Welcome to 201k.com - A Commonwealth Perspective.

Stop apologizing.

That Benjamin LaGuer turned out to be guilty does not change the fact that their are myriad legitimate issues concerning the use and availability of DNA evidence. We live in a acountry in which an entire state has suspended their capital punishment program owing to its Republican governor's concerns about the accuracy of the convictions.

And you should have the courage of yours.

Apologizing makes you look weak and ashamed of positions you have taken in the past. It also takes attention away from the real issues at stake in this election, which Kerry Healey is understandably eager to avoid. If you must respond to Healey's slimeball tactics, challenge her "tough on crime" stance as one that oversteps constitutional safeguards and the Bill of Rights. You should remind voters that being tough on crime does not mean that we should ignore the constitutional provisions of the presumption of innocence, the right to a fair and speedy trial, or prohibitions against cruel and unusual punishment. Healey apparently has no problems violating the voters' rights to pursue a totalitarian "tough on crime" platform, and no doubt lauded the recent republican legislation that virtually eliminates habeus corpus, the backbone of our society of laws.

Hit her back.

When you've finished the counterattack, remind voters that this is all nothing but a way for Healey to avoid the real issues that voters in Commonwealth are concerned about - health care, repairing the crumbling infrastructure, assisting cash-strapped municipalities, and improving security for our ports, water supplies, mass transit systems, and so on.

And please, please, quit saying, "with all due respect to the Lt. Governor." Given her tactics, Healey is not due any respect from anyone, let alone the target of her smear campaign.