Q&A #4 -- Flaherty Makeover?

"Mike" asks:

Michael Flaherty has gone through somewhat of a political makeover recently. He flipped his position on open government, the BU biolab, funding for street workers, charter schools, etc. Will he be able to reinvent himself successfully as a progressive?

I think this is a little unfair, but certainly Flaherty has, shall we say, "adapted" in some ways to fit the needs of the campaign. So has Menino, BTW, on some of the same issues.

I also think that Flaherty has a legitimate claim to being an ideological "progressive," by most definitions. What's tougher for him -- and arguably more important in this race -- is claiming to be a "progressive" reformer. That's the "political makeover" he's trying to accomplish: from City Hall insider to shake-things-up good-government change agent. His success in selling that reinvention remains to be seen.