Brown Promises His Upset Will Be The First Of Many

In his victory speech Tuesday night, the new senator-elect from Massachusetts said something that would sound very unusual coming from most winning politicians in this liberal state.

Scott Brown told his supporters at the Park Plaza Hotel that Democrats — which he called "the machine" — should be worried.

"For them, it's just the beginning of an election year filled with many, many surprises, I can tell you that," he said to applause. "They will be challenged again and again across this great land, and when there's trouble in Massachusetts, rest assured there's trouble everywhere, and they know it."

In a victory that has changed the political landscape in the state and in Washington, Brown became the first Republican to represent Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate since 1979. He pulled one of the biggest upsets in state history by beating his Democratic opponent, Martha Coakley, 52 percent to 47 percent.

One powerful congressional Democrat said Tuesday night that Brown's election signals an end to the Democrats' current proposal to expand health care coverage. In a written statement, Congressman Barney Frank said "the majority in Congress must make no effort to bypass the election results."

Had Coakley won, Frank said he believes the House and Senate could have worked out a compromise. But, he said, "respect for democratic procedures must rule out any effort to pass a health care bill as if the Massachusetts election had not happened."