The Lord of Massachusetts

I think Gwen Ifill did a good job of moderating VeepDeb 2004, but she did ask John Edwards one question that struck me as silly:

As the vice president mentioned, John Kerry comes from the state of Massachusetts, which has taken as big a step as any state in the union to legalize gay marriage. Yet both you and Senator Kerry say you oppose it. Are you trying to have it both ways?

Huh? Is Kerry now responsible for every single thing that happens in Massachusetts? If so, I hope Ifill is giving him his due for the Red Sox. But really, Kerry didn't have anything to do with Massachusetts' court rulings on gay marriage.

If Kerry is responsible for every single thing that happens in the Bay State, isn't Bush responsible for every single thing that happens nationwide? I can imagine the debate questions:

Mr. President, you've made a shameless play for "security moms" with your claim that terrorists may attack schools in four swing states, yet American students recently plotted to attack schools in Texas and -- wait a minute -- Massachusetts? Well it looks like you and Senator Kerry both have some explaining to do.