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Sen. Brown Says He’s ‘Not Going to Beat Up on Job Creators’

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Asked about Elizabeth Warren's entry into the race against him, U.S. Sen. Scott Brown said Wednesday that he's "not going to beat up on job creators."

On Wednesday, Brown's campaign manager, Jim Barnett, sent out an email to Brown supporters using a video of Warren to raise money.

In the video, Warren says: "There's nobody in this country who got rich on his own. Nobody. You built a factory. Good for you. But I want to be clear. You moved your goods to market on the roads the rest of us paid for. You hired workers the rest of us paid to educate. You were safe in your factory because of police forces and fire forces that the rest of us paid for. "

The video has gone viral on Twitter and YouTube among Democrats. Now, Brown's campaign is trying to use it to his advantage.

Brown was addressing the Watertown/Belmont Chamber of Commerce. He spoke about his life in Washington, telling the audience that he's the first senator to vote every day. He said there's no question how he votes, because he reads the bills.

He told the audience that after doing battle on the Senate floor with another senator, he wants to be able to go for a beer or out for dinner or for a jog with the senator, but, he says, that kind of civility is missing in Washington.

Brown joked that "there are some good people in Washington." He mentioned several Democratic senators with whom he enjoys working: Kay Hagan of North Carolina, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Robert Casey of Pennsylvania and Mark Warner of Virginia.

On the Republican side, Brown said he and John Thune of South Dakota are "inseparable." He also praised a group of Republican freshmen such as himself, whom he called "young and hard-working:" Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, Patrick Toomey of Pennsylvania, Marco Rubio of Florida and Rob Portman of Ohio.

Brown also toured East Boston with former Massachusetts Senate President Robert Travaglini, his former colleague. Before being elected to the U.S. Senate, Brown was a state senator from Wrentham. An aide said Brown and Travaglini like each other, and Brown wants to get to know East Boston.

Brown has been praised for his frequent appearances in Boston by Mayor Thomas Menino. Though his Democratic rival, Martha Coakley, won Boston in the special election last year, Brown carried many of Boston's neighborhoods.

Brown also immersed himself in a growing feud between Gov. Deval Patrick and three Republican sheriffs over a program run by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement called Secure Communities.

Under the program, the FBI shares fingerprints with ICE, which can then deport criminal immigrants who are in the country illegally.

Patrick has refused to let Massachusetts join the program. On Wednesday, Brown wrote a letter to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano asking her to force the state to join the program.

This article was originally published on September 28, 2011.

This program aired on September 28, 2011.

Headshot of Fred Thys

Fred Thys Reporter
Fred Thys reported on politics and higher education for WBUR.

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