Meet the brand new Josh Kraft: Actual property mogul and political insider Alan Leventhal.
Like Kraft, the failed candidate for Boston mayor, Leventhal is a rich philanthropist who’s out of contact with unusual voters. That at all times bodes effectively.
How a lot additional out of contact are you able to be when your most up-to-date job was ambassador to Denmark?
The 73-year-old Leventhal – appointed to the Denmark submit by his buddy Joe Biden – is now deluded into considering he can run a profitable unbiased marketing campaign for governor in opposition to incumbent Democrat Maura Healey and two Republican candidates.
Similar to Kraft – son of Patriots proprietor Robert Kraft – was deluded into considering he may beat incumbent Michelle Wu.
Leventhal, like Josh Kraft, has a strong, well-known father, Norman Leventhal, the late actual property magnate who has a park named after him in Put up Workplace Sq..
And like Kraft, Leventhal would run as a first-time candidate with no expertise working campaigns – which is at all times an indication of a bust.
Leventhal, a high donor to Biden and different Democrats, might run as an unbiased as a result of these sorts of campaigns have gone over so effectively in Massachusetts prior to now.
Simply ask former State Treasurer Tim Cahill, who ran as an unbiased in 2010 and bought 8% of the vote, simply sufficient to maintain Republican Charlie Baker out of the Nook Workplace.
Leventhal can be fortunate to get 8% in 2026.
Alan Leventhal reportedly is contemplating hiring political svengali Doug Rubin as his high guide, as a result of Rubin has been so profitable these days working campaigns, like that of failed U.S. Senate candidate Steve Pagliuca, and failed presidential candidate Tom Steyer.
Rubin is sensible sufficient to know Leventhal would by no means win, but it surely’s powerful to show down that massive paycheck.
The fact is Leventhal’s nascent marketing campaign might be a trial balloon that may pop.
However within the occasion he does run, Leventhal can be weak to criticism that he’s beholden to particular pursuits on Beacon Hill like the true property trade.
It’s much like the playbook Wu ran in opposition to Kraft, portraying him as a wealthy out of towner who can be beholden to billionaires and President Donald Trump.
Leventhal would additionally undoubtedly be tagged by Republicans for serving to fund a brilliant PAC backing Biden, Unite the Nation.
He donated $50,000 to Unite the Nation in 2020 and $250,000 to the tremendous PAC in 2019, in response to data.
How do you run on transparency and good authorities when you will have been a significant donor to tremendous PACs?
Josh Kraft was keen on tremendous PACs, too, having been the beneficiary of a brilliant PAC group backing his mayoral marketing campaign.
All it did was give Wu extra ammo to assault his marketing campaign, and little doubt Healey will do the identical factor.
Good luck, Mr. Leventhal. Perhaps you must ask your PR man, George Regan, how simple it was to knock off Michelle Wu.
