BOSTON (AP) - Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick says national Republicans are bordering on "sedition" as they oppose his good friend and party ally President Barack Obama.
The Democrat on Monday decried criticism of his governing efforts during a forum for students at Suffolk University's Rappaport Center. But he says that "seems like child's play compared to what's going on in Washington."
He says partisanship in the capital "is almost at the level of sedition," or bordering on insurrection. He mocks Republicans by saying, "If the president says 'up,' we will say 'down,'" and refers to them as "folks who seem to be rooting for failure."
The governor later called his sedition comment a "rhetorical flourish" and explained his comments to reporters.
"I think that the number of people in the Grand Old Party who seem to be absolutely committed to saying 'no,' whenever he says 'yes,' no matter what it is, even if it's an idea that they came up with, is just extraordinary," Gov. Patrick said.
Jennifer Nassour, chairwoman of the Massachusetts state GOP, resonded, saying that "[a]pparently our First Amendment rights are only guaranteed if we agree with the tax-and-spend policies of Deval Patrick and Barack Obama."
She continued, "the governor should focus on the critical issues at hand, like (lowering) property taxes and controlling rampant spending, instead of defending his buddy President Obama."