helpful and a positive boost to you.
Mark D’Andrea
19 Prospect
Thank you for your explanation.
Continue your work.
Thank you for representing us.
Maryann
Thank you for the explanation. Shows how statistics can mislead.
78 Westland Ave #406
Maybe a bad move, but you’re good guy and can recover. I suggest you may be getting bad advice from your team. You may want to fire a few people.
On the contrary, William. My people are great and this is a decision I made 100% by myself. It was the right thing and very worth it. I just want to make sure people understand it.
Will, you’ve got your priorities in the right place, and I’m not surprised. Thank goodness you’re not the typical small-minded politician, who I imagine is thinking, “Don’t work so hard, Will; you make the rest of us look bad.”
Dear Will,
You are unique in your ability to reach out and explain. You did the right thing. You often do. You act thoughtfully and remain true to your principles. That’s why I like you and vote for you.
Keep up the good work. All the best,
Nayla
It’s not the statistics that matter, just the knowledge that you are doing a good job and have many responsibilities.
Thank you.
Keep up the excellent work !
President San-Trump will need people like you.
Thanks for the clear explanation along with opening a window into what it means to be an effective Judiciary Chair.
Will,
I truly appreciate your taking the time to explain the situation as it happened.
Keep up the good work you have been doing for your constituents her in Massachusetts. Deciding one of two important places to be at the same time is tricky business and seems that you made the right call as far as I’m concerned.
I have no criticism of your decision.
What you describe are some of the system – antics that make folks so terribly cynical about the political and other bureaucratic processes: “Wait ’til the last minute, create a crisis, and leave everyone scrambling and confused.” I believe it’s often done on purpose. Just never know who to blame. Who set that night’s agenda??
I applaud your willingness to lower your filter and share your frustration with us. Be strong. We support you.
Thanks, Jeanne.
I appreciate the support.
I don’t mean to complain about the agenda — I don’t feel that anyone deliberately made thinks awkward. It was just one of those conflicts that emerged and I had to make a choice. Everyone helped me to minimize the extent of the conflict.
Senator,
I am glad you did what you did…the right thing.
Thank you.
Senator,
As former CO-President of ACNA, I am quite familiar with your commitment to the job and the daily efforts you expend for the folks you represent. And, I trust in your judgement on such things. So, my support of you is not affected at all by this statistic. The great work you have done clearly out weighs this statistic.
Best regards,
Richard
Thank you for this update and explanation. I wish all our representatives had your candor as well as your sensitivity to dangerous interpretations of seemingly misleading statistics.
Thanks for everything you do for your constituents.
Peter Papesch, AIA
Please stand firm and comforted in your deliberative approach to your Senate position and to advancing wisdom and justice in the Commonwealth. Your devotees will remember your concern about this statistic as we gear up for your next campaign. With pride and dignity we will enable voters to understand the breadth, depth and longevity of your remarkable efforts and accomplishments. Flares ignited by blowhards quickly extinguish in the face of real accomplishment.
Will,
We know you and we know that stats don’t tell the whole truth, ever. Thank you for telling us the whole story. Important to communicate, and you do that.
Best wishes,
Deb Theodore
211 Belmont
49 Prince Street, J.P.02130
Thank you, Will, for your detailed “story behind” your voting absence and how those 57 roll calls affected your entire Senate voting record percentage. The choices you make have been consistent with the dedication my husband Victor and I have come to expect from you. You do the job well, and this story exemplifies one of many reasons we have and will continue to vote for and support you in the Senate.
I’ve actually been thinking about this note for a while and I still can’t quite formulate what I really want to say.
You do a good really good job, keep it up.
100 Brayton Road
So I have been meaning to comment on this. Thank you for clarifying. It is awfully hard when the media is looking for soundbytes to get them to drill down for the nuances in many issues. glad you can do that for them.
YOU ARE A VERY HONEST MAN TO LET YOUR SUPPORTERS KNOW WHAT HAPPENED. I ADMIRE YOU FOR THIS. YOU WILL ALWAYS HAVE MY SUPPORT AS I FEEL YOU HAVE DONE AND WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO MUCH FOR THE CITY OF BRIGHTON.